Android box ....vpm needed?

flat spot · World Chat Champion Joined: 29 Aug 2003 Karma :

So I've got myself an android box to go with my new TV, however I know if you download stuff from torrent sites your ip addy is visible to all which could potentially leave you open to people having a go at your comp.

I'm not exactly sure where android boxes look for their media but are they the same in that respect. I'm plugging it into the tv rather than a computer but not sure how they work exactly.

Anyway to discourage any shenanigans would it be better to run it through a vpm server?

owl · World Chat Champion Joined: 21 Oct 2016 Karma :

do you mean VPN by any chance?
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Observation is the greatest source of wisdom.

M.C · Super Spammer Joined: 29 Sep 2015 Karma :

You're being too paranoid. You use a VPN to get into blocked sites, luckily they provide a handy list telling you what all the good websites are: https://www.ukispcourtorders.co.uk/

flat spot · World Chat Champion Joined: 29 Aug 2003 Karma :

^^^ but isn't that the place I should be going for GOT etc?

Ste · Not Work Safe Joined: 01 Sep 2002 Karma :

Use https://unblocked.onl/ rather than a VPN.

Nobody is going to have a go at your computer because you're downloading a torrent.

Ste · Not Work Safe Joined: 01 Sep 2002 Karma :

If you get one of the TV boxes from CaNsA then you don't need to worry about such things.

flat spot · World Chat Champion Joined: 29 Aug 2003 Karma :

but I thought a VPN stopped folks seeing where you were downloading from. Does it do the same for streaming?

Ste · Not Work Safe Joined: 01 Sep 2002 Karma :

Nobody cares that you're downloading torrents.

A VPN means your web traffic goes via them, it's the same deal if you're downloading torrents, browsing the web, streaming stuff, etc etc etc. Your ISP can't see what you're actually doing, all that can seen is traffic to and from the VPN.

(you can be selective with what traffic goes via the VPN rather than putting everything through it)

M.C · Super Spammer Joined: 29 Sep 2015 Karma :

CaNsA · Super Spammer Joined: 02 Jan 2008 Karma :

Pjay · World Chat Champion Joined: 18 Jan 2016 Karma :

I wouldn't worry too much.
The laws about copyright theft in the UK are still based around Duplication and Distribution, which is why nobody has ever been bought to court for downloading/streaming only.
An android box does not store anything, let alone duplicate or distribute.
I'm not even sure they can make a specific law without making outlaws of us all.
For instance, if you download a movie on iplayer and someone else watches it, they would technically be watching a stolen movie. Then you have the issue of listening to someone elses CD they have playing, you are essentially listening to something that you haven't paid for but someone else is offering to your ears.
It's a very grey area and hard to pinpoint as being a crime, as the Movie companies tried hard to stop piracy on VHS, but this meant that anyone recording a TV show or a movie from a broadcast and watching it later would essentially be a pirate and be doing something illegal.
The day someone gets successfully prosecuted for just watching a pirated movie is the day to then look into a VPN. Until then, it's not worth the worry.