Study Highlights Cybersecurity Risks of Unauthorized Access to Copyright-Protected Content in Latin America

The Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE), the main coalition addressing copyright protection at international level, has recently published a report on the cybersecurity risks associated with unauthorized access to copyright-protected content in Latin American countries.

The study covered 6 regions and specifically looked at access to webpages, unauthorized streaming providers, and peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing networks. The findings show that streaming and P2P platforms pose the larger threats, with related cybersecurity risks being 131 times higher than with comparable services

The research concludes that users who access unauthorized materials are significantly more exposed to cybersecurity threats compared to people who use legitimate platforms. The associated risks include malware installation, phishing, financial fraud, account hijacking and theft of personal data. Overall, this points to the importance of upholding intellectual property rights (IPRs), not only for authors, but also for consumers themselves.