Latest Streaming Fraud Bust Emerges in Brazil—28M Fake Plays

Brazilian authorities have arrested and charged an individual for generating over 28 million fake plays on streaming services. The individual made over $65K from the fraud and over $400K in assets were seized by law enforcement.

Part of the broader Operation Out of Tune, the investigation was supported by IFPI, Pro-Música Brasil, and Brazilian anti-piracy body Association for the Protection of Phonographic Intellectual Rights (APDIF). The arrest was made in December by the Prosecutor’s Office of the State of Goias cybercrime unit, Cyber Gaeco.

The individual was arrested and charged for generating over 28 million fake plays on streaming services by uploading more than 500 fake tracks to Spotify. The investigation unearthed further copyright infringement: 36 tracks stolen from local composers via promotional WhatsApp groups. The tracks, alongside fake artist profiles, have been removed from Spotify at the request of the prosecutor’s office.

“Simply put, streaming manipulation of this nature is theft — stealing directly from artists and betraying fans,” said Victoria Oakley, CEO, IFPI. “We commend the actions of the State of Goias prosecutor’s cybercrime unit for their work in this case and will continue to work closely with local authorities in Brazil, but more broadly across the world, to ensure this illegal activity is stopped.”

“Stream manipulation is one of the biggest concerns of the music sector,” concluded Paulo Rosa, President, Pro-Música Brasil. “We applaud the Public Attorney’s Office of the State of Goias for this successful operation and will continue to work closely with Brazilian authorities to tackle these fraudulent practices.”

Interestingly, the use of generative artificial intelligence to generate music tracks was also identified during the investigation, but is not presently part of the criminal charges. However, that evidence may be brought into the case at a later stage. Generative AI continues to emerge as a strong tool for bad actors to create large bodies of content to use in stream manipulation, and the legality of its uses is still in infancy.