{
  "id": 16229749,
  "title": "Abandoned Popcorn Time apps had to be disabled to prevent a zombie army",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/23/abandoned-popcorn-time-apps-had-to-be-disabled-to-prevent-a-zombie",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-10-23T19:35:15.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Verge",
    "slug": "the-verge",
    "url": "https://www.theverge.com/tech/1017914/popcorn-time-piracy-botnet-avoided"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "What old and vulnerable software might be running on your PC right now? A report from Eye Security reveals an abandoned Popcorn Time app, known as the \"Netflix of Piracy,\" still poses a threat to millions of devices worldwide. Despite being developed years ago, the \"Time4Popcorn\" fork of Popcorn Time continues to install on Windows, macOS, and Android devices, waiting to be commandeered by a bot army. Researchers found the updater for this outdated software still in operation, communicating with now-defunct web domains through unsecured HTTP connections and employing an insecure version of Chrome. The threat is real, as the updater could have been exploited to install and execute arbitrary software, giving unauthorized parties control over affected devices. Eye Security's solution involved registering one of the domains and sending an update to disable the updater, mitigating the risk but sparking ethical debates. The researchers explain, \"The update process wasn't doing anything functional anyway, it was only creating risk for users.\" For Windows users, the fix involves stopping and disabling the service, while macOS users receive a shell script to halt the update. Android devices remain unaddressed, as user interaction is required to install the update. Eye Security had to adjust their update after it was flagged as malware by VirusTotal, allowing them to transfer the domains they used to the Shadowserver Foundation. The exact number of vulnerable devices remains unknown, but Eye Security confirms over 2 million update downloads by March.",
  "summary": "Remember Popcorn Time, the app that served as an easy-to-use front end for streaming torrents of movies and TV shows? Development of the MPAA's least-favorite app of the 2010s has been abandoned for years, but the \"Netflix of Piracy\" software is still installed on millions of devices that are just waiting to join a bot […]",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}