Warning email from Amazon

[simchris]

Merely speculating right now but their method of detection is either high volume of data, or that SF downloads audio and video separately instead of at once. Is it possible to instruct the server what your 'playback' specs are and download it as one file? Even at a slower rate, such as 2X instead of full speed?

Funnily enough I actually turn off 'turbo mode' for my downloads since it was slowing down my 1GB connection on my main PC, while I was trying to do something else. Turbo really takes over the connection on my Win11 Pro box.

I'm also using P+ via Amazon subscription (not trial), as the direct downloads were wonky. Amazon's pipes are just the best.

[MrGrackle]

Merely speculating right now but their method of detection is either high volume of data, or that SF downloads audio and video separately instead of at once. Is it possible to instruct the server what your 'playback' specs are and download it as one file? Even at a slower rate, such as 2X instead of full speed?

Was already mentioned that the SF team might be on another break. Maybe Wilson.Wang could look into what is causing the detections. As we may recall, Disney+ was detecting certain activity and blocking IPs for short periods of time.

Some of the stuff I am grabbing right now does not appear to be on the newsgroups.

This is disappointing, as, for example, P+ has terrible bitrates on both audio and video.

[simchris]

Check your spam folder. I received the email yesterday and it was in my spam, while other amazon emails went to my inbox.
.

As noted many times earlier in this thread, any legit messages should/will be in the Amazon website under account, then messages. If you got an email and it's *not* in your account/messages, I think that would be highly unusual.
Did you check > https://www.amazon.com/messages.

I also see all my email in real time for my company and amazon is white listed on my server since I buy so much from them on weekly basis and monthly delivery subscriptions. Nothing in spam folder. Nothing in my account messages.

[lucas Zxc]

so should I be worried about this or not?

[jpp72]

I downloaded 82 items yesterday and did not get email. I am in U.S., and have full Prime account with both movie and audio HD upgrades. I downloaded some materials from Amazon (Twilight Zone classic), some items from Paramount+ (cherry picked 18 eps of South Park), and couple of movies. I also watched couple hours of content on my AppleTV logged into my Prime app account. And added couple of movies to my watchlist. I also have my Amazon account connected to Movies Anywhere for past purchases of digital content. I am using the last version of SF, not the latest dot release.

Just some anecdotal for those tracking "what, why, where, when" on this topic.

Check your spam folder. I received the email yesterday and it was in my spam, while other amazon emails went to my inbox.

This morning, i finished my queue and cancelled all my add-ons and my US prime membership. If they don't want my money, i will oblige them. Funny thing is that i download WAY more from my Canadian prime than the US one. The US one had a fake name, fake address, and prepaid, non-reloadable credit card.

I will discontinue downloading on my Canadian prime as i do order physical goods on an almost daily basis but will open a "burner" account every 6 months to batch download stuff until they ban that account.

[naszdom]

I accidentally ended with a trial Prime account. All I could find to download were STHLM Blackout and Deadlock which I did on 2 July. I had several nagging emails which I ignored, telling me my trial was soon ending. My trial ended on 13 July. On 21 July, a week after my trial ended and all but three weeks after I had downloaded anything, I too received the email from Amazon telling me "We are reaching out to inform you about some concerning activity detected on your Amazon Prime Video account violating the Prime Video Terms of Use."

[simchris]

I downloaded 82 items yesterday and did not get email. I am in U.S., and have full Prime account with both movie and audio HD upgrades. I downloaded some materials from Amazon (Twilight Zone classic), some items from Paramount+ (cherry picked 18 eps of South Park), and couple of movies. I also watched couple hours of content on my AppleTV logged into my Prime app account. And added couple of movies to my watchlist. I also have my Amazon account connected to Movies Anywhere for past purchases of digital content. I am using the last version of SF, not the latest dot release.

Just some anecdotal for those tracking "what, why, where, when" on this topic.

[MrGrackle]

Question for those that claim to have gotten the email:
Do you support big daddy's wedding? (Do you buy merchandise from AMZ all the time?)
If you ever look at my order history, you would see pending orders all the time!

[Stan001]

People continuing to post here on the forum have even less impact than contacting streamfab feedback. Yes, Rain answers most, but eventually will forward some of them for further investigation.
Streamfab feedback is the only way to be most sure they are aware of it

As it seems, most if not all streamfab/dvdfab staff here in the forum have taken off for an extended break. Check last active on known staff and dates of last comments made by them.

For Amazon messages, I use Amazon.com, so it's https://www.amazon.com/messages.
It can also be accessed under Accounts & Lists, then under Your Account, then Account, Your Messages.

Chat can be found at https://www.amazon.com/hz/contact-us/
Under contact, you can also request a call.
Phone Number 1-888-280-4331

[MrGrackle]

Captain Obvious says. If you want to get feedback from the devs you probably should put in a support ticket:

All support tickets I have ever opened receive replies from Rain. I even put clear and concise instructions and log files. The issue seldom gets pushed beyond Rain. They tell you to reinstall or delete the cache and log folders.

This post is no disrespect to Rain. Every company out there has to have a first contact person to week out the n00b crap.

I have no idea where the message center is on Amazon. I could have hundreds of messages there, lol. One thing they want to do is avoid talking to customers. Ever try to find their online chat?

I also assume that doing whatever on Netflix has no connection. Does AWS not host them? As well as other providers?

[Sebastian001]

Sigh... No it is not doing the same thing and, for downloading legally, I am not worried about them noticing. I don't understand what is so hard to grasp.

With StreamFab, they see you downloading a ton of shit and removing the protection. You can watch the content wherever and whenever you want. You can even stop paying for Prime and you still have the content.They ban your account.

With the PrimeVideo app, they see you download a ton of shit to your device, they don't give a fuck because you can only watch that in the PrimeVideo app and if you stop paying for prime, you lose access to it. They can even say, "I know you paid for WestWorld, but HBO says i gotta remove your access to it so, sorry, but you can't watch it anymore".

So if you use the PrimeVideo app and remove the DRM OFFLINE, they are blissfully ignorant that you now have content that they cannot control (well, a copy of it)

So when you say it does the same thing but in different order, that is not the case. It's a different procedure entirely. Accessing media files from a CDN and querying a server to get a license and feeding that to a compromised CDM is not the same as access media on a protected file system and using the built-in decryption routines in the PrimeVideo app.

Please note, however, that not everything can be downloaded with the Windows app. In Germany, for example, Bones and Prison Break are blocked for download. It works on the iPhone.

[Sebastian001]

I was lying in bed last night thinking. Sometimes I think about things that are bothering me before I go to sleep... Anyway, it occurred to me that Streamfab might be doing something to circumvent the problem. It might be setting the counter from 100 to below 20, or enabling recode. :-/

[jpp72]

I don't think you read my entire explanation. It's doing the same things (in general) just in a different order. But in either case you still send up the same flares of frequent downloads, possibly pulling them down faster than typical and possibly not watching them. Whether you rip the DRM off prior to download or post download it's the download.

Yes I get the app allows you to do it but the current paradigm technically allows us to do what we are getting emails now for. I get what you are saying, you are trying to figure out how to circumvent their noticing. But you won't. If they REALLY wanna stop all of it, they can, they have the resources. The only question is how much is it worth to them to do it. They knew the whole time what Fab was doing. They have just now decided to spend the resources to do something about it. This is actually a light handed way of just letting everyone to "stop, we know". In the case of the music stuff years ago they sued the hell out of some folks and financially tortured them as an example.

From here this probably goes 1 of 2 ways. They either just tamp it down with this and let it be less mainstream, or this is just a warning shot and they come hard after this.

Sigh... No it is not doing the same thing and, for downloading legally, I am not worried about them noticing. I don't understand what is so hard to grasp.

With StreamFab, they see you downloading a ton of shit and removing the protection. You can watch the content wherever and whenever you want. You can even stop paying for Prime and you still have the content.They ban your account.

With the PrimeVideo app, they see you download a ton of shit to your device, they don't give a fuck because you can only watch that in the PrimeVideo app and if you stop paying for prime, you lose access to it. They can even say, "I know you paid for WestWorld, but HBO says i gotta remove your access to it so, sorry, but you can't watch it anymore".

So if you use the PrimeVideo app and remove the DRM OFFLINE, they are blissfully ignorant that you now have content that they cannot control (well, a copy of it)

So when you say it does the same thing but in different order, that is not the case. It's a different procedure entirely. Accessing media files from a CDN and querying a server to get a license and feeding that to a compromised CDM is not the same as access media on a protected file system and using the built-in decryption routines in the PrimeVideo app.

[Stan001]

I thought the issue of the emails being authentic had been resolved. So why all this work?

I still don't know about the emails, but those who got the message to Amazon's message center have to be legitimate, or someone mass brute hacked Amazon, whether it's prime, and/or com, and/or uk.
Or a possible breakdown in Amazon's system, but you think it would be fixed by now if that happened.

Now, yes, it's suspicious that some claim 1 download triggered it; that within 15 minutes or less of a download, they got a warning message and/or email.

It was shown here how to check your messages on Amazon. >here

It does seem very unusual as there are still those saying they do at least 50 to 100 and have not received a notice.
Now, maybe it is one of the last few updated versions of SF, and many lately tend to hold off updating.
I am letting it ride out, at last this week, maybe longer, as the show I usually get from Amazon, a previously FreeVee show, is on summer break.
And can be found via other means.

And yes, don't worry if you decide to go to torrents. I don't say much for private torrent sites, but it’s very easy in the US to get a proxy or VPN and download your a$$ off.
As both hide your IP so the DMCA who spends the whole day every day sending out notices to your ISP if you don't hide your IP/ISP.
For those who found very good private sites and have not been reported, go for it. I still feel safer behind either a socks5 proxy or VPN.

Right now, I am not in the position to risk my Amazon account, as some have had their accounts suspended. I order most everything I get from Amazon. With an occasional shift to other sites.

Let's hope things calm down soon, but if it is a new way for Amazon to track downloads versus watching, it could be some time before SF can even figure out how to hide it.
SF needs to query Amazon for the files and keys in order to download the files. And there may even be more to it.
It was pretty quick for SF to get past DRM lately, so anything is possible.

[Sebastian001]

Can you narrow down what you have downloaded, everything or just Amazon's own productions?