On October 15, 2025, Amazon launched its latest Fire Stick, the 4K Select. It's the first Fire Stick to run Amazon's Linux-based Vega OS, a departure from the Android-based Fire OS it has utilized for many years.
As a result, you can no longer "sideload" modified Android apps to create "dodgy" Fire Sticks and illegally stream content.
This will have widespread and significant implications for those partaking in illegal streaming. It could be seen as Amazon cracking down on the behavior, and leaves us wondering whether this is the start of a slow death for pirated live TV and sports on its device.
The new operating system also means the apps of the best VPNs aren't supported. If you're after one of the best Fire Stick VPNs, you'll have to ensure you have an older device model. However, Amazon expects VPN support to come to Vega OS "soon."
A change of operating system
The Fire Stick 4K Select is described as "affordable" and is the first streaming stick to run Vega OS.
In an announcement post, Amazon said Vega OS has been built specifically for its devices. Linux components have been adopted as its foundation and Vega OS is designed to be "scalable across a variety of devices."
Fire OS is "a fork of Android," and therefore older Fire Sticks can be adapted into remarkably efficient illegal streaming devices via the installation of unofficial Android-based apps. These apps can be "sideloaded" onto a Fire Stick, enabling the user to stream movies and sport without genuine subscriptions.
Sideloading can breach your terms of service and is often illegal.
By switching to a Linux-based OS, these Android apps won't work. This likely won't stop illegal streaming completely, but it appears to be much harder to do on Fire Sticks running Vega OS compared to their Android counterparts.
Is Amazon combating illegal streaming?
Amazon's move to a new OS could be seen as an attempt to combat illegal streaming. Removing support for the apps that facilitate pirating content is an effective way of stopping illegal streaming on the new Fire Stick 4K Select device.
It wouldn't be surprising if future Amazon devices make the switch to Vega OS, although Fire OS isn't going away completely – for now, at least.
Amazon described itself as a "multi-OS company" and said it "will continue to launch new devices on Fire OS." There is no information that indicates older Fire Sticks running Fire OS will lose support, or must transfer to Vega OS.
We may see illegal streamers turn to non-Amazon streaming devices or simply stick to older, modifiable devices.
It's clear that illegal streaming won't go away entirely. But this move could signal the start of a serious effort to stop the practice and may herald the slow death of illegal streaming.
According to a GlobalData 2024 report, the sports industry loses approximately $28 million a year to illegal streaming. The Premier League, England's domestic soccer competition, blocked over 600,000 illegal streams during the 2022/23 season.
The BBC reported on research by Enders Analysis. The UK-based report found that 59% of respondents who watched pirated material in 2024 did so on an Amazon Fire product.
2024 research by Deloitte found that 25% of American consumers watched pirated content or used someone else's password in the previous 12 months. Of that 25%, 7% only watched pirated content and 4% did both.
Respondents gave the following reasons for their actions:
- Access unavailable content
- Quicker access to content
- Access to full or uncensored shows and movies
- Can't afford streaming services
- Don't want to pay for streaming services
The cost of streaming services and sports packages, as well as in-person sports events, can be seen as a significant reason people turn to illegal streaming.
The 2024 GlobalData report said that, in 2023, the average price of a National Football League (NFL) ticket rose by 8.6% to $120. Major League Baseball (MLB) rose by 3.5% to $37.
Research by Goal.com found that the average ticket price for an NFL game in 2024 ranged from $43 (New Orleans Saints) to $250 (Detroit Lions).
The team you want to see play impacts individual ticket costs, alongside factors such as availability and demand.
VPNs and illegal streaming
VPN providers do not support illegal streaming, and the VPN Trust Initiative (VTI) has previously said "VPNs are not facilitators of piracy." However VPNs have repeatedly been the target of crackdowns on illegal streaming.
The nature of illegal streaming means users will often use VPNs to encrypt and hide their internet traffic.
Cloudflare began blocking VPN access to pirate streaming sites in July 2025. Canal+ won an anti-piracy lawsuit in May 2025 which ordered VPN providers to block over 200 "illegal sports streaming sites."
Referring to the Canal+ case, the VTI said at the time that "this selective approach is certain to fail, as it targets symptoms rather than addressing the root causes of piracy."
The VTI urged "precision, restrain, and accountability" when it comes to technical enforcement of the internet, and recognized the need to safeguard rightsholders.
VPNs are not supported on Amazon Fire Stick 4K Select devices at launch, due to a lack of compatibility with Vega OS.
Surfshark confirmed to Tom's Guide that it was "actively working to make a supported Surfshark VPN application version" – but it didn't have a specific timeline to share.
NordVPN said its Vega OS app was "ready" and will go live on the Amazon Appstore once Amazon updates Vega OS to include VPN protocol support.
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
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