Introduction

We are constantly told that sharing passwords is dangerous because of security risks, account hijacking, a lack of control, and so on. Nonetheless, it has never been a problem for Netflix users because it lowers costs. It's convenient for users and "Netflix"; however, Netflix recently announced that it would change the way password sharing works by limiting password sharing to a household bounds.

Who’s still watching?

According to (Satin, 2023), in order for devices to not be blocked from Netflix, they must log in at least once every 31 days in the primary location's Wi-Fi. This requirement determines whether your device is still in the primary location. Consider it home parole check-ins; the police will come by from time to time to see if you still live where you said you did, but they are not required to be present 24/7. Why does Netflix insist on this? This is due to the fact that it will use your IP address to determine whether or not you are connected to the primary location's Wi-Fi. Netflix will continue to function outside your primary location's network, but you must request a 7-day temporary code.

An IP address is a unique address that can be allocated to a device in an internet network (Wi-Fi) by the router. i.e. network would be a hotel and IP address, a room.

Although Netflix can now verify that your device is part of your primary location’s Wi-Fi, there is still a problem an IP address for a device can change (you can be assigned a different room at the hotel depending on availability, etc.). So, how can Netflix ensure that your device is the one with an IP address assigned to that Wi-Fi network? It can employ a technique known as device fingerprinting, which assigns a unique ID to each device that remains constant regardless of which network it is connected to.

Feature Analyses

• Primary location tracker → This feature will record the primary location to use later when verifying if devices are part of the primary location. And it will track if the user’s device has connected to the primary location in 30 days.

• Temporary code for travelling → This feature will process temporary code that will last for 7 days, track whether the code has expired, and temporary block the device from accessing the app until they are connected to the primary location Wi-fi.

• Device block → This feature will block the devices from accessing the app that is not part of the primary location allowed devices when they are accessing the app from the same primary location Wi-Fi or other networks

Conclusion

That gave you a better understanding of how Netflix will crack down on password sharing. Password sharing did play a huge part in Netflix’s relevance. Is this the end of Netflix?

Bibliography

Kadar, T. (2023) Device fingerprinting for fraud reduction - how and why does it work?, SEON. Available at: https://seon.io/resources/device-fingerprinting/ (Accessed: February 12, 2023). NetworkChuck (2022) What is an IP address? // you suck at subnetting // EP 1, YouTube. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WfiTHiU4x8 (Accessed: February 12, 2023). Satin, D. (2023) Confirmed: Netflix unveils first details of new Anti-Password sharing measures, The Streamable. The Streamable. Available at: [The Streamable](https://thestreamable.com/news/confirmed-netflix-unveils-first-details-of-new-anti-password-sharing-measures#who-can-use-a-netflix-account-now) (Accessed: February 11, 2023). Yahoo Finance (2023) Netflix reveals details on password sharing crackdown, YouTube. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sn71PuDqULQ (Accessed: February 11, 2023).