Is Kodi Legal? – How to Safely Use Firestick’s Best 3rd-Party Streaming App

Kodi is the best media player out there. It instantly transforms your streaming device into a media library with almost endless potential. Kodi can not only play media from the local storage, but its real power lies in bringing you high quality online streams through an almost unlimited number of add-ons. These add-ons let you take a dive into the bottomless pool of free content on the internet.  With so many freebies available (and not all of them good), you’ve probably wondered whether this is too good to be true. Is Kodi legal, or is there a catch you need to be aware of?

The good news is that the Kodi media player, itself, is totally legal to download, install, and use. However, the bad news is you can get into trouble if the authorities catch you streaming illegal content on your device through third-party Kodi add-ons. Does this answer confuse you? Don’t worry!

Today’s write up delves into the nitty-gritty of the “Is Kodi legal” question and tries to clear the air once and for all. Hopefully, it will give you clarity on the legal status of Kodi. Plus: We will give you our best tips on how to stay safe when streaming content through third-party apps. So, let’s get started!

Is Kodi Legal? 

A one-word answer to the “Is Kodi legal?” question is: Yes. But it’s important to note that this short answer comes with some pretty big caveats.

It is interesting to note that worldwide laws are generally pretty ambiguous when it comes to streaming copyrighted content. But one thing is for sure. The “Is Kodi legal” issue is clear because of Kodi’s limited functionality. Ultimately, it is simply a media player and (technically) nothing else.

Downloading and installing a media player isn’t illegal anywhere in the world, not yet anyway. It doesn’t violate any law or cause any infractions on copyrights. In fact, Kodi has an official website, and the media player is available through all popular app stores such as Microsoft Store and Google’s Play Store. These app stores host legal content only. If Kodi was illegal, they would have removed it long ago. Are you convinced about “Is Kodi Legal” yet? 

Now, let me clarify the confusing part! 

While Kodi as a standalone app is entirely legal, complications arise when some Kodi plugins allow free access to copyrighted content. This drags the users within the range of the law’s radar. Of course, there are no clear cut laws against streaming. But it doesn’t mean streaming copyrighted content for free is legal. As a matter of fact, that can very much get you in trouble. People have received legal notices in the past for streaming copyrights protected content. So we can say the laws are less ambiguous for those who store or distribute pirated content.

So while the answer to “Is Kodi legal” is a solid yes, the content you might find through the add-ons may not be. We hope this clears your confusion to some extent! 

Kodi media player uses plugins popularly called add-ons, some for streaming TV and movies on Kodi, and some for streaming *ahem* adult content (Porn, they’re for streaming Kodi porn). You can download these add-ons through Kodi repositories. Think of a repository as a large collection of add-ons. There is one official Kodi add-on repository. It hosts all the legal add-ons that either provide free public domain content or have subscription-based content. There are thousands of plugins, and most of them are absolutely free. These plugins let you stream copyrighted content such as movies, TV shows, music, and other entertainment without charging you a dime. 

Think of it this way. It is perfectly okay to get drunk on a Friday night at your friend’s house and enjoy yourself. You are not infringing anyone’s rights and those drinks are yours to enjoy. But when you start handing over drinks to a minor (people they don’t belong to) or start stealing the neighbor’s drinks (taking drinks you haven’t paid for), your drinking becomes illegal. Law enforcement may want a word with you. And you may get into trouble. This is perhaps not a perfect analogy, but you get the gist, right? The answer to the “Is Kodi legal?” question depends on whether or not the content is yours to distribute or receive.

If you are downloading from the official Kodi repository, you don’t have to worry about anything. On the other hand, if you download third-party apps from any of the third-party Kodi repositories and use them to stream copyright-protected content, watch out!

Another problem with using these third party app relates to security. They can expose you to viruses, malware, and other online threats. So, what’s the best way to protect yourself against online threats and avoid any legal troubles so you don’t have to sit around worrying, “Is Kodi legal”? We’ll be answering that in the following section. 

How Kodi Views Third-Party Add-ons

Before we move on to the answer, it’s essential to know how Kodi views these third-party repositories. Kodi developers respond to the stickier parts of the “Is Kodi legal?” question by distancing themselves from the third party add-ons providing copyright content. They have repeatedly warned against risks posed by add-ons from unknown sources. In addition, there have been countless internal discussions on how to manage this risk in the past. Some of the solutions tossed around range from disallowing third-party repos completely to only allowing add-ons to update from their original repository. Nevertheless, their official stance is that everyone is responsible for their actions alone. 

As long as they stay on the safe side of the “Is Kodi legal?” question, we don’t expect them to make any drastic changes.

Is Kodi Safe?

Like the question “Is Kodi legal,” people often ask is Kodi safe. If you mean whether the media player is safe legally, that question has already been answered. Kodi is legally safe as long as you don’t promote or distribute copyright-protected content.

However, if you are asking whether the Kodi app contains any viruses, then the answer is even more simple. No! It is absolutely safe to download and install the Kodi application on any of your devices. It contains no malware. As long as you’re downloading it from the official app store or Kodi official website, you’re safe.

However, this may not always be true for unofficial 3rd-party add-ons. So again, the answer to “Is Kodi Legal?” and “is Kodi safe?” boils down to whether or not you’re using official sources.

Is Kodi Legal? – How to Stream Safely on Kodi

Your Government, internet service provider (ISP), or a hacker may be keeping tabs on your internet traffic. Even Kodi’s traffic can be tracked. This is because Kodi is not anonymous. When you use Kodi, your digital footprint (IP address) is out in plain sight. Your IP address reveals your physical location. It can also be utilized to discover your identity, personal details, and additional private information. Using a VPN is, by far, the best option for safety and security. It effectively hides your IP address. This means that the “Is Kodi legal?” question becomes a non-issue if no one is able to track your online activity.

But that’s not all.

There are various other benefits of using a VPN to ensure that you don’t have to worry about the “Is Kodi legal” issue. With VPN, you can access geo-blocked content. For instance, if a video is blocked for the US citizens, merely changing the location will often do the trick. Similarly, VPNs give you instant access to new releases. If a new video game is being launched around midnight, on a specific day, and you’re based in the USA, changing your VPN location to somewhere in Asia will give you instant access – almost 24 hours earlier. 

Similarly, some channels impose blackout restrictions on live sports in some countries. This means you won’t be able to see your favorite team playing live. With a VPN, you can bypass these blackout restrictions whenever you want. That is why we deem it an absolute must if you’re going to stream safely on Kodi. 

Now, there are many good VPNs in the market with stable speeds and excellent security features. However, our recommendation is IPVanish. 

Why use IPVanish for Streaming via Kodi

First, when you’re streaming content on Kodi, you need a good internet connection. VPN services usually slow down the internet because your online traffic has to pass through multiple nodes. That’s why you need a VPN that doesn’t restrict your internet speed in any way. IPVanish guarantees super-fast internet. Their internet connection remains stable, and you get consistently good speed when streaming content. There are multiple packages available on their official website that offer unlimited bandwidth. 

Second, the size of the server network also plays an important role. The bigger the server network in the form of more locations and servers, the better it is. This way, you can access the geo-restricted content by simply changing your location. IPVanish has a vast network with servers in more than 75 locations all over the world. You can switch to any location you want. Access content from anywhere in the world. Such a vast network also ensures a stable connection. If one server shuts down, you can simply connect to another. 

Third, you need a VPN service that ensures privacy and security. Otherwise, what’s even the point of using a VPN, right? IPVanish is different from others because it has a strict zero-logs policy. Which means they don’t save any user logs or information on their servers. This is huge for users wondering “Is Kodi legal?” Your connection is truly private, and you don’t have to worry about any logs leak. For security, it uses the industry-standard WPA2 encryption protocol. In addition, it comes with additional security features such as DNS leak protection and an easily accessible kill switch that turns off your connection if the VPN malfunctions. 

Additional services, like always-available customer support, multiple device support, and a money-back guarantee are equally important. IPVanish offers around the clock customer support. In case of a problem, you can access their representatives 24/7. Whether you are streaming via Kodi on your laptop, Amazon Firestick, or a handheld device, IPVanish supports them all. It is also compatible with multiple operating systems.

Check this if your wondering how to install a VPN on any device.

Final Thoughts

That’s it. We hope you got the answer to the question, “Is Kodi Legal?” It’s a fully legal media player. You can download, install, and stream copyrighted content on Kodi through legal channels. But, streaming copyrighted content for free on third party Kodi add-ons can get you into trouble. We do not condone any copyright violations. Though, we do recommend using a reliable VPN service like IPVanish to stay on the safe side.