You’ve probably heard about tons of Kodi repositories being taken down recently. From the cull late last year which took out the Colossus repository, Smash repository, DandyMedia repository and more, to the recent shut down of the Looking Glass and Noobs and Nerds repositories, there have been a whole lot of repositories closed in the last few months.

If you still have any of these now closed repositories installed on your Kodi system, it’s important for security that you delete them as soon as possible. We’ll explain why this is below, then give you instructions on how to remove repositories and suggestions for replacement repositories. Read on to preserve the security of your Kodi system: If these repositories and add-ons and still installed, kill them now!

Why Kodi Users Need A VPN

We’ll get into the details of which repositories you need to remove from your Kodi system and how to do so in just a second. But before that, we need to bring up an important issue of security. The recent crackdown on Kodi repositories which hosted streaming add-ons demonstrates how serious copyright holders are about finding and punishing people who stream content illegally. If you’re going to use Kodi add-ons to stream or download content, then you need to take steps to keep yourself safe, as if you are caught using these add-ons you could be kicked off your ISP’s network or even be fined.

To keep you safe from these legal problems, we strongly recommend that Kodi users get a VPN. This is a piece of software which you install onto your Kodi device and which encrypts all of the data that your device sends over the internet. This encryption makes it impossible for anyone to see your internet activity, and to see if you have been streaming or downloading. Even your ISP won’t be able to see your online activity, which keeps you safe when using Kodi add-ons.

We Recommend IPVanish For Kodi Users

The VPN that we recommend for Kodi users is IPVanish. This is due to its super fast connection speeds which are great for streaming video in high definition. In addition to speed, it has great security, with the use of 256-bit encryption and a no logging policy. The server network is generous and covers more than 1000 servers in over 60 different countries so you can get around any region locks you come across. The software is available for Windows, Mac OS, Android, Linux, iOS, and Windows Phone.

IPVanish offers a 7-day money back guarantee which means you have a week to test it risk-free. Please note that Addictive Tips readers can save a massive 60% here on the IPVanish annual plan, taking the monthly price down to only $4.87/mo.

What Happens To Kodi Add-ons And Repositories?

The problem of Kodi repositories being shut down came to a head late last year when the news hit that a whole bunch of Kodi repositories had been taken down. Repositories are simply online storage folders where the files are hosted which let users install add-ons to their Kodi systems. You can use add-ons for Kodi to extend its functionality by adding new features like the ability to watch YouTube videos through Kodi or the ability to listen to podcasts through the Kodi interface.

Many of these add-ons are fully legal, and are part of the open source project of Kodi. However, some other add-ons allow users to access copyrighted content like streaming movies or TV shows for free. Depending on which country you are in, streaming copyrighted content is either in a legal grey area or is straight-up illegal. Generally, copyright holders don’t care much about users who stream their content – they are more concerned about the hosters who provide access to the copyrighted content.

So this brings us to the problem of repositories. Repositories like Colossus hosted add-ons like Covenant which let users stream movies and TV shows for free. It’s important to note that the Colossus repository did not actually host any video files itself, and neither does the Covenant add-on. They merely provide links to other websites where users can stream the content. Whether or not linked to illegal content in this way is actually a breach of copyright is a complicated legal question which is still being debated in many countries. However, copyright holders send legal threats to many people who host repositories. As these people run the repositories for fun and for free, they are generally not able to mount a legal defence against giant corporations. So they have to shut down the repositories to protect themselves from legal problems.

This is why repositories are often shut down and why some add-ons are hard to find.

Why You Should Delete Or Disable Unused Add-ons And Repositories

It’s important that, when you hear about a repository being taken down, you remove the repository from your Kodi system. This is especially true if the repository has been taken down because of a legal threat. The reason it’s important to remove the repository from your system is to do with the way updates work. Usually, when you have an add-on installed on your system then that add-on will be automatically updated periodically by downloading a new version of the add-on from the original repository. This happens in the background and you won’t usually notice that add-on updates are happening.

The problem comes when a repository has been taken down. Usually, your add-ons would just stop being updated. The updater would search for a newer version of the add-on at the URL of the repository, and if it doesn’t find one then the add-on won’t be updated. But if an repository has been taken down, it is possible for some other company or person to come along and purchase the URL of the old repository. They can then upload malicious code like tracking software to that URL and disguise it as an add-on update. Then, when your Kodi system looks for an update to your add-on, it will find something that looks like an update at the repository URL and it will install the malicious code onto your system.

This happens most often when a repository has been taken down due to copyright infringement. Copyright holders may set up what is called a honeypot, which appears to be a way for users to download copyrighted content for free. But actually, hidden in this code is a tracker which records your IP address and reports that information back to the copyright holder so that you can be prosecuted for copyright infringement.

Fortunately, there is an easy way to avoid trackers and malicious code hidden at the URLs of former repositories. You just need to delete the repository from your Kodi system when it gets taken down, so your Kodi system will no longer check that URL for add-on updates. This keeps you safe from inadvertently downloading malicious code.

How To Remove A Repository From Kodi

Removing a repository from Kodi is an easy process, so we recommend that you do it right away as soon as you learn that a repository has gone down. This will help to keep your system safe and secure. Here’s how to remove a repository:

  1. Start on you Kodi home screen

  2. Go to Add-ons

  3. Go to My add-ons

  4. Select Add-on repository

  5. This brings up a list of your repositories. Find the repository you want to remove. We’ll remove the Colossus Repository as it no longer works

  6. Click on the name of the repository you want to remove

  7. This shows you a screen with information about the repository. Choose Uninstall from the menu at the bottom

  8. A popup confirmation will open. Select Yes and the repository and its associated files will be removed from your system

  9. Now the old repository has been removed and no one will be able to use the repository URL to upload malicious code to your Kodi system

How To Remove An Add-on From Kodi

If you need to remove an add-on from Kodi because it is no longer working, then this is also a simple process. However, before you remove an add-on make sure that you need to do so. You should remove an add-on if it is broken. But if you are just worried because the add-on came from a repository which has since been shut down then you don’t necessarily need to remove it. As long as you have removed the broken repository using the steps above, then you can continue to use the old add-on and it should continue to work as normal. The only problem is that the add-on won’t be updated any more.

Should you need to remove an add-on, because it is now broken, then you can do so by following these steps:

  1. Start on you Kodi home screen

  2. Go to Add-ons

  3. Go to My add-ons

  4. Select All

  5. Find the add-on that you want to remove. We’ll remove the Bennu add-on as this one is no longer supported

  6. Right click the name of the add-on

  7. Choose Information from the pop up menu

  8. This brings up the information screen for the add-on. Click Uninstall from the menu at the bottom to disable the add-on

  9. You’ll see a pop up asking if you are sure. Click Yes to proceed

  10. Now the add-on has been deleted from your Kodi system

Repositories And Add-ons No Longer Supported

Many repositories where taken down in one swoop at the end of last year due to legal threats. This caused great consternation in the Kodi community and was when popular repositories like Colossus and Smash stopped working. Since then, yet more repositories were taken down at the start of this year, like Looking Glass or the much beloved Noobs and Nerds repo.

Below is a list of repositories which have been taken down and which are no longer working. You should therefore remove this repositories from your Kodi system for security reasons.

Repositories that have been taken down:

In addition to the above repositories no longer working, you might also have issues with some add-ons not being updated. The following add-ons were some of the ones hosted in the repositories above. This means that the add-ons might continue to work, but they might stop working as they cannot be updated any more. As long as you have removed the closed repositories from your Kodi system, continuing to use these add-ons should not be dangerous to your system. However, you may wish to look for alternatives to these add-ons as they will no longer be updated and could stop working or have security issues in the future.

This is a partial list of some of the add-ons effected by the repositories above being taken down:

  • Colossus

  • Bennu

  • Fear of the Dark

  • Icefilms

  • 1Channel

  • Triton

  • Poseidon

  • Sportie

  • Gurzil

  • UK Turk Playlists

  • Myriad

  • Yes Movies

  • Duck Pool

  • 123Movies

  • Openload Movies

  • 1080p Movies

  • M4U

  • Imperial Streams

  • DandyMedia

  • Film Emporium

  • HEVC VideoClub

  • Ares Football

Alternative Repositories To Replace Those No Longer Working

If you’ve been frustrated by all these Kodi repositories being shut down, then we sympathise! It’s annoying to find a repository full of add-ons that you love only to have it shut down a few months later. But this is an unfortunate reality of repositories which host add-ons that allow users to access copyrighted content.

However, the good news is that there are still plenty of useful repositories out there that host the add-ons that you love. If you’re looking for a replacement for a repository that is no longer working, then we are here to share our recommendations.

Our favourite repository which is still working as of March 2018 is the Kodil Repository. This repository is from the unofficial Kodi Israel team and it continues an absolutely huge number of add-ons, including those which used to be hosted on other repositories which have since been shut down. You can find add-ons like UK Turk Playlists, Ares Video, cCloud TV, Live Sports Streams, and lots more in this repository. This massive selection of add-ons make Kodil the best choice to replace repositories which are no longer working. Take at look at our guide to installing and using the Kodil repository for more information.

You might also consider trying some other trustworthy repositories like the Official Kodi Add-on Repository or the TVAddons.co Add-on Repository for add-ons that are guaranteed to be safe and legal.

Best Add-ons For Kodi Still Working

In terms of add-ons, if you’re looking for a replacement for an add-on that is no longer available or which has stopped working, then we have recommendations for this too. If you’re looking for an add-on to watch movies and TV, then some of the most popular add-ons which are still working are BoB Unleashed, Covenant, UK Turk Playlists, and Elysium. You can find most of these add-ons along with many more in the Kodil repository.

Conclusion

If you’re going to use grey-legal repositories and add-ons for Kodi, then it’s important that you take steps to keep yourself safe. This includes keeping an eye on Kodi news to know when a repository is taken down and making sure that you remove old and shut down repositories from your Kodi system. This will prevent any other company from being able to upload malicious code to your system through the add-on updates process.

If you have any of the repositories we listed above still installed on your Kodi system then you should delete them now. The add-ons we listed are still safe to use for now, but you might want to look for a replacement for them as they will no longer be updated and will stop working eventually. Have a look through our recommendations to find new repositories and add-ons that you can use to replace those which are no longing working.

Which is your favourite repository now that many have been shut down? And which is your go-to add-on for daily use? Let us know in the comments below

Read Bad Kodi Repos: Which Repositories Should I Uninstall? by Georgina Jones on AddictiveTips - Tech tips to make you smarter



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