The one-two punch of a pandemic and online piracy is a big problem, thanks in part to the increased appetite for video streaming during COVID-19.

That is the conclusion of a new research survey from the Digital Citizens Alliance (DCA).

With millions working from home, including on sensitive and confidential government work, DCA said there is a substantially raised threat level of malware and cybersecurity breaches if those workers have piracy devices or apps at home as well, what it calls "a toxic combination for cybersecurity."

The SurveyMonkey research study commissioned by DCA found that the one in 10 people who had such devices or apps were three times more likely to report a malware issue than those without them, which is a big problem if those at-home workers are in corporate finance, national security, government, medicine or the law. In addition, one in five said they had at least visited a pirate website.

Fully half of those who both identified themselves as working in jobs handling sensitive or confidential information and who had a piracy device in their home reported having "an issue" with malware in the past year, compared to only 17% for those who did not have a piracy device.

“When tens of millions of Americans were forced to work from home, it created a golden opportunity for hackers to mine their computers for sensitive information,” said Tom Galvin, executive director of the DCA, of the study findings. “Many Americans don’t realize that they open a window to their home when they plug a piracy device into their network. And if they work in jobs that can affect the economy or national security, for example, it’s a recipe for disaster.”

One of the key ingredients, CDA said, was Trojan Horse of streaming as the "go-to" method for watching TV shows and movies, an opportunity hackers seized to spread malware.

For example, said DCA, not long after a researcher downloaded a piracy app, malware had forwarded their Wi-Fi network name and password to a server that was apparently in Indonesia. And what was once thought as a big threat to at-home consumers has been transformed into a threat to businesses small and large now that so much of that business is being transacted from home, where malware could transfer from home to work computers via a home network.

The key takeaways include:

1. Not surprisingly, a majority (two-thirds) of respondents said they have been watching more TV shows and movies during the pandemic, with the 18-29 demo mostly likely (71%) to say that has been the case.
2. About half (52%) said there was "more than enough" content to satisfy their increased appetite for video.
3. About 20% said they visit pirate websites and about 10% said they have a pirate device or app, with a third to them saying they got them online, which DCA said its research has found are being "peddled" via Facebook, Craigslist and eBay, among other sites.

The online poll was conducted Feb. 3-4 among 3,634 U.S. residents 18-plus. The margin of error for the full sample is plus or minus 2 percentage points.

Devices consumers use to pirate digital copies and live streams of TV shows and movies appear also to be allowing for the theft of their owners' data in that Faustian bargain.

That is according to a nine-month probe by the Digital Citizens Alliance, which said that jailbroken Fire TV sticks and Kodi Boxes are being used by hackers to steal user names and passwords and breach networks.

The group has been hammering on the pirate-hacking connection for some time, producing a slick video last year to try and educate the public.

A study by bandwidth tracker Sandvine last year suggested that as much as 6% of all homes in North America had a Kodi open source media player in some form of content piracy mode.

Related: Fully Loaded Kodi Boxes Becoming Bigger Piracy Threat

The alliance has published its findings in a new report, Fishing in the Piracy Stream: Howthe Dark Web of Entertainment is Exposing Consumers to Harm. One harm is that users of piracy devices and apps are six times more likely to report issues with Malware, the alliance said.

“What the investigation shows is that as piracy shifts from websites and downloads to devices and apps, hackers are adapting and finding new ways to exploit consumers,” said Tom Galvin, executive director of Digital Citizens. “Consumers think these devices are like an Apple TV or Roku device, but they have a distinct difference: they have little to no incentive to protect their users. In other words, they are perfect for hackers.”

Related: Digital Citizens Alliance Warns of Pirate Facilitators

The group says its investigation, conducted in conjunction with cybersecurity firm Dark Wolfe Consulting, also uncovered a scheme to monetize stolen Netflix accounts.

Among the findings of the investigation were:

• Researchers found malware pre-loaded on apps used to illegally watch movies, sports, and other content

• Malware in the illicit ad-supported streaming app 'Mobdro' "forwarded the researcher’s WiFi network name and password to a server that appeared to be in Indonesia."

• That Malware "uploaded, without permission, 1.5 terabytes of data from the researcher’s device."

• Users of the illicit devices are abetting hackers by enabling them to bypass network security when the devices are connected directly to a home network.

• A scheme enabled "criminals" to pose as streaming sites, like Netflix, to gain illegal access to a legitimate subscription.

Among the alliance's proposed action items in the face of that hacking threat is for 1) consumer protection agencies--like the Federal Trade Commission, which has vowed to crack down on privacy violations--to warn consumers about the risks of illicit devices; 2) law enforcement to investigate and prosecute; and 3) digital marketplaces--eBay, Craigslist, Facebook--to ban the devices.

The alliance claims among its supporters, "health, pharmaceutical, and creative industries," the last which are obviously most affected by the aforementioned content piracy.

Nonprofit Digital Citizens Alliance has produced a slick video to try and educate Washington about the risks of devices--including kodi boxes--and apps that it says facilitate the distribution of pirated content, including potentially exposing kids to porn.

The video warns about the devices and apps exposing computers to malware and ransomware and users to inappropriate content.

It points out that the devices and apps are sometimes sold in retail stores alongside legitimate products.

The rise of illegal streaming devices (ISDs) has made it easier than ever for kids to get access to illicit videos (including child pornography) and unlicensed content which is often loaded with malware that infects our electronic devices," said the group in releasing the video.

“There is nothing on jailbroken equipment to protect your kids from illicit and/or malicious material,” said Digital Citizens Alliance Executive Director Tom Galvin in a statement. "Pornography lives right next to popular movies. There is nothing distinguishing whether the content comes from a licensed provider or if it is stolen and laced with malware. Once that material comes in to your home and infects your devices, it’s not easy to clear it out.”

Galvin wants regulators to join with some attorneys general to create their own videos for TV and social media promoting vigilance in identifying and shunning pirated content.