Netflix’s crackdown on password sharing just faced an unprecedented challenge, thanks to a YouTuber who shared their password with over 800,000 people.
In May 2023, the streaming giant banned password sharing to prevent users in different households from accessing the same account for free. Now, Netflix requires subscribers to set a primary location, likely determined by their device’s IP address, ensuring that only those within the same household can share an account.
For users who want to share their account outside their household, Netflix introduced an additional fee.
These changes were rolled out across the US, UK, Australia, and many other countries, sparking widespread backlash. Subscribers were left with three choices: quit Netflix entirely, sign up for their own private account, or pay an extra fee to add an ‘extra member’ to their existing plan.
Many users were outraged by Netflix’s new policy and chose to cancel their subscriptions rather than pay extra.
But instead of just complaining, popular YouTuber Beluga decided to take action, and the result was pure chaos.
In a viral video with over 1.5 million views, Beluga conducted an experiment: what would happen if he shared his Netflix password with over 800,000 people?
He posted a message in his Discord server, which has 841,709 members, with an image titled “Fridge Reveal.” The picture showed a fridge stocked with Monster energy drinks and, most importantly, a Post-it note displaying his supposed Netflix login credentials.
It didn’t take long for things to spiral out of control.
As soon as Beluga attempted to stream Squid Game, his Gmail was flooded with security alerts: “A new device is using your account. Please review who’s using your Netflix account.”
Meanwhile, Netflix bombarded him with hundreds of alerts, warning: “Too many people are using your account right now.” PIN code requests flooded in from all over the world, in multiple languages.
Then, just as quickly as the chaos began, someone pulled the plug.
Beluga suddenly received an email from Google notifying him that his Netflix password had been changed, by someone else.
The stunt had viewers in stitches, with many flocking to the comments section.
“Beluga’s Netflix changed languages with the sheer number of desperate streamers,” one user joked.
“The crazy part is that only two of those 800,000 people could actually watch at a time,” another pointed out.
“Bro just became Netflix’s worst nightmare,” someone else added.
But not everyone was happy about how it ended.
“There’s always that one person who ruins the fun for everyone,” one viewer complained.
“Nahhh, I can’t believe someone killed the fun that fast…” another wrote.
