Cyberleek gets ‘six stars’: Take-Two sues to force Microsoft and Discord to reveal GTA VI leakers

Take-Two Interactive has moved from DMCA takedowns to full-blown legal action against the sources of recent Grand Theft Auto VI leaks. The company has filed subpoenas against Microsoft and Discord, demanding comprehensive identifying information about users and server admins linked to the insider known as Cyberleek.

In recent days, the source has posted dozens of gameplay clips from the current GTA VI build — including footage of nighttime drives through Vice City, car thefts, a map of the state of Leonida, and a video where the player shoots a “LEEK” tag onto a wall, indirectly suggesting access to a playable version.

Take-Two demands IPs, hardware IDs, and OneDrive files

According to court documents discussed by the gaming community, Take-Two’s request goes far beyond standard account bans. The company is demanding activity history for the individuals dating back to June 1:

• Identifying profiles: registration and last-known IP addresses, linked email addresses, phone numbers, and associated Google and Xbox accounts;
• Hardware fingerprint: system identifiers (MachineGuid/MSA) and Windows telemetry data that can tie online activity to specific physical computers;
• Cloud storage: any documents or files from Microsoft OneDrive that mention GTA, Rockstar, or Cyberleek.

The lawyers are not just after the insider’s direct contacts but also public Discord servers where the leaked archives first spread (including the server of popular streamer DarkViperAU). With this data, Take-Two hopes to trace the distribution chain and identify the person who leaked the build from the inside.

Punishment for the previous hack: the real status of Kurtaj’s case

The publisher’s aggressive response makes sense given the 2022 incident, when Arion Kurtaj, a member of the Lapsus$ hacking group, stole and leaked over 90 early GTA VI videos.

As PC Gamer notes, claims of a “life sentence in a mental hospital” for the first leaker are inaccurate. In 2023, the court temporarily sent the autistic teenager to a secure medical facility because he couldn’t participate in the trial. However, over the summer he was moved to a regular prison, and in November a full trial will begin.

With the threat of story spoilers and the game’s ending leaking months before release, Take-Two intends to push for actual criminal charges in the Cyberleek case, and Microsoft has a court deadline of September 4 to provide the requested information.