After cyberattack: data leak at Pokémon developer Game Freak
Unauthorized persons were able to access personal data of the Pokémon developer Game Freak. According to reports, source code has also been leaked.
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The video game developer Game Freak has reported a cyberattack. The studio is best known for its Pokémon series titles. According to the developer studio, unknown attackers gained access to personal data in the IT security incident. However, there are also reports of leaked information about previously unreleased Pokémon games.
IT security incident
In the official statement, Game Freak states that the cyberattack took place in August 2024. As a result, attackers were able to access the personal data of 2606 employees. According to the company, the personal data includes names and work email addresses. Those affected are currently being contacted.
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Game Freak states that they have now restored server security. They also state that they have hardened their systems to make future attacks more difficult. It is not yet known exactly how the attackers gained access.
Alleged data leak
According to media reports, including from Comicbook.com, there are indications that internal game development data has been leaked in addition to personnel data. According to these reports, information about the upcoming Pokémon game codenamed "Gaia" and a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) for the as yet unreleased Nintendo Switch 2 game console is said to be circulating on the internet. In addition, source code from older Pokémon titles is said to have been leaked.
The X-account Centro LEAKS lists further information on published information on the Pokémon franchise allegedly originating from the cyberattack. So far, neither Game Freak nor Nintendo has commented on the alleged data leak of the Pokémon games, and there has been no official confirmation to date.
Like other industries, game developers and providers often have to deal with data leaks. In July, a third-party provider helping to organize the annual developer conference at US online gaming platform operator Roblox caused such a data breach. Personal data such as names, email addresses and IP addresses were apparently exposed. Participants who had registered via the third-party provider's platform over the past two years were affected.
(des)
