Grand Theft Auto Fan Uses Digital Forensics Expertise to Expose GTA 6 Leaker's Crypto Scheme

A Grand Theft Auto instrumentality has exposed what precise overmuch looks similar a cryptocurrency strategy underpinning this week’s GTA 6 leaks.

This week has seen 5 alleged GTA 6 gameplay videos released to the net alongside an representation of the afloat representation by a idiosyncratic oregon persons called 'CyberLeek.' Each video advertised a memecoin of the aforesaid name, and pointed radical to a cryptocurrency platform. The leaker adjacent launched a canvass to find the adjacent leaked video — but you could lone ballot by sending the memecoin.

Enter Vice Cit, a subordinate of the GTAForums who published the results of an probe into the cryptocurrency broadside of this high-profile GTA 6 story. “I had to bash a conception connected integer forensics for my grade truthful let's enactment it to use,” Vice Cit began.

What follows is simply a elaborate investigation of the $CYBERLEEK token, which yet leads to KuCoin, the Seychelles-based cryptocurrency exchange. Vice Cit believes instrumentality enforcement tin taxable transaction details and wallet addresses with a subpoena to KuCoin, which would past person to place the relationship holder. In this way, authorities whitethorn beryllium capable to place the idiosyncratic responsible.

“I person spent hours contiguous seeing if I could bash thing to uncover thing much astir CyberLeek,” Vice Cit said. “I started connected the acheronian nett forum Dread wherever the archetypal leaks had been posted hours earlier being posted anyplace other but that led maine nowhere. Then I realized possibly this idiosyncratic near a insubstantial way successful their crypto transactions portion mounting each of this up. What I recovered was a wallet astatine the halfway of each of this; the website, the wallet that supplied the SOL utilized to make the crypto, and the Solana nationalist cardinal that matches the signing cardinal utilized for the Arweave uploads. But that's not each I found, the crypto that funded each of this tin beryllium traced backmost to a good known speech that requires KYC (know your customer) verification. Which means whoever funded each of this had to taxable documents verifying their individuality that the authorities tin subpoena the speech for.”

In a consequent post, Vice Cit followed the money, arsenic investigators are often told to, and has travel to judge the leaker is drip-feeding videos to support involvement successful the memecoin (that's what the paid-for canvass was about, too). Vice Cit thinks the leaker invested astir $29,000 successful the instauration of the coin arsenic good arsenic the website the leaks are being posted on, and made their wealth backmost connected the archetypal time of the leaks.

“At the clip I'm penning up this station they've made determination betwixt $40,000 to $60,000 successful conscionable trading fees from radical buying and selling the coin and it's inactive going,” Vice Cit continued. “The coin is doing astir $2.1 cardinal successful trading measurement per time which equates to astir $4,400 per time successful nett from trading fees each time the leaker keeps this going. This is wherefore they've done it the mode they person alternatively of dropping a immense leak connected america similar the 2022 leak. They privation to support this going for arsenic agelong arsenic imaginable truthful they tin proceed to rake successful the nett from the trading fees.”

While it is presently unclear however these alleged GTA 6 assets emerged oregon however aged they are, the main website that had released them contained 3 demands of Rockstar Games and different video crippled publishers, seemingly successful effect to the all-digital future. Contained wrong the manifesto was disapproval of the deficiency of a carnal disc for GTA 6, arsenic good arsenic The Crew, which was astatine the bosom of the Stop Killing Games user question aft Ubisoft made it unplayable adjacent by those who bought the game. “Publishers should beware,” the manifesto concluded. “If CyberLeek tin scope Rockstar, nary 1 is safe. This is simply a connection to each large corpo: behave, oregon beryllium the adjacent target.”

However, determination is plentifulness of scepticism online astir the existent motivations of the leaker, with immoderate calling it a cryptocurrency scam from the off.

“Since time 1 of the leak I've believed that the information down this was ever money,” Vice Cit continued. “The gamers rights messaging was conscionable virtuousness signaling to summation nationalist enactment from radical who were upset astir the nonaccomplishment of carnal media. The idiosyncratic down this leak is making a important magnitude of wealth and I deliberation aft speechmaking this station you'll spot that we whitethorn beryllium successful for a longer thrust than we initially realize. This isn't the 2022 leak, this has been planned retired and executed precise intentionally to maximize the wealth they'll marque from this.”

After a drawstring of releases implicit the people of 3 days, contiguous (August 21) has yet to spot further leaks, contempt threats posted online. Meanwhile, neither Rockstar Games nor genitor institution Take-Two person commented.

Assuming the leaks are legitimate, they travel conscionable a week earlier the merchandise of Grand Theft Auto 6: An Extended Look, which is simply a timed Netflix exclusive. That’s owed Thursday, August 27, and volition stay exclusive connected Netflix for six hours earlier it makes its mode to different platforms specified arsenic YouTube.

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].