The internet is buzzing, and for all the wrong reasons. Just three days ago, a shadowy figure calling themselves “Cyberleek” began unleashing a torrent of Grand Theft Auto 6, seemingly in retaliation for Rockstar Games’ digital release strategy. Despite the sheer volume of leaked footage – potentially damaging to the game’s launch and perception – the leaker remains at large, even dropping more footage this morning!. But a dedicated member of the GTA community believes they’ve pinpointed the leaker’s primary crypto wallet, suggesting Rockstar Games’ reckoning is imminent.
The Crypto Trail
This revelation comes from a lengthy post on the GTAForums, authored by user Vice Cit. Their meticulous analysis traces Cyberleek’s crypto transactions, revealing how the leaker has been leveraging the leaks to solicit cryptocurrency donations. While publicly claiming to be fighting for gamers’ rights against digital-only releases, Vice Cit argues that this was merely a smokescreen. “The gamers rights messaging was just virtue signaling to gain public support from people who were upset about the loss of physical media,” Vice Cit writes. “The person behind this leak is making a substantial amount of money and I think after reading this post you’ll see that we may be in for a longer ride than we initially realize. This isn’t the 2022 leak, this has been planned out and executed very intentionally to maximize the money they’ll make from this.”
The leaker even created their own cryptocurrency, cleverly named $CYBERLEEK, promoting it alongside each new leak. According to Vice Cit, Cyberleek initially invested around $29,000 into creating the coin. While not directly profiting from its sale, every transaction involving $CYBERLEEK generates a fee that goes directly to the creator. This is how the leaker is actually monetizing the leaks. Vice Cit estimates the leaker made approximately $30,000 in fees on the first day alone, effectively recouping their initial investment and earning thousands more daily since then.
Furthermore, the leaker holds 270 million additional tokens in a private wallet, currently valued at around $391,000. Vice Cit suggests that selling these off slowly would be the prudent move to avoid disrupting the cryptocurrency market, but it’s possible there’s a larger, more complex strategy at play.
Rockstar’s Counter-Offensive
Vice Cit posits that this carefully orchestrated scheme incentivizes the leaker to continue releasing footage daily, keeping $CYBERLEEK relevant and driving up its value. However, the trail appears to be leading back to a KuCoin wallet, which is subject to law enforcement subpoenas. Given that Take-Two is already subpoenaing Discord and Microsoft for records, it seems highly likely that similar actions will soon target cryptocurrency exchanges.
The clock is ticking for Cyberleek. With the highly anticipated official Netflix reveal of Grand Theft Auto 6 next week, Take-Two undoubtedly wants to resolve this situation swiftly to prevent further damage. One thing’s certain: whoever is behind these leaks might soon discover that the financial gains weren’t worth the impending legal battle.
Source: Kotaku
Comments
Be the first to comment.