The renowned video game company Rockstar Games has once again become a target for hackers, marking another security incident within a few years. This case follows the major attack in 2023, when a young man of Albanian origin, Arion Kurtaj, managed to infiltrate the company's systems and release materials related to the highly anticipated game Grand Theft Auto VI.
According to recent reports from cybersecurity media, a group of hackers has claimed to have gained access to Rockstar's servers through an external cloud provider. They have threatened to release unlawfully obtained data if their financial demands are not met.
However, the company has responded by downplaying the situation. In a statement to the BBC, Rockstar clarified that it involves a limited amount of non-sensitive information and that the incident has not affected its operations or players.
This is the second time in a short period that the company has faced such an attack. In 2023, Kurtaj, then only 18 years old, managed to gain access to confidential data, including source code and footage from the game's development.
As a result of that attack, around 90 videos from the unfinished version of the game were leaked on online forums, forcing the company to release the official trailer earlier than planned.
Arion Kurtaj was part of the well-known hacker group Lapsus$, a network of teenagers that carried out attacks on several major international companies during 2022 and 2023.