Game Freak, a renowned Japanese video game developer known for the Pokémon franchise, has confirmed a significant data breach exposing the personal information of over 2,600 employees and contractors. The breach occurred in August 2024 and was publicly acknowledged on October 10.
According to the official statement (translated from Japanese language by The Verge), the breach was caused by “unauthorized access to our servers by a third party.” Game Freak revealed that the compromised data includes the names and company email addresses of current, former, and contract employees. “We sincerely apologize for the great inconvenience and concern caused,” the company said.
The leaked data, referred to as “TeraLeak” by fans, first appeared on online forums and social media in early October 2024. According to sources like Centro LEAKS, the leak allegedly includes personal information of employees and over a terabyte of insider details about unreleased Pokémon games, as well as source code from previous titles like Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, etc. However, Game Freak has not confirmed whether any proprietary Pokémon or Nintendo-related data was exposed, nor have they verified the accuracy of the reported leak.
In response, the company stated they have “already rebuilt and re-inspected our servers” and will continue to “prevent recurrence by further strengthening our security measures.” They also mentioned they are “contacting affected employees individually” and will set up a hotline for those who cannot be reached directly due to resignation, termination, etc., and to address any inquiries about the situation.
Game Freak, the lead developer of the Pokémon series since 1996 in collaboration with Nintendo and The Pokémon Company, is currently working on Pokémon Legends: Z-A, set for release in 2025. Last month, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company filed legal action in Japan against the makers of Palworld, accusing them of patent infringement. However, the specifics of the claim have not been disclosed.
Words by Khushboo Malhotra
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