Consumer rights movement Stop Killing Games has released a public statement admonishing the actions of the group which took responsibility for leaking Grand Theft Auto 6 gameplay footage overnight.
Stop Killing Games, best known for campaigning against the termination of online games – and for arguing its case in European Parliament – has urged supporters not to support these GTA 6 leakers regardless of how they feel about Rockstar.
“Footage from GTA 6 has leaked, and a group of hackers, whom we will deliberately not name here, to avoid giving them further attention, claims responsibility,” Stop Killing Games wrote on social media. “The footage itself appears to be genuine: Take-Two has already been hitting it with DMCA takedowns, and the speed of those strikes is itself a strong signal of authenticity. The group is using the leak to promote a memecoin, attaching crypto links and QR codes to the footage and asking people to pay for more.
“Do not send these people your money, no matter how much sympathy you may feel for their actions. This is illegal, and frankly, we feel for everyone at Rockstar having to go through this ordeal again, especially just over a week before Rockstar’s own official ‘Extended Look’ premieres.
“Using illegal means to make a point is unacceptable to us and does nothing to protect our right to keep using what we paid for. No matter how strongly you disagree with the decisions of upper management at these companies, there are still thousands of developers who worked hard on this project — and they’re the ones being hit the hardest.
“Channel that frustration into something constructive instead. This kind of act is destructive and helps no one, worse, it risks tarnishing the reputation of our communities and our chances to make change.”
The group that took responsibility for the leak, CyberLeek, reportedly published a manifesto against Rockstar Games on its website, which has since gone offline.
CyberLeek reportedly criticised Rockstar Games for shipping GTA 6 without a physical disc, while simultaneously threatening other developers should they do the same. “If CyberLeek can reach Rockstar, no one is safe,” the website read “This is a message to all big corpo: behave, or be the next target.”
Stop Killing Games appears to fear the action of this leaker group tarnishes the work it has done.That work has, to the groups’ credit, been impressive. The group has spent ample time in European Parliament, pushing for greater protections for players as digital games continue to vanish after being switched off. Stop Killing Games has also continued supported a variety of game-related legislative battles globally, including a recent Dutch consumer rights lawsuit and a consumer protection bill in California.
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