TL;DR
- Take-Two has gone to federal court seeking records from Microsoft and Discord connected to the recent wave of Grand Theft Auto VI leaks.
- The requests seek information that could help identify the person or people operating under the “Cyberleek” name.
- Requested Microsoft records reportedly include account information, IP addresses, phone numbers, linked accounts, device identifiers and certain OneDrive content connected to GTA, Rockstar or Cyberleek.
- Discord records are being sought for accounts communicating in several servers connected to the spread or investigation of the leaks.
- The inclusion of a Discord server does not mean its owner or every member is accused of leaking GTA 6.
- Rockstar has not publicly identified the person behind the leaks, while GTA 6 remains scheduled for November 19, 2026.
Take-Two appears determined to find out exactly who is behind the extraordinary wave of Grand Theft Auto VI leaks that has spread across the internet this week.
The parent company of Rockstar Games has taken its investigation to federal court, seeking extensive records from both Microsoft and Discord that could potentially reveal the identity of the individual or group operating under the name “Cyberleek.”
The requests go considerably further than simply asking who owns a particular Discord account. According to court documents reported on Friday, Take-Two is seeking information that could include registration emails, IP addresses, phone numbers, linked accounts, device identifiers and certain files stored through Microsoft’s OneDrive service.
It’s the clearest indication yet that Take-Two’s response to the leaks has moved beyond copyright takedowns and into an aggressive effort to identify whoever obtained and distributed the unreleased material.
What Is Take-Two Asking Microsoft For?
Take-Two filed a request in the Southern District of New York on August 20 seeking records from Microsoft connected to the Cyberleek persona and accounts that may have been involved with the leaked material.
According to the filing, the company is seeking Microsoft’s internal business and investigative records associated with Cyberleek that would be sufficient to identify the person, people or entities operating behind the name.
The requested information reportedly goes much further than a username.
Take-Two is asking for identifying information associated with relevant accounts, potentially including account IDs, registration email addresses, registration and recent login IP addresses, phone numbers and linked services such as Xbox or Google accounts.
The request also references device identifiers and certain OneDrive content related to Grand Theft Auto, Rockstar Games or Cyberleek.
If Microsoft possesses those records and is ultimately required to provide them, the information could give Take-Two several different avenues for identifying the person behind the leaks.
Discord Is Being Asked For Records Too
Take-Two has made a similar request involving Discord.
The company is seeking records associated with users who communicated in several Discord communities that allegedly intersected with the leaks or discussions surrounding Cyberleek.
The names referenced in the request reportedly include Cyberleek, CINEMATICROCKSTAR, Surfer24k and replacement handles connected to those identities.
Several Discord servers are also named, including communities associated with Odyssey and the editors’ server belonging to popular Grand Theft Auto V creator Matthew “DarkViperAU” Judge.
That last detail requires an important distinction.
The fact that a Discord server is included in a request for records does not mean DarkViperAU or everyone inside that server is being accused of stealing or leaking GTA 6.
The requests are part of an effort to trace communications and potentially determine how leaked material moved between accounts and online communities. Being present in a server where something was discussed or shared is not itself proof that a person obtained the material from Rockstar.
Take-Two Wants To Identify The Alleged Infringer
The filings are being pursued through the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, better known as the DMCA.
Take-Two states that the purpose of the requests is to identify an alleged copyright infringer or infringers so the resulting information can be used to protect the company’s rights.
That is different from Take-Two suing Microsoft or Discord over the GTA 6 leaks.
Neither platform is being accused in these filings of stealing Rockstar’s game.
Instead, Take-Two is attempting to use records held by those companies to identify individuals who may be connected to the unauthorized distribution of its copyrighted material.
According to the documents reported by Kotaku, September 4 is listed as the requested compliance date.
Who Is Cyberleek?
That remains the million-dollar question.
A person or group using the Cyberleek identity has been releasing what appears to be unreleased GTA 6 footage showing portions of the game’s world, gameplay systems and other content that Rockstar has not officially presented to the public.
The material has quickly spread across social media, Discord communities and other corners of the internet, creating a familiar problem for Rockstar: once footage is downloaded and copied across enough accounts, deleting the original upload does very little to stop it from circulating.
Cyberleek has also published a manifesto attacking practices it considers anti-consumer, including digital preorders, certain approaches to downloadable content and games that cannot remain playable offline.
The campaign has attracted additional skepticism because the people behind it have also promoted a cryptocurrency meme coin while distributing the leaks.
Cyberleek has claimed its actions are connected to consumer and game-preservation concerns, but organizations advocating for those issues have not necessarily welcomed the association.
Stop Killing Games Has Distanced Itself From The Leakers
The Stop Killing Games campaign publicly condemned the methods being used by the GTA 6 leakers after the manifesto echoed several arguments commonly associated with video game preservation.
The advocacy movement made it clear that hacking, leaking copyrighted material and using illegal methods are not acceptable ways to pursue consumer protections.
That distinction is significant because Cyberleek appears to be positioning at least part of the campaign as an ideological fight against practices within the games industry.
Whatever the group’s stated motivation may be, Take-Two clearly views the unauthorized distribution of GTA 6 material as copyright infringement and is now attempting to determine who is actually responsible.
The GTA 6 Leaks Have Become Increasingly Serious
Leaks are hardly unfamiliar territory for Rockstar.
The company experienced one of the largest leaks in video game history in 2022 when development footage from an early version of GTA 6 appeared online years before release.
The current situation is different because the game is now much closer to launch.
New footage allegedly connected to the final stages of development can reveal features, environments and mechanics Rockstar may have intentionally planned to keep secret until its marketing campaign was ready to show them.
The timing is particularly awkward because Rockstar is only days away from a major official presentation.
Rockstar Has A Major GTA 6 Presentation Coming August 27
Rockstar has already announced an “Extended Look” at Grand Theft Auto VI for August 27.
The presentation will debut on Netflix at 3 p.m. ET before appearing later that day through Rockstar’s official YouTube channel and GTA 6 website.
That means the company was preparing to reveal a substantial amount of new information on its own terms just as unauthorized gameplay began spreading across the internet.
The leaks could potentially expose material Rockstar intended to save for that presentation or for later stages of the game’s promotional campaign.
Rockstar itself has so far remained relatively quiet publicly about the identity behind the latest leaks.
Take-Two’s legal filings show that plenty may be happening behind the scenes.
What Happens If Take-Two Identifies The Leaker?
Obtaining an identity would not automatically determine what happens next.
Take-Two could potentially pursue additional legal action depending on what its investigation uncovers, what material was obtained, how it was acquired and who participated in distributing it.
There is also a major difference between someone who originally accessed confidential Rockstar material and an ordinary internet user who later encountered or discussed leaked footage online.
That is why the scope of these requests will likely receive considerable attention.
Take-Two appears to be casting a wide investigative net in an attempt to reconstruct how the material moved through different accounts, services and online communities.
The most important piece remains identifying the original source.
GTA 6 Is Only Three Months Away
All of this is happening remarkably close to release.
Rockstar currently has Grand Theft Auto VI scheduled to launch on November 19, 2026, for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.
Jason Duval and Lucia Caminos will headline the long-awaited return to Vice City and the wider state of Leonida, with Rockstar describing the story as following the pair after a seemingly easy score places them in the middle of a much larger criminal conspiracy.
After more than a decade of anticipation, GTA 6 is arguably the most closely watched video game release in the world.
That level of attention also means almost any legitimate piece of unreleased footage can spread globally within minutes.
Take-Two’s Hunt For The GTA 6 Leaker Is Just Beginning
Copyright takedowns can remove individual videos.
They cannot answer the question Take-Two clearly cares about most.
Who has the material?
The requests targeting records held by Microsoft and Discord suggest the publisher believes those platforms may possess information capable of moving the investigation closer to that answer.
Whether the records actually identify Cyberleek remains to be seen.
But anyone involved in distributing the original files should probably understand that Take-Two is no longer simply chasing clips around social media.
It is going after the digital trail behind them.
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