Nintendo Seeks Discord User Data in Pokemon "TeraLeak" Probe

Nintendo is currently seeking a subpoena from a California court that, if successful, would compel Discord to disclose the identity of the individual behind last year's significant Pokemon leak, referred to as the "FreakLeak" or the "TeraLeak". According to court documents reviewed and reported by Polygon, Nintendo aims to obtain the name, address, phone number, and email address of a Discord user known as "GameFreakOUT". This user is alleged to have shared copyright-protected artwork, characters, source code, and other Pokemon-related materials on a Discord server called "FreakLeak" last October. These materials were subsequently widely disseminated across the internet.

Although not officially confirmed, the leaked materials are believed to have originated from a data breach that Game Freak disclosed in October, which occurred back in August. The breach involved the access of 2,606 cases of current, former, and contract employee names. Interestingly, the leaked files surfaced online on October 12, followed by Game Freak's statement the next day, which was backdated to October 10 and only mentioned the employee data breach, without reference to other confidential company materials.

The materials that were leaked encompassed a range of unannounced projects, cut content, and other background information, including early builds of various Pokemon games. The leak notably revealed details about "Pokemon Champions", an upcoming battle-focused Pokemon game, before its official announcement in February. It also included accurate information about "Pokemon Legends: Z-A", as well as yet-to-be-verified details on the next generation of Pokemon, source code for several DS Pokemon titles, meeting summaries, and cut lore from "Pokemon Legends: Arceus" and other games.

While Nintendo has not yet filed a lawsuit against a hacker or leaker, the pursuit of this subpoena suggests they are actively trying to identify the person responsible, with potential legal action likely to follow. Nintendo has a history of taking strong legal action against issues ranging from piracy to patent infringement, indicating that if the subpoena is granted, further legal steps may soon be taken.