Nintendo Confirms Hack but Says No Key Data Was Taken

Nintendo has confirmed that it was the target of a hacking attempt last week, responding to a query from the Sankei Shimbun newspaper. Importantly, the company said it has not found any sign that personal information, game development data, or business information was actually taken.

The claim first surfaced through the Hackmanac account on X, which tracks cyber attacks. On October 11 it reported that a group calling itself Crimson Collective had supposedly breached Nintendo and was teasing stolen material, seemingly as a lead up to an extortion attempt.

This comes after a much larger incident last year. In October 2024, an alleged leaker released close to a terabyte of data from Nintendo’s Pokémon developer GAME FREAK, an event fans nicknamed the Teraleak.

That earlier leak reportedly exposed the names and work email addresses of more than 2,600 current and former staff, along with details of unannounced projects. Among the rumored contents were early Pokémon games, unused art and music from older titles, a planned Pokémon Netflix series, and a possible sequel to the 2019 Detective Pikachu film.

In response to the Teraleak, Nintendo asked a United States court earlier this year to compel Discord to hand over information that could help identify the person behind it.

My take: It is reassuring that Nintendo says nothing sensitive appears to have been taken this time. Still, these repeated incidents are a real worry, and I hope the staff whose details leaked last year are being properly supported.