Nintendo Subpoenas Discord to Identify 'TeraLeak' Leaker

Nintendo is actively pursuing legal action to uncover the identity behind last year's significant Pokemon leak, referred to as the "FreakLeak" or "TeraLeak." The company has requested a subpoena from a California court, aiming to compel Discord to reveal the personal details—including the name, address, phone number, and email address—of the user known as "GameFreakOUT." This individual allegedly posted copyrighted Pokemon content, including artwork, characters, source code, and other materials, to a Discord server named "FreakLeak" in October of last year, which then spread rapidly across the internet.

While not officially confirmed, the leaked materials are believed to have originated from a data breach at Game Freak in August, which was disclosed in October. The breach involved the unauthorized access of 2,606 current, former, and contract employees' 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 focused solely on the employee data without mentioning other confidential materials.

The leaks revealed a treasure trove of unannounced projects, including early builds, cut content, and background information on various Pokemon games. Notably, the leak disclosed details about "Pokemon Champions," a battle-centric game announced in February, as well as information about "Pokemon Legends: Z-A," which has been validated since. The leaked data also included insights into the next generation of Pokemon, source code for DS Pokemon titles, meeting summaries, and previously omitted lore from games like "Pokemon Legends: Arceus."

Although Nintendo has not yet filed a lawsuit against any specific hacker or leaker, the subpoena suggests a strong intent to identify and possibly prosecute the individual responsible. Given Nintendo's history of aggressively pursuing legal action against piracy and patent infringement, should the subpoena be granted, it may be just a matter of time before further legal action is taken.