Grand Theft Auto VI is one of the most anticipated game releases in years, with the official launch scheduled this fall.
Rockstar Games and its parent company, Take-Two Interactive, have kept the game’s marketing under tight control, with a planned “Extended Look” at the gameplay premiering on Netflix later this month.
However, a few days ago, millions of fans already got a sneak peek. On August 18, someone identifying as “Cyberleek” started posting unreleased gameplay footage online. These clips went viral on social media, despite Take-Two issuing a barrage of takedown notices.
The leak came with a manifesto, criticizing the move away from physical discs, among other things. In addition, the leaked gameplay was branded with a Solana token advert.
The Discord and Microsoft ‘Dragnet’ Subpoenas
Take-Two did not take this leak lightly. As widely reported in the media, the game company requested two DMCA subpoenas at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, directed at Discord servers and at Microsoft’s internal cyberleek investigation, device identifiers, IP logs, and OneDrive content tied to GTA.
The Discord subpoena is particularly broad. As highlighted by Tom’s Hardware, Kotaku, and others, the subpoena sought identifying details for every account that communicated in three named Discord servers since June 1, not only those tied to the leaks.
Take-Two also seeks “all identifying information associated with all user accounts that are/were members of the Discord community servers and channels listed below.”
Targeting Discord Users
The Discord and Microsoft DMCA subpoena requests were filed by law firm Kirkland & Ellis. While some media reports suggest they have been issued, that’s not the case yet. A judge signed an order directing the clerk to issue, but the clerk hasn’t issued them.
The docket does include a proposed subpoena, requiring Discord and Microsoft to disclose the requested information, as shown above. But there’s more.
Take-Two Targets X
A day after the initial subpoenas were requested, Take-Two applied for DMCA subpoenas against X Corp. and Google, again at the Southern District of New York. These filings came from a different law firm, Ruttenberg IP Law, and are more narrowly targeted.
The proposed X subpoena lists three usernames: @cyberleek_ar_io, @cyberleekario, and @MrCyberLeek. For each, it demands the account ID, registration email, IP access logs, phone numbers, connected accounts, and any associated device identifiers, again covering June 1 to the present.
Proposed subpoena
Notably, the GTA fan community had flagged these accounts as impostors before the subpoena was filed. Cyberleek also watermarked “CYBERLEEK DOES NOT HAVE TWITTER” onto later leaked videos. The named X accounts are now all suspended.
NO TWITTER
Whether Take-Two treats these X accounts as impostors who copied the leaks, or as the source, is not mentioned in the filing.
The YouTube Channel Subpoena
The Google/YouTube subpoena is a lot narrower than the Discord sweep. It names a single YouTube video and three channels that are believed to be associated with it: CyberLeeks, Surfer24k, and Cyberleek_ar_io.
Surfer24k also appears in the Discord subpoena, as it is linked to one of the named servers. Obtaining personal records for this user from both Google and Discord allows Take-Two to compare the information of both platforms.
An exhibit filed with the petition lists Rockstar’s takedown request on YouTube. The company logged a reference file as “UNAUTH_2026AUG_VIDEO2,” and YouTube’s Content ID system flagged and claimed the matching upload shortly after it went live.
YouTube flag
The same exhibit shows a “BUY $CYBERLEEK ON SOLANA” watermark on the footage, as shown above.
Not Disclosed, Yet
None of the four filings is a lawsuit. They are subpoenas issued under Section 512(h) of the DMCA, which lets a copyright holder compel a service provider to identify an alleged infringer without first suing anyone.
These subpoenas do not require a ruling on the merits and a signature from the court clerk is sufficient, as long as all other conditions are met.
As it stands, none of the four subpoenas has been issued. Judge Andrew L. Carter Jr. and Judge Jennifer L. Rochon each signed an order directing the clerk to act, but the clerk has not yet done so. No user data has changed hands as a result.
Notably, DMCA subpoenas are restricted to targeting alleged infringers that are tied to specific material. Whether that covers thousands of Discord users, many of whom may have posted nothing at all, is up for debate.
Take-Two’s counsel declared that the purpose of the subpoenas is “to obtain the identity of an alleged infringer or infringers, and that such information will only be used for the purpose of protecting Take-Two’s rights.” This means that a lawsuit could eventually follow.
The purpose…
Before that happens, however, it is possible that the targeted intermediaries or their users will file an objection. Service providers regularly resist DMCA subpoenas which they see as being overbroad, and targeted users can move to quash.
It’s clear that Take-Two is determined to get the leaker’s identity, but how broad its DMCA dragnet can reach has yet to be seen.
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A copy of the request for a DMCA subpoena directed at Google/YouTube is available here (pdf, pdf, pdf) and the X Corp variant is here (pdf, pdf, pdf).
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