On 9th September 2022, over ninety videos from an early build of GTA 6 appeared online. Rockstar confirmed the breach the following day. To this day, claims are based on these videos that don’t actually follow from them. This site describes what happened, what those videos actually showed, and why they’re largely unproductive after four years.
Last checked on 24 August 2026.
The material originated from a criminal activity and Take-Two are systematically removing it. We agreed on this page to cover the leak, but we wouldn’t be distributing it – it’s written on the Contact page and applies even when it’s being discussed everywhere. The links below lead to Rockstar’s official statement and news coverage, not to the leaked files.
Six steps from uploading the files to the subsequent court hearing
A user operating under the name ‘teapotuberhacker’ uploaded more than ninety files containing footage from the early build of the game to GTAForums. They claimed to have access to the source code.
The studio announced that “an unauthorised third party illegally obtained and downloaded confidential information from our systems”, including early development footage. They also stated that they did not anticipate a long-term impact on the development.”
According to court documents, the attack took place from a room at the Travelodge hotel, where the perpetrator was under police protection. They used a television in the room, an Amazon Fire Stick and a mobile phone.
Eighteen-year-old Arion Kurtaj from Oxford, linked to the Lapsus$ group, was found unable to participate in a standard criminal trial due to a severe form of autism. The jury did not assess guilt, but rather whether the actions were carried out.
The court ruled for placement in a secure hospital without a fixed duration. According to expert assessments, there was a risk that the offender would return to computer crime.
Kurtaj was transferred to prison as a new hearing is scheduled for November 2026. The case remains open.
The footage was working material. Test scenes, temporary textures, debug labels on screen, unfinished animations. It was not a showcase of the game but recordings from development that should never have left the studio. Point by point, here is what was actually on them — and for each one, whether Rockstar later confirmed it or whether it no longer applies today.
It was not a trailer or an edit. It was a pile of separate recordings made during the work — different lengths, different ages, no order. That is exactly why no coherent picture of the game can be assembled from them: each one captures a different moment of development.
Source: Windows Central
Readouts that players never see ran across the picture: coordinates, character states, variable names, scene switches. It is the surest sign that these were internal builds meant for testing, not a version close to release.
Source: Windows Central
A pair of characters appeared in the scenes, and their names showed up in the debug labels. That they are Jason and Lucia was only confirmed by Rockstar in the first trailer in December 2023 — nobody could have known it from the leak, it merely matched later.
Source: Windows Central
Some scenes took place in a setting with the architecture and light typical of Miami. Officially, Rockstar introduced the state of Leonida and Vice City only with the trailer, well over a year later.
Source: Windows Central
The most quoted scene: two characters walk into a shop, one points a gun at the staff while the other collects the money. Alongside it, movement through interiors without a loading screen. What these systems look like in the finished game cannot be read from a four-year-old work version.
Source: Windows Central
Characters moved jerkily in places, some transitions between movements were missing entirely, and objects reacted in an unfinished way. This is a normal state mid-development and says nothing about how the finished version will handle.
Source: Windows Central
The most common mistake made about the leak. The footage ran on an unfinished engine with temporary materials and lighting; judging the look of the finished game by it is like judging a building by its scaffolding.
Source: Windows Central
The perpetrator claimed to have the source code of GTA 5 and GTA 6 as well. Rockstar confirmed that an attacker had obtained confidential information, but also stated that it did not expect a long-term impact on development and that work was continuing as planned.
Source: GameSpot — Rockstar's statement
Rockstar wrote on the day of confirmation that it did not anticipate a long-term impact on the development of unfinished projects. The first official trailer came a year and a quarter later, in December 2023. The claim that the leak delayed the game has no basis in anything the studio has published — both official delays Rockstar announced separately and with its own justification.
Source: GameSpot — Rockstar’s response
What is most commonly leaked
18. September 2022, when over ninety video files from an unfinished game appeared on GTAForums. Rockstar confirmed the following day, 19. September 2022.
Over ninety files. The perpetrator also claimed to have the game’s source code; Rockstar did not confirm or deny this in its statement.
Arion Kurtaj from Oxford, linked to the Lapsus$ group. In December 2023, the jury ruled that he committed the offences; due to a severe form of autism, he was found unable to plead in a criminal case. In January 2024, the court ordered indefinite detention. In July 2026, he was transferred to prison following a new review scheduled for November 2026.
No. They were work footage from 2022 with temporary textures and debugging features. The game is due to be released on 19. November 2026, four years later. The appearance, mechanics and content have changed over that time, and the only material that speaks about the finished game is official Rockstar material.
Nothing indicates this. Rockstar, on the day of confirmation, stated that it did not anticipate a long-term impact on development. Both subsequent delays were announced separately by the studio with its own explanation, without reference to the leak.
Links to which aren't here and won't be listed. The material originates from a criminal act, Take-Two is instructing it be removed and distributing leaked content is in breach of the rules outlined on the Contact page.
The rumour tracker sorts individual statements according to the extent to which they are verified. The timeline shows each official announcement with date and quote.