Although “Grand Theft Auto VI” is scheduled to arrive at the end of the year, launching on November 19 after two delays, suspicious invitations for test versions of the game are circulating via email, warning of a scam. The high expectations surrounding the title make it a perfect target for criminals looking to exploit fans’ anxiety.
According to Gerald Kasulis, vice president of global affairs at NordVPN, these and other fraudulent schemes linked to the game have been employed by criminals with the aim of stealing banking information and selling personal data from various victims, indicating an increased risk of fraud and identity theft.
Alert about the lack of official test versions of the highly anticipated GTA VI
Kasulis reported to the British newspaper The Guardian that scammers, taking advantage of players’ desire, create emails and digital platforms that appear legitimate and impeccable, often using artificial intelligence to improve the imitation of official portals.
He added that many users, without checking their authenticity, click on the links, convinced that they are legitimate invitations to beta versions of the game. The executive also denounced the proliferation of fake websites offering early access to the title.
Among the fraudulent portals, some allude to the iconic Vice City, the franchise’s traditional setting, while others promise codes to enable the game on consoles such as Xbox and PlayStation 5. There are also schemes that instruct the download of applications for supposed mobile editions of the game.
The fake pages often request a range of personal data, including full name, address, date of birth and login credentials for accounts linked to previous titles in the series. Collecting this data could be used in future fraud or black market sales.
To date, Rockstar Games, responsible for the development of “GTA VI”, has not issued any official statement regarding these incidents, and the company has not announced any test version to the public.