Reports emerged concerning a major data breach of the popular online game Neopets, by a hacker currently holding information and accounts ransom.
Neopets announced online, "Neopets recently became aware that customer data may have been stolen. We immediately launched an investigation assisted by a leading forensics firm. We are also engaging law enforcement and enhancing the protections for our systems and our user data." It added, "It appears that email addresses and passwords used to access Neopets accounts may have been affected. We strongly recommend that you change your Neopets password. If you use the same password on other websites, we recommend that you also change those passwords."
Neopets fan website JellyNeo reported the hacker is holding 69 million user accounts for ransom, demanding 4 bitcoin (approximately $100,000) in exchange for them. Neopets announced it is working with law enforcement and conducting an investigation of its own into the hack. No further information has been provided.
Recent Video Game Cyberattacks
This is not the first hacking issue that the game has encountered. A hack in 2016 saw tens of millions of accounts have their information leaked to the benefit of the hackers and more nefarious players, who weaponized the availability of data to steal from one another. In 2020, the online game was dealt a potentially fatal blow when Adobe Flash was discontinued. Neopets owner JumpStart Games was ultimately able to recover.
This is far from the first major cyberattack to occur to a major game recently. Bandai Namco, the publisher behind Elden Ring, was recently hacked by infamous group BlackCat, demanding a payout in the millions. The ransomware group has reportedly been ramping up its efforts in recent years, attacking with more frequency and moving beyond video games, targeting public entities and schools.
It is not just groups like BlackCat that are increasing cyberattacks, and not all attackers are seeking financial gain. Last year, a user on Nvidia GeForce Now was able to gain access to multiple unreleased titles from the cloud gaming service. Twitch was also the victim of a data breach in 2021, with more than 100GB worth of information leaked to 4chan - the leaker seeking to "foster more disruption and competition in the online video streaming space."