GTA 6 Hacker Leaks More From Prison, Claims Source Code Still Loose

Arion Kurtaj, the hacker who infiltrated Rockstar Games' development servers in September 2022 and dumped roughly 90 clips of early GTA 6 footage, is back in the conversation. Screenshots circulating on social media, first amplified by videotechuk_ on X, show Kurtaj posing from a prison door and sitting on his bed, with messages suggesting the Grand Theft Auto 6 source code is still in someone else's possession and has yet to surface publicly. Rockstar, parent company Take-Two Interactive, and UK prison authorities have not verified any of the screenshots, photos, or claims.

Kurtaj, a central member of the hacking group Lapsus$, which also targeted NVIDIA, Uber, and Microsoft, gained access to Rockstar's internal systems in 2022 by using compromised credentials belonging to a Rockstar employee to enter internal Slack workspaces. From there he accessed links to development servers and downloaded the gameplay footage. At the time he posted on GTAForums: "Here are 90 footage/clips from GTA 6... It's possible I could leak more data soon, GTA V and GTA 6 source code and assets." The 90-plus videos included early gameplay, debug builds running on developer tools, footage of the game's Vice City-inspired location, and early systems covering robberies, NPC AI, police responses, and weapon mechanics.

A UK court confined Kurtaj indefinitely to a hospital in December 2023. He appears to have since been relocated to a more conventional jail, though no official statement from UK authorities has confirmed his current placement. The new messages attributed to him describe his time in the psychiatric facility with unexpected fondness: "Mental hospital was amazing, i was able to access the community, go fishing, cook my own food, go shopping / 3 hours shop each week, 8 hours fishing a week." He has also stated, "I am detained for 3.5 years, not sentenced, not put on trial."

X account "ben," dedicated to Rockstar Games news, claims to have had a direct conversation with Kurtaj, who reportedly expressed surprise that the GTA 6 source code has never been released. In a reproduced exchange with a contact named Omar, Kurtaj said: "Probably yes that they've played with the source code, it's been 3.5 years since they have it gatekeeped. That's why rockstar has been delaying a lot. And they're worried."

How Kurtaj is communicating from custody is itself disputed. One account relayed by Omar claims friends smuggled a smartphone into the facility via drone, complete with a charger. Kurtaj himself also claims that a Nokia burner phone is permitted for communication. A Snapchat account using his name has posted cell photos, one selfie captioned with the text "Phone about to be seizedi think will get another soon inshallah." RockstarINTEL notes that a key court hearing is approaching, though no specific date has been confirmed publicly.

The skepticism is considerable. Community reactions point out the obvious: if the source code is genuinely sitting with an unknown third party, Kurtaj is in no position to force its release and has every incentive to overstate the threat. One commenter put it bluntly: "Then why doesnt HE leak it, if its 'already out there'? Oh right, he doesnt want to face the legal consequences." Notebookcheck laid out the realistic range of outcomes plainly: Kurtaj may simply be lying; Take-Two may have already secured the code through its post-2022 security investigation; or a third party genuinely holds it and has been waiting for the right moment or offer.

What is documented fact is narrower than the headlines suggest. Kurtaj stole and released approximately 90 early GTA 6 clips in 2022. He never published any source code at that time. Every claim about the code's current whereabouts originates from unverified social media posts and message screenshots attributed to a jailed hacker. Take-Two has been aggressive about controlling GTA 6 information ahead of the game's release, with speculation that a recent return-to-office mandate and a series of contested layoffs were attempts to close leak pathways. Whether any of Kurtaj's current claims amount to a genuine threat or an imprisoned man seeking attention remains, for now, an open question.