Fake GTA VI Download Spreads Malware Targeting Crypto Wallets

Hackers are offering a programme designed to steal passwords from crypto wallets under the guise of GTA VI

Cybercriminals are distributing a non-existent copy of GTA VI via the Google Colab cloud platform. The repack contains malware designed to steal login credentials and passwords from crypto wallets, according to cybersecurity experts at Cynet.

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The download link for the pirated repack of the game leads to a page called Windows Software Hub. The page is hosted on a domain linked to the WooCommerce platform. To make the page appear more credible, the attackers included the software version and the number of downloads, and added ‘Virus-free’, ‘Safe’, ‘Verified’ and even the text ‘No threats detected’.

However, the repack is only 72 MB in size, which should raise alarm bells, as modern blockbuster games usually weigh in at hundreds of gigabytes. Inside the archive, Cynet’s experts discovered an executable file (EXE) measuring 796 KB and a 1 KB README text document. The README instructions require the user to run the EXE file as an administrator, ignore any security warnings, and, if the file is blocked, add it to the antivirus’s exceptions list, reports bits.media.

If a user follows these steps, an infostealer will be installed on their device, capable of injecting malicious code into browser processes, stealing passwords, login credentials for the Steam and Roblox gaming services, and cookies, as well as gaining access to browsing history and cryptocurrency wallet data. The infostealer is capable of spoofing crypto wallet addresses copied by the user and downloading additional malicious modules, Cynet has warned.

There is currently no PC version of GTA VI. The game is scheduled for release on 19 November, exclusively on the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.

In August, the hacker group CyberLeek began leaking video clips from the video game GTA 6, threatening the game studio Rockstar with the release of the remaining material unless it stopped taking pre-orders for the sixth instalment of GTA and ceased selling the game on physical media. In October, the anonymous source behind the Grand Theft Auto VI leaks promised to release a fully functional version of the game online, provided that the market capitalisation of his meme coin, CYBERLEEK, reached $30 million.

This story was translated with the assistance of artificial intelligence.

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