{"id":605288,"date":"2026-05-26T19:08:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T19:08:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/605288\/"},"modified":"2026-05-26T19:08:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T19:08:10","slug":"gta-6-pre-order-hype-causes-huge-malware-concern","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/605288\/","title":{"rendered":"GTA 6 Pre-Order Hype Causes Huge Malware Concern"},"content":{"rendered":"

Grand Theft Auto 6<\/a> is arguably the most highly anticipated game ever made. It\u2019s set to drop on November 19, and fans have been tearing their hair out over the impending opening up of pre-orders. It has been a hugely contentious topic in the gaming space of late, with many demanding that pre-orders go live so fans can secure their copy ahead of launch.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, the hype around GTA 6 pre-orders has led to many being swindled by scammers and falling prey to malware attacks, phishing sites, and trojan viruses. It has become a very real concern that\u2019s plaguing many gamers who perhaps aren\u2019t as internet-savvy as they should be.<\/p>\n

GTA 6 Pre-Orders Aren\u2019t Live, But The Scams Are<\/p>\n

GTA 6 can be wishlisted, but it can\u2019t be pre-ordered officially; that hasn\u2019t stopped shady operators from diving into the community and taking advantage of gamers\u2019 excitement.<\/p>\n

In a recent investigation, NordVPN\u2019s<\/a> Threat Intelligence team uncovered a vast uprising in malware, scam campaigns, and phishing sites, all geared towards Grand Theft Auto 6 in one way or another.<\/p>\n

The team revealed that a series of scam sites have been catalogued, most of which are promising free GTA 6 codes, exclusive beta keys, or a glimpse of the fabled third trailer. They\u2019ve identified all kinds of attack vectors being propagated by malicious operators, including trojan viruses and Android adware.<\/p>\n

In a statement, CTO of NordVPN, Marijus Briedis, said:<\/p>\n

GTA VI is one of the most anticipated releases in gaming history, and that level of public excitement is exactly what criminals look for. When people are desperate to get early access to something, their guard comes down. That\u2019s the window attackers exploit.<\/p>\n

The team has been tracking clone sites that have tried to replicate piracy and repack sites, using their authority to distribute malware disguised as game files related to GTA 6. <\/p>\n

In a recent report, NordVPN wrote:<\/p>\n

One analyzed sample, detected on May 17, 2026, shows how convincing these fakes can be. The malicious package presents itself as a legitimate game installer. Once a user runs it, a hidden malicious file quietly activates in the background, disguised as a standard NVIDIA graphics driver component to avoid raising suspicion.<\/p>\n

There are examples of phishing attempts to gather Rockstar Social Club account information, fake ads offering downloads, and sites promising GTA 6 pre-orders that amount to nothing but scams.<\/p>\n

It shouldn\u2019t need to be said, but don\u2019t trust anything related to GTA 6 that doesn\u2019t come from an official, reputable source. There are no methods to get early access, there isn\u2019t a magic download link that will give you the game, and you won\u2019t land mysterious beta keys for this game.<\/p>\n

Are you waiting for GTA 6 pre-orders to surface? Let us know on the Insider Gaming Discord server<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out the news that Cal Kestis has more Star Wars stories coming<\/a><\/p>\n


\n \"\" <\/a><\/p>\n

\n Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You’ll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere. <\/p>\n


\n More from Grant Taylor-Hill <\/a><\/p>\n

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Available on iOS & Android<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Grand Theft Auto 6 is arguably the most highly anticipated game ever made. It\u2019s set to drop on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":605289,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[205,59,28748,127,762,143369,86,56,54,55,55276,183],"class_list":["post-605288","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-gaming","tag-gb","tag-grand-theft-auto-6","tag-playstation-5","tag-rockstar-games","tag-take-two-interactive","tag-technology","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom","tag-video-game-news","tag-xbox"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/605288","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=605288"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/605288\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/605289"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=605288"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=605288"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=605288"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}