Nintendo have stated they are “investigating the situation” of widespread unauthorized access to Nintendo accounts, being used to purchase Fortnite V-Bucks.
Previously we reported that Nintendo of Japan had urged its users to use two-step verification, after “In April, the number of inquiries stating that ‘You have been unauthorizedly logged into your Nintendo Account and your credit card has been illegally used’ has been increasing.” (Translation: Google Translate)
We then saw western users stating that their Nintendo accounts had been illicitly accessed from places such as Iraq, Poland, and Chile. Linked Paypal accounts were then used to buy $100 worth of V-Bucks for Fortnite.
However, there had been no confirmation on the issue from Nintendo in the west. Both the official US and European Nintendo Twitter accounts tweeted on April 9th about two-step verification. However, neither tweet made any sign of urgency or there being an issue.
As mentioned in our previous article, The news feed on the Nintendo Switch console also discussed two-step verification features for US users. It also lacks any sense of urgency, sounding more akin to reminding users the feature exists.
Now, Nintendo has responded to EuroGamer, stating they are investigating the matter. “We are aware of reports of unauthorised access to some Nintendo Accounts and we are investigating the situation,” a Nintendo spokesperson said to EuroGamer in an email.
“In the meantime, we recommend that users enable two-step verification for their Nintendo Account as instructed here: https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Support/Nintendo-Switch/How-to-Set-Up-2-Step-Verification-for-a-Nintendo-Account-1466677.html. If any users become aware of unauthorised activity, we encourage them to take the steps outlined at https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Support/Nintendo-Account/Nintendo-Account-Recovery-Process-1658054.html or visit https://support.nintendo.com for general support.”
Nintendo did not confirm whether they had been hacked or not.
Whether there has been a hack or not, we recommend our readers change their Nintendo Account password, and remove any payment-based information from their account. You can find out how to step up Two-Step verification here [US, Europe].
We will keep you informed as we learn more.
Image: Twitter
