Capcom Says a Data Breach Exposed 11.7 Million Capcom ID Accounts

Capcom says someone outside the company accessed 11,774,247 Capcom ID accounts. The publisher behind Resident Evil, Street Fighter and Monster Hunter announced the breach on October 22, three days after it first spotted signs of it (Notebookcheck). Capcom ID is the account players use to sign in across Capcom's games and online services.

Most of what leaked is email addresses and account details. That includes when each account was created, when it last logged in, how many times it has logged in and the IP address from its most recent login (VGC). For 43 accounts, birth dates, gender, country or region and nicknames were exposed too. Capcom says no credit card information was affected. It also found no sign that the passwords players created themselves leaked. Someone did change the passwords on 196 accounts without permission, though, and Capcom has reset those.

What should Capcom players do?

Capcom's main warning is about phishing. Since the leaked email addresses could be used for fake messages, the company is asking players to be wary of any email that claims to come from Capcom. It also says to avoid opening unexpected links or attachments (GamingBolt). Players whose passwords weren't changed can keep using their accounts as normal. Capcom also says multiplayer services for games like Street Fighter 6 aren't expected to be affected.

The company set up a task force on October 20. It reported the breach to the Osaka Prefectural Police and Japan's Personal Information Protection Commission the next day (Capcom). Capcom says it has identified and addressed the method used in the attack, and that it "takes this matter extremely seriously." Its investigation is still ongoing.

This isn't the first time Capcom has dealt with something like this. In 2020, a ransomware group called Ragnar Locker attacked the company and exposed data on customers and employees (MP1st). That attack also leaked internal documents, which spoiled parts of Capcom's release plans for the following years well before the company was ready to share them.

If you've ever made a Capcom ID to hunt monsters with friends, it can't hurt to make sure your password isn't one you use anywhere else (Rathalos isn't the only thing to watch out for this week).

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Header image and the Metro City screenshot are official Street Fighter 6 screenshots from Capcom, via Steam.