Gerald Kasulis, the vice-president of global affairs at the cybersecurity company NordVPN, has issued a warning over the fraud. #
A warning has been issued for gaming fans over a Grand Theft Auto VI scam. Emails are circulating inviting eager fans to play a pre-release “beta” version of the game so that you can alert the makers to any bugs before its official release later this year.
But the invitation is a scam, experts say. Gerald Kasulis, the vice-president of global affairs at the cybersecurity company NordVPN, has issued a warning over the fraud.
“You’re a gamer, you’re waiting for the game, and you get an email that looks really official and polished; with the help of AI, scammers can actually mimic official websites really, really well,” says Kasulis. “Then without really checking … they just click on those things, believing they are official beta testing [invitations].”
READ MORE UK government told to lower social media ban age from 16 to new threshold
“We need you to help us build Vice City,” says one fraud site, referring to the metropolis in which the games are set. “Before GTA VI launches to the world, we’re inviting a select group of players to experience the game early.”
It comes as the game has been delayed again – this time to the end of 2026. It has now been nearly two years since the game was announced, and more than 12 years since the release of Grand Theft Auto V.
“Grand Theft Auto VI will now release on Thursday, November 19, 2026,” reads Rockstar Games’s statement on X.
It went on: “We are sorry for adding additional time to what we realize has been a long wait, but these extra months will allow us to finish the game with the level of polish you have come to expect and deserve.”
It has been development at Rockstar North in Edinburgh, with assistance from the company’s other studios in New York and worldwide, since 2018.
Its original release window was late 2025.