Japanese Pokémon Scarlet & Violet hacker arrested for selling modified Pokémon

A man has been arrested in Japan for selling modded Pokémon to Scarlet & Violet players.

As reported by NHK News and translated by Automaton, the man was arrested last week for modifying data in Scarlet & Violet and selling the modified data to players.

Modifying save files and distributing edited data is illegal in Japan, falling under its Unfair Competition Prevention Act of 2019.

The man had been using a special tool to modify the abilities of Pokémon from the game, and was then selling the hacked Pokémon on a website for profit.

The report says the man was selling hacked Pokémon for up to ¥13,000 ($85), and was also spotted taking custom orders and offering deals on rare Pokémon like “6 Pokémon for only ¥4000 ($25)”.

Police believe that during the period of December 2022 and March 2023, the man may have made millions of yen (tens of thousands of dollars).

Violation of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act can lead to a prison sentence of up to 5 years, a fine of up to ¥5 million ($32,000), or both.

Last month the former chief lawyer for The Pokémon Company said fan projects are more likely to be taken down if they get press coverage or start making money.

Although fan-made games don’t always involve directly modifying game data as in the above story, it appears that when money starts changing hands the likelihood of action being taken increases.

In an interview with Aftermath, former Pokémon general counsel Don McGowan said that although press coverage is often what catches The Pokémon Company’s eye, it’s “not the end of the equation”.

“You wait to see if they get funded (for a Kickstarter or similar) – if they get funded then that’s when you engage. No one likes suing fans.”