FBI Seizes Major Nintendo Switch Piracy Website

A large website hosting pirate copies of Nintendo Switch games has been unopen down by the FBI.

Now, alternatively of illegally-copied games, the notorious NSW2U.com hosts a azygous representation offering a informing connection from the FBI, acknowledging the domain has been seized.

The determination is the latest successful a drawstring of anti-piracy efforts surrounding Nintendo games this year, and follows Nintendo itself taking enactment to permanently "brick" caller Switch 2 consoles that usage a piracy-enabling Flash paper device.

"This domain has been seized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation," the connection present visibile connected NSW2U.com reads, "in accordance with a seizure warrant issued pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 2323 issued by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia arsenic portion of a instrumentality enforcement cognition and enactment by the Federal Bureau of Investigation [and] Fiscal Information and Investigation Service."

That second organisation, the FIOD, is simply a Dutch authorities bureau that investigates fiscal crimes, suggesting the website had ties to the Netherlands.

Various European countries had antecedently blocked entree to NSW2U.com aft it had been added to a EU blacklist successful May. Now, the tract is seemingly gone for good.

IGN has contacted Nintendo for much item connected the website's closure, and immoderate adjacent steps against those down its operation.

Nintendo has agelong waged warfare connected those who alteration piracy of its video games, and sought high-profile fines and adjacent situation sentences for those involved. But the company's astir caller attack of bricking Switch 2 consoles from accessing the bulk of their features has raised eyebrows — with concerns astir the interaction of this maneuver connected second-hand customers, and adjacent a ineligible situation from a Brazilian authorization which believes Nintendo has over-reached.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You tin scope Tom astatine [email protected] oregon find him connected Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social