Denuvo Sought Subpoenas in Lawsuit Against Game Cracker
The anti-piracy firm has petitioned a California court for user data linked to the anonymous individual known as voices38.
Updated on Oct. 6, 2026 in Cybersecurity
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Denuvo has filed an ex parte motion in a California federal court to obtain user identification data from Discord, Valve, and Reddit. The company is pursuing this information to identify an anonymous individual known as voices38 who allegedly bypassed anti-tamper protections on 26 video games.
Why it matters
The motion represents a critical step for Denuvo, which currently lacks the legal identity of the defendant necessary to move forward with its DMCA anti-circumvention lawsuit. By accessing platform records, the company hopes to secure the account details and transaction history required to proceed with litigation.
The firm identified cryptocurrency transactions involving Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana processed through the exchange FixedFloat. These financial records are now central to the request for data on the seven specific Steam profiles tied to the investigation.
The players
Denuvo
This company provides anti-tamper and digital rights management software used by major game publishers.
Judge Haywood S. Gilliam Jr.
He is the federal judge presiding over the court case in California.
Valve
This corporation operates the Steam digital distribution platform where the games in question were hosted.
This social news aggregation and discussion platform hosts the account Denuvo is seeking to investigate.
DenuvOwO
This was an online community or group involved in the cracking of game software that ceased operations last month.
The details
Denuvo alleges that the defendant, operating under the moniker voices38, successfully cracked security protections on 26 distinct titles. Following the initial filing of the lawsuit, the cracking group known as DenuvOwO opted to disband.
Timeline
Denuvo filed the DMCA lawsuit against voices38 in September 2026.
The cracking group DenuvOwO disbanded in late September 2026.
The report regarding the motion for subpoenas was published on October 6, 2026.
The Tech Race
The suit highlights an ongoing legal conflict between software security providers and anonymous actors using decentralized platforms to bypass licensing. It follows established patterns set by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which serves as the primary legal framework for protecting proprietary digital access controls.
Users of gaming platforms should be aware that their metadata and interaction logs may be subject to disclosure in federal litigation. This case underscores the reality that anonymous online activity can be linked to offline identities through subpoena processes.
The takeaway
The case illustrates that anti-piracy firms are increasingly leveraging legal discovery to unmask anonymous actors behind software cracking. Readers should remain mindful that digital footprint data can bridge the gap between pseudonymous online activity and formal legal consequences.
Further reading
For more context on how companies protect their digital assets, visit the Cybersecurity section.
More information
Review the full Denuvo ex parte motion submitted to the federal court.
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