In a surprising turn of events, online gaming enthusiasts spilled the beans on some top-secret military information by leaking pages from a manual for the US-built M2A2 AIFV on the War Thunder forums. War Thunder is a multiplayer combat game that lets players battle it out using historical and modern military hardware. Fans of the game are known for their obsession with accuracy and often pressure the game’s designers to nail every technical detail.
The leaked information included two pages of the manual, providing intricate details about the commander’s hatch, turret, and spall liner assemblies—down to every bolt and nut. This leak sparked a heated discussion on the forums about the game’s technical accuracy. Gaijin Entertainment, the Budapest-based company behind War Thunder, has distinct Russian origins and found itself in the midst of the controversy.
Anton Yudintsev, the founder of Gaijin Entertainment, confirmed that there was indeed a leak containing classified or restricted information regarding the Bradley on December 12th. However, he clarified that the leak didn’t originate on the War Thunder forums but had been circulating on platforms like Reddit and Discord since at least December 8. Yudintsev assured that the company is actively cracking down on leakers, emphasizing that the War Thunder forum has strict measures in place.
Despite the moderators swiftly deleting the sensitive information within minutes, some users managed to download and share it with the media. While the leaked manual isn’t classified as top secret, it contains export-controlled data that should only be accessible by the Pentagon and its contractors.
This isn’t the first time War Thunder fans have spilled classified information. In the past year alone, similar incidents occurred with the AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopter, the F-117 Nighthawk, the F-16 Fighting Falcon, and the F-15E Strike Eagle. Previous leaks involved France’s Leclerc and British Challenger-2 tanks, as well as Chinese DTC10-125 anti-armor shells. Overall, gamers have shared classified and sensitive info on at least 14 separate occasions over the years, according to Task & Purpose.
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