A sophisticated new phishing scam is offering early access to the game, and we're breaking down all the reasons why you shouldn't fall for it.

It should go without saying but anyone who claims that they're offering early access to Grand Theft Auto 6 this long before launch is lying - but considering the amount of hype the upcoming sixthquel has received, we believe it's best to issue a warning anyway.

Apparently, there are emails being sent to content creators asking them to join an "early evaluation of Grand Theft Auto VI gameplay" that will give them access to a "40-minute gameplay video featuring the game's opening missions."

Although it's fairly obvious that we're too far out from the game's release on May 26, 2026 for Rockstar Games to start giving early access outside of testers, it's worth telling everyone to avoid falling for these scams.

Phishing scams aren't uncommon for Grand Theft Auto. Fake GTA 6 ads, in particular, were spotted on YouTube three years ago. Oddly enough, this reminds us of when Rockstar issued a statement about avoiding similar scams for Grand Theft Auto V in 2014, a year after the game came out, as reported by TIME.

Now, for those who need further convincing why this is a scam, hear us out. First, why would Rockstar let content creators post gameplay footage, especially at this stage of the game's development?

Rockstar has only released the first and second trailers, along with a bunch of screenshots confirming certain locations and characters. Rockstar isn't about to give creators exclusive footage, much less before they come out with more information themselves.

Besides, if Rockstar was ever going to let creators get first dibs on the latest GTA title, they can more than afford to fly creators out. Finally, you'd think Rockstar would be smart enough to address creators by their names, or at least, their handles, and not call them "Dear creator."

TLDR; Rockstar isn't giving away early access to GTA 6. Not yet, anyway. At this point, they're as real as the Sasquatch in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

GTA 6 is currently set to release on May 26, 2026, on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S/X. It is heavily rumored that Sony and Rockstar are working together to optimize GTA 6 for the PS5 Pro.