News/Epic Games Sues Fortnite Leaker AdiraFNInfo, Identifies Former Contractor Hayden Cohen as Defendant

Epic Games Sues Fortnite Leaker AdiraFNInfo, Identifies Former Contractor Hayden Cohen as Defendant

Drama

09 March 2026 09:28

TL;DR

• Epic Games filed a lawsuit on March 5th in the Eastern District of North Carolina against Hayden Cohen, identified as the leaker behind the "AdiraFNInfo" accounts on X and Discord, alleging NDA breach, trade secret misappropriation, and unfair trade practices after Cohen allegedly leaked Fortnite collaboration details including South Park and Solo Leveling content weeks before official announcements.
• Cohen signed an NDA on September 11, 2025 as part of his work as a contractor and associate producer through a staffing agency, giving him access to Epic's internal systems, which Epic alleges he used to source and post confidential information to thousands of followers in early 2026.

Epic Games has escalated its fight against Fortnite leakers to the courtroom. The company filed a lawsuit on March 5th in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina against Hayden Cohen, the individual it identifies as the person behind the "AdiraFNInfo" account on X and "AdiraFN" on Discord. The suit alleges Cohen abused his position as a contracted associate producer to access and leak confidential information about upcoming Fortnite collaborations, including details about South Park and Solo Leveling Partnerships that appeared online weeks before Epic's official announcements.

What Cohen Is Alleged to Have Done

According to the complaint, Cohen worked with Epic through a staffing agency and signed an NDA on September 11, 2025, agreeing to keep all confidential information strictly secret. Epic alleges he accessed sensitive collaboration details through his legitimate internal system access and posted them publicly to thousands of followers.

The lawsuit identifies two specific leak examples. On January 6, 2026, Cohen allegedly posted details about an upcoming South Park collaboration, including specifics about cosmetic items not yet announced. Epic went public with the collaboration two days later. On January 13, Cohen allegedly posted about a Solo Leveling partnership that Epic did not officially confirm until February 18, more than a month after the leak appeared online.

Epic argues Fortnite's collaboration plans constitute trade secrets because they involve carefully coordinated announcement timing with entertainment, gaming, film, and television partners.

The Legal Claims and What Epic Is Seeking

The lawsuit brings four claims: trade secret misappropriation under the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act, trade secret misappropriation under North Carolina state law, breach of the NDA, and unfair and deceptive trade practices. Epic is seeking monetary damages, attorneys' fees, and a permanent injunction preventing Cohen from disclosing or using any confidential Epic information going forward.

After identifying Cohen as the source, Epic terminated his system access and sent a cease and desist letter on February 20th demanding he stop leaking, surrender any devices used to access Epic systems, and identify anyone he shared information with. The company states Cohen has not yet fully complied.

The Bigger Pattern

This lawsuit arrives days after Activision legally forced Call of Duty leaker TheGhostOfHope off social media through a separate legal demand. The two cases together signal that major publishers are moving decisively against insider leakers rather than tolerating the culture as a quirk of the gaming community.

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Tags: Epic Games Fortnite

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