Nintendo has concluded its investigation of users who reported their accounts were being used to make unauthorized purchases since April 2020.
The company found that over 140,000 Nintendo Network ID accounts were vulnerable to logins by hackers, who could also access their linked Nintendo eShop Switch accounts and other related services. Hackers could also make use of linked PayPal services to make numerous purchases – many of which would directly take money from bank accounts.
According to Nintendo in a Japanese release, the NNIDs also disclosed email addresses and other personal information needed to create an online account with the company. A total of over 300,000 accounts were reported to have been hacked while the company was open to making refunds to any fraudulent purchases. The company has since then suggested users add two-step verification to their accounts and shake their login credentials up to prevent any future cases.
(Writer’s note: Unfortunately, my Nintendo eShop account was taken over by hackers in April while around $200’s worth of Fortnite E-Bucks were purchased on the Switch platform. My process included a rejected case with PayPal while Nintendo Support had launched a two-day investigation over the phone. I suggest putting a bank pay stop on PayPal to prevent any transactions from happening. Nintendo has advised that resolving the issue with PayPal would result in an online ban from the EShop, MyNintendo and Online services.)
Users could also check their account’s online purchase histories for any questionable activity and use it to start a case with Nintendo’s Support service. It’s also suggested that users disconnect their NNIDs from their current MyNintendo accounts as soon as possible.