A security breach at one of Netflix’s production partners caused yet-to-be-released episodes of popular shows to leak online this week.
“One of our post production partners has been compromised and footage from several of our titles has unfortunately leaked online,” Netflix said in a statement Friday. “Our team is aggressively taking action to have it taken down.”
Netflix declined to comment on which titles were affected, but tech news outlet IGN reported on Thursday that the leak included Season 2 episodes of animated series “Arcane,” based on the world of the popular video game “League of Legends.” The second season is set to be released on Netflix in November.
Season 3 of popular coming-of-age series “Heartstopper,” expected to launch on Oct. 3, also was leaked, according to What’s on Netflix.
Burbank-based postproduction firm Iyuno, which offers dubbing and subtitling services, said in a statement that it “is aware of a recent security issue, involving access to confidential content.”
“Protecting our clients’ confidentiality and ensuring the security of their content is our highest priority,” Iyuno said. “We are actively investigating this security breach to mitigate any potential risks and identify the responsible parties. When there are material changes or information we will make further statements.”
Leaks of unreleased shows are a point of frustration among the companies and people who work on the programs. Pirated versions of shows cannibalize streaming platforms’ viewership, especially if they’re released prematurely.
Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which streams anime series and movies, was affected recently by the leak of “Re:ZERO” Season 3, which was to be released in October, according to IGN.
“We are aware of a content leak ahead of one of our fall series,” Crunchyroll said in a statement. “We’ve opened an investigation to identify the source of this leak, and our team is taking action to have it taken down.”
