In 2017, Epic sued a 14-year-old who showed cheats for the then newly launched game “Fortnite: Battle Royale” on YouTube. His mother defended the teenager, claiming Epic wanted to make her son a scapegoat. Now, more than 3 years later, the case has been settled. Epic and the family have reached an agreement.
This is the case: In October 2017, Epic Games took action against people uploading videos to YouTube. The videos showcased cheats for Fortnite: Battle Royale. Epic Games sought to remove the videos through copyright strikes from YouTube. However, two users refused to take the videos down. Against them, Epic Games then filed a lawsuit: They wanted to claim $150,000 in damages from them.
In one case, it turned out that the YouTuber was a 14-year-old. He was banned from Fortnite at least 14 times but continued to play. He uploaded videos of himself playing Fortnite while using a “wallhack” and an “aimbot” cheat.
Epic Games only learned during the lawsuit that the cheater was a 14-year-old but proceeded with the lawsuit unperturbed.
Mother said: Epic makes her son a scapegoat
What did the mother say back then? The mother of the boy submitted a petition to the court in November 2017. She mentioned her son was only being used as a scapegoat. He had not created the software himself but had only downloaded it.
Epic Games wanted to distract from their own problems with the lawsuit. Besides, she had never agreed to her minor son playing Fortnite.
This is what the son said: The son himself stated: He had not cheated but only “modded.” And modding was not against the rules of YouTube. Therefore, he did not see any reason to take the videos down.
He used the hashtag #FuckUEpicGames in one video.
This made the case legendary: The lawsuit against the 14-year-old was apparently the first case where someone was sued just for cheating. In other cases, defendants had developed or sold the cheats themselves, as an expert stated at the time.
The young age of the cheater and the mother’s statements contributed to the notoriety of the lawsuit. Additionally, the lawsuit is now almost as old as Fortnite: Battle Royale itself.
After more than 3 years, Epic settles with the 14-year-old cheater
This is how the case went: Indeed, the case dragged on for ages. The court did not want to dismiss the case. However, at a certain point, the mother and the defendant no longer commented on the allegations. Therefore, Epic urged the court to issue a default judgment. The court disagreed because the minor defendant needed legal representation. So, Epic had to file further motions. This prolonged the case for years.
Only now has Epic Games reached an agreement with the defendant. However, it is said that the settlement should remain “confidential” because the defendant is not yet 18 and should be protected.
Epic Games states in a statement to the court (via torrentfreak): “In this case, the personal rights of the defendant outweigh the public interest.”
The minor could suffer unfair damages from a publication of the verdict.
Initially, the boy was sued for $150,000 in damages, but it can be assumed that the settlement was reached with a lower payment. Epic had indicated that they did not want to ruin anyone but only to prevent cheating in Fortnite.
Epic Games has set further examples against cheaters in the subsequent years. In 2019, they permanently banned professional YouTuber FaZe Jarvis from Fortnite, virtually ending a career overnight. The then 17-year-old showcased in a video what it’s like to play Fortnite with an aimbot:
Fortnite permanently bans 17-year-old pro, thus ending his career
The header image of the article is a symbolic image.
