UK Court Rules Stealing RuneScape Gold Is Criminal Theft in Case That Could Have Wider Repercussions for the Video Game Industry
January 28, 2026
A UK court has ruled that the unauthorized stealing of in-game currency can be legally classified as criminal theft. Former Jagex developer Andrew Lakeman was charged with allegedly stealing 705 billion Gold from almost 70 RuneScape players, with a real-world value of over half a million pounds, equivalent to around $750,000. He then sold this currency online for Bitcoin.
Although Lakeman had no…