Nintendo wants to take tools that can steal encrypted Switch codes offline

Nintendo has filed a takedown request against Lockpick and Lockpick_RCM. Cryptographic keys from the Nintendo Switch can be captured via these homebrew tools, so that source files of a Switch game can be viewed and modified.

Twitter user Simon Aarons shared an email from GitHub justifying Nintendo’s takedown request. It reads that the homebrew software would infringe Nintendo’s intellectual property rights. Distributing this software would also be against United States law. The email refers specifically to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. At the time of writing, the GitHub pages of both Lock pick if Lockpick_RCM still online. It is not clear whether this will change any time soon.

The makers of Skyline, a Switch emulator for Android, have meanwhile announced on Discord that they stop developing the emulator. According to the team, they are also at risk of receiving a similar takedown request from Nintendo. The team fears possible legal consequences and therefore pulls the plug on the project. The Skyline repository and builds are said to be available.

Lockpick and Lockpick_RCM are two homebrew tools that allow Nintendo Switch owners to download unique cryptographic codes from their handheld. Those codes are required if users want to view or modify the source files of Nintendo Switch games via separate software.