Gamer posts classified warplane details to win online argument about its radar capabilities – causing Italian Ministry of Defence to scramble to get the documents taken down

A gamer leaked secret military documents to win an online discussion about a fighter plane’s radar capabilities.

War Thunder players argued over the scanning capabilities of the Eurofighter Typhoon, a real aircraft recently introduced to the game.

The debate became so heated that one user posted classified material in an attempt to prove his point, a move that forced the Italian Ministry of Defense to remove the leaked documents after confirming they were genuine.

Following the leak of the document, which revealed the difference between the Eurofighter’s manual and electronic scanning capabilities, a community manager from the forum reminded users of the risks and responsibilities involved.

“I will take this opportunity to once again remind everyone here: Do not, under any circumstances, attempt to post or share any resources unless you are 100 percent certain that they are legally cleared and safe for public use,” wrote them.

‘We will never handle or use them, and all it does is actively damage any future changes that may be possible by trying to use them. Don’t do it. Nothing good will ever come of it for you or the vehicle you are trying to post for.”

A technical moderator on the forum added: ‘We have confirmed directly with the Italian Ministry of Defense that these are illegally available. You cannot use these documents for reporting and you cannot post them.”

The Italian Ministry of Defense said: ‘We take all unauthorized disclosure of information very seriously. This incident will be reviewed and, if necessary, an investigation will be initiated and measures will be taken to prevent a recurrence. We do not comment on leaked documents.”

Soldiers at Fort Hood, Texas continue to practice tank maneuvers during the COVID-19 pandemic while using the online game War Thunder

“We have a lot of soldiers who enjoy video games in their spare time. “By talking to a lot of them, we found out that a lot of them were playing tank games and so we started exploring the possibilities,” said Captain Mike Manougian

War Thunder is a free-to-play battle simulator that allows players from all over the world to use highly realistic military vehicles from throughout history.

While the game’s developers, Hungary-based Gaijin Entertainment, rely on publicly available information to code the vehicles’ capabilities, users have become infamous for leaking limited data on forums to try to implement changes.

The most infamous of these leaks occurred in 2021, when a player claiming to be a Challenger 2 commander posted classified documents online to try to force Gaijin Entertainment to improve the design of its digital tank.

The leak of the documents, essentially a Challenger 2 manual, forced the British Ministry of Defense to get involved.

The accuracy of the game is so high that during the COVID-19 pandemic, US Army soldiers conducted training exercises in War Thunder.

The soldiers normally operate M1A2 Abrams tanks in groups of four, with each soldier assigned a role as commander, gunner, loader or driver.

While playing War Thunder, each soldier was assigned their own tank, which allowed them to practice what the other crew members’ positions were like, something they wouldn’t have been able to experience otherwise.

“The idea came about after restrictions were placed on training opportunities to protect the force,” Capt. Mike Manougian said in a 2020 interview.

“We have a lot of soldiers who enjoy video games in their spare time. By talking to a lot of them we found out that a lot of them were playing tank games so we started exploring the possibilities.”