Pet Fish Take Over YouTuber’s Switch Account, Make Purchases, Send Email

A YouTuber in Japan experienced a different kind of phishing attack when pet fish took control of his Nintendo Switch, changing the account name, downloading a new avatar, and setting up a PayPal account.

The betta fish, which regularly feature on the Mutekimaru Channel(Opens in a new window), “play” video games using motion-sensor technology that detects their movements over squares corresponding to Switch controller buttons.

The account dates back to May 2020, and has racked up nearly 94,000 subscribers and tens of millions of views across dozens of videos.

However, during a January livestream of the bettas kicking tail at Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, the human owner reportedly stepped away, unaware that an error force-quit the game, leaving the fish to their own devices on the Switch home screen.

As reported by Insider(Opens in a new window), it didn’t take long for the animals to swim their way to a new account name (from Mutekimaru to “ROWAWAWAWA￥”), launch Nintendo’s online store, publicly expose the user’s credit card number, set up a PayPal account, send an email, approve a ¥500 transaction, and download Nintendo 64 for Switch.

“Fish eagerly read the terms and conditions,” the unnamed owner quipped in an English-subtitled video describing the incident. “Many of us humans don’t read the terms of service. But fish are smarter than we are. Unbelievable,” they continued. “Have you ever received an email from your pet fish? … Is he a professional?”

Like a parent begging for reimbursement after their child amasses unauthorized online purchases, the account holder sheepishly turned to Nintendo for help: “I am very sorry, but is it possible to get a refund for items purchased in error by my pet fish?” they wrote in a message to the company. There’s no word yet on whether they’ve recovered the money (or their dignity), though ¥500 is only about $4.

Nintendo Switch OLED Model and Metroid Dread: We Review the Upgraded Handheld