First 4 ‘Game Of Thrones’ Episodes Leaked, HBO Assesses Breach

By Brent Furdyk. Published: 12 Apr 2015 2:12 PM

The highly anticipated fifth season of Game of Thrones premieres tonight, but before the season premiere made it to the air several episodes wound up online.

According to TorrentFreak, the first four episodes wound up on various torrenting sites, and were downloaded more than 100,000 times within the first three hours.

The source of the leak is likely one of the screeners HBO sent out to TV critics and press outlets more than a week ago. To avoid leaks such as this, HBO places watermarks on its screeners which can allow them to identify the source.

As reported by Deadline, HBO is “actively assessing”; where the leak originated. “Sadly, it seems the leaked four episodes of the upcoming season of Game of Thrones originated from within a group approved by HBO to receive them,” reads a statement from HBO. “We’re actively assessing how this breach occurred.”