Friends!
At the end of April, we shared the measures we were taking to fight cheaters in Warface and the improvements we were preparing. Fighting cheaters is an ongoing process where consistency and regular improvements play a key role, so today we'd like to share the current status of this work: what has already changed, which initial plans have been adjusted, and which areas remain our priorities.
What Has Already Been Done
Over the past few months, we have continued to strengthen the game's protection while expanding the set of tools that help us detect and restrict cheaters.
Raising the Minimum Level for Ranked Matches
This has raised the entry threshold for the mode and made it harder to use new accounts to circumvent sanctions. We will continue monitoring the situation, and this restriction may be adjusted in the future based on an analysis of in-game data. However, based on the current statistics, we can already see that this measure has made things more difficult for cheaters, especially with the next update in mind.
Additional Measures Against Mass Account Creation
We previously planned to use CAPTCHAs during registration as one of the ways to combat mass account creation. In practice, we took a different approach: we introduced several additional security tools at once that allow us to distinguish regular players from automated activity more effectively.
These measures are already working and have helped us deal with a noticeable influx of bots without requiring all players to complete an additional CAPTCHA step during registration.
Work on the Anti-Cheat System
We continue to actively improve the game's core protection system and, in addition to the regular updates we had planned, recently changed the name and identity of the anti-cheat. You can already see the new name (both in the game and on our Steam page), Impact Anti-Cheat, and its logo on the loading screen. They reflect the essence of our work and our renewed approach to combating cheaters. The anti-cheat continues to successfully detect and block cheaters, while the new logo and visual identity emphasize stability.
Please note: if you haven't logged into the game for a long time, Windows User Account Control may ask for permission to make changes for the Impact Anti-Cheat Installer when you update the client. This is related to the changes described above. You need to allow the installation to avoid issues while playing the game.
We continue to systematically improve server-side and client-side mechanisms, increase the accuracy of violation detection, and reduce the time between detecting suspicious activity and taking action.
What's Currently in Development
Some of the areas we previously mentioned require continuous development and refinement. In the near future, we will focus on the following tasks.
Compensation System for Fair Players
We understand how frustrating it can be to play against cheaters. The main goal of this step is to make compensation fairer and more timely, so that fair players can feel protected. We are improving the compensation system and updating its conditions. We are reviewing the types of compensation and the timeframes for granting it to players affected by cheaters.
Notifications About Report Status
Player reports about cheaters are an essential part of the fight against cheating. We know how important feedback is, as without it, it may seem that our teams are not taking any action, even though that is not the case. That's why we are working on introducing additional notifications about the progress and outcome of your reports. In the future, you will be able to find them in the notifications section on the website and directly in the game. Those who help us fight cheaters will know that their reports have not gone unnoticed!
But that's not all.
Rewards for Effective In-Game Reports
We are also considering ways to thank players whose in-game reports genuinely help us detect and block cheaters. You are one of the most important parts of our protection system. Your reports help us respond to violations quickly, analyze cheater behavior, and fight them more effectively. That's why we plan to provide additional rewards to players whose in-game reports contribute to cheaters being blocked. We will share more details as soon as everything is ready.
However, it's important to emphasize that we will consider the quality and usefulness of reports, not their number. There is no need to report regular players just to increase the number of reports. Mass, unfounded reports will not help the system or provide any additional benefits.
Countering Hardware Cheats
Although DMA cheats are quite difficult to detect, we have made significant progress in combating them recently. However, we are not stopping there and continue to develop methods for detecting specialized hardware that some cheaters use to bypass anti-cheat protection. This is an ongoing process and remains a focus for our team: methods of bypassing protection continue to evolve, so we regularly improve our methods for detecting and analyzing such activity.
Protection Against Wallhack
We are continuing to develop a solution against wallhack. The goal of this area is to protect against cheats that allow players to obtain information about opponents through obstacles. We have already conducted several tests, during which this component demonstrated very high effectiveness. However, there are still several aspects that need to be improved before this part of the protection can be fully implemented in the game.
Response Time to Violations
We continue to optimize the internal mechanisms responsible for processing information about suspicious activity. Our goal is to reduce the time between detecting a violation and taking appropriate action without compromising the quality of verification. The planned improvements described below will help with this.
Loyalty System and Restrictions for Cheaters
Work continues on a loyalty and restriction system for players with confirmed violations and a low trust level. This is a complex component of our protection system, where it is especially important to maintain a balance and make sure that fair users are not affected. We will share details about how the system works and the possible restrictions separately once the solutions are ready for implementation.
Stricter Sanctions Overall
We are reviewing our internal policies for applying penalties. We are making existing sanctions stricter and adding additional restrictions for suspicious and questionable cases. At the same time, we are maintaining the core principle that penalties must be based on a combination of data and the results of verification.
Stricter Sanctions for Playing with Cheaters
We are making penalties stricter for players who intentionally play in the same group as cheaters to gain an advantage. At the same time, we are closing known ways of circumventing existing sanctions to make it harder to use additional accounts or other methods to bypass restrictions.
Analytical Tools
We are adding more analytical tools to the fight against cheating. They will allow us to analyze player behavior in greater depth and compare a large number of different gameplay parameters. This approach will help us identify suspicious behavior patterns more accurately and detect violations that cannot always be identified through a separate technical check. This requires considerable work, as well as additional infrastructure.
Infrastructure for Analyzing Large Volumes of Data
We are currently working actively on infrastructure that will allow us to quickly transfer and process large volumes of in-game data between the game and our protection systems.
This includes player actions, behavior, and gameplay patterns. The more information we have available for analysis, the more accurately we can identify anomalies and distinguish normal player behavior from the actions of cheaters, sending the latter for further checks.
This area is a very important part of the further development of our protection system.
Why Does This Take So Much Time?
As we strengthen our protection, cheaters are also looking for new ways to bypass existing mechanisms. That's why it is not enough to introduce a new tool once and consider the problem solved. Systems need to be constantly updated, tested, and expanded.
This is why some of the areas listed above have already been implemented, some are still in development, and some mechanisms will require continuous improvement.
We intentionally do not disclose the technical details of how individual systems work. The more information about specific checks and activation conditions becomes public, the easier it is for cheaters to adapt and look for ways to bypass our protection.
Working with Player Reports
We would like to emphasize once again that your reports about suspicious players remain an extremely important part of our overall protection system. Reports not only help us draw attention to a specific match or account, but also provide additional information for analyzing player behavior and finding new ways to bypass protection.
At the same time, the quality of reports is especially important. Videos, screenshots, and a detailed description of the situation help us investigate an incident more quickly and make a decision.
How to Submit a Report
We encourage you to report suspicious players and provide as much information as possible: screenshots, videos, and a description of the situation. This will help us respond to violations more quickly and take action against cheaters.
In-game reports are processed automatically and help the anti-cheat collect data faster. Reports submitted through Support are reviewed manually by specialists and help identify new specific cases. Please use both methods, as they complement each other.
Collect evidence. Screenshots, videos, and a detailed description will help specialists investigate the incident more quickly.
Submit a report. Go to the Warface Support website and fill out the report form, providing all the information required to process your request.
Wait for the review. Specialists will review your request and take the necessary action. Reports are processed in the order they are received, so this may take some time.
The Role of Support
Support not only processes reports but also analyzes the information received. This helps us identify new vulnerabilities, anti-cheat bypass methods, and make improvements quickly. Our specialists actively cooperate with the development team, providing them with up-to-date information about current threats.
Reports about cheaters are an important tool in the fight against unfair play. Every report helps improve the anti-cheat system and makes the game better for everyone. That's why it is so important to actively cooperate with Support and not leave attempts to cheat unnoticed.
Legal Aspects and Liability
We continue to actively fight cheaters and those who distribute prohibited software. Violations in the online environment may seem harmless, but it is important to remember that legislation treats them as actual offenses that can result in serious consequences. Anonymity on the internet is often an illusion, and your actions can be identified and recorded.
Comprehensive measures to counter the activities of prohibited software providers are carried out regularly. Through cooperation with the relevant authorities, those involved may face criminal liability. We emphasize that anyone who creates, distributes, or uses malicious tools, whether to gain an unfair advantage or intentionally harm other players, risks facing serious sanctions. This does not apply to those who discover vulnerabilities and report them to us as part of our vulnerability disclosure program. Their help, on the contrary, makes the game safer.
We will continue protecting fair players and acting within the law to maintain a safe and fair gaming environment.
We understand that cheating is a serious problem, and we are committed to doing everything we can to ensure fair play for all players.