From PC World: Kernel-level anti-cheat software is a contentious issue among gamers. It’s a solution for rampant cheating in online games, but some players see the powerful software as a huge overstep on the PCs they own.
Steam isn’t going to solve this argument, but it might help make the use of these systems more transparent. Games on Steam now have to declare kernel-level anti-cheat on their store pages.
So sayeth a new Steamworks Development post (spotted by Tom’s Hardware), which declares that games using a kernel-level anti-cheat system will get a more immediate and highly visible badge on their store pages. It isn’t automatic — developers will have to submit that info — but compliance with Valve’s directive is mandatory. (Server-side anti-cheat systems that don’t use separate client-side software are exempt.)
These anti-cheat systems running at the kernel level sit at the deepest layer of Windows with a high level of administrative privileges, up to and including shutting down other programs that might interfere with a game. It’s an effective means of detecting and preventing cheating in online games, but it’s a long way from perfect. Some false positives have cost gamers their accounts when they’ve done nothing wrong.
View: Full Article
