Holding a Server Hostage: How Hackers Have Held Gamers for Virtual Ransom
When you ask someone about hacking, they tend to think of espionage and spy movies. But when you ask a gamer about hacking, there's an immediate sigh as they remember the horrors they’ve gone through playing their favorite video game.
BY: KHALIL ADEN
Photo courtesy of Leolintang
As someone who loves playing competitive games, I understand the feeling of playing at a high level. Playing against people who are on the same skill level as you or people better than you is fun, and it helps you grow as a player. Losing is a part of that cycle. Although you might not enjoy that feeling at the time, it's a crucial part of your journey. But recently, as I’ve gotten more accustomed to competitive gaming, I’ve begun to notice a trend that’s common in many competitive games. Cheating is an issue that’s been synonymous with competitive gaming for a long time now. Cheats are advantages that are used by hackers to one up their opponents. The hackers that are using the cheats are considered to be cheating since they are using external means outside of the game. With esports gaining notoriety, any game that receives support for professional play has to deal with cheaters who are griefing the game.
Cheating didn’t always come from the players. Developers were the first to implement cheats in the form of EasterEggs in their games. Some of their games were known and celebrated for having cheats, such as Grand Theft Auto, Ratchet, and Clank. They were meant to be game-breaking in a way for players to have fun in the game after they were finished with the initial storyline. It added replayability for games that didn’t have a multiplayer that they could rely on. As well as making it easier for those who were having a hard time in the game. One of the earliest examples of a developer supported cheat code was the infamous Konami code. The Konami code became famous in North America after the release of Contra in 1988. The code consisted of directional and button inputs that players had to enter into the game. Once entered, the players received thirty extra lives in the game. This was new to gaming, but it started a trend that would follow for many years to come.
Illustration courtesy of Konami
My experience with gaming began with the Xbox 360. Gaming back then for me wasn’t about being the best, but it was more about having a blast while I could since my brothers would hog the game. Cheating was very rare back then. A game would have to lose support from the developers, and only then would the cheaters come out of their caves since they knew they wouldn’t be punished. One of my first experiences with cheaters was with Call of Duty 4. After 2 more Call of Duty’s were released, cheaters started to take over some of the lobbies in the game. People would have infinite ammo, flying cheats, infinite health, etc. Sometimes the cheats would automatically be given to all the players in the lobby. It wasn’t a big deal since maybe five to ten thousand people were on those servers. Just a fraction of the original player base. The issue that came with adding cheats to a game like Call of Duty was the fact that it was a multiplayer game. Cheats can exist in a non-multiplayer game because it doesn’t impact anything outside of a single-player experience. You can’t grief other players, or ruin someone else’s fun. Now although the cheats are sometimes distributed to all of the players, the gameplay is subpar. For the first five minutes, it’s fun because it’s different from the gameplay that you’re used to. But as soon as those five minutes end, you realize it's not the same joy that you get from playing how it's meant to be played.
Cheats have disappeared from video games as of late and the trend of hacking or DDosing has taken over competitive multiplayer games. Players who hack the game are more or less giving themselves exclusive cheat codes that give them an edge against their competition. An example could be giving yourself unlimited health so that no matter what, you’ll always win. DDosing, on the other hand, is defined as a direct denial of service.This occurs when a player sends a large amount of information to a network or server. This results in the server being unable to process all of this information so it slows the server down tremendously. As a result, players in the lobby are frozen and are at the will of the DDoser. Let’s say you freeze the enemy team and you have the lead, you’re bound to win the game since they can’t move. It’s an unbeatable strategy.
What’s attracting players to cheat in these games is essentially virtual supremacy. Most competitive games award players for reaching the pinnacle rank with a cosmetic item that displays their rank to other players. When you’re a great player, you become recognized by others in the community. You remember great players that you faced because they leave an honourable impression on you. Regardless if you’re upset about losing to them. So the next time you queue into a match with them, you’re going to be able to recognize their name. The small fame mixed with having a bloated ego from cheating is more than enough for players to cheat. The integrity of competitive games is lost and it ruins the experience for those who aren’t resorting to hacking. The only thing that can stop these attacks on the game is a strong anti-cheat software in the games.
An anti-cheat software is used in games to recognize players who are using illegal means when playing the game. Depending on the strength of the anti-cheat, it can determine whether or not you’ll be playing a cheater infested mess, or an enjoyable competitive game. Games like Fortnite, which has a one of a kind gameplay experience, suffers from a horrible anti-cheat system. A player had cheated at the ChampionChip finals just to prove that the anti-cheat system they had was terrible. They weren’t able to identify his cheats until he had notified them of what he did. If your anti-cheat system is a joke, then the cheaters will make a mockery of your game.
Outside of the anti-cheat system, Devs have taken a legal approach to the hackers and DDosers. Here in Canada, you can face up to ten years if you’re found guilty of the unauthorized use of a computer... Earlier this year, Ubisoft issued a lawsuit against a Ddosing website that was wreaking chaos on their Rainbow Six Siege servers. Multiple individuals involved, including a minor, were issued a lawsuit. Ubisoft is not only seeking to have the individuals charged, but also to be compensated for the loss in revenue caused by them.
The DDosers involved seized the opportunity of making some quick cash at the expense of Ubisoft, without considering the damages done to the company and the consequences behind their real actions. Nobody knows how much Ubisoft is seeking damages, but a billion-dollar company isn’t going to ask for pennies. With Ubisoft Montreal being the creators of Rainbow Six Siege, the DDosers could be held accountable through Canadian Laws. Meaning that those involved could face up to ten years and pay for damages.
Although it's just a game to them, it's a business for Ubisoft. The act of charging cheaters in court isn’t the immediate response to cheaters. Usually, when there’s a surge in cheating and your software isn’t catching all of the cheaters, you select a few to charge as a fear tactic to the others who are cheating in your game. It sends a message to the cheaters, but it doesn’t stop them. A reliable anti-cheat is the only way to stop your game from being held hostage by cheaters.
When you look at what cheaters are risking jail time for, it's unbelievable. Committing federal crimes for the top rank in a video game doesn’t make any sense however you justify it. But most don’t even consider the jail aspect for cheating because you're more likely to have your account permanently banned rather than be charged. All you have to do is make another account and you’re back to cheating. So when the law is applied, it’s unexpected. But it shouldn’t be, laws regarding technology are a part of the norm now. With cyber-crimes increasing here in Canada and abroad, interfering with companies' servers should be taken seriously. Even if you're doing it for a rank in a video game, the repercussions are serious. We tend to forget that due to the fun nature that video games have.
