Riot Vanguard: Difference between revisions

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{{~~InfoboxProductLine~~

{{ProductCargo

| ~~Title~~ = ~~{{PAGENAME}}~~

|ArticleType=Product

~~| Release Year = 2020~~

|Category=Anti-cheat, Software

| ~~Product Type~~ = Anti-cheat Software

|Company=Riot Games

| ~~In Production~~ = Yes

|Description=

| Logo = ~~Riot_Vanguard_Logo~~.~~png~~

|InProduction=Yes

|Logo=Riot Vanguard logo.svg

|ProductLine=

|ReleaseYear=2020

|Website=

}}

[[wikipedia:Riot_Vanguard|Riot Vanguard]] is an anti-cheat system developed by Riot Games, initially released for VALORANT in 2020 and later expanded to League of Legends in April of 2024.

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*Privacy: Vanguard is a kernel-level (ring 0) anti-cheat. It has access to everything on your computer. Riot Games is owned by Tencent which has strong ties with the Chinese government.

*Control: Users must have Vanguard running from computer startup to play any Riot games, even when not playing.

*Access: As a kernel-level anti-cheat, Vanguard has the highest level of access to your computer.

*Access: As a [[kernel level anti-cheats|kernel level anti-cheat]], Vanguard has the highest level of access to your computer.

==Incidents==

This is a list of all consumer protection incidents related to this software. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:{{PAGENAME}}|{{PAGENAME}} category]].

===League of Legends Implementation (April 2024)===

In April 2024, Riot Games announced that Vanguard would become mandatory for all League of Legends players. <ref>https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends</ref> This decision was particularly controversial for several reasons:

In April 2024, Riot Games announced that Vanguard would become mandatory for all League of Legends players. <ref>https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends ([http://web.archive.org/web/20251008164103/https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends Archived])</ref> This decision was particularly controversial for several reasons:

*The requirement affected a 14-year-old game that had previously operated without kernel-level anti-cheat.

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**Military personnel.

**Users with access to critical infrastructure.

**Critics of the Chinese government.

===Technical Implications===

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*The always-on requirement means the system is potentially vulnerable even when not gaming.

*The software could theoretically be used as a backdoor if compelled by authorities.

*The software could have a negative performance impact even when doing other things on your computer since the driver is running 24/7

*Enforced UEFI firmware update can reduce performance and potentially brick the hardware<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maruccia |first=Alfonso |date=2025-12-20 |title=Riot is forcing Valorant players to update their PC firmware to keep playing |url=https://www.techspot.com/news/110663-riot-forcing-valorant-players-update-their-pc-firmware.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251223133910/https://www.techspot.com/news/110663-riot-forcing-valorant-players-update-their-pc-firmware.html |archive-date=2025-12-23 |access-date=2025-12-23 |website=Techspot}}</ref>.

==Company Response==

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{Sources to be added}

*Following the League of Legends implementation announcement, Riot published a detailed FAQ addressing community concerns. They maintained that Vanguard's kernel driver is focused solely on game integrity and doesn't process any personal information.<ref>https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends</ref>

*Following the League of Legends implementation announcement, Riot published a detailed FAQ addressing community concerns. They maintained that Vanguard's kernel driver is focused solely on game integrity and doesn't process any personal information.<ref>https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends ([http://web.archive.org/web/20251008164103/https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends Archived])</ref>

*Riot Security Team published a technical blog post explaining that Vanguard's kernel-level implementation is necessary to detect and prevent sophisticated cheating methods that operate at the same level.<ref>https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams</ref>

*Riot Security Team published a technical blog post explaining that Vanguard's kernel-level implementation is necessary to detect and prevent sophisticated cheating methods that operate at the same level.<ref>https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams ([http://web.archive.org/web/20260106073252/https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams Archived])</ref>

~~{{quote|~~We understand the decision to run the driver component in kernel-mode can raise concerns, and that some of you want to know more about the tech behind Vanguard. We can't get too deep into the technical specifics without potentially compromising Vanguard... plus we can assure you that it has been reviewed by both internal and external security experts.|[[Riot Games]]<ref>[https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams "A Message About Vanguard from our Security & Privacy Teams"] ''Riot Games''. Retrieved 2024-02-16</ref>}}

<blockquote>We understand the decision to run the driver component in kernel-mode can raise concerns, and that some of you want to know more about the tech behind Vanguard. We can't get too deep into the technical specifics without potentially compromising Vanguard... plus we can assure you that it has been reviewed by both internal and external security experts.|[[Riot Games]]<ref>[https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams "A Message About Vanguard from our Security & Privacy Teams"] ''Riot Games''. Retrieved 2024-02-16 ([http://web.archive.org/web/20260106073252/https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams Archived])</ref></blockquote>

Riot Games has expressed that kernel level anti cheat is becoming an industry standard however no other anti cheat software is as invasive as Vanguard. Riot claims that to defeat cheaters operating at the kernel level, it is necessary to also be operating at the same level. This is untrue. They claim the only way to stop account botting, ranked boosting and to ban cheaters permanently via using hardware identifiers is to compromise your privacy despite the fact that other ~~company's~~ within the gaming industry whom are capable of banning bots and cheaters including hardware banning customers can do so without the need of kernel-level anti cheat detection that runs even when you are not playing their games.

Riot Games has expressed that kernel level anti cheat is becoming an industry standard however no other anti cheat software is as invasive as Vanguard. Riot claims that to defeat cheaters operating at the kernel level, it is necessary to also be operating at the same level. This is untrue. They claim the only way to stop account botting, ranked boosting and to ban cheaters permanently via using hardware identifiers is to compromise your privacy despite the fact that other companies within the gaming industry whom are capable of banning bots and cheaters including hardware banning customers can do so without the need of kernel-level anti cheat detection that runs even when you are not playing their games.

Riot Vanguard is the only anticheat that requires it to be running at all times.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{InfoboxProductLine
+{{ProductCargo
-| Title = {{PAGENAME}}
+|ArticleType=Product
-| Release Year = 2020
+|Category=Anti-cheat, Software
-| Product Type = Anti-cheat Software
+|Company=Riot Games
-| In Production = Yes
+|Description=
-| Logo = Riot_Vanguard_Logo.png
+|InProduction=Yes
+|Logo=Riot Vanguard logo.svg
+|ProductLine=
+|ReleaseYear=2020
+|Website=
 }}
 [[wikipedia:Riot_Vanguard|Riot Vanguard]] is an anti-cheat system developed by Riot Games, initially released for VALORANT in 2020 and later expanded to League of Legends in April of 2024.
@@ Line 13: / Line 16: @@
 *Privacy: Vanguard is a kernel-level (ring 0) anti-cheat. It has access to everything on your computer. Riot Games is owned by Tencent which has strong ties with the Chinese government.
 *Control: Users must have Vanguard running from computer startup to play any Riot games, even when not playing.
-*Access: As a kernel-level anti-cheat, Vanguard has the highest level of access to your computer.
+*Access: As a [[kernel level anti-cheats|kernel level anti-cheat]], Vanguard has the highest level of access to your computer.
 ==Incidents==
 This is a list of all consumer protection incidents related to this software. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:{{PAGENAME}}|{{PAGENAME}} category]].
 ===League of Legends Implementation (April 2024)===
-In April 2024, Riot Games announced that Vanguard would become mandatory for all League of Legends players. <ref>https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends</ref> This decision was particularly controversial for several reasons:
+In April 2024, Riot Games announced that Vanguard would become mandatory for all League of Legends players. <ref>https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends ([http://web.archive.org/web/20251008164103/https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends Archived])</ref> This decision was particularly controversial for several reasons:
 *The requirement affected a 14-year-old game that had previously operated without kernel-level anti-cheat.
@@ Line 43: / Line 46: @@
 **Military personnel.
 **Users with access to critical infrastructure.
+**Critics of the Chinese government.
 ===Technical Implications===
@@ Line 50: / Line 54: @@
 *The always-on requirement means the system is potentially vulnerable even when not gaming.
 *The software could theoretically be used as a backdoor if compelled by authorities.
+*The software could have a negative performance impact even when doing other things on your computer since the driver is running 24/7
+*Enforced UEFI firmware update can reduce performance and potentially brick the hardware<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maruccia |first=Alfonso |date=2025-12-20 |title=Riot is forcing Valorant players to update their PC firmware to keep playing |url=https://www.techspot.com/news/110663-riot-forcing-valorant-players-update-their-pc-firmware.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251223133910/https://www.techspot.com/news/110663-riot-forcing-valorant-players-update-their-pc-firmware.html |archive-date=2025-12-23 |access-date=2025-12-23 |website=Techspot}}</ref>.
 ==Company Response==
@@ Line 57: / Line 63: @@
 {Sources to be added}
-*Following the League of Legends implementation announcement, Riot published a detailed FAQ addressing community concerns. They maintained that Vanguard's kernel driver is focused solely on game integrity and doesn't process any personal information.<ref>https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends</ref>
+*Following the League of Legends implementation announcement, Riot published a detailed FAQ addressing community concerns. They maintained that Vanguard's kernel driver is focused solely on game integrity and doesn't process any personal information.<ref>https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends ([http://web.archive.org/web/20251008164103/https://support-leagueoflegends.riotgames.com/hc/en-us/articles/24169857932435-Riot-Vanguard-FAQ-League-of-Legends Archived])</ref>
-*Riot Security Team published a technical blog post explaining that Vanguard's kernel-level implementation is necessary to detect and prevent sophisticated cheating methods that operate at the same level.<ref>https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams</ref>
+*Riot Security Team published a technical blog post explaining that Vanguard's kernel-level implementation is necessary to detect and prevent sophisticated cheating methods that operate at the same level.<ref>https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams ([http://web.archive.org/web/20260106073252/https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams Archived])</ref>
-{{quote|We understand the decision to run the driver component in kernel-mode can raise concerns, and that some of you want to know more about the tech behind Vanguard. We can't get too deep into the technical specifics without potentially compromising Vanguard... plus we can assure you that it has been reviewed by both internal and external security experts.|[[Riot Games]]<ref>[https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams "A Message About Vanguard from our Security & Privacy Teams"] ''Riot Games''. Retrieved 2024-02-16</ref>}}
+<blockquote>We understand the decision to run the driver component in kernel-mode can raise concerns, and that some of you want to know more about the tech behind Vanguard. We can't get too deep into the technical specifics without potentially compromising Vanguard... plus we can assure you that it has been reviewed by both internal and external security experts.|[[Riot Games]]<ref>[https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams "A Message About Vanguard from our Security & Privacy Teams"] ''Riot Games''. Retrieved 2024-02-16 ([http://web.archive.org/web/20260106073252/https://www.riotgames.com/en/news/a-message-about-vanguard-from-our-security-privacy-teams Archived])</ref></blockquote>
-Riot Games has expressed that kernel level anti cheat is becoming an industry standard however no other anti cheat software is as invasive as Vanguard. Riot claims that to defeat cheaters operating at the kernel level, it is necessary to also be operating at the same level. This is untrue. They claim the only way to stop account botting, ranked boosting and to ban cheaters permanently via using hardware identifiers is to compromise your privacy despite the fact that other company's within the gaming industry whom are capable of banning bots and cheaters including hardware banning customers can do so without the need of kernel-level anti cheat detection that runs even when you are not playing their games.
+Riot Games has expressed that kernel level anti cheat is becoming an industry standard however no other anti cheat software is as invasive as Vanguard. Riot claims that to defeat cheaters operating at the kernel level, it is necessary to also be operating at the same level. This is untrue. They claim the only way to stop account botting, ranked boosting and to ban cheaters permanently via using hardware identifiers is to compromise your privacy despite the fact that other companies within the gaming industry whom are capable of banning bots and cheaters including hardware banning customers can do so without the need of kernel-level anti cheat detection that runs even when you are not playing their games.
 Riot Vanguard is the only anticheat that requires it to be running at all times.