Anti-Cheat Expert
| Basic Information | |
|---|---|
| Release Year | 2005 |
| Product Type | Anti-cheat Software |
| In Production | Yes |
| Official Website | https://intl.anticheatexpert.com/ |
Anti-Cheat Expert commonly abbreviated as "ACE" is an modular anti-cheat system developed by Tencent, that initially released in 2005 as a anti-bot solution for Free Fantasy Online. [1]
ACE provides cheat prevention for PC as well as Android [2] and iOS [3] however the mobile versions do not run at the Kernel level and operate a lot less invasively then the PC version ACE also offers server side solutions [4] and moderation tools [5] h
ACE on PC is a modular kernel level anti-cheat that allows game developers to enable or disable certain features such as the anti-cheat running 24/7 as well as add their own game specific checks.
Consumer impact summary
[edit | edit source]Overview of concerns that arise from the conduct towards users of the product:
- Privacy: ACE on PC is a kernel-level (ring 0) anti-cheat meaning it has access to everything on your computer. and depending on the game publishers configuration it could be a 24/7 anti cheat similar to Riot Vanguard. ACE is also loads multiple drivers based on what features game publishers enable. Anti-Cheat Expert is owned by Tencent which has strong ties with the Chinese government.
- Control: If a game publisher uses the chooses ACE will be running from computer startup, even when not playing.
- Access: As a kernel-level anti-cheat on PC, Anti-Cheat Expert has the highest level of access to your computer.
Incidents
[edit | edit source]Concerns
[edit | edit source]Chinese Government Ties
[edit | edit source]ACE is created by Tencent which has close ties to the Chinese Government and is bound by Chinese laws [6]
Technical Implications
[edit | edit source]The kernel-level access combined with potential government compulsion is particularly concerning because:
- Ring 0 access provides complete system control.
- Users cannot monitor or restrict ACE's activities at this level.
- Depending on the game the anti-cheat maybe be running 24/7 which 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 if the game publishers has chosen the driver to run 24/7
Privacy and Security Assurances
[edit | edit source]Community Response
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Cheat_Expert
- ↑ https://intl.anticheatexpert.com/products/anti-cheat-android
- ↑ https://intl.anticheatexpert.com/products/anti-cheat-ios
- ↑ https://intl.anticheatexpert.com/products/economy-risk-management
- ↑ https://intl.anticheatexpert.com/products/content-moderation
- ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Cheat_Expert