Tencent and Chinese police conducted a joint operation against game cheat developers

operation against cheat developers

Chinese police in collaboration with tech giant Tencent have launched a joint operation against cheat developers. 10 developers of 17 different cheating tools in games (including Overwatch and Call of Duty Mobile) were arrested.

Law enforcers and Tencent call it the largest anti-cheat operation in history.

According to the BBC, a total of 76 million dollars were seized from the suspects, which they earned on a subscription fee by selling subscriptions to their cheats.

The operation was called “Chicken Drumstick”, and had a website selling to “hundreds of countries and regions. Subscription prices for users began at around $10 a day, and up to $200 a month.local media reported.

Also, the police seized the property of the developers that is assessed in $46 million and seized several premium cars (Rolls-Royce, Ferrari, Lamborghini), which can be seen in the photo below.

operation against cheat developers

With players able to win millions in gaming tournaments around the world, anti-fraud measures have intensified in recent years.

In 2019, a survey showed that about a third of gamers admit to using cheats to improve their online chances. Several famous players have also left the platforms due to cheating in some games.the BBC journalists told.

It should be said that the fight against cheaters and creators of such software is reaching a new level. The fact is that there are many similar unwinding teams in the world, which have not yet come to the attention of law enforcement officers, but often become targets for video game manufacturers and defendants in various lawsuits, sometimes related to violations of copyright law.

For example, just last week, TorrentFreak reported that earlier this year, Riot Games and Bungie filed a lawsuit against cheat makers GatorCheats, claiming that they were creating copyright-infringing tools designed to damage the game environment in Valorant and Destiny 2.

According to court documents, in the end the parties agreed to settle the case peacefully, but at the same time GatorCheats were ordered to pay $2,000,000 and adhere to the terms of the injunction that companies received indefinitely.

Let me also remind you that the Ukrainian cyber police arrested the author of uPanel phishing kit.

By Vladimir Krasnogolovy

Vladimir is a technical specialist who loves giving qualified advices and tips on GridinSoft's products. He's available 24/7 to assist you in any question regarding internet security.

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