EA takes on cheaters with its own revolutionary anti-cheat
In addition to being the next soccer game that soccer fans have been waiting for, FIFA 23 will serve as the first test of EA's new in-house anti-cheating system. For several years now, the studio has been working on its own solution to protect players from cheaters. After a patent was filed in January 2021 for a next-generation anti-cheat, EA's signature protection is ready to be deployed.
With this new system, even the most technically advanced cheaters will have a hard time. More and more cheating software is acting directly on the PC kernel. The "kernel" of a machine allows the interaction between the hardware (i.e. components) and the different software. Hiding cheating actions in this kernel makes them undetectable by the classic anti-cheat protections. This is how EA is going to attack the very heart of the problem.
The ultimate protection (maybe a little too much)
As you may have guessed, EA is going to introduce its first anti-cheat protection acting at the core. Since FIFA 23 will be the first installment in the series to feature cross-platform play, the studio is stepping up its efforts to protect console players from some malicious PC gamers. EA AntiCheat (EAAC) will address all the demands for protection from new cheating technologies," said Elise Murphy, director of in-game security and anti-cheating at EA: "PC cheat developers are increasingly moving into the core, so we need protection in that same core to ensure fair games for players and attack cheaters on their home turf."
Some players are concerned about the security risks, however. Since the software works within the kernel itself, it can access a lot of personal data. Elise Murphy has already reassured players by explaining that she has worked hand in hand with cybersecurity experts to make EAAC a secure solution.
"The EAAC does not collect any information about your search histories, your applications that are not EA games, or anything that is unrelated to cheat protection."
This protection will be rolled out gradually to other EA games once it has proven itself on FIFA 23. However, not all EA titles will be affected and the games that will benefit from this protection will be selected on a "case by case" basis.
