anti-cheat

Definition

Anti-cheat is the software and infrastructure that detects and blocks cheating in multiplayer games. Modern anti-cheats run kernel-level (Riot Vanguard, Easy Anti-Cheat), monitor system memory, and use ML-based detection at the server level. Anti-cheat effectiveness is the foundation of competitive integrity — undetected cheaters destroy ranked and lead to player attrition.

Example

"Vanguard caught the wallhack — match canceled, account banned." The anti-cheat detected and acted on the violation.

Related terms

• smurf detection
• boosting
• matchmaking