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Punkbuster Service Goes Down, Hundreds of Online Game Servers Affected

Posted by Soulskill on from the let's-blame-drm-it's-more-fun dept.

MojoKid writes "PunkBuster, the anti-cheating service implemented in hundreds of online games, is down. As of the time of writing, the official PunkBuster website is up and down, after having been completely down for the past couple of hours. On Twitter, there are numerous reports of gamers who've been unable to play online in the most popular PunkBuster-backed title of the moment, Battlefield 3. EA has gone as far as to post an interim fix. Applying the fix is a simple matter of extracting an archive and then overwriting a couple of files inside of your Battlefield 3 install folder. While EA has little power over PunkBuster's ability to get things 100% functional again, this issue does highlight the fact that third-party solutions are not always the way to go."

43 of 74 comments (clear)

  1. Hackers rejoice! by cod3r_ · · Score: 1

    It's like Christmas!

    1. Re:Hackers rejoice! by lesincompetent · · Score: 1

      Oh don't be afraid, those good fellas won't take advantage of the situation.

    2. Re:Hackers rejoice! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Oh don't be afraid, those good fellas won't take advantage of the situation.

      Yes, I'm a "hacker". According to PunkBuster, I'm a no-good, low-down, filthy little cheater. Why? Because I have the nerve, the sheer gall, if you will, to have both a hex editor AND a macro/scripting application on my machine!

      Look, I'm all about taking measures to counter cheating in game with random players, because it IS a problem. And if you're playing a client-to-client game there's really not much alternative other than only playing with people you trust. But using such systems when it's a server-client model is nothing more than a weak excuse to cover up shitty game logic. If you're going to rely on a service like this in order to function at all, then just bite the fucking bullet and run your own centralized game servers, clean up your code, and be done with it.
      I personally refuse to install any application which relies on a rootkit on my system in order to function, it's the most egregious form of DRM out there and should not be tolerated.

    3. Re:Hackers rejoice! by Anti+Cheat · · Score: 2

      Your whine is very old and has been discussed to death regarding script banning. Likely you are just trolling but I'll give you the benefit of ignorance to a point.

      You didn't get busted for JUST having a hex editor and a macro/scripting application. So stop the bull. You got nailed for one a of several things. I have no idea what one exactly but for example: In some games scripting certain game actions is considered cheating by the game company. They want those actions done by the player and not some script. So the game company asked for this type of cheating to be detected. It wasn't detected simply because you had those programs. The detection looked to see if it was hooked into the game. A similar situation regarded a hex editor hooked into the game. Once again not simply and innocently for just having it on your comp.
      There are other examples but I won't go through them all.

      Some types of people got very upset by this rule. In many cases they claimed it wasn't cheating because it wasn't some cheat they downloaded or because they used legit programs to automate an action. They simply could not get through their head that just because the game allowed some scripting, but had a problem that prevented the game from people from hooking (or other method) the keyboard and then automating that input as cheating. To speed up manual actions that were intended to make the player do manually is cheating.

      my whole point even though I used a couple of examples is that you just weren't innocent as you claimed if PB itself detected the cheat. Perhaps you are thinking of some third party sites that banned you from their servers just because you had those programs in your game directory. Not just anywhere on your comp but specifically in the game directory. They banned because those editors should not be there normally and many cheats loaded those programs into the game directory. So EvenBalance or PB didn't bust you. Some game server admins set that rule via a third party service. Like it or not those servers are privately owned and they set the rules not you.

  2. Have EA posted an interim fix? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    The "interim fix" link points to an unofficial site, and the download link on that site points to a file hosted on dropbox...

    1. Re:Have EA posted an interim fix? by Desler · · Score: 5, Informative

      His point was that EA didn't post the fix. The link is to a third party website.

    2. Re:Have EA posted an interim fix? by X0563511 · · Score: 1

      There's no real difference (that matters) between "EA fixed it" and "EA confirmed the fix"

      --
      For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
    3. Re:Have EA posted an interim fix? by Desler · · Score: 1

      EA was not involved in that "fix" at all. It was some guy jacking with his game files that created it. Want to try again?

    4. Re:Have EA posted an interim fix? by X0563511 · · Score: 1

      Sure. Did they confirm it? Then they confirmed it.

      Of course if they have not done so then the submitter (or original author) is being an enormous tool.

      --
      For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
  3. Publishers still force Punkbuster on customers?! by SnowDeath · · Score: 1, Informative

    I haven't had that horrible piece of software on my PC in years... Valve's VAC is far superior with less resource usage. Yes, I am a Valve fanboy and yes I am a talented TSQL developer in a fortune 300 company looking for a job with them ;)

  4. EA is a Third Party Software Company by Jack9 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Almost everything in EA is third party. From matchmaking, to stats recording, to software clients, to servers. The fact you CAN fix an integral part of the game being down, speaks to why third party integration is preferred, not why it should be avoided. Thanks for the update anyway Mojokid.

    --

    Often wrong but never in doubt.
    I am Jack9.
    Everyone knows me.
  5. lol by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    punkbuster does not stop anyone from cheating. except the totally clueless.

    their service is a joke.

    the games that use it are just trying to save money by looking like they're doing something about cheaters... but not.

    1. Re:lol by archen · · Score: 5, Insightful

      punkbuster does not stop anyone from cheating.

      It seems to be stopping everyone from cheating at the moment.

    2. Re:lol by Requiem18th · · Score: 2

      Agreed, punkbuster is an snake oil sales man. I'm usually against closed source software, and for essential tasks, I'm 100% against it. For non essential stuff like videogames it's somewhat okay. You can't make a game secure without end-to-end encryption.

      You can get close enough by offucating the network protocol and periodically chaning it. You don't even need the source code for game itself to be closed, you just need encrypted, or really offuscated application code to hide an authentication key and that's it. What punkbuster does is trying to apply a band-aid to security by running a blacklist of strings over RAM. You can remotedly disconnect someone by sending them a message containing a blacklisted string for instance. How stupid is that? And of course Punkbuster needs administrator access for it so if punkbuster or any subprocess get compromised the intruder gets admin access to your system. And in the end punkbuster run in the client anyway, how do you know it hasn't been compromised?

      --
      But... the future refused to change.
    3. Re:lol by letherial · · Score: 1

      Problem solved!

    4. Re:lol by VortexCortex · · Score: 1

      punkbuster does not stop anyone from cheating.

      It seems to be stopping everyone from cheating at the moment.

      Everyone except those cheating pirates, who are still able to play...

  6. punkbuster is worthless by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It was worthless in the quake 3 days, and it sure as hell hasn't gotten any better today.. It did little other than lag the clients/servers and kick/ban players spuriously.

    1. Re:punkbuster is worthless by K.+S.+Kyosuke · · Score: 1

      I wonder, how does this PoC protect itself from being fooled by a punkbusterbusting rootkit?

      --
      Ezekiel 23:20
    2. Re:punkbuster is worthless by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · · Score: 1

      With any luck, people who go to suspicious sites that "have software you can install that defeats Punkbuster!" will get what they deserve.

      And I say that as a dad who had to reinstall the OS several times due to kids installing gameplay "helpers" their "friends" recommended. One picked dollars off a money tree for some online Tamogotchi-like pet game. It worked as a cheat, just came with a little, unspecified bonus feature.

      --
      (-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
    3. Re:punkbuster is worthless by Anti+Cheat · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Sorry Requiem18th but you have no idea what you are talking about. You only think you know how PB worked. Hate to tell you but your blacklist idea was only a very tiny part.

        Impy the Impiuos Imp You are right. But it was far worse than you could ever imagine with cheat rootkits

      I used to be involved in this area for over 15 yrs. One thing that is very common in cheating are cheats sold/subscribed to over the internet. Having over the years examined these pay cheats, that claim to get around PunkBuster (PB), I have a few insights to share. Many times eventually PB would nail them, counter to claims on the websites. Usually when the numbers using the cheat make it worthwhile for PB to go after.

      But here is the very serious side these cheats most don't know.
      It's no surprise in finding out the cheats are rootkits, but the surprise are the extra payloads they carry or will carry when they get updated in time. The thieves that write the cheats don't stop at stealing the fun out of the game. Several of the bigger sellers in the past were also serious criminals. It was very common for them to hijack your comp to be used in their private botnets or to rent out. The other common theft were your logins and passwords. Many parent were surprised to find their credit cards, banking info was compromised, but worst was identity theft. These cheat criminals often stole directly from the sucker, but more often would just sell your info to others. One German cheat writer thought he was really smart. Once the client (usually a kid) stopped subscribing to his cheat, that was when he loaded up the nasty payloads. He made more money of this theft method than the cheat subscriptions he sold. All those past customers were the gift that just kept on giving.

      As for Punkbuster as a product. Once it matured as a product it did a decent job at catching cheats for a long time (I haven't followed this stuff recently). One thing for sure. Valve's VAC was the worst product by far. Valve would only catch a tiny portion of the cheats as compared to PB and VAC very rarely ever caught private cheats. VAC also had the worst error rate of false detection. Sorry to vac fans but those were the stats.
      I don't do this work in the game industry anymore, but I don't think things have changed much in the last few years.

    4. Re:punkbuster is worthless by argStyopa · · Score: 1

      Link/proof? Are you saying it didn't block cheaters? You say it spuriously blocked people (assuming they were not cheaters, I guess?)
      I played tons of FPS games for years, and found I got kicked far more by annoyed humans ("you're using an aimbot, cheater!" >disconnect (I wasn't)) than ever by punkbuster. If it wasn't working, I'd love to see info on this.

      --
      -Styopa
  7. Re:Productivity skyrockets by Linktwo · · Score: 1

    I've been living under a rock.. what year is it? 2003?

    --
    Laws and common sense still applies.
  8. Re:LOL proprieturds by LordLimecat · · Score: 2

    Like slashdot?

  9. Re:Publishers still force Punkbuster on customers? by K.+S.+Kyosuke · · Score: 1

    What, you'd develop a replacement for them in TSQL?

    --
    Ezekiel 23:20
  10. In other news by Krojack · · Score: 2

    EA files DMCA lawsuits against thousands for modifying their game files to get around cheat protection...

  11. Enemy Territory by Seeteufel · · Score: 2

    Does it affect Enemy Territory? Meine Leben!!!

  12. Re:Productivity skyrockets by Abstrackt · · Score: 1

    Also, there are reports of pasty-faced nerds emerging from the basements of the homes of respectable older couples, looking dazed by the sunlight.

    And if they see their shadows we get 6 more weeks of winter?

    As a Canadian nerd, we should be so lucky!

    --
    They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it's not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance. - Terry Pratchett
  13. DNS fix worked for some by GodfatherofSoul · · Score: 1

    EA had published a link to a forum post about redirecting you DNS queries to Google's servers; 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4. I'd assumed that there was DNS change that needed to propagate and never looked any further.

    As for PunkBuster, either it sucks or the vendors suck. I've been an avid FPS player for maybe 10 years, and I've never seen a game so shamelessly hacked. I don't know what kind of statistical analysis they're employing, but some guys cheat like they don't give a crap. People, including admins sniping with shotguns, 10-1 ratios in CQ fighting, pure hokeyness.

    --
    I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
    1. Re:DNS fix worked for some by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      To be fair, in BF3 if you add slugs and a scope to your shotgun it does make a pretty good sniper rifle without hacks.

    2. Re:DNS fix worked for some by X0563511 · · Score: 1

      You know, you can actually snipe with the shotguns.

      4x optics + slugs.

      --
      For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
    3. Re:DNS fix worked for some by dave562 · · Score: 2

      10-1 is not that unheard of. I went 13-2 last night on MoH:W and that is using the same engine as BF3. It really all comes down to latency. When I have the connection to myself, I do well. When my fiance is playing WoW on the other computer, I find myself doing less well. That has been my experience since the early days of online gaming. I was one of the best Q3 players in the world for a while when the game first came out. A little bit of it was skill, a lot of it was the 384k DSL line and 10ms pings I had.

    4. Re:DNS fix worked for some by Nidi62 · · Score: 1

      It really all comes down to latency.

      This is why, when I play CS:S, I only play on one server. It is located in the same city as me, and I usually have the lowest ping on the server. That, and it usually always populated and the people on it are actually fun to play with/against.

      --
      The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
    5. Re:DNS fix worked for some by GodfatherofSoul · · Score: 1

      I'm not talking about that guy with the fluke round or short run or someone in a vehicle. Heck I've had 50ish-3 rounds in AA. Last night I was on Metro and a guy was 110ish and 8. Even if you get a perfect sniping spot, you're not going to get that good a run just because of the random guy breaking through the lines and nailing you.

      --
      I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
  14. Re:Productivity skyrockets by WhitetailKitten · · Score: 1

    Brace yourself, Duke Nukem Forever finally came out. And it didn't do so well.

  15. Don't like it? don't buy it. by sl4shd0rk · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Seems to me that if you don't agree with how the EA model works, then don't buy their games. Otherwise, you're just subsidizing the exact thing you hate.

    --
    Join the Slashcott! Feb 10 thru Feb 17!
  16. Re:LOL proprieturds by capnchicken · · Score: 2

    Looks like it was last updated in '09, what's the over/under on that not being current with the production code?

    --
    A libertarian shat on my carpet once. Claimed the free market would sort it out. -Ford Prefect(8777)
  17. Why bother? by dave562 · · Score: 1

    Punkbuster is worthless. I broke my own rule and bought Medal of Honor Warfighter for the PC. This is after I went strictly PS3 for FPS games due to the hackers on the PC. Despite having Punkbuster, the game was completely overrun with hackers. Day 1 of the release there were already aimbots and wallhacks galore. The only thing that Punkbuster seems to do is guarantee a revenue stream for the coders who have to obfuscate the cheats from time to time to counteract the new Punkbuster signatures.

    1. Re:Why bother? by Anti+Cheat · · Score: 1

      Then dave562 you didn't stick around for the big bust. When Medal of Honor was released the cheats being used were from the pre-released copy of the game that still worked on the released version. Yes the cheating was bad then.
      However PB was there but it wasn't not turned on yet and wasn't turned on until after the first game patch.
      The situation of the game being released without PB being turned on, was a contractual thing between the company and EvenBalance. Once PB was turned on, it had an immediate impact with thousands of cheaters getting caught by PB. The game then settled down to being reasonably cheat free for quite some time until the usual next round of cheats and detection's as per usual.
      .

    2. Re:Why bother? by dave562 · · Score: 1

      I have been playing it more lately. I decided to go back and finish the Single Player campaign. Once that was done, I checked out multiplayer to see if it got any better. It is better. I am not sure how much of that has to do with Punkbuster, versus how much of it has to do with the hackers getting bored and playing another game. I have only seen two instances of aimbots in the last couple of weeks.

  18. So, what's new? by AAWood · · Score: 2

    Back in the day, my friends and I were really in to Battlefield 2. As time went on though, I found I just couldn't play; we'd spend 20 minutes trying to find a server with enough slots, and after I joined I'd only be there a few minutes before Punkbuster crashes and I get booted from the game. And I'm being precise there; Punkbuster wasn't identifying me as doing anything wrong (because I wasn't), it would just constantly crash out. We tried a few servers not using punkbuster, and everything was fine. I tried looking for solutions online, uninstalling and reinstalling etc, no go.

    It got to the point where we'd meet up time and again to try and play, spend a few hours "playing" BF2, and I'd get maybe half an hour of actual gameplay. We moved onto BF2142; even worse. Updates and patches exacerbated things. Everyone else preferred BF2 and moved back to it. It was now essentially unplayable. When everyone else moved to BF3, I didn't follow.

    Just my experience I know, but a damn bad one.

    1. Re:So, what's new? by AAWood · · Score: 1

      You can play on servers that don't have PB in the rulset, or run your own.

      Umm, as I said above...

      We tried a few servers not using punkbuster, and everything was fine.

      So, yeah, I know.

  19. Re:LOL proprieturds by grumbel · · Score: 1

    The problem here isn't proprietary software, but dependency on a central service and a lack of redundancy.

  20. Punkbuster, VAC, etc by thejynxed · · Score: 1

    Do absolutely nothing to block/prevent the use of programs that intercept and modify calls to DirectX instead of modifying RAM or game files.

    The end result: There are always some who will get away with cheating even after numerous complaints.

    --
    @Mindless Drivel: 100% of Twitter posts ever Tweeted.