Cheating in Games: A Legal Grey Zone
The legality of creating and selling cheats for video games is complex and frequently enough falls into a gray area. While not directly criminalized in many countries, it can violate several existing laws and agreements.Here’s a breakdown of the legal landscape:
Copyright Infringement: Publishers are increasingly prosperous in suing cheat developers, arguing that cheat creation violates copyright law. Recent examples include:
Activision vs. enginewning (2024): Activision won a $14.5 million judgment and a permanent shutdown order against Enginewning.
Bungie vs. Aimjunkies (2024): Bungie won a landmark case, with a jury confirming that cheat creation violates copyright, resulting in a $4.3 million award in arbitration.
Circumvention of Security Measures: Laws like the DMCA 1201 in the USA prohibit circumventing technological measures that control access to copyrighted works,which can apply to game security.
Fair Competition & Game Licenses: Cheats can violate fair competition principles and the terms of service/license agreements of the games themselves. Criminal Penalties (Specific jurisdictions):
South Korea: Creating and distributing game cheats is a criminal offense punishable by up to 5 years in prison or a 50 million won fine (since 2016).
China: Large-scale cheat operations have been repeatedly shut down, with significant fines and property confiscation.
Overall:
Researchers emphasize that the legality of cheat growth is globally a gray zone, dependent on local regulations and the specific legal arguments made by game publishers.
Source: https://businessinsider.com.pl/technologie/nowe-technologie/microsoft-zabije-prawdziwa-zabawe-kon (linked in the original text, though the content of that link isn’t provided here).
