Hacker/Cheater Problem in MP

[Igor 2]

Hello everyone,

i encountered a new hacker problem in the game. Today i tried multiple times to host MP Lobbys, but everytime someone unknown entered the lobby and banned all players, even me the host.

For a better explanation i recorded one of the incidents and put a video on my youtube channel.

In this example i got banned. Which is hilarious cause I AM THE HOST and i didnt try to ban myself.

Please Paradox try to fix this issue. I know there were issues with hackers before, for example that they could trigger events like civil wars everytime they wanted which was also game breaking but with this new issue i cant even start a MP game with my friends or other HOI 4 Players.

Sincerely
Igor

 

[Xeothustra]

I made a post about this early jan and they still haven't addressed it. Paradox doesn't give a shit about multiplayer.

 

[Herr B.]

I made a post about this early jan and they still haven't addressed it. Paradox doesn't give a shit about multiplayer.

You are mistaken.

Quote from the HOI4 wiki:

1.10.4​

Patch 1.10.4 was released on 2021-02-03[3] with the checksum 8878.

Stability & Performance​

• Fixed a security flaw in networking where a user could bypass lobby password protection
• Added extra checks to block clients with empty or blank username from joining a game
• Fixed a security flaw in networking where a user could kick/ban other players without being the host

 

[Xeothustra]

You are mistaken.

Quote from the HOI4 wiki:

1.10.4​

Patch 1.10.4 was released on 2021-02-03[3] with the checksum 8878.

Stability & Performance​

• Fixed a security flaw in networking where a user could bypass lobby password protection
• Added extra checks to block clients with empty or blank username from joining a game
• Fixed a security flaw in networking where a user could kick/ban other players without being the host

as of the latest patch hackers are still able to ban everyone from the lobby

 

[Herr B.]

as of the latest patch hackers are still able to ban everyone from the lobby

They may not have fixed this particular problem, but in contrast of what you stated in your first post, Paradox dedicated an entire hotfix to multiplayer problems. This shows that they are aware of existing problems and are willing to spend time on fixes.

 

[Ketchup & friends]

Paradox dedicated an entire hotfix to multiplayer problems. This shows that they are aware of existing problems and are willing to spend time on fixes.

That's true, and they deserve credit for what they did.
But they didn't finish their job.
Dear devs, Please make a 1.10.5 patch and fix the other issues as well!

 

[DukofDeth]

What perplexes me is why are these people behaving in such a manner? What is the point of it? Perhaps I'm being naive but I like to believe that even the immature shit-disturbers have at least some point to their actions other than proving that they can do it.

Also, I was under the impression that just by having a mod one could avoid this. Organize with your friends so everyone uses the same mod - something simple but not predictable like "Colored Buttons".

 

[grommile]

What perplexes me is why are these people behaving in such a manner?

Finding no value in their own lives, they decide to be a negative to the lives of others.

 

[Deliberus]

Finding no value in their own lives, they decide to be a negative to the lives of others.

Well it can be a variety of reasons

Some just want a power trip until they either get bored or their interests shift elsewhere

Some just want to see the world burn like the Joker

Others will enjoy the sounds of people screaming at them to stop hacking or the reactions of those in the chat

A dedicated few will simply use it as a testing ground either to improve their skills or to sell the cheat online

 

[Camtheman]

Yep, its killing what little MP comunnity hoi has left. Needs to be fixed for real ASAP

 

[DukofDeth]

And what of the rumored workaround of using a specific mod-set? Does that still work? If so, imagine their [the hackers] frustration as they try to figure out which mods each lobby is using. All you'd need is five or six mods that do nothing to gameplay itself, and there are so many to pick from. Even music mods. Each mod would then function like a digit in a code, only instead of ten possibilities for each digit you'd be sorting through a potential set of hundreds of even thousands.

You could even make your own mods that do nothing at all aside from being registered as mods that are loaded, and by making sure to set them as "friends only" then the hackers would not even be able to see those mods [unless your own friends are doing the hacking]. The downside to this is that you'd lose the ability to invite complete strangers into your MP games.

 

[Deliberus]

And what of the rumored workaround of using a specific mod-set? Does that still work? If so, imagine their [the hackers] frustration as they try to figure out which mods each lobby is using. All you'd need is five or six mods that do nothing to gameplay itself, and there are so many to pick from. Even music mods. Each mod would then function like a digit in a code, only instead of ten possibilities for each digit you'd be sorting through a potential set of hundreds of even thousands.

You could even make your own mods that do nothing at all aside from being registered as mods that are loaded, and by making sure to set them as "friends only" then the hackers would not even be able to see those mods [unless your own friends are doing the hacking]. The downside to this is that you'd lose the ability to invite complete strangers into your MP games.

Good idea but those would only apply to your servers and the friends you have. For the semi-compet lobbies it'll continue to be an issue...

 

[DukofDeth]

How? They have to get together to organize their games, agree on what is allowed and what is not, so how could they not be persuaded to agree to using a small set of specific mods that do nothing at all - maybe they add in some unused graphics - just to provide a specific key?! Unless you're saying that the problem is that some among these semi-competitive [not sure it that was what you were stating, so do correct me if I am mistaken] are the ones hacking?! In such a case you're asking Paradox to police what is essentially a public forum, and that is not their role. They provide tools, while we - the purchasing public - choose how to use the tools.

However, if I understood the OP's remarks it did seem as if the problem the OP was pointing to is the issue of uninvited guests getting into the lobby and causing trouble. If an invited guest is causing trouble... Well, I'm sure that anti-cheat software is about as effective as anti-virus software in that most of the time, the software needs to know what the viruses are ahead of time to protect against them, which means any new viruses still get past. Same with cheats, and people are always finding new ways to cheat. Its the old argument of defense versus counter-defense - the one trying to break through usually has the initiative as they pick the time place and method whereas the defense can only wait and hope they're ready for it.