Key insights from Anti-Cheat Expert (ACE)'s session at Devcom 2025, Yue Wang, Director of Mobile Game Anti-Cheat

According to data from Newzoo and GameIndustry.biz, the global gaming market revenue is projected to reach $187.7 billion in 2024, with a player base exceeding 3.42 billion people, equivalent to nearly one in every two individuals worldwide. Yet beneath this thriving industry lies a critical vulnerability: persistent security threats that insidiously undermine its foundation.

(Source: NewZoo.The global games market will generate $187.7 billion in 2024)

This vulnerability is now escalating into a full-scale crisis, actively constraining the industry's growth potential. Our proprietary survey reveals that 85% of players prioritize security when selecting games, while 95% of monetized players report diminished spending willingness due to cheating. Critically, every gaming company we interviewed confirmed security as their top operational priority. These converging insights crystallize a new industry reality: security infrastructure has transitioned from technical concern to strategic imperative, the non-negotiable foundation for sustainable growth.

To combat this crisis, we must first dissect its anatomy. Mobile game cheating manifests through three primary attack vectors:

App Mods: modifying and repackaging the game’s APK or IPA files with cheats built in.

Universal Tools: like memory scanners, time hacks, or app containers, which work across many games to change data, alter speed, or bypass system protections.

Dedicated Tools: built for a single game, sometimes at the kernel level, giving attackers deep control over the game process.

This threat hierarchy evolves precisely as defenses strengthen, from low-barrier binary mods dominating unprotected games, to surgically precise kernel tools targeting fortified titles. Understanding this escalation matrix isn’t merely technical diligence; it’s the strategic blueprint for deploying layered countermeasures that disrupt attacker economics.

To counter the evolving threat spectrum, our anti-cheat framework deploys three layered defense tiers, each escalating in sophistication to match attacker capabilities:

Protection

Prevents game file tampering. Functions as automated security barriers (e.g., reinforced doors) against surface-level attacks.

Universal Cheat Detection

Identifies cross-game cheating tools. Operates like intrusion alarms to detect memory scanners, speed hacks, and bypass techniques.

Dedicated Cheat Mitigation

Counters game-specific kernel-level exploits. Requires deep game logic analysis—comparable to bespoke security services, to resolve targeted attacks.

This tiered approach transforms defense into dynamic offense. By systematically raising attacker costs from entry-level tampering to kernel exploitation, we fracture cheat economics—turning their "arms race" into a battle of unsustainable attrition.

Building on our defense framework, app hardening serves as the critical frontline barrier against attackers. Its objective is to block both dynamic/static analysis and unauthorized modifications, specifically those aimed at circumventing anti-cheat systems.

Supporting this approach, empirical data from iOS cheating tool samples reveals modified binaries dominate the threat landscape on Apple’s platform. This prevalence stems primarily from iOS’s closed ecosystem and the opaque nature of App Store review rules, which historically hindered robust hardening solutions.

In direct response, our recently launched iOS hardening solution has demonstrated measurable success in mitigating these risks. Implementation materially reduces modifiability, raising attacker barriers while systematically enhancing game security.

While app hardening secures the binary frontier, our universal cheat countermeasures actively combat evolving cross-platform threats. The universal tool landscape has progressed significantly. Early memory scanners offered basic search/edit functionality, requiring manual value manipulation by cheaters. Modern iterations now integrate script engines, enabling plug-and-play exploits and cheat sharing.

To disrupt these threats, our system provides granular response capabilities:

● Terminate game processes to halt active cheating

● Eject offenders from active sessions

● Issue account bans to prevent repeat violations

Though process termination offers immediate disruption, its effectiveness remains limited without server-coordinated ejection or banning—vulnerabilities sophisticated cheaters exploit.

Completing our three-tiered defense strategy, the anti-dedicated cheating solution specifically targets bespoke exploits—including sophisticated kernel-level intrusions—that compromise game integrity. This system operates through three core capabilities: efficient analysis of cheating tools for swift malware identification, flexible runtime data collection enabling real-time integrity monitoring, and gameplay process reconstruction to trace anomalous player actions.

For detection, we employ two complementary methodologies: signature-based detection flags suspicious cheat tool features and behaviors, while anomaly detection identifies gameplay deviations like unnatural movements or impossible actions. Together, these capabilities form a robust defense preserving fair gameplay experiences against even the most dedicated attacks.

As the Paris Olympics anti-doping leaders acknowledge, no ecosystem can achieve absolute cheat eradication. Like elite athletics, gaming faces perpetual innovation in exploitation techniques. Yet through our three-tiered defense framework, we transform security from reactive firefighting into sustained strategic advantage. The arms race evolves, but our commitment crystallizes. Every layer we fortify raises attacker costs, protects player trust, and ultimately upholds competitive integrity. Fair play remains non-negotiable. The battle for it never ends, but with each barrier strengthened, we tilt the scales toward the player.