Valve bans people who visit certain websites based on DNS history

metaschima · 02-17-2014, 11:47 AM

Quote:

The thing is, the DNS cache stores details of every site your computer has touched, whether or not you've actively visited it. If an article you are reading links to a blacklisted site, your DNS will record the address of that site, as well as the article. More subtly - if a page you are reading is using a graphic hosted on a blacklisted site, then that blacklisted site will again show up in your DNS. Even if you've never actively visited a cheat website, there may be traces of them in your DNS, and that's what VAC is reportedly now looking for.

The news was first posted to the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Reddit, explaining that VAC now:

Goes through all your DNS Cache entries (ipconfig /displaydns)
Hashes each one with MD5
Reports back to VAC Servers

It is not immediately clear what happens to the MD5 hashed data when it returns to the VAC Servers, but it seems likely that the list is compared against a database of known cheating services or websites.

The new functionality has been slammed by gamers, who claim it is "more like spyware than anti-cheat". Valve has not responded to the allegations, but all Steam users have agreed to abide by specific online conduct and not to use cheats. The company's privacy policy also explains that Valve may collect "personally identifiable information", but promises not to share it with other parties.

VAC bans happen all the time, with more than 60 games using the service. The timing of this allegation is interesting - in recent days there has been a "huge" wave of bans, many affecting zombie survival title Rust, which uses the VAC system.

http://www.playerattack.com/news/201...r-dns-history/

Now, while I don't like cheaters, I also don't like spyware.

nickmh · 02-17-2014, 12:29 PM

Are there tools to detect if software is scanning your DNS cache?

dugan · 02-17-2014, 12:38 PM

Code:

ipconfig /flushdns

metaschima · 02-17-2014, 01:10 PM

Technically, yeah you can flush the cache before you start the software. However, I don't like their tactics.

273 · 02-17-2014, 01:29 PM

Thanks for that.

Code:

apt-get purge steam

I'm glad I chose not to spend any money with them now.

dugan · 02-17-2014, 01:44 PM

Uhm, 273, the code being analyzed is Windows-specific in the extreme.

273 · 02-17-2014, 01:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dugan

Uhm, 273, the code being analyzed is Windows-specific in the extreme.

It is for now. It's also a very silly and pointless thing to do as all it is doing is spying on those who don't cheat.
I don't like the idea of running software that's produced by people who think like that.

dugan · 02-17-2014, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Reports back to VAC Servers

Uhm...

This is indeed claimed in the opening post of the Reddit thread that is the source for the playerattack.com article. However, comments in the same thread have pointed out this is not the case. Nothing in the code sample actually sends anything out remotely. Example comments include: oh, this one and this one and this one and this one and this one and this one and this one.

dugan · 02-18-2014, 12:13 AM

Gabe responds:

http://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comme...vac_and_trust/

Yes, the "reports back to Valve's servers" part turned out to be correct.

No, the headline, "Valve bans people who visit certain websites based on DNS history", did not.

sundialsvcs · 02-18-2014, 09:05 AM

If I am paying you money to use your service, whatever it may be, then why on earth would you want to prevent me from doing so? Let alone give even the slightest impression that you are "punishing me?"

Will wonders never cease . . .

TobiSGD · 02-18-2014, 09:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sundialsvcs

If I am paying you money to use your service, whatever it may be, then why on earth would you want to prevent me from doing so? Let alone give even the slightest impression that you are "punishing me?"

Will wonders never cease . . .

Quite simple: If your behavior in the games you play affects the community (read: other players) in a negative way you are lowering the value of the game for those other players, possibly to a point where they don't want to play that game again. In that case few people doing wrong will lower your income more than just banning those doing wrong and with that also setting an example to prevent others from cheating.

metaschima · 02-18-2014, 10:36 AM

Well, it seems that they do check the DNS history, and they do ban you if they find the cheat itself is phoning home to its developers.

dugan · 02-18-2014, 12:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TobiSGD

Quite simple: If your behavior in the games you play affects the community (read: other players) in a negative way you are lowering the value of the game for those other players, possibly to a point where they don't want to play that game again. In that case few people doing wrong will lower your income more than just banning those doing wrong and with that also setting an example to prevent others from cheating.

I find it amusing that we just suddenly got two threads about cheating: the other one being Does the media and congress make too much fuss on athletes using steroids

dugan · 02-18-2014, 12:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by metaschima

Well, it seems that they do check the DNS history, and they do ban you if they find the cheat itself is phoning home to its developers.

Did.

Gabe said that after only 13 days, the cheaters started scrubbing their DNS records as a matter of course. So Valve took that part out, because it was no longer useful.