Hey guys, All our biggest fears about cheating are pretty much true. This needs to be exposed, and since no one seems to know or wants to post this, I'll sacrifice my account. There's been a lot of chatter about cheating, and it's time for a no-nonsense, technical breakdown of the cheats and exploits we're seeing in the Verse. This isn't about fear-mongering; it's about understanding the root causes so we can have a constructive conversation about solutions. The issues fall into two main categories: Server-Side Logic Exploits (the aUEC printers) and Client-Side Manipulation (the actual hacks). Let's get into the weeds. 1. Server-Side Logic Exploits (The aUEC Printers) These are the dupes. They're not "hacks" in the traditional sense, but abuses of flawed server logic that are wrecking the economy. The Vulture/Reclaimer Cargo "Dupe": This is a failure in transactional logic. When you sell a load of RMC, the server credits your wallet but fails to consistently wipe the ship's manifest from the persistence database. Storing and retrieving the ship respawns it with the cargo you just sold, ready to be sold again . This was reportedly flagged in the PTU but made it to LIVE. It's causing massive RMC market flooding and server performance degradation from abandoned ships. The Janalite Item Dupe: This one is a classic race condition. By holding an item (like high-value Janalite) and opening the mobiGlas, the server's state machine gets confused. It initiates both a "drop item" and "store item" action but can be interrupted, resulting in one item on the ground (sometimes invisible to the duper) and another in your inventory . This is being heavily botted on Asia servers for RMT. The core flaw is so basic it can happen accidentally when buying drinks . The Insurance Fraud Component Dupe: A long-standing issue. You can strip valuable components from a ship, destroy the empty hull, and file an insurance claim. The insurance system generates a new ship with a fresh set of default or last-known components, while you keep the originals you stripped . This effectively duplicates any physicalized component for just the cost of the claim . It's a fundamental flaw in how the insurance system verifies a ship's state before replacement. 2. Client-Side Manipulation (The Real Hacks) This is where things get ugly. The root cause for all of these is a client-server model that is far too trusting. The server is accepting information from the client that should be validated or calculated server-side. A commercially available cheat suite, reportedly from a site called "cheesejunkies," demonstrates the full extent of these vulnerabilities. The CheeseJunkies team is literally advertising the cheats on their website and YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@cheesejunkies/search?query=star This explanation hits HARD: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKMxC-ed2BY https://rumble.com/v6tcc0x-star-citizen-user-review-credit-leager757.html?e9s=src_v1_ucp_a ESP / Wallhacks: These cheats display player names, health, distance, and outlines through solid objects. The new information shows this extends to ships, NPCs, turrets, cargo, and even individual lootable items and containers from extreme distances. This is only possible because the server is sending entity data to the client for objects that are not in the player's line of sight. The cheat simply renders this data. Aimbots: We're seeing everything from subtle aim assist to blatant snap-to-target aimbots for both FPS (head/chest lock) and ship combat. The problem is compounded by the game's own powerful ESP feature, which can make it difficult to distinguish between a legitimate tool and a third-party cheat. Physics & State Manipulation (The God-Tier Hacks): This is where the server's trust in the client is most severely abused. The "cheesejunkies" suite includes a terrifying array of features that should be impossible: Teleportation: The ability to teleport items and loot containers directly to your position from thousands of meters away for remote looting. Also includes player teleportation to any location on the map and, most critically, a "One Position Kill" (OPK) function that teleports all hostile targets to the cheater's crosshairs for instant death. No-Clip: The ability to fly or walk through solid objects, with adjustable speed for both player and ship. Inventory & Weapon Hacks: Reports of gear being stolen directly from living players are confirmed by these cheat features. They also include unlimited backpack weight, unlimited ammo, no recoil, and no spread. God Mode / Instant Kill: The cheat menu shows options like "Super Threat (Instant)" and reports of entire squads dying simultaneously confirm that clients can send malicious packets telling the server that other players are dead. 3. The Gateway: Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC) Bypass The entry point for all the client-side hacks mentioned above is a laughably simple, publicly documented bypass for EAC. By adding a single line to the Windows hosts file, you can block EAC from communicating with its authentication servers. The game launcher is configured for a "soft fail," meaning it launches the game anyway, but with EAC completely disabled. This workaround is known and reportedly tolerated to allow the VR and Linux communities to play, but it's a gaping security hole that renders EAC's client-side memory scanning and file integrity checks completely useless . 4. The External Ecosystem This isn't just a few players messing around. There is an organized, commercial ecosystem driving this. Cheat-as-a-Service: Websites are selling these cheats via monthly subscriptions, with reports of prices around $50/month. They advertise on platforms like YouTube and provide customer support through Discord servers . Real Money Trading (RMT): The economic exploits are primarily driven by RMT, where operators use bots and dupes to generate billions of aUEC to sell for real money. These operators often use stolen credit cards to buy game accounts, making simple bans ineffective. 5. The Path Forward: A Discussion on Mitigation Patching these issues one by one is a game of whack-a-mole. A more fundamental approach is needed. Immediate Priority: The economic dupes (Vulture/Reclaimer cargo, Janalite) need to be hotfixed yesterday. They are actively destabilizing the game. All item state transitions must become atomic transactions on the server. Short-Term Priority: The EAC bypass needs to be closed. A mandatory server-side handshake that requires a valid token from an active EAC client would render the current bypass useless. This is a critical step to restoring our first line of defense. The Long-Term Solution: CIG must commit to a full "Zero-Trust Client" architecture. The server must be the sole authority on game state. Player position, health, inventory, and hit registration must be calculated and validated server-side. The client cannot be trusted. This is a massive engineering lift, but it is the only permanent fix for the client-side hacks detailed in Section 2. Proactive Detection: Server-side analytics should be implemented to flag accounts with statistically impossible metrics (e.g., accuracy, headshot rates, aUEC-per-hour) to identify cheaters and RMT operations that slip through other defenses . The integrity of the Persistent Universe depends on addressing these foundational issues, not just the symptoms. CIG needs to act decisively. My avatar's attached for attention. Let's discuss. Also, Gentlemen, It's been a pleasure playing with you. ---------- Update ------------ Here's another wild clip of how the client side memory cheats perform in action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIltrn6YuY8 Note that this is a 2+ year old video of SC cheating: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCvaeUG3kU4