Online gaming has long been plagued by cheaters, and despite constant efforts, a 100% cheat-free environment remains elusive. This has led to the necessity of kernel-level antivirus solutions, such as Riot Games’ Vanguard. While not previously the most popular, Riot Games is now facing a wave of criticism and complaints, with users mistakenly believing that Vanguard is capable of blocking their PC hardware, which is not the case.
Cheating in video games has existed since the medium’s inception, with players consistently seeking ways to circumvent developers’ intended gameplay. This can range from exploiting mechanics and skipping content to gaining infinite health or resources in single-player titles. However, cheating becomes a far more significant issue in online multiplayer games. Instead of manipulating the game engine itself, cheaters often employ external tools that enable them to perform actions that are extremely difficult or impossible, giving them an unfair advantage over other players.
Valorant and League of Legends Players Complain Vanguard May Block Their PC Hardware
Riot Games first introduced Vanguard with the launch of Valorant in 2020. League of Legends continued to use its proprietary anti-cheat system, ‘Packman,’ until a cyberattack in 2023 prompted a migration to Vanguard. This transition, involving kernel-level protection, was completed in 2024. While Riot Games has received complaints about Vanguard since its inception, the current situation has escalated significantly. Riot recently updated Vanguard and posted on X, showcasing a variety of hardware, including graphics cards, and triumphantly announcing the ‘bricking‘ of over $6,000 worth of hardware, rendering it unusable for the game.
Many users misinterpreted this announcement, believing it referred to general PC hardware like their own processors, motherboards, or graphics cards being blocked. They failed to realize the post was specifically addressing hardware used for DMA (Direct Memory Access) devices. These are components and drivers that allow data transfer to and from RAM without CPU intervention, effectively bypassing Vanguard’s kernel-level security measures.
Riot Games Clarifies That Only Cheat-Enabling Devices Are Affected: Vanguard Does Not Damage or Block PCs
DMA hardware is not a specific type of component but rather a category encompassing various devices, such as graphics cards, hard drives, or network cards, that can directly access memory and thus circumvent security measures. With this latest update, Riot Games has eliminated all DMA-based access. However, this has resulted in frustrated and angry PC users who mistakenly believe their own PCs are being blocked.
Riot Games has since published a post explaining the situation in detail, clarifying that Vanguard will not damage, disable, or impede the functioning of any hardware. The only change is that devices utilizing DMA for cheating will no longer be usable. If you are not using such devices, you should not experience any impact.
