In a joint operation between Tencent and Chinese police in the city of Kunshan, Jiangsu province, a cheat-making operation has been shut down following a police raid.
The BBC reports that the raid was codenamed "Chicken Drumstick," which perhaps refers to the deliciousness of catching these cheaters with their pants down. With over $76 million in revenue, the raid is being hailed as the “world’s largest” video game cheat sting.
Ten people were arrested and $46 million in assets seized during the raid. Assets went from computers and hardware to luxury automobiles like Ferraris and Lamborghinis. The cheat-making gang operated a website that sold subscriptions for cheats that gave unscrupulous players from all over the world an unfair advantage in at least 17 titles, including Overwatch and Call of Duty: Mobile.
Tencent publishes Call of Duty: Mobile in China, where it's a huge moneymaker, so the company has a vested interest in shutting down cheat makers.
Cheating is a problem for pretty much all online games, but the biggest busts always seem to come from China where cheating is both particularly lucrative and highly illegal.
One of the worst offenders (in terms of cheating) is Call of Duty: Warzone. Ravensoft recently announced yet another banwave, this time with 13,000 accounts permanently banned for either using unauthorized software or taking advantage of an exploit that allowed players to skip into games that were far below their skill level. This allowed one Twitch streamer to stomp noobs all the way to an impressive 162-kill streak. That is until he got banned mid-tournament.
Sony is also taking aim at cheating on the PlayStation 5 by integrating Denuvo anti-cheat with the next-gen console's software. This will allow developers to integrated Denuvo into their online games and hopefully ensure the platform remains free of cheaters over the course of its lifespan.