You’re getting messages about something called “Easy Anti-Cheat,” which you don’t remember installing. What does it do? Why is it on your computer? Is it a virus? You’re in the right place if you’re looking for some peace of mind.
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What Is Easy Anti-Cheat?
Online gaming is huge today, but the fun is often spoiled by players who cheat. It’s common for these cheaters to buy software that modifies a game or otherwise interferes with it giving someone an unfair advantage.
Easy Anti-Cheat is one product that runs in the background, watching for these types of cheating software and preventing players who use them from participating in the game.
Easy Anti-Cheat is a highly advanced piece of software developed by a company named Kamu. For obvious reasons, they don’t disclose exactly how the software works, but you can think of it as a sort of anti-malware system specifically for games.
If you try to tamper with it or use software to try and cheat in a particular game, Easy Anti-Cheat may ban you permanently from playing online in that specific game.
Is Easy Anti-Cheat Safe?
Yes, Easy Anti-Cheat is a legitimate program used by many game developers to protect the integrity of their online games. It’s supposed to be running at the same time as the game that uses it.
Because of the way that Easy Anti-Cheat works, some antivirus software may falsely identify it as a virus. However, it’s unlikely that this will happen given how well-known Easy Anti-Cheat is. So it should be whitelisted by default in your antivirus software.
Finding Easy Anti-Cheat’s Location
Easy Anti-Cheat is not installed in one particular location on your computer. Instead, every game that uses the software will install its copy. This is usually within the game’s folder structure.
If you wish to remove Easy Anti-Cheat from your computer, you also need to remove every game that uses it. When the last game has been removed, the software will be gone from your system. In some cases, a game will ask if you wish to install Easy Anti-Cheat when you install it. Opting out will likely prevent you from playing that game online using servers that require the service.
If you want to uninstall Easy Anti-Cheat manually, you can check inside the game’s folder for “EasyAntiCheat_Setup.exe.” Run it, and you’ll be given the option to uninstall or repair the service.
Checking Easy Anti-Cheat’s Legitimacy
Our research didn’t indicate a record of any malware trying to masquerade as Easy Anti-Cheat. However, if you open the Task Manager, the service should be named “EasyAntiCheat Service”.
Also, the service should only be running while the game that uses it is also running. This is because a service by that name running at other times might be suspicious, and you may want to run a deep scan with your preferred antimalware package.
Which Games Come Bundles With Easy Anti-Cheat?
Multiplayer games widely use Easy Anti-Cheat. This list on the site isn’t comprehensive, so other games may use the software. Notable titles include Apex Legends, Black Desert Online, Dead by Daylight, Halo Master Chief Collection, and Fortnite Battle Royale. So if you have any of these games or those from the official list, you’ll also have Easy Anti-Cheat there as well.
Fixing Easy Anti-Cheat Errors
When Easy Anti-Cheat is working as intended, you’ll never know it’s there. However, no software is perfect and you may encounter several errors that are related to it. These are the most common issues with their fixes.
Windows or the Game Needs an Update
Easy Anti-Cheat relies on some system files to work and the version of Easy Anti-Cheat a specific game uses might require newer versions of those files. Alternatively, the game itself might need an update for similar reasons.
Add Easy Anti-Cheat to Virus Exceptions
If you’re using an antivirus package that doesn’t make an exception for Easy Anti-Cheat, add it manually. Refer to your software manual for specific instructions. The developer maintains a list of antivirus compatibility if you want to check whether Easy Anti-Cheat works with an antivirus.
Check Your Connection to Easy Anti-Cheat
For the software to work, it needs to have a connection to its home server. Easy Anti-Cheat has made this easy by providing two URLs that will tell you if your connection is working:
- https://download.eac-cdn.com/
- https://download-alt.easyanticheat.net/
In both cases, visiting these sites using your browser should result in the message “200 – HTTP OK”. If not, then you’ll have to investigate your internet connection or internet settings (such as the firewall) to ensure that everything is correctly configured.
Reboot Your PC or Close Other Applications
Due to how Easy Anti-Cheat works, other applications on your computer can interfere with the program. This can lead to you being blocked or kicked from online games. Reboot your computer and close programs that don’t have to run to see if this resolved the issue.
The Last Tip: Don’t Cheat!
Easy Anti-Cheat is perfectly safe for your computer, but it’s not so safe if you want to cheat at online video games. If you use specialized cheating software, it may work for a while, but once Anti-Cheat is updated, having that software running simultaneously as the game can lead to a permanent ban.
If you’re banned from playing for cheating, you’re also not eligible for a refund in most cases. So it can end up being an expensive mistake. It’s better just to play fair and have fun the right way.
