Blizzard Beats “Cheat” Maker, Wins $8.5 Million Copyright Damages

[Megalith]

Companies that create cheats, hacks, and bots should probably think twice before marketing or selling their products in the US now, as Blizzard has just defeated “Bossland,” one of the frontrunners in this area. Blizzard is getting close to $9 million for all of the effort and money they have spent trying to combat hacks that ruin the gaming experience for legitimate players.

The court agreed that hacks developed by Bossland effectively bypassed Blizzard’s cheat protection technology “Warden,” violating the DMCA. By reverse engineering the games and allowing users to play modified versions, Bossland infringed Blizzard’s copyrights and allowed its users to do the same. “Bossland materially contributes to infringement by creating the Bossland Hacks, making the Bossland Hacks available to the public, instructing users how to install and operate the Bossland Hacks, and enabling users to use the software to create derivative works,” the court’s order reads.

 

[crono15]

Good, cheaters have been ruining many games. Blizzard have a long history when it comes to that so they have a good reason for this lawsuit.

 

[Deleted member 184142]

Not really sure how I feel about this. I HATE hackers/cheater in games, but at the same time, I don't agree with the "copyright" damages, no less so large, as it's another step to the "we still own this game, you only have a license to play it until we decide other wise", I can see this moving into just single modding of games in the future, that have nothing to do with multi player etc. "This mod cost the company money because it filled a void we left so we could release a $60 DLC later".

 

[Twisted Kidney]

Not really sure how I feel about this. I HATE hackers/cheater in games, but at the same time, I don't agree with the "copyright" damages, no less so large, as it's another step to the "we still own this game, you only have a license to play it until we decide other wise", I can see this moving into just single modding of games in the future, that have nothing to do with multi player etc. "This mod cost the company money because it filled a void we left so we could release a $60 DLC later".

This is actually a pretty distinct case, it will be hard to apply to just any company. Plus copyright law is notoriously fickle in application around the world, it seems to be the last bastion of case-by-case legal decisions. If it started to go down the avenue of slavish obedience to precedent it would become a nightmare though, the craziest decision might become to gold standard. American Copyright Law in particular has been fertile ground for some seriously crazy shit.

 

[Gigus Fire]

Not really sure how I feel about this. I HATE hackers/cheater in games, but at the same time, I don't agree with the "copyright" damages, no less so large, as it's another step to the "we still own this game, you only have a license to play it until we decide other wise", I can see this moving into just single modding of games in the future, that have nothing to do with multi player etc. "This mod cost the company money because it filled a void we left so we could release a $60 DLC later".

Ditto. Cheats on multiplayer games ruin it for everyone, but as in the case with blizzard, with enough will they can make it very difficult for the cheats to exist.
Reverse engineering isn't/shouldn't be a crime. Modifying programs you bought shouldn't be a crime. The way the case is described " contributes to infringement by ... enabling users to use the software to create derivative works" Is pretty shifty. A youtube video can be considered derivative works.

 

[Jagger100]

Cheats could only be stopped if graphics cards added features to allow it. Some kind of authentication the image looks as the game intends. Then hacks to the hardware would be prohibitively expensive, likely with a clone card running a mirror, and minimize the cheats. Wouldn't eliminate them, though. People are assholes.

 

[Darunion]

Ditto. Cheats on multiplayer games ruin it for everyone, but as in the case with blizzard, with enough will they can make it very difficult for the cheats to exist.
Reverse engineering isn't/shouldn't be a crime. Modifying programs you bought shouldn't be a crime. The way the case is described " contributes to infringement by ... enabling users to use the software to create derivative works" Is pretty shifty. A youtube video can be considered derivative works.

I feel they need to go after people that ruin the experience for everyone else. While i don't feel it is copyright infringement, likely this is the best legal route as it is more clearly defined than pursuing damages for ruining the 'value' of the product for other consumers.

Cheats really are a cat and mouse game, nothing will be impenetrable. But if the risk/reward scale is shifted unfavorably then it will deter more cheaters over time. The die hards will always try but at least there can be an overall improvement to the environment.

 

[Semantics]

Not really sure how I feel about this. I HATE hackers/cheater in games, but at the same time, I don't agree with the "copyright" damages, no less so large, as it's another step to the "we still own this game, you only have a license to play it until we decide other wise", I can see this moving into just single modding of games in the future, that have nothing to do with multi player etc. "This mod cost the company money because it filled a void we left so we could release a $60 DLC later".

With lack of Law to stop a profiteering bot maker you just grasp at whatever you can to stop them from messing up your game.

 

[Cyraxx]

Let me make sure I'm understanding: The only reason this was even brought to a lawsuit is because they were trying to market and SELL their cheating program, right? I would honestly be surprised if this was overall worth it though - After Blizzard's costs via lawyers, etc... You can award them 20 zillion dollars in damages, that doesn't mean they will receive 20 zillion. How much do you honestly think this company has that created the cheats?

Back in my day of Diablo 2 pindlebots, no one was stupid enough to try to sell/market the cheating... It was just shared/distributed on forums and such.

 

[Deleted member 184142]

Ditto. Cheats on multiplayer games ruin it for everyone, but as in the case with blizzard, with enough will they can make it very difficult for the cheats to exist.
Reverse engineering isn't/shouldn't be a crime. Modifying programs you bought shouldn't be a crime. The way the case is described " contributes to infringement by ... enabling users to use the software to create derivative works" Is pretty shifty. A youtube video can be considered derivative works.

Pretty much, it was a wide open ruling that doesn't seem like the facts mattered. And allowed others to make derivative works? WTF? How? Had it been a ruling outside of copyright, I would probably be more willing to go along with it, but it seems to be a real stretch, which seems to be the norm now.

I feel they need to go after people that ruin the experience for everyone else. While i don't feel it is copyright infringement, likely this is the best legal route as it is more clearly defined than pursuing damages for ruining the 'value' of the product for other consumers.

Cheats really are a cat and mouse game, nothing will be impenetrable. But if the risk/reward scale is shifted unfavorably then it will deter more cheaters over time. The die hards will always try but at least there can be an overall improvement to the environment.

Not really, many if not most games seem very easy to hack/cheat and full of holes/exploits. I remember playing one game that had a super simple and stupid exploit, everyone knew about it, everyone reported it, months later it was not fixed, I was playing one day and see someone tagged as a GM USE THE EXPLOIT, I could not believe it. Another thing that would help is more serious bans for people who use them, get caught doing something once, one week ban, caught again with proof? Perm. So many games are far to soft on these. Had a friend in an MMO buy gold all the time, I kid you not, he would get banned once a month at least, each one 24 hours, never perm.

I understand the reason, but don't agree with the ruling in how it is worded, it's like a massive open door.

With lack of Law to stop a profiteering bot maker you just grasp at whatever you can to stop them from messing up your game.

I can understand doing what you can to stop something like this, I can't understand the wide open ruling the court gave, then again it was in cali sooo....

Let me make sure I'm understanding: The only reason this was even brought to a lawsuit is because they were trying to market and SELL their cheating program, right? I would honestly be surprised if this was overall worth it though - After Blizzard's costs via lawyers, etc... You can award them 20 zillion dollars in damages, that doesn't mean they will receive 20 zillion. How much do you honestly think this company has that created the cheats?

Back in my day of Diablo 2 pindlebots, no one was stupid enough to try to sell/market the cheating... It was just shared/distributed on forums and such.

It's a bot, not really cheat or hack, their website is linked, all look to be farming bots or some sort for most games etc. They are based in Russia, ruling was only in Cali about this, seems like they didn't even show up to represent them selves from what it states in the link.

 

[Gigus Fire]

Let me make sure I'm understanding: The only reason this was even brought to a lawsuit is because they were trying to market and SELL their cheating program, right? I would honestly be surprised if this was overall worth it though - After Blizzard's costs via lawyers, etc... You can award them 20 zillion dollars in damages, that doesn't mean they will receive 20 zillion. How much do you honestly think this company has that created the cheats?

Back in my day of Diablo 2 pindlebots, no one was stupid enough to try to sell/market the cheating... It was just shared/distributed on forums and such.

Blizzard has a history of going after any and everyone who dared to use their games in unintended ways.
Case and point, bnetd was an open sourced implementation for the backend starcraft server. Blizz went after it and shut it down. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bnetd

 

[Derangel]

Not really sure how I feel about this. I HATE hackers/cheater in games, but at the same time, I don't agree with the "copyright" damages, no less so large, as it's another step to the "we still own this game, you only have a license to play it until we decide other wise", I can see this moving into just single modding of games in the future, that have nothing to do with multi player etc. "This mod cost the company money because it filled a void we left so we could release a $60 DLC later".

There is a HUGE difference between mods and these people. The company Blizzard sued, Bossland, was SELLING cheats and making a PROFIT off of Blizzard's games without permission. That is a clear violation of copyright. Modders aren't going around selling their work and, for the most part, modders aren't going around trying to ruin the multiplayer experience of a game. These jackasses were making money off of ruining multiplayer games for people.

 

[Cyraxx]

It's a bot, not really cheat or hack, their website is linked, all look to be farming bots or some sort for most games etc. They are based in Russia, ruling was only in Cali about this, seems like they didn't even show up to represent them selves from what it states in the link.

I see, so basically they will get absolutely nothing. Got it. So basically, they are stupid for even doing this and wasting court time and lawyer costs?

Plus, if these are just bots then I really have to question if there is a copyright issue. Right now I have an RBA program that can record any and all keystrokes and mouse clicks as well as pro-grammatically manipulate it if needed. It can work in conjunction with any program, website, etc.. This has nothing to do with the game and everything to do with recording my keystrokes. How do you equate that to a copyright on their game? That sounds incredibly stupid.

 

[GotNoRice]

it's another step to the "we still own this game, you only have a license to play it until we decide other wise"

Depends on the game, but if we are talking about World of Warcraft for example, then yes that is basically how it works. Players don't own shit, you pay per month to play. Just the same, for players that pay per month, tolerance for cheaters tends to be much lower.

 

[celeron300]

Does that mean that Bossland was PAWNED?

 

[SvenBent]

i just dont get how this is a copyright issue.

 

[alxlwson]

i just dont get how this is a copyright issue.

The DMCA has information. The article specifically states why they went the copyright route.

 

[Armenius]

i just dont get how this is a copyright issue.

They violated Title 17, Chapter 12, Section 1201 of the US Code that was added by the DMCA. They circumvented a protection mechanism to gain access to Blizzard's closed and proprietary code for purposes not allowed or exempted by the copyright provisions in the US Code.

 

[thejokker]

The Warden software Blizzard uses to catch botters uses heuristics technology. This means depending upon how aggressive Blizzard configures their scanners it "will" generate false positives (innocent people will get caught up in the scan). In the past updated video drivers set off a false positive and in that case Blizzard un-banned those effected but in general they have shown to have a "screw you" attitude with regards to false positives.

Cheaters suck but taking the attitude that it's ok if a few innocent people are hurt is a sign of a corrupt and untrustworthy company.

 

[NeghVar]

Cheat Happens should be concerned about this. They develop and sell trainers

 

[NeghVar]

The Warden software Blizzard uses to catch botters uses heuristics technology. This means depending upon how aggressive Blizzard configures their scanners it "will" generate false positives (innocent people will get caught up in the scan). In the past updated video drivers set off a false positive and in that case Blizzard un-banned those effected but in general they have shown to have a "screw you" attitude with regards to false positives.

Cheaters suck but taking the attitude that it's ok if a few innocent people are hurt is a sign of a corrupt and untrustworthy company.

I was once confronted by a moderator back during Burning Crusade. I was grinding in Tanaris and followed a particular pattern. The pattern caught the attention of their scanners, or whatever they are. A moderator appeared ahead of me and instructed me to stop. I did. He then asked 5 random but easy questions. I answered them and went on my way.

 

[Galvin]

If blizzard never went after these people or cared. Then one day you log in, and 99% of everyone is a bot. You'd be lucky if you found another real player on line. Its good they go after the source.
This is a billion dollar business, they'll protect it.

 

[tikiman2012]

I would argue that one absolutely has the right to limit & control how software behaves on their personal computer. For closed system gaming this is a no brainer. My computer, my rules. Not so much for online gaming though.

 

[Deleted member 184142]

There is a HUGE difference between mods and these people. The company Blizzard sued, Bossland, was SELLING cheats and making a PROFIT off of Blizzard's games without permission. That is a clear violation of copyright. Modders aren't going around selling their work and, for the most part, modders aren't going around trying to ruin the multiplayer experience of a game. These jackasses were making money off of ruining multiplayer games for people.

Selling custom made bots, they were not selling any of their games, modded or not, their program was it's own, the copyright claim came from them bypassing Blizzards automated antibot and anticheat system, however the ruling was far more reaching than that. There are modders who sell work, and frankly I believe they should be able to, just like aftermarket part options for cars etc. Also, paid for mods would also help in producing better mods and more of them.

Also, I have no claim that bots or cheats can ruin the game for others, not even debating that, only stating the way this was ruled was poor, Blizzard more or less got whatever they wanted as well because the other party didn't even show. They are based in Russia after all, this ruling means pretty much nothing for them, but can impact us.

I see, so basically they will get absolutely nothing. Got it. So basically, they are stupid for even doing this and wasting court time and lawyer costs?

Plus, if these are just bots then I really have to question if there is a copyright issue. Right now I have an RBA program that can record any and all keystrokes and mouse clicks as well as pro-grammatically manipulate it if needed. It can work in conjunction with any program, website, etc.. This has nothing to do with the game and everything to do with recording my keystrokes. How do you equate that to a copyright on their game? That sounds incredibly stupid.

Right, and how it was stated was very open, which is odd. They do have a case in Russia against them, but you know, good luck with that.

Depends on the game, but if we are talking about World of Warcraft for example, then yes that is basically how it works. Players don't own shit, you pay per month to play. Just the same, for players that pay per month, tolerance for cheaters tends to be much lower.

That is a bit different, I can also agree with that, you go in paying for a service. It is also why I stay away from them, it would have to be an amazing game with lots of new content to fork over something every month, that is personal however, I work a lot and don't have time to put into games, so it might be weeks or months before I site down and get some game time in. I also don't question how players feel about bots or cheats, I feel the same way, however it could have been handled in a number of other ways or far better and much more specific, anytime it starts dealing with copyright for just understanding the code is not something I agree with. Reminds me to much of car mfgs wanting copyright to cover ECU code, and just VIEWING that code would break the law.

 

[lcpiper]

Not really sure how I feel about this. I HATE hackers/cheater in games, but at the same time, I don't agree with the "copyright" damages, no less so large, as it's another step to the "we still own this game, you only have a license to play it until we decide other wise", I can see this moving into just single modding of games in the future, that have nothing to do with multi player etc. "This mod cost the company money because it filled a void we left so we could release a $60 DLC later".

Well, on the "license to use" front that ship sailed many years ago, the laws are pretty defined and the company's hold all the cards. Anyone stating that they "bought a copy" of whatever game is actually fooling themselves and that's just the truth of it. Thinking otherwise is just wishful thinking and at best you retain a fair use right to reproduce the media if you can pull it off given any DRM that might be in place.

Now modding is a different manner and again, the owner holds the cards and can allow modding or they can restrict use of their IP, it's up to the rights holder. But as has been shown at times in court, if a company doesn't defend it's IP it can loose it's claim and rights. Bethesda for example frequently supports modders and as such allows modders to work with their IP within a legal framework that Bethesda has defined. But even Bethesda has their limits. I do think Bethesda has gone so far as to experiment with allowing modders to monetize their work. I am not sure where they currently are in this regard.

 

[Gigus Fire]

Selling custom made bots, they were not selling any of their games, modded or not, their program was it's own, the copyright claim came from them bypassing Blizzards automated antibot and anticheat system, however the ruling was far more reaching than that.

This is the issue i have with mmo cheating. It's different than fps cheating where you'll have wall hacks and aim bots that allow people to perform way beyond what they're capable of.
Mmo cheating usually centers around botting. Botting is just scripts that do the boring work in an mmo that no one wants to do. Botting ranges from saving keystrokes to creating complex scripts to full automation. There are many mmos that state even simple keystroke saving and replaying is considered against their terms of service.

So wow wants to claim they damaged their game by creating software that farms for gold or does miscellaneous tasks in the game that are considered boring to most.
Instead of taking the feedback that people are willing to pay money to eliminate those boring tasks, blizzard just doubled down on trying to litigate a russian business out of existence.
It's kind of silly when you look at it like that.

 

[Derangel]

Selling custom made bots, they were not selling any of their games, modded or not, their program was it's own, the copyright claim came from them bypassing Blizzards automated antibot and anticheat system, however the ruling was far more reaching than that. There are modders who sell work, and frankly I believe they should be able to, just like aftermarket part options for cars etc. Also, paid for mods would also help in producing better mods and more of them.

They didn't show up to defend themselves. Blizzard won by default. It's not this massive precedent setting case you are making it out to be.

I agree with modders selling work, within reason. It's why I hope we see the paid mod option return to Steam at some point with better oversight. However, it should also be done with the permission of the owner of the game. Developers and publishers don't care about modders 99.99% of the time as long as they're not messing with online stuff or trying to by-pass DLC and the like, they're either supported or ignored.

 

[Spidey329]

Not really sure how I feel about this. I HATE hackers/cheater in games, but at the same time, I don't agree with the "copyright" damages, no less so large, as it's another step to the "we still own this game, you only have a license to play it until we decide other wise", I can see this moving into just single modding of games in the future, that have nothing to do with multi player etc. "This mod cost the company money because it filled a void we left so we could release a $60 DLC later".

It's because they were selling access to the cheat software. They waived any fair use access and violated the DMCA by doing so.

Had their cheat system consisted of something like an OpenCV bot that tracks heads and fires without modifying any of the game files, it would have been a completely different story.

A lot of these cheat programs modify the memory of the game or anti-cheatware.

 

[JosiahBradley]

For single players games I don't care if someone modifies the exe by deassmebling it or even hacks it to death; but, for multiplayer games I want as pure an experience I can get when playing competitively. Sure let there be a free for all fun zone but you start cheating in a real match I want real blood.

 

[EODetroit]

Good, I just wish Blizzard cared enough about it to sue these guys out of existence 8 years ago when I still played WoW.