Ubisoft adresses cheating and exploits in The Division

Cheating has been a big problem in the Dark Zone for players of Tom Clancy's The Division, but Ubisoft has finally come out with a post on the official website and voiced their policy moving forward.

Firstly, they have implemented a number of new cheat detection methods, allowing them to easier track down those using cheat engines to get an unfair advantage over players. The new methods are working, too; they have caught more cheaters in the last few days than they had in total during previous weeks. On top of this, they are being much harsher with their punishments, giving cheaters a 14-day suspension on their first offense, rather than a 3-day suspension. Should they choose to cheat again and are caught, they will receive a permanent ban.

Ubisoft are also ramping up their efforts to stamp out bugs and bug exploits. Their initial steps include reviewing their development and testing process to minimise the impact of any bugs found. All bugs and exploits will be available on a public forum for all to see, so that they can take steps to avoid them and Ubisoft can crack down on them more easily. In terms of players abusing bugs to achieve an advantage or skip progression, they are to take a stronger stance and introduce sanctions ranging from a character rollback to an account suspension or permanent ban.

It's nice to see Ubisoft working on making the player experience the best it can possibly be, and their commitment to doing so is to be expected. For the longterm health of an online game like The Division it is key tha players feel there is a level playing field or they'll soon tire.