Module A3 · Operate & secure

Choosing an anti-cheat

New owners think anti-cheat is a product you buy that makes cheating stop. It is not. The strongest protection is a server that never trusts the client. Anti-cheat is a layer on top of that, not a replacement for it. This is the decide companion to the anti-cheat build lesson: that one writes the server guards, this one helps you evaluate what to buy on top of them so you spend money on the right thing.

You'll learn: What anti-cheat can and cannot do, how to score options without getting sold snake oil, the layers that actually stop cheaters, and the red flags when buying.
Time: ~20 minutes.
You need: An understanding of client vs server authority (the trust lesson).

BEFORE YOU START

How to evaluate an option

Score each option on these

Server-side detection: Does it validate on the server, or just trust client reports a cheater can fake?
Active maintenance: Updated within the last weeks/months? Cheats evolve; a stale anti-cheat is dead weight.
Performance cost: What does it add to resmon? A heavy anti-cheat that tanks the server trades one problem for another.
Transparency: Can you read what it checks, or is it an opaque blob you must blindly trust with full access?
Support and community: Real docs, real updates, real responses, not just a hype thread.
Bypass history: How fast are public bypasses patched? Ask in neutral communities, not the seller's channel.

Keep reading the full lesson

Still ahead in this lesson

The layers that actually stop cheaters
How it works
Common mistakes
What you can do now