Kaspersky finds 92% of esports pros oppose cheating to win

A Kaspersky survey has revealed that the majority of professional gamers stand for fair play and competition. According to the study, 92% of North American esports pros and 68% of esports pros globally agree that using cheats is inappropriate, even if it means their team can win.

Cheating is not unusual in the gaming world. According to a recent Omdia study, “Cheating, hacking, piracy and esports: critical steps needed to protect the industry,” 81% of respondents flagged cheating or hacking in esports as either a “major” or “moderate” concern.

The Kaspersky survey found that cheating can even cause negative emotions in gamers: 86% of global professional players (75% of North American players) admit they get angry when another player obviously cheats. In addition, 76% of global gamers (67% in North America) said that using cheats or loopholes just shows that a player is not good enough to win honestly.

Most players also said that the industry must do more to stop cheaters. Ninety-two percent globally and 75% in North America said they believe that game providers should do more to prevent players from using cheats in their games.

“Cheating can negatively affect the performance of gamers’ computers, or cause data and gaming assets leaks,” said Marina Titova, vice president, consumer product marketing at Kaspersky. “Such scenarios can happen because cheats often contain malicious files and programs. Besides, cheating creates a trust issue between gamers, game providers, and platforms. Gamers are not happy when someone has an illegal advantage over honest players and expect game manufacturers and platforms to create conditions for fair play.

In order to maintain a high level of performance and security, Kaspersky recommends the following:

• It’s safer to buy games on official sites only and wait for sales. They take place fairly often, so you won’t be sitting on your hands for long.
• Try to avoid buying the first thing that pops up. Even during Steam’s summer sale, before forking out the dough for a little-known title, at least read some reviews of it. If something is fishy, people will probably figure it out.
• Beware of phishing campaigns and unfamiliar gamers. It’s a good idea to double check the website you are redirected to via a link in a received email and the extension of a file you are going to open.
• Reliable security solutions can support specific modes created for gamers. For instance, “Gaming” and “Do not Disturb” modes in the new Kaspersky solutions turn on automatically while users are gaming, watching movies or on a video call, and turn off when they are done. When apps intended for work, study or play are used, the relevant mode activates itself, hiding tasks and notifications. Users only receive critical security alerts when their attention is required.

Within the report, Kaspersky defined the following gamers’ categories:

• Esports Pros: See gaming performance as extremely or very important; have taken part in tournaments at least once in the last two years; are either building an income from gaming,  or aim to make money from it.
• Esports Amateurs: Have taken part in tournaments at least once in the last two years and like taking part in tournaments and competitions; do NOT look for money making opportunities from their gaming
• Hardcore Gamers: Play at least 20 hours per week
• Gadget Gamers: Invest a high or very high sum of money to improve their gaming performance (hardware / training / nutrition, etc.).
• Gaming Influencers: Stream at least once a month; have a minimum of 1,000 followers.
• Top Gaming Influencers: Stream at least once a week and have at least 10,000 followers.