Top 200 List Tainted?

As part of an ongoing coverage of Battle.net's top StarCraft 2 players, Blizzard released another list of the "StarCraft II Top 200" today. The list isn't all that exclusive and is based on a series of what appear to be subjective considerations. But honestly, what the list is and who is on it really isn't the concern.


What is of some note is the fact that one of the names appears to be missing. According to some of the comments, a user named Vnrock was removed from the list because of hacking. I took a look-see into his profile, and sure enough, Vnrock is listed as #4 rank in a Diamond league. Just below user Qwerty, who ranked #131 on this list.





So naturally I'd expect Vnrock to be somewhere on this top 200 list. But he's not. Why? Because he's a hacker.

[youtube]LBOrDptVtak[/youtube]

So Blizzard has removed him from the list, right? No big deal? Think again. Only a month from release and it appears that hacks are in play in StarCraft 2, on Battle.net, in ladder games. From what we can tell the user was removed from the Top 200 list, but it doesn't appear his account has been banned, and Blizzard sure hasn't made a move to publicize him as a cheater, or to publicly ban his account as a warning.


What's important here is how Blizzard reacts. Are they going to enforce measures they put in place to prevent hacking? At the moment it doesn't appear so, but let's hope they take an interest, especially without a LAN version of the game. I, for one, will be very leery about playing any tournaments from here on out.


All of this also calls into question the validity of the Top 200 List. Who on there could be hackers that don't have as much proof against them as Vnrock? Hard to tell!


Sources: Battle.net, User Profiles

 

What's interesting to me is that I see none of the famous progamers from Brood War. I've been a huge fan of StarCraft, but if the people I admire don't play this game...

 

Isn't this the exact reason SC2 doesn't have LAN?

 

They might be using VACs method of not banning everyone whos using a certain hack even if they work out how to detect it until a critical mass of people is reached so they flush out the maximum number of people.

Which also helps create lots of fear since you might be banned 3 months after using a hack

 

I suspect marinefreak is right. They've done this several times before with both Warcraft 3 and Diablo 2 as well, so I don't see why the same method wouldn't be used for Starcraft 2. You can see an example of that here:

http://forums.battle.net/thread.html?topicId=24401612571&sid=3000

It's not like SC:BW has always been completely free of hacks either. Give it some time. :/

 

Looks as though you can get one that still works from here.

Please don't post links to illicit material or hacks. We don't support that and certainly don't support making it easier to find.

It was only a matter of time before these types of programs hit the net. So much for actually enjoying the game again.

I have reported this site to Blizzard by the way so it would be interesting to see what happens in the next few days with this link.

 

THIS would my guess as well.

It's how blizzard historically deals with hackers. Announcing 50,000+ account closures/bans at a time

 

Yes but don't you agree that this is a little different from VAC bans or SC:BW in that Blizzard is now publicizing standings and making a big deal out of eSports. You can't just let players get away with it and remove them discreetly from the standings.

You have to make it overt and up-front that you won't tolerate hacking. It doesn't matter now or later, can't tolerate it at all for any period of time. Letting players hack for 3 months and then banning them is absolutely unacceptable.

 

It is, but don't you think there's more to it then that? Making such a statement before they're able to effectively seek out and ban hackers would make them look like a bunch of amateurs in case such a thing as this happens again. My guess is that they're not going to make a big deal out of it until they're sure they can handle it 100%.

But then again, there have been so many hackers, glitches and exploits in WoW as of late, that I don't really know what to think of it anymore. Then again, Starcraft 2 isn't nearly as complex in it's coding, so I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens. Personally I'd like to see this kind of play to be gone as soon as possible.

@Makeahole
I'm surprised to see that you think the posting of such a link by you will get this site into any sort of trouble. Mods remove it fast, you make yourself look like an ***. Have a nice day hacking, until you get caught. Oh the irony in your signature about "tactics". Are you sure you've used a lot of tactics in your matches? ^^

 

My apologies about posting the link I was just doing so to show how easy it was to find a program like that already not to encourage the use of one. I did report the issue to Blizzard, this was their reply.

Thank you for your report to Blizzard Entertainment's Hacks & Anti-Piracy team. This is an automatic message to let you know that we have received your report.

Due to the volume of email received by the Hacks & Anti-Piracy team it is not always possible for us to respond to each report individually and this may be the only email you receive from us regarding this matter. Rest assured that your report has been received and will be handled appropriately.

If you believe your World of Warcraft or Battle.net account to be compromised, please visit our security page at http://us.battle.net/security/help.html.

The hacks mailbox is unable to provide support for the following issues:

* Obtaining lost or stolen account passwords.
* Replacing damaged, lost or stolen CD keys.
* Replacing lost or stolen items.
* Requests for technical support and/or games play hints.

All emails regarding these should be directed to support@blizzard.com or you can also call us at 1-949-955-1382, M-F 8am-8pm PDT and we'll be happy to help you out.

If you need to speak with a Blizzard Representative about something other then hack/exploit reports feel free to contact the appropriate support department. For World of Warcraft see http://www.blizzard.com/support/wowindex/. For our other games see http://www.blizzard.com/support/?id=msi0281p for contact information.

While it is our goal to combat cheating and hacking on multiple fronts, we realize this effort will be difficult without the active support of our customers and fans. With assistance, such as that provided by our customers and fans, our efforts to diminish cheating and hacking within the Battle.net and World of Warcraft community will prove to be more effective. Thank you for your show of support and concern, as it is appreciated by each and every individual within our company. For more information, please check the FAQ webpage at http://www.blizzard.com/support/?id=asi0460p. ***************************************************************************
Please Note:If your message contains obscenities, abusive, or threatening language directed at our staff, it will be discarded without further action. Please remember that the people who read emails at this address are working to address and/or resolve the issues submitted to us.
***************************************************************************

 

Wait, did makeahole report THIS site or is his post edited or something?

 

He reported a site advertising hacks however... he linked the site in this thread so admins had to edit it out for obvious reasons. I was silly enough to click the link so hopefully it didn't plant something on my comp that blizz will detect and ban me for :S

This whole thing has me checking every replay after I lose a game...bit neurotic but i need someone to blame!

 

I wouldn't worry to much about that. However, there are sites which plant WoW keyloggers on your computer simply by following a link there. Not sure what the purpose of a keylogger for SC2 would be, but I'd be careful nonetheless.

 

Blizzard is overt and up-front about their hacking policy. Like someone else posted, their may be valid reasons for a time frame between the time of report, investigation, and then taking an action against the account. It isn't simply administrative efficiency - the time it takes to input a name and have that account shutdown is minimal. It is something in the reporting and investigative process that is taking longer, and is probably a justified time expenditure.

As for how crucial it is to act asap, I don't think it matters as much if it isn't a major tournament or the like. Better to do it right imo when its just "general" bnet ladder.

 

The amount of computards that exists on this site is frightning.

 

It has nothing to do with investigative work. Blizzard clearly found enough proof (and the replays themselves are irrefutable). If Blizzard was going to publicly ban him they would have already. There's no delay, there's just no action.

Now I'm not saying that Blizzard condones or allows this stuff to happen, they just apparently don't see it as a priority to discourage users from doing it publicly.... yet.

 

HEY! I play this game >=(

 

I'm not sure it's in their best interest to name and shame.

-- Im sure Blizzard doesn't want the game to get a reputation of being full of hacks. By keeping things low profile, it keeps the game in good rep.

-- Related to the above, players will only feel annoyed about a loss if they know they've lost to a hacker. What you don't know you don't suffer. If you're always going into a game always wondering "is this a hacker?", then you're not going to be enjoying the game.

-- It's a war that Blizzard really won't want to escalate. When they patch the game, its an inconvenience for everybody, but soon someone will find a new exploit. The more frequently you make updates, the busier the hackers will become. It's human nature to rise to a challenge. The game could easily become a joke in the hacking community, and end up making itself a target.

-- It gives the hacker publicity, which they might enjoy. The prospect of getting publicity might encourage others.

 

Wow! I think the most damning part was when he checked your natural the moment you started a hatch, followed by his amazing prescient micro with stalkers against your mutas. Nice job catching this one.

I agree that they probably have a nice long list and are going to mass-ban soon. I hope it's sooner rather than later, though.

 

cheating blows...what is the point?

You are right: I now remember why I stopped playing using bnet to play Starcraft.....cheaters.

I have been playing SC2 and won a game against someone using a hack. They were disconnected from BNET for a few seconds at the end of the game and they the games record did not show up in the history logs.

From the way the guy was acting and playing I knew immediately it was a cheat as soon as I saw the game not show up in history.

Anywho....I will be saving all of my games from now on to check it out after wards if I suspect a hack.

ww