Just an idea

[Script47]

So, I was thinking about game security - in this thread when I talk about security I will be meaning how to spot cheaters and those who are cheating not security like injecting or XSS - in general and I came up with an idea which can be implemented in to TBG (text based games) and other games if executed correctly it could work quite well. Now you may already have something like this but I thought I would share.

 

Transfers

So currently the way to spot cheaters is to use a log which stores all the transfers such as money, bank and crystals. That can be quite hard to keep track if you have a very busy game. However the idea/system I have in mind should be more automated which should make life easier. So if a user sends transfers to the same IP the system will ban the user and obviously they will be able to dispute it, it will give a default message which the admin can set. Now you might possibly wondering what if you have been already told about the accounts and you have allowed two accounts on the same IP then the system will check if they are allowed if not then they will be banned right away. This will reduce the time you spend trying to crack down on people and allow you to make actual changes.

Mail Abuse

Instead of having to trawl through all the mail logs to find a specific conversation the reporter can pull out that specific mail which will pass on the date, sender and the message contents and the admin/staff can simply fuzzy search that date/message contents so they can quickly pull up that message if they need to see the full conversation.

 

Now how would an Admin be able to keep track of this systems actions to ensure nothing is going wrong. Below is an amazing drawing which took me very long to give you an idea.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]1601[/ATTACH]

[lucky3809]

IP's you can not always know whom is using a legit IP as for someone could be using proxies, how I see it there should not only be an IP checker on,but also for new players,there should be a time limit to when they can send something such items to another user like maybe a 10 day activity limit, this includes leveling and crimes and which ever you think should consist of their activity. And also make it send an alert when a users IP has changed.

[Dominion]

One thing I often have running in the background is an automatic check on consistent transfers and key words in mail. For example if someone has two accounts (one feeding the other) it will flag it after 3 transfers of more then 10% of the feeder accounts funds. The mail will be flagged for any key words that suggest rule breaking (swearing etc). This kind of check does require someone with full access to logs to ensure it's been correctly identified and dealt with, but someone would have to do that anyway.

Unfortunately finding cheaters in a game is often about time, and even luck in some cases. Have staff members that specificity look for flags, give the ability for other members to report mail and suspicious behaviour of others, and of course ensure that all the systems staff have are fully featured. The default logs in Mccodes for example make it next to impossible to spot most things one membership hits even an ok level of activity.

Edited August 9, 2014 by Dominion

[Script47]

IP's you can not always know whom is using a legit IP as for someone could be using proxies, how I see it there should not only be an IP checker on,but also for new players,there should be a time limit to when they can send something such items to another user like maybe a 10 day activity limit, this includes leveling and crimes and which ever you think should consist of their activity. And also make it send an alert when a users IP has changed.

Yeah, maybe they will use proxies but either way you will ban that IP, and the next, and the next one they use automatically so it would be alright. I personally like your last idea as it would help staff see a pattern if they are using proxies or not.

 

One thing I often have running in the background is an automatic check on consistent transfers and key words in mail. For example if someone has two accounts (one feeding the other) it will flag it after 3 transfers of more then 10% of the feeder accounts funds. The mail will be flagged for any key words that suggest rule breaking (swearing etc). This kind of check does require someone with full access to logs to ensure it's been correctly identified and dealt with, but someone would have to do that anyway.

Unfortunately finding cheaters in a game is often about time, and even luck in some cases. Have staff members that specificity look for flags, give the ability for other members to report mail and suspicious behaviour of others, and of course ensure that all the systems staff have are fully featured. The default logs in Mccodes for example make it next to impossible to spot most things one membership hits even an ok level of activity.

I know what you mean about the MCCode logs and this system is by no means to replace the staff. Working along side moderators and other staff it should maybe make it easier to stop cheaters.

I mainly thought of this idea because I thought was is missing in terms off ideas in MCCodes and most games in general. I realized that there is a huge gap where not many people have thought about this type of security.

[Veramys]

I like it. It's pretty well thought out and would be really helpful.