PSA: Cheat Awareness, Discussion, Notices & News

[Geisterfaust]

I've chatted a lot yesterday about cheaters, obviously with randoms, so I can only guess how plausible their answers were. One guy told me he got banned for a month after his rank was increased, but I've got my doubts. Another friendly guy claimed that his rank was increased, but corrected almost instantly after he was disconnected. As of right now, a lot of people are talking about cheaters, but it was pretty safe most of the time. Like some guys posted here, cheaters are still here, but they're becoming harder to spot.

[Prince_Polaris]

My friend was made rank 250 and he's still rank 252 I think, so it's not fixed for everyone...

[truffleshuffle03]

I've chatted a lot yesterday about cheaters, obviously with randoms, so I can only guess how plausible their answers were. One guy told me he got banned for a month after his rank was increased, but I've got my doubts. Another friendly guy claimed that his rank was increased, but corrected almost instantly after he was disconnected. As of right now, a lot of people are talking about cheaters, but it was pretty safe most of the time. Like some guys posted here, cheaters are still here, but they're becoming harder to spot.

They are not really harder to spot. There are just a bunch in every lobby so you can't tell which one is doing what. I had to swap between characters last night and it placed me in a full lobby and while I was still up in the cloud the chat was popping up. There were a ton of guys griping that some modder in the lobby was changing all the ranks and stuff. One dude who joined as a level 1 got jumped up to 500 ranks and got given a godly amount of money and was really panicking because of it so I find it hard to say that it's getting harder to spot and it sure has not died down in the cheating department I have noticed the same if not more modders in every lobby I go in.

Edited April 19, 2017 by truffleshuffle03

[Schroebedroeber]

Goddamnit rockstar! I want to play online again!

[LanaSugoi]

Goddamnit rockstar! I want to play online again!

oh don't tell me you got suspended

[mute!]

I was in a server earlier and some guy was adding money to peoples accounts. He gave me 15 million instantly.

What type of lobby were you in. Free aim or auto aim?

[Hellbendzor]

 

Until this is fixed I'm staying the hell away from GTAO, as PC only player it's the only smart thing to do, there's only so much I can do in Invite Only session, and the risk of going into a public lobby to lag it out into an empty public lobby is too great, and the chance of a random connect to your empty lobby be a scriptkiddie is also to great.

You don't need to ever enter a regular public lobby or lag out. All you need to do is make some new rules in your firewall (both inbound and outbound) that blocks UDP port 6672. It's easy and works 100% of the time.

 

Props to Perez84, who made this handy tutorial:

http://m.imgur.com/a/3ju3z

 

Go forth and play solo public lobbies without fear and without subjecting anyone to intentional lag.

 

Since my own method (unplugging networkcable) leaves me vulnereable for the time needed to join a session and the few secs I need to lag out AND the fact I'm still vulnereable because randoms will join again after awhile (mostly after an hour or so), I followed the tutorial. Very nice indeed. I did however have to set inbound and outbound rules. Only inbound, still dropped me in a populated session. After I set outbound rules as well (same steps as inbound btw), I got that solo public session. I tested it for over 2 hours (contactmission galore, ehhe) and it was ok. Joining free session again, still empty.. So good stuff...

 

It's sad we have to resort to this, but I'm not risking to lose my legitemately earned millions, my properties (cars/house/warehouse) and my rank to some nitwit with a modmenu. I hope Rockstar can sort it out soon and we get some sort of headsup about it. But for now, I'm gonna lay even more low than I usually do (solo grinder, you know ;-) ). I have way too much (fun) time invested in this game to risk losing it by some modmenu a-hole.

 

Great tutorial btw... Big thx to author and you Garland for sharing it...

[gglenn1966]

I have been using the UDP port blocking method for several months. The thing is, it doesn't usually work the first time. I am regularly dropped into sessions with one to four other players, usually only one. Sometimes I need to switch sessions a half-dozen times or more in order to obtain a session where I am all alone. Once I am alone in a session, I have never seen anyone attach to it later on, however. I have never been dropped into a session with a large number of players with the ports blocked, either. The method does work, but it seems it is less effective for me than for others based on what people are describing.

[DentureDynamite]

^^ I only tried mine out (blocking inbound and outbound) for maybe 10 minutes last night--including swapping chars--but it worked perfectly each time. Always a public session with just me in it.

 

I'll keep an eye out for any other players, but for now I'm not playing at all until I hear back from R* on my ticket. Would love to be playing right now though with the double money/RP on Contact Missions; been hoping for that kind of "discount week" for a LONG time!

 

Thankfully, R* Support has escalated my second ticket submission to Tier 2 (after asking them to do so), so I'm hopeful it's a step in the right direction for getting this resolved. I made sure they understood my history clearly shows I am a player in good standing with Rockstar Support.

 

I've had money bags dropped on me in public lobbies multiple times before (welcome to the PC platform), but have followed R* Support's instructions to essentially "not worry about it" (just one example below):

 

Hello DentureDynamite,

 

We apologize for the delay in our response.

 

In the past, a small number of GTA Online players sought to exploit the game by generating and distributing game-breaking amounts of in-game cash, disrupting the experience for other players. Anyone who innocently received GTA$ as a result of these exploits, but did not engage in cheating to acquire it did not face any further action - the funds were just removed, and players were able to keep any items they had owned at that time. Those who actively engaged in cheating and exploiting the game in this manner were, however, subject to in-game penalties at our discretion. This may have included being placed in isolated cheater pools or banned from GTA Online altogether.

 

At this time, you do not need to do anything further and this ticket will resolve on its own. We will continue to issue hotfixes and title updates on an ongoing basis to counter the negative impact this has had on gameplay. We look forward to seeing you Online!

 

Best regards,

 

Vallen A.
Rockstar Support

Edited April 19, 2017 by DentureDynamite

[guster-von]

I popped into a session with a number players who had even numbers on their rank...500, 800, 400, 250

 

Those numbers don't seem right to me...I got the hell out of there.

[lost-in-emotions]

how you know your ticket is tier 2 now?

[Schroebedroeber]

 

Goddamnit rockstar! I want to play online again!

oh don't tell me you got suspended

 

Nah. i just refuse to play online untill this is fixed.

Dont want to risk losing all my money (not all of it is legit) or getting some insane rank.

[guster-von]

 

 

I was in a server earlier and some guy was adding money to peoples accounts. He gave me 15 million instantly.

Guess they havent fixed it yet.

Personally I plan to stay out of public sessions until they release a full patch and the notes give a satisfactory indication of what anti-cheat protection they've put in (and verification here from trusted members who can review the code and rate it's robustness).

 

I'm with ya on that. I have put way too much time into this game...

[lost-in-emotions]

oooookaaay. i just opened a ticket under "other".

short and simple. for modded money removal.

its immediatly got closed with the standard text.

 

We understand that you have received modded GTA$ in the game. We apologize for the inconvenience caused in this regard. We would like to inform you that, to keep the gameplay environment as fair as possible ...

 

there i could also see it was "tier 1".

WHAT A SHAME. whats the f* problem?

 

better to send an email to the support admin?

Edited April 19, 2017 by lost-in-emotions

[Gaffa]

^ Told you before... I wouldn't worry about it.

[lost-in-emotions]

it would be easier to believe, when R* didnt build these conflicts with high risk.

 

1.) when is this "blabla" internal money sweeping? im waiting 10 days now!!

2.) they say "play as normal blabla". but when i spent 1$ ... i will be banned.

[DentureDynamite]

how you know your ticket is tier 2 now?

 

Good point. I should say, logically, at least Tier 2--following is their reply. The exact wording is "escalated to the proper department":

 

 

it would be easier to believe, when R* didnt build these conflicts with high risk.

 

1.) when is this "blabla" internal money sweeping? im waiting 10 days now!!

2.) they say "play as normal blabla". but when i spent 1$ ... i will be banned.

 

With how R* can (and now does) operate with their "no ban appeal" system, I don't at all blame you for fearing the worst in spending any of that money.

 

If you haven't already, I would suggest asking that your ticket be escalated to the next Tier level/department, and perhaps also (as Fun De Panda suggested to me) send your ticket ID to: [email protected] as a means of ensuring they know you're serious about getting this resolved.

Edited April 19, 2017 by DentureDynamite

[Hellbendzor]

I think I'm not the only one keeping his fingers crossed for you, Denture. I hope you get your money and stats back soon. Nothing more frustrating than having hard earned stuff taken away by cheating lowlifes.

 

Keep us posted on your progress. Hopefully Rockstar will give an update about the removal of the current modmenu-infestation. Personally I think we'll have to wait for the next (gunrunning) dlc to experience a safe populated session again. And to those minimizing the issue. The last month, whenever I went into populated sessions (in between my grinding solo sessions), in 90% of the cases modder(s) were present (teleporting, encaging my character, dropping busses/vehicles on top of me, killing everyone in session,...). Luckily I did not experience what DD sadly did, but still, I'm glad this thread got created, cos I didn't realize I escaped the (moneydraining/statchanging) bullet quite a few times. So big headsup and thx to Gaffa for the warning through this thread...

Edited April 19, 2017 by Hellbendzor

[lost-in-emotions]

i cant level up my request, because R* just close the ticket after the standard answer.

 

i will sent a mail like you. how is your woring? do you have a good "template" for it? ;-)

[Gaffa]

You need to reply to the ticket to re-open it and escalate it.

[lost-in-emotions]

no, there is no option for reopen or answer.

when R* closed as solved, its finally closed

[DentureDynamite]

i cant level up my request, because R* just close the ticket after the standard answer.

 

i will sent a mail like you. how is your wording? do you have a good "template" for it? ;-)

 

Sure; if it helps, something like this below; not word-for-word obviously. Just modify it to match your situation and the <variables> to whatever applies to you:

 

Dear Sir or Madam,

 

At <time> on <date>, within seconds of spawning into a GTA Online public session and stepping outside of my <location>, I lost all but <amount> of my bank account money to a cheater via the <"mod" menu cheating type>. As far as I know, my properties and vehicles were unaffected.

 

Please see these two screenshots below I barely managed to take as proof--as the incident drained my account *literally* within seconds:

 

<screenshot link>

 

As of <date>, I had at least <GTA$ amount> in the bank--following is a screenshot of it:

 

<screenshot link>

 

Please advise as to if I can get my money reinstated; I believe you will find that I am a player in good standing. My social account will back this up, but here's a screenshot post-loss just in case (my <first or second> character is showing):

 

<screenshot link>

 

If not, I ask that you please escalate my ticket to the next Tier and/or department for their review.

 

Thanks in advance for anything you can do in this regard.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

<your name here> (<RSC username>)

Edited April 19, 2017 by DentureDynamite

[Gaffa]

no, there is no option for reopen or answer.

when R* closed as solved, its finally closed

 

Reply to the email.

[flexcreator]

 

 

no, there is no option for reopen or answer.

when R* closed as solved, its finally closed

 

Reply to the email.

 

 

 

If the request is solved, R* are also going to send you a survey if you are satisfied or not. I think, if you point that you are NOT satisfied, your comments will go to the Quality Assurance team.

Edited April 19, 2017 by flexcreator

[UMADBRO_OKAY]

Are modders gone?

[Quinn_flower]

Are modders gone?

Since when they are ever gone.

[lost-in-emotions]

interesting OLD message from R* - but its quit different to the storys in the support forums.

so somebody lie at "i am banned for nothing". when R* says you can spent that money.

and strange that they say, no manually removement. event i got one last christmas!

 

https://support.rockstargames.com/hc/en-us/articles/201617423--Aktualisiert-am-15-06-2015-Update-zu-GTA-Online-Cheatern-und-gehackten-GTA-

 

 

Question: Are you able to remove the money given to me by a modder if I contact you directly? Should I just wait for the community-wide adjustment?
Answer: We are unable to accept individual requests for GTA$ removal. However, we will be making adjustments to account balances for any players in possession of illegitimate funds.

 

Question: Regarding the account balance adjustments, what if I already spent some or all of the money I was given by cheaters? Or what if I transferred it to a second temporary character?
Answer: We have taken all of these factors into account when making account balance adjustments. If you already spent some or all of the modded money you were given, you may find that your account balance after adjustment is lower than it was before you received the counterfeit money. This is correct as you will be allowed to keep the items you bought.

 

Question: How did you calculate the adjusted account balance for each player who was in possession of modded GTA$? What happened if deducting the amount of modded GTA$ from a particular account would have resulted in a very low, or negative, balance?
Answer: The adjusted account balances are the result of removing modded money. If you already spent some or all of the modded money you were given, you may find that your account balance after adjustment is lower than it was before you received the counterfeit money - this is correct as you will be allowed to keep the items you bought. Any unspent money from Shark Card purchases is also not affected. For accounts that would have been left with little or no GTA$ after correction, we added sufficient funds to continue playing and enjoying GTA Online, taking into account whether a player intentionally created and distributed modded GTA$ or received modded money innocently.

Edited April 19, 2017 by lost-in-emotions

[Geisterfaust]

^ A lot have changed since then. At first it looked like new anti-cheat system is to blame, but taking into account how support is responding and how people are getting their bans, it's pretty much clear that the new approach is in action. Thing is, that these 'manipulations' are quite new and it was always impossible to actually lose money and people rarely complained about getting modded money. What we're dealing with now is a complete new scenario, when almost anything in the game is possible and even passive inaction may lead you to a ban.

Edited April 19, 2017 by hei3enberg

[DentureDynamite]

^^ And here's another case in point; ticket 2 blatantly rejected.

 

Honestly, I don't know what the <insert expletive here> I'm supposed to do to convince them that I don't, and haven't, cheated? All I can say is if I am getting treated like this, then pretty much everyone is at risk, unless you sing R*'s praises on YouTube. Then you can cheat all you want and they couldn't be arsed.

 

 

And they really need to cut the "sincerely apologizing" and "so sorry this has inconvenienced you" BS while they're telling you they don't believe a word you said.

 

It isn't fooling anyone about what's happening.

Edited April 19, 2017 by DentureDynamite

[Geisterfaust]

Probably shark card sales on PC were already low enough for them not to bother with playerbase. But honestly, anti-cheat was not the strongest part of any of their games.