Does VAC ban mean IP ban?
No, VAC bans do not result in IP bans. As an avid gamer and content creator, I get this question a lot, so let‘s dive into the details!
What exactly does a VAC ban do?
VAC (Valve Anti-Cheat) bans are the gold standard for blocking cheaters in major online PC games. According to GamerBraves, over 13 million Steam accounts now have VAC bans. But what are they from a technical perspective?
VAC bans permanently blacklist flagged Steam accounts from playing on secured servers in various VAC-enabled games. The system scans your computer‘s memory while playing for known cheat software signatures. But this scanning focuses entirely on processes attached to your game session. VAC does not even detect, much less target or ban, your public IP address.
So VAC account bans have no direct relationship whatsoever with IP bans. Thinking a VAC ban "means" an IP ban is a common misconception!
IP bans take a sledgehammer approach
Unlike precision VAC scalpel cuts, IP bans bludgeon everyone coming from a flagged address. Server admins manually implement them to instantly boot and block perceived troublemakers.
IP bans paint overly broad strokes, punishing families, internet cafes, dorms, and other groups sharing IPs through no fault of their own. Vindictive server hosts may abuse them to censor valid complaints too. Their automated brute forcing can too easily victimize innocent players just trying to grind some XP with their buddies.
According to Multiplay Game Servers, while usually temporary, IP bans have lasted over a decade on some communities! Talk about excessive exclusion escalation…
Dodging IP bans leads to a cat and mouse arms race
Those wrongfully slapped with IP bans aren‘t powerless against these draconian blocks though! Tech savvy users can leverage VPNs, proxies, TOR, and IP spoofing to bypass overly punitive restrictions:
- VPN routing masks your public IP to appear from another address
- Proxies relay your connection through intermediate servers
- TOR encrypts data to route through volunteer nodes
- Spoofing fakes packet IP headers to impersonate a permitted host
But this sets up an unhealthy adversarial dynamic pitting server admins against their own player base in a neverending detection and deception battle…
So do IP bans even help curb cheating?
In my view, no. As a gamer and game industry professional, I just don‘t see tangible benefits to IP bans outweighing their downsides. A few reasons why:
- IP addresses rotate frequently for most users
- Shared connections create collateral damage
- VPN use for home streaming undermines banning
- Toxic admins may abuse banning powers over petty disputes
And crucially, dedicated cheaters can easily bypass the bans anyway with technical tricks mentioned earlier. IP bans mostly just frustrate legitimate players!
In closing, VAC and IP bans take near opposite approaches. So a VAC account ban in a Steam game does NOT automatically translate into an unchecked server admin blocking your network access. I hope clearing up this common confusion helps folks rest easier! Game on.
References:
GamerBraves. "There are now over 13 million VAC banned Steam accounts worldwide" https://gamerbraves.com/steam-vac-ban-13-million/
Multiplay Game Servers. "How long do IP bans last on game servers?" https://multiplay.com/how-long-ip-bans-last-game-servers/
