Apex Legends devs break silence after devastating ALGS hack

Jeremy Gan
Genius Apex Legends player clutches a win by stuffing his enemies in a cannon

Respawn has announced a new suite of security updates for Apex Legends after a series of devastating hacks derailed an ALGS tournament. 

On March 17, Apex Legends was hit with a series of hacks when two players in a private pro ALGS lobby were given cheats against their will, resulting in utter chaos. 

The debacle that ensued led to a debate on whether Apex Legends’ third-party anti-cheat, East Anti-Cheat, was the problem, or if it was anything more nefarious.

Now, two days after the hacks went down, Respawn has issued a full response to the hacks, announcing a new suite of security updates coming to the game. 

“On Sunday, a few professional Apex Legends player accounts were hacked during an ALGS event,” Respawn addressed on its official Twitter page.

“Game and player security are our highest priorities, which is why we paused the competition to address the issue immediately.” 

Respawn then revealed new updates seeking to remedy the issue, explaining how “Our teams have deployed the first of a layered series of updates to protect the Apex Legends player community and create a secure experience for everyone.”

Respawn did not reveal any specifics about how the hacker exploited the game, however, assured that they are working on the problems around the clock. 

The Apex Legends Esports account further updated players on the postponed matches. While tournament operators are still working on a resolution, they reminded fans that “security and competitive integrity” are paramount.

Thus far, they announced no changes will be made to the Split 1 Playoffs in May, and more information will be shared on the directly impacted NA Pro League Finals in the near future.

The new security updates come as Easy Anti-Cheat, Apex’s third-party anti-cheat they use, shut down any rumors of vulnerabilities in their system, with other Epic Games’ titles (who also regularly utilize the anti-cheat) corroborating. 

About The Author

Jeremy is a writer on the Australian Dexerto team. He studied at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, and graduated with a Bachelors in Journalism. Jeremy mainly covers esports such as CS:GO, Valorant, Overwatch, League of Legends, and Dota 2, but he also leans into gaming and entertainment news as well. You can contact Jeremy at jeremy.gan@dexerto.com or on Twitter @Jer_Gan