ESIC Commissioner hints towards more CSGO bans for stream sniping

After a wave of 37 bans in the Counter-Strike scene thanks to the exploitation of a spectator bug in-game, the Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) has hinted that more bans may be on the way to stream snipers.

Since the coaching bug was uncovered, which allowed team coaches to watch certain areas of the map independent of their players and therefore keep an eye on enemies, the community has been shaken as a number of top talent has been implicated in proceedings.

Shortly after ESIC announced that 37 coaches had been found using the exploit, the commissioner of the organization, Ian Smith, revealed that more bans could be on the way for a whole different reason.

Appearing in a conversation with other prominent CS:GO community members, the topic of cheating was understandably the focus of discussion, and while it was centered around the coaching bug, the buck didn’t stop there.

Now, it looks like some of the focus of ESIC’s work is to be shifted towards stream sniping, which has apparently become a major issue since leagues were moved online thanks to the ongoing global health crisis.

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“We’ve got perfectly factually substantiated reports on stream sniping,” Smith said. “I won’t go into too much detail because we’re going to explain this all in a release, but it’s a pretty big deal.”

He continued: “I know what information you can gain from the stream, given the delay between real-time action and the stream, is limited. But there is some useful information there, and on top of that, it’s against the rules. It’s not about how badly you’re cheating, but it’s against the rules, and unfortunately we found that a lot of people were on the stream. Players and coaches. So, we’ve got something to say about that.”

Many of CS:GO’s top coaches were implicated in ESIC’s findings earlier on September 28, but the fact that many more — players and coaches alike — could face repercussions if found guilty of stream sniping.

Of course, some of those included in ESIC’s report have responded to the accusations. Notably, RobbaN, who was coaching FaZe Clan at the time that he is accused of using it, was backed by the organization when saying that he did not use the bug to his advantage.

How long we have to wait to find out ESIC’s research into stream sniping, as well as the guilty parties involved, remains to be seen. But it’s fair to say that the entire CS community is being shaken as the stories unravel.