Artificial intelligence
Is Switzerland lax in front of cheating in online games?
Valais national councilor Jean-Luc Addor is concerned about the fraudulent use of AI in the field of e-sport and failures. He claims a legal framework.
For chess specialists, cheat risks are higher in face -to -face parties.
Dibyangshu Sarkar/AFP
- The use of artificial intelligence in online competitions worries Jean-Luc Addor.
- It is surprised that Switzerland does not have a legal basis in this area.
- The Swiss failure federation considers that current systems are effective.
- The Swiss e-sport would have known only one case of cheating for ten years.
Cheating in online competitions concern Jean-Luc Addor. In an arrest filed in June, the Valais national councilor wonders why Switzerland has not yet legislated against the fraudulent use of artificial intelligence in the field of e-sport and failures.
His text is based on a study by the former world champion of chess Vladimir Kramnik that “at least 20% of online professional players present statistical cheat indicators”. “Time” tells us that the two men met via a common knowledge and that Jean-Luc Addor was convinced by the commitment of the Grand Master in favor of the integrity of his discipline, a fight which “symbolizes the issue of our time: using technology to support humans, not erase”.
The elected UDC could see that competitions, especially e-sport, were increasingly lucrative. He would find logical that the Federal Council attacks this file: “Switzerland has no legal basis against cheating in these games, while South Korea adopted in 2017 a law criminalizing the creation or use of cheating software, recognizing their economic and ethical impact.”
Software against cheating
The Valais Union of chess (UVE) confirms that cheating “has always been a sensitive subject”. This was already the case in face -to -face parties and the problem has strengthened with The boom of online chess parts In the wake of the covid, then with the emergence of artificial intelligence.
“However, the platforms clearly know to those who create accounts that cheating is prohibited,” notes Jonathan Grept, technical manager of the UVE. They use software to identify abnormally “perfect” parts, which would be impossible to achieve for certain levels, and close the accounts concerned. Any Elo points (Editor’s note: which make it possible to classify the players) are then recovered by the player who faced a cheater. ”
So much for the unofficial parties, which do not lead to a title or a pecuniary reward. As for online competitions organized by the International Chess Federation, they have an even further control system.
“They are completely watched by referees present alongside the participants and no cheating is then possible,” says Jonathan Grept. Thus, the biggest problem is not to fight against cheat online, but against the cheating of official parties face -to -face via the use of computer equipment during the parties. This remains the main scourge of this beautiful sport. ”
Press manager of the Swiss Federation of ChessMarkus Angst confirms in all respects, repeating that the systems in place are effective and that “the establishment of a legal framework is not a necessity”.
A case of cheating in ten years
In the world of e-sport, the arrival of artificial intelligence does not scare the Swiss Federation either. Its president, the Vaudois Baptiste Müller, explains that he has only known one case of cheating in the last ten years in the tournaments certified by the Federation. “We are attentive to competitive manipulation, but the problem seems less sensitive than for failures.”
The problem could arise in shooting games for example, with software that helps automatically aim for an opponent or that allow you to see through the walls. “It would be an undeniable advantage, but the tools that are directly integrated into games by developers are effective. It is also imperative for the competitions to be credible and therefore attractive, ”underlines Baptiste Müller.
The specialist rebounds on the example of South Korea, “where there are not only laws that punish cheating, but rather a legislative whole which frames and promotes e-sport”, to speak of the status of the discipline in Switzerland. “If e-sport was recognized as a sport in its own right, there would not be to imagine a specific legal framework. The provisions applied to other sports, in particular concerning cheating, would be enough to regulate our practice. ”
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