BattlEye

[Fzero]

Does anyone have much knowledge about this thing?
First I have heard of it today, an anti-cheat system.
It's now part of the ARK game, which I will be installing tonight.

I get that a lot of big games get the cheaters in, and therefore these solutions were bound to crop up...
...but, I just heard about it in a comment on the ARK game, here:
http://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198006513743/recommended/346110/

Then searching on it, lots of concerns
https://steamcommunity.com/app/346110/discussions/0/405691147602378507/
https://www.reddit.com/r/arma/comments/2750n0/battleye_is_sending_files_from_your_hard_drive_to/
http://steamcommunity.com/app/346110/discussions/0/405691491105532549/#c405691491105947864

From what I read, seems it might be accessing more than just game related data, but not seeing any actual evidence of it.

Anyone looked at this already and decided to opt in or out with it?
Seems to be quite a controversial topic on the comments for this game

 

[WizardStan]

Installing the files automatically accepts the EULA? Sounds very similar to that case several years ago where "opening this CD means you've already accepted the EULA" was deemed invalid.
The all-encompassing wording is probably necessary, the things they need to do in order to prevent cheating means they need a lot of access, so the document reads very dystopian. It's kind of like YouTube, Tumblr, Reddit, and other "user content" sites have some kind of "unlimited do-whatever-we-want copyright" clause when you sign up, which seems like it's really bad on the surface, but is actually required because otherwise they wouldn't be able to show anything you upload.
Assuming their lawyers aren't idiots, I'd actually feel pretty confident that they will do everything in their power to make sure no "bad things" happen, because they've got to realize exactly how costly it would be fighting to uphold such an all-encompassing pre-agreed agreement.
On the other hand, in such a case it would be the company losing all the money and the lawyers making it; I've known some good lawyers, and I've known some shady, and some questionably intelligent lawyers: if they don't have a good lawyer watching out for them it could be major trouble.
And then, of course, despite any good intentions, they could always screw up.

edit: several hours later I realized I accidentally an entire sentence.

 

[comradekingu]

https://fsfe.org/activities/drm/index.en.html

 

[WizardStan]

https://fsfe.org/activities/drm/index.en.html

What relevance does that have? This isn't DRM, it's an anti-cheating system. It's not required, it's just automatically installed and a pain in the ass to get rid of, which is wrong but on an intellectual level, not a moral one.

 

[_jr_]

It does exactly the same as DRM does: somebody other than you decides what is allowed to do on your system. Not surprising that the EULA is as obnoxious as Steam's - on a moral level, because ultimately it is as ineffective as DRM and only punishing honest customers.

 

[WizardStan]

It does exactly the same as DRM does

No it doesn't. It's nowhere near what DRM does. If you attempt to circumvent DRM you are breaking the law at least, and whatever you're bypassing will stop working at worst.
This may be entirely wrong in what it's installing but that's just stupidity: it is not illegal to uninstall it, it is entirely optional and won't break things if you (eventually figure out how to) uninstall it. There's simply no comparison between what this has done and what DRM does.

 

[levi]

Well, I'm a little unclear as yet to exactly what this is, but from what's been linked in the OP it seems to be trying to establish an identity for the user. DRM depends on identifying the legitimate purchasers of software so that it can contrast them against unauthorised users.

That said, I wasn't keen on Kingu associating anti-DRM with the FSF. Just because software is closed source doesn't mean it has to act with subterfuge to identify its users. It boggles my mind why publishers and devs need to do this kind of thing, if it is the kind of thing that boils my blood.