KERNEL LEVEL ANTI-CHEAT BYPASS

DIFFICULTY: ADVANCED UPDATED: YESTERDAY

⚠️ DISCLAIMER: EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY

Bypassing anti-cheat software violates Terms of Service and can lead to permanent bans. This guide explains the concepts for security research and understanding modern anti-cheat architectures.

INTRODUCTION

Modern anti-cheats like BattlEye, Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC), and Vanguard operate at Ring 0 (Kernel Mode). Traditional user-mode cheats using ReadProcessMemory are instantly detected by kernel-mode callbacks.

To bypass these systems, attackers must load their own unsigned driver into the kernel to read/write memory without triggering detection mechanisms. This guide explains how these techniques work.

PREREQUISITES

C/C++ Programming Experience - Advanced knowledge required
Windows Driver Kit (WDK) - For driver development
Understanding of Windows Internals - Kernel structures, callbacks, etc.
A Vulnerable Driver - For exploiting Driver Signature Enforcement (DSE)

CORE CONCEPTS

1. Driver Signature Enforcement (DSE)

Windows requires all kernel-mode drivers to be digitally signed by Microsoft. Since cheat developers can't get Microsoft signatures, they must bypass DSE.

Common Bypass Methods:

KDMapper: Exploits vulnerable Intel/AMD drivers (e.g., iqvw64e.sys, gdrv.sys) to manually map unsigned drivers into kernel memory
Bootkits: Hook the bootloader to disable DSE before Windows kernel loads
DSEFix: Patches the kernel's CI.dll module to disable signature checks

// Example: Loading driver via vulnerable IOCTL
HANDLE hDevice = CreateFileA(
    "\\\\.\\VulnerableDriver",
    GENERIC_READ | GENERIC_WRITE,
    0, NULL, OPEN_EXISTING, 0, NULL
);

DWORD bytesReturned;
DeviceIoControl(
    hDevice, IOCTL_MAP_DRIVER,
    driverBuffer, driverSize,
    NULL, 0, &bytesReturned, NULL
);

2. Kernel Callbacks & Detection

Anti-cheats register callbacks for process/thread/image load events. Any suspicious activity triggers detection.

Common Callbacks to Avoid:

PsSetCreateProcessNotifyRoutine - Monitors process creation
PsSetLoadImageNotifyRoutine - Monitors DLL injection
ObRegisterCallbacks - Protects process handles

3. Communication Methods

Standard IOCTL communication is easily detected by scanning for registered device objects.

Stealthier Alternatives:

Shared Memory (SMAP)

Create a shared memory section accessible from both user and kernel mode. No device object = harder to detect.

Data Pointer Hooking

Hijack a pointer in a legitimate driver (e.g., NIC driver) to point to your communication function.

Mouse/Keyboard Filters

Attach a filter to input devices and encode commands in fake input events.

4. Cleaning Traces

After loading, you must remove all traces of your driver from kernel memory.

// Wipe MmUnloadedDrivers list
PVOID MmUnloadedDrivers = GetProcAddress("MmUnloadedDrivers");
RtlZeroMemory(MmUnloadedDrivers, sizeof(UNLOADED_DRIVERS) * 50);

// Clear Big Pool allocations
ExFreePoolWithTag(DriverObject, 'TAG');

// Wipe PE headers
RtlZeroMemory(DriverBase, 0x1000);

5. Memory Reading Without Detection

Direct MmCopyVirtualMemory calls are hooked. Use alternative methods:

Physical Memory: Read via MmMapIoSpace after translating virtual→physical addresses
MDL Mapping: Create Memory Descriptor Lists to map target process pages
APC Injection: Queue Asynchronous Procedure Calls to execute in target context

CONCLUSION

Kernel-level anti-cheat bypass is a cat-and-mouse game. As soon as a public mapper or technique is released, it gets flagged within days or weeks.

⚠️ Legal & Ethical Reminder:

Using cheats in online games violates Terms of Service
Distributing cheating software may violate computer fraud laws
This information is for security research and understanding defensive techniques only

The only way to stay undetected long-term is to develop private, custom drivers and find your own vulnerable drivers to exploit. Public tools are burned immediately.