Battlefield 2024 requires secure boot for anti-cheat, following in Valorant's footsteps
The vast majority of computers from the past 10-12 years have Secure Boot support
Battlefield 2042 is still receiving updates as EA gives its full attention to "Battlefield 6" development. Update 8.8.0 introduces a new Secure Boot requirement, forcing Battlefield 2042 gamers to have Secure Boot to play the game.
This change was made to help combat cheaters in Battlefield 2042. The game's patch notes reveal that Secure Boot enforcement will help counter cheats that "try to sneak in during the Windows boot process." Apparently, this is a new method cheaters are using to bypass anti-cheat systems; further up in the patch notes, the devs state: "As cheat developers keep evolving their tactics, we're stepping up our game, too."
If players attempt to load the game with a Secure Boot-supported machine but don't have the security feature turned on, Battlefield 2042 will prompt the user to turn on the feature. EA has also provided a support article telling users how to turn the feature on in the UEFI/BIOS.
Battlefield 2042 is the latest in a handful of titles to receive a Secure Boot requirement to play the game. Valorant was one of the first games to require Secure Boot, as well as TPM 2.0 support, in addition to having a traditional anti-cheat system that monitors the host machine for potential cheating.
It is not surprising that EA is increasing its security requirements for players to play its games. Apex Legends, in particular, has been at the helm of severe cheating problems for years, despite having its homebrewed Easy Anti-Cheat application in the game. Last year, Apex Legends' cheat issues became so serious that hackers hijacked two pro players' systems during an ALGS tournament, giving one player wall hacks and an aimbot to the other. Battlefield 2042 and EA Sports FC are the only EA titles currently requiring Secure Boot, but it wouldn't be surprising if Apex Legends receives the same update in the future.
Secure Boot is one of the oldest "modern" security standards around (that users can manually turn on and off). It was introduced in the early 2010s in conjunction with Windows 8. Secure Boot ensures that a system's bootup process has not been compromised by checking the signature of software that starts during the bootup process, protecting systems against rootkits, bootkits, and other types of low-level malware.
Battlefield 2042's update will affect almost no one, as virtually all computers over the past 20 years have secure boot support, with the vast majority enabling the feature by default. Windows 11, in fact, features Secure Boot in its system requirements, though Windows 11 LTSC does not.
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Aaron Klotz is a contributing writer for Tom’s Hardware, covering news related to computer hardware such as CPUs, and graphics cards.
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hotaru251 if a dev is worried about cheating...don't make competitive games as people always gonna cheat in em :|Reply -
derekullo It's possible to install Windows 11 with secure boot off given the right software.Reply
We use Quest K2000 for imaging at work and I'm able to push any image I want to almost any computer I want without any issue.
For example last year my boss wanted a Windows 11 23H2 image on a computer with a i7-3770K and a geforce 970.
The motherboard didn't support Secure boot.
K2000 had no problems pushing my custom gaming Windows 11 image that we use for gaming computers.
Edit: When I tried manually updating that gaming computer to Windows 11 24H2 it did give a compatibility warning and wouldn't do the update. -
UnforcedERROR Reply
What exactly is the logic here? It's like saying car companies shouldn't make cars because people will have accidents. You try to prevent it, not eradicate it.hotaru251 said:if a dev is worried about cheating...don't make competitive games as people always gonna cheat in em :|
Right? Battlefield's been crashing a burning for a while now from what I understand. Last BF I played was 4 and that was practically what killed my enthusiasm for the series.logainofhades said:People actually play Battlefield 2042? :p -
DS426 Another once-great FPS franchise that -- like all of their other games - EA has managed to spoil.Reply
Aside from that high-level comment, I don't have much to say about this change. Yes, enable Secure Boot if your motherboard supports it. -
coolitic I remember being unable to dual-boot w/ Secure Boot turned on, dunno if things have changed since then.Reply
It's also not really "secure" to begin w/, last I checked. -
JayGau Reply
This comment is so wrong on so many levels. Please tell me it was a joke. It's like saying if store owners are worried about shoplifting... don't set up security cameras, as people always gonna steal anyway.hotaru251 said:if a dev is worried about cheating...don't make competitive games as people always gonna cheat in em :| -
Thunder64 ReplyUnforcedERROR said:What exactly is the logic here? It's like saying car companies shouldn't make cars because people will have accidents. You try to prevent it, not eradicate it.
Right? Battlefield's been crashing a burning for a while now from what I understand. Last BF I played was 4 and that was practically what killed my enthusiasm for the series.
I found Battlefield 1 to be fun. I tried BF V during the beta and never bothered again. -
bigdragon EA's anti-cheat systems are primarily intended to protect the progression grind and microtransaction systems. Battlefield was a ton of fun back when it was all about vehicles, teamwork, and objectives instead of getting the next unlock as quickly as possible. Seeing tanks spawn and despawn extra armor depending on the driver's unlocks turned me off to the whole franchise a long time ago. The unlock grind is a carrot on a stick you will never catch.Reply
Cheat developers should look up Secure Boot customization. Many vendors and the US government have published guides on how to add your own DB certificate and sign your own executables. Most UEFI configs have options to insert custom certificates. Secure Boot isn't a way to restrict a user from willingly doing something they want to do.