Reports have emerged of a new Apex Legends hack that disguises hackers from players that spectate them.

Cheating has always been a prevalent issue in both FPS and TPS games. Players utilize outside programs to give them different advantages over their opponents. Whether it be seeing through walls with wall hacks or auto-aim with an aim bot, cheating always finds a way to stay one step ahead.

Apex Legends uses an anti-cheat software called Easy Anti-Cheat that typically bans cheaters. In the event that cheaters circumvent that system, other players will typically spot and report them to developer Respawn Entertainment, ideally leading to punishment for the cheaters. These reports rely on players spectating suspected cheaters to confirm their inhuman aim.

Unfortunately for honest players, a new third-party software appears to allow cheaters to detect when somebody is spectating them, and automatically turns off their hacks.

You and your team may be shut down in a blink of an eye by a cheater who didn't miss a shot on anyone. But after you decide to spectate to determine if they are actually a cheater, the third-party system has already disabled the cheats. Until you stop spectating, the cheater plays like a regular human.

This system hurts the chances of catching cheaters that have already gotten past the Easy Anti-Cheat. Fewer players will report these cheaters because once they start spectating, the cheaters seem like regular player who just got lucky.

Fewer reports will directly lead to fewer bans, since there are not as many repeat reports to EA. In the future players may not hesitate to report an innocent player who just hit their shots, or they will not report a guilty cheater who they thought got lucky.

Respawn Entertainment has yet to comment on this hack.