Cheating, Use of Engines, Etc.

Hi All, 

I could not find a thread on this topic specifically. 

What is Chess.com's methods for finding cheaters? Sometimes I am suspicious of players but I have no actual evidence so I cant really report them. What are some sure-fire signs of cheaters? I can't stress enough how EASY it would be for someone to use a chess engine, especially for daily games. I don't need to know specifics, but some reassurance would be great. 

As a side topic, I also find the "self analysis" option coming close to being unfair; the whole point is calculating positions in your head, and the "self analysis" option allows you to do so visually. I equate it to using bumpers in bowling.

Responses from Chess.com employees would be greatly appreciated!

Really?  You have been here over 4 years, and couldnt find a thread on the topic of cheating, and how chess.com detects cheaters?

Yes, I couldn't find something on self analysis or specifically what chess.com does. If you know of such a topic send me a link, Thanks

I doubt chess.com would go into detail about their detection methods since that lets cheaters know how to get around them

To discuss the matter of cheating further, or to learn more about cheat detection, please join the Cheating Forum: https://www.chess.com/club/cheating-forum

Chess.com takes cheating very seriously: see

https://www.chess.com/blog/News/new-tools-for-fair-play-on-chess-com 

https://www.chess.com/article/view/chess-com-fair-play-and-cheat-detection  https://support.chess.com/customer/en/portal/articles/1444879-fair-play-on-chess-com-what-you-need-to-know

https://www.chess.com/blog/DanielRensch/cheating-on-chesscom

Cheaters are banned when they are detected.  There are various tools that are used to keep them from returning without permission; these tools are familiar to anyone who has run an online forum.

However, discussions of cheating in the main forum is not permitted, as it tends to become very heated and result in lots of public accusations, many of which are completely unfounded; you might be surprised how many cheating reports we get about low-rated players after a game that was a complete blunderfest. If all these reports were aired in public, it would just cause an ugly flame war. Therefore, I am locking this post.

To report a suspected cheater to the Support team, please select Report Abuse under the Help menu, or use this link: https://support.chess.com/customer/portal/emails/new. All reports are investigated, even if there is no immediate visible action.

Thanks,

MGleason - moderator