Are You Playing a Chess Cheat

We have all been there, playing a chess game and your opponent plays a good move. But was it too good? Surely my opponent must have cheated, right? Unfortunately for all of us, a chess cheat is not all too uncommon. Whether online or seemingly at the top levels of chess, cheating happens. So how do we respond?

How to Tell if you are Playing a Chess Cheat

The first step to knowing you have a problem is acknowledging you have a problem. Cheating in chess is a problem! So are there differences between chess cheats online and over-the-board? There are multiple ways for opponents to gain an edge against you in chess in unfair ways. Some of those ways in real over-the-board tournaments can be less blatant than just finding a way to use a chess engine in the game, but that can also happen! The key is to look for signs of cheating and know what to look for in online chess versus over-the-board.

Signs of Online Chess Cheating

Most of us play much more online chess than rated over-the-board. For that reason, we come across chess cheats more often that way. Most of us have received a message from chess.com: “We have detected that one or more of your recent opponents has violated our Fair Play Policy.” Then followed by a surprising but appreciated increase in rating! There are some clues before this message that can let you know you might be playing a chess cheat. These online cheaters are often utilizing a chess computer or engine in some way. 

Clue Number 1: Perfect Record

The first clue that your opponent might be cheating is their past games. Do they have a recent history of only wins? This could be a sign that you are playing against stockfish.

Clue Number 2: New Account

Is it a relatively new account? A new account may not have had time to be caught cheating. So if you are suspicious of their moves, look at when their account was created! Now, a brand new account that still has its provisional rating could just be a much better player who hasn't reached their true rating yet, and not a chess cheat.

Clue Number 3: Time

Time usage can be a huge indicator of chess cheating online. If your opponent uses a consistent number of seconds on every move, even the obvious recaptures, they might be cheating. It may seem obvious, but humans vary in how much time they use while computers behave much more robotically!

Clue Number 4: Random Blunders

One trick that cheaters will use to try and avoid the cheat detection algorithms of chess websites is to play random blunders. They play random bad moves but then play perfectly to win the game. This combined with some of the other clues might be a sign of a chess cheat.

Clue Number 5: Accuracy

Even if they play random blunders, a chess cheat will have extremely high accuracy for most of their wins. It is not uncommon for people cheating to have games in the low nineties, also, because of clue 4. Did your opponent just play a practically perfect game, after playing one random blunder, while using a consistent number of seconds for every move, on a new account, and they have never lost a game? Then it might be time to report your opponent.

When Should You Report Your Opponent?

If you are suspicious of your opponent, especially if they show any of my cheating clues, then there is no problem reporting your opponent. Reporting is fine to do if you are suspicious, you are not the judge or executioner. You are just asking the chess website to look into your suspicion and use their anti cheating measures. Hopefully, if your opponent is cheating against other players, there will be more reports about that player. Reporting is a fairly easy process. You can usually just click on the profile of the player and find the report button or use other report pages. From there you just select the appropriate response.

Report For Other Problems Also!

As you can see there are many other valid reasons to report your opponent. On Chess.com you should absolutely report your opponent if they do any of these following things during your chess games:

Abuse

• If they use the chat to verbally abuse you.
• Any form of racism or sexism.
• Any threats of violence.
• Sexual harassment of any kind. People should not be hitting on you during chess.com games! Report, report, report!

Fairplay Reasons 

• The reason you are probably here is to report cheating.
• You can also report stalling. If your opponent lets the clock run out for long periods.
• Also if your opponent is sandbagging. This means your opponent plays one move and resigns, trying to lose rating on purpose. 

There is Hope: Cheat Detection

It can feel hopeless, but there are some steps you can take. Most chess websites have top-of-the-line cheat detection. Although most websites keep their cheat detection under wraps, the same way a bank doesn’t publish its security protocols, they do put a lot of effort into detecting cheaters. Chess.com uses “a statistical model that evaluates the probability of a human player matching an engine's top choices.” They are trying! So don’t lose hope, don’t throw out false accusations, just report if you are suspicious, and keep playing!

Cheating Can Happen in OTB Chess Matches

Cheating is clearly happening online, but does it happen in real over-the-board tournaments? The short answer is yes. Cheating happens in all sports and games. There have been some high-profile chess cheating scandals, but even if it doesn’t involve a grandmaster cheating, there might be some unsavory play at your local chess club! There are rules to playing OTB chess matches, and if your opponent doesn’t follow the rules, there is a problem.

The Rules of Over-the-Board Chess Games

Here are some rules that might be broken at an over-the-board tournament.

1. Phone usage.

Depending on the exact tournament and details of the tournament, even having your phone in your pocket could be against the rules. So if you notice your opponent, has their phone, is checking their phone, or anything of that nature, you can let the tournament director (TD) know.

2. Talking to other players.

This one is a little bit less insidious, but talking to other players during the game is against the rules. This usually is not because a player intends to cheat in chess tournaments, but any discussion about the position, or communication about the position is strictly prohibited. I have seen this happen with younger kids giving a simple thumbs up to a friend, or a parent nodding to a child, but any communication to the player is not allowed.

3. Constant bathroom usage.

It can be frustrating if your opponent is constantly getting up from the board and going out of the playing hall to use the restroom. This shouldn’t be suspicious, but there are too many stories of people stashing phones in the restroom to cheat.

4. Bothering you!

If your opponent is doing something to distract you or bother you at the board, then you can talk to the TD. Your opponent should not be speaking to you at all unless they are offering a draw or resignation. Any other attempt to distract or intimidate you is prohibited.

Don't Accuse

It is important with all of these suspicions that you do not directly accuse the player of cheating or make a scene during your game. Instead, you should pause your clock and let the TD know what you are worried about. They will make any decisions at that point. If issues continue then you can again let the TD know.

Frequently Asked Question