It is very important to us that our games are fair for everybody, and we do not tolerate any form of cheating. Empires & Puzzles has been implemented in a way that makes cheating next to impossible. However, no solution is fool-proof, and there is always a chance of human error.
In the past, there have been a couple of cases where some players have found a way to bypass our server-side verification logic to gain an unfair advantage in the game. We have reacted to those cases by removing the advantage and/or suspending the account.
Of course, it would be even better to hear about bugs and vulnerabilities like that before they are abused. If you discover a vulnerability, it should be more tempting to report it to us than to abuse it for short term gains and risk getting your account suspended.
We are happy to announce that we have made it easier - and more lucrative - to report vulnerabilities in the game. You can find the form of our Vulnerability Bounty Program at https://www.smallgiantgames.com/bug-bounty. The rewards in that program range from a couple of hundred dollars to $5,000 or even up to $10,000 in exceptional situations.
Please note that we are most interested in vulnerabilities affecting our server-side validation. Just as an example:
- Completing the same quest multiple times for repeated rewards
- Abusing a bug to adjust the odds of a battle or summon in your favour
- Training or crafting without consuming the necessary ingredients
Please note that we do reserve the right to reject reports that are not related to vulnerabilities in our server-side validation. Here are some things that we do care about, but cannot accept through the program as bugs or vulnerabilities:
- Client-side cheating e.g. by modifying the clock speed of your device (unless it allows you to uncover holes in the logic that the server is not catching yet)
- Using features that are working as designed to gain an advantage in the game (unless the design of the feature is unintended and we actually fix it based on your report)
If you do believe you have spotted a real bug or a vulnerability in the game, please report it through https://www.smallgiantgames.com/bug-bounty and if it is approved and fixed, we will make sure you get fair compensation for your report!
For discussion, please visit this topic: Announcing the Vulnerability Bug Bounty Program