G-Lined PAuth users (in #anticheat4)

[tintino]

On Monday Feb 22, around 9 pm EST, somebody G-lined all PAuth clients and now we can't use EfNet network anymore.
How do we fix this?

PAuth is a IRC client / anti-cheat software, available for download at http://www.pauth.com ...I also provide support there on my forums.
PAuth (aka Player Authenticator) uses IRC to communicate among clients, as well as for chat among clients, however all communication in the channel is encrypted. Because of this I can see how an IRC op can come to the conclusion that these are drones... but i assure you we are just a small gamer's community that use this program...

Upon startup, PAuth retrieves an update file containing versioning info, and a servers list, a preset Prefix for usernames, the irc channel to connect to.... The users of PAuth must be members of pluto league ( http://www.myleague.com/pluto ) . The user enters his Pluto user/pass in the PAuth program, and it performs the pluto league authentication, and then it connects to IRC and joins a channel (we've been using #anticheat4, with a key of 222). From the moment when it enters the channel, until user closes PAuth, the communication is encrypted - if i need to i will provide the (easy ) encryption protocol to Efnet Ops if that's what it takes... The encryption is necessary because of the anti-cheat nature of the program.

We've been using EfNet for a long time now, and we'd like to use EfNet again.
For now i switched over to undernet, but we have lot of problems already..it's only been 1 hour and some people can't connect to undernet...

I am the developer of PAuth, and i don't know who to talk to to fix this mess... If i need to change something in the client, i can do so... Can someone help ?

[tintino]

Something to add:

1. I made a mistake in my post above. We were using #anticheat3 at the time of G-Line , although in the past we used #anticheat4 too.

2. To add to the fact that the communication is encrypted, the NICK is set randomly (a prefix, followed by some random hex number). Our users know nothing about IRC, and the PAuth client attempts to spare the user from having to pick an IRC NICK (and then dealing with cases when that nick is taken). Our users have a Pluto username, but it can contain all kind of chars not allowed in IRC.
I suppose, if i need to, i can make the client use at least part of the user's Pluto name, in the NICK...it will look less like a drone then, to an IRCop looking in the channel..

3. I see below a note of "flooding", but i have to say the communication is very minimal, and lately there hasn't been more than 20 users at any one time in the channel... the clients send periodic (anticheat) status updates to other clients in the room, and plus the CHAT that users type in.. granted everything is encrypted and converted to hex (which increases the length of the messages a bit).. but still there's a very minimal exchange of info in the channel.



few snapshots ... of what's going on now.

:irc.umich.edu NOTICE kp8230A :*** G-lined
:irc.umich.edu NOTICE kp8230A :*** Banned drones/flooding (2010/2/23 01.59)
ERROR :Closing Link: ... (*** Banned )


:irc.wh.verio.net NOTICE kpCD572 :*** G-lined
:irc.wh.verio.net NOTICE kpCD572 :*** Banned drones/flooding (2010/2/22 20.59)
ERROR :Closing Link: 127.0.0.1 (*** Banned )


:irc.mzima.net NOTICE kp3C008 :*** Banned Temporary K-line 14440 min. - drones/flooding (2010/2/22 18.00)
ERROR :Closing Link: 127.0.0.1 (*** Banned )

[munky]

unfortunately many new opers don't put enough due diligence into researching flood networks, and mistake the anticheat channel for drones or flood bots. if you voice or op the users in the channel, it will prevent flood notices from being sent to opers (voice/op removes channel flood limits). it may also help to keep information in the topic for any opers that stumble upon it to inform them that what they are seeing is base64 encoded chat, not drones.

the glines that were placed have been removed, you should be able to move your clients back.

[tintino]

Thank you so much for your help, netmunky.
I appreciate all the time you took to even come to our forum.

I'll take the advice and update the client ... make it attempt to set a ch topic, pointing to this thread. Great idea.

I tested a few servers today.. most work.

i was still G-lined on this one:
:irc.efnet.nl NOTICE kpE48D4 :*** G-lined
:irc.efnet.nl NOTICE kpE48D4 :*** Banned drones/flooding (2010/2/23 02.59)
ERROR :Closing Link: .... (*** Banned )

and this one:
:irc.Prison.NET NOTICE kp16678 :*** Banned AUTO-GECOS (2010/1/22 20.53)
ERROR :Closing Link: 127.0.0.1 (*** Banned )

and K-lined (10 days ban) on:
irc.mzima.net
irc.efnet.pl

But i guess they will expire by themselves, and we're good for now anyways - the client will automatically try next server in the list, if the one the user selects, doesn't allow us.

Thank you again.

o/t:
If you like 3D pool, get the game.. either Sierra 3D Ultra Cool Pool or Sierra Maximum Pool will work... you will find it very addictive once you play a few games (hint right click on table to aim).
Sierra dropped support for the game, but i coded online servers and a patch for the game to see them, and much of my work is my personal quest and promise to keep these games online forever.
You don't need PAuth client to play (it's only used by our Pluto league players).