14 DAY TRIAL // The details of the Uplay incident from earlier in the week are pretty clear by now: the browser plug-in that the service from publisher Ubisoft was adding by stealth during its installation process had a programming-caused security hole which could have allowed an attacker to take control of a user’s computer.
The security issue was fixed by Ubisoft in less than one day since it was exposed, while PC gamers have also found ways of disabling the browser add-on without restricting the functions of the uPlay service.
A lot of anger was directed at Ubisoft for the mistake it made and it was all justified, given the problems that users were exposed to without even knowing about them.
But there’s a wider problem than the simple security issue and the fact that many PC gamers were vulnerable to a range of potential attacks.
Publishers have expanded too far beyond their traditional roles and they are forcing or prodding gamers into using a range of services that they don’t really need, bloating the entire gaming space and making it less attractive to newcomers.
Uplay is not needed and, inside a service that could easily disappear without anyone noticing the fact, the browser add-on is a particularly unnecessary element.
On top of lacking any reason to exist, the component also managed to cause a security breach.
There’s only one lesson to learn here: publishers need to eliminate the fluff, focus on their video games and integrate in the actual products everything required for them to run well, without asking the player to deal with any sort of extra service.
This can cause the lack of trust between players and publishers like Ubisoft to disappear and can create an environment where it’s easy to pick up a game and simply play it, without worrying about sort of extra elements or security flaws.