Valorant, Riot Games' class-based tactical shooter, uses its own anti-cheat software called Vanguard that runs in the background. In fact, it kicks in when your PC is switched on, which had some people worried it was transmitting personal data.
While that has been debunked, Riot has outlined some changes to the Vanguard system over on the Valorant subreddit.
Chief among those is that Vanguard will now show a system tray icon that when removed, prevents your PC running Valorant.
That makes sense, but it'll also "block certain incompatible or vulnerable software from running on your machine".
That means some software might require Vanguard to be disabled to be able to be used, but if it makes Valorant more secure then we're all for it.
The full Q and A can be found in the Reddit post, but we'd definitely recommend checking the information below out if you're worried about any potential misuse of data.
"Both the client and the driver of Riot Vanguard have been developed in-house, with both game safety and personal computer safety being a priority. We’ve made this commitment through extensive testing and by reviewing the product both internally and with external security reviews by industry experts."
"Our commitment to safety includes our commitment to your privacy. Riot Vanguard was made with Riot Games' dedication to data privacy specifically in mind, and we worked with our legal and compliance teams to ensure it adheres to regional data privacy laws. Specifics on what data we use and collect are available here."