Serious Discussion How safe is the malware scan of NexusMods

[Studynxx]

I have a couple of Ready Or Not weapon mods I want to try, but since they're from Chinese authors, I want to be extra sure there's no hidden malware in them. I use Kaspersky, ReadyOrNot is the legit version I bought on STEAM, it's in the Trusted app category, so if I understand correctly, any mods that I use for RoN will also have rights in accordance with the "Trusted" app group, but correct me if I'm wrong

This means that if there's malicious code in those .PAK file, then they could theoretically compromise my entire system?

NexusMods show "Safe to Use" with a green checkmark for all those mods in question, I've run them through VirusTotal, KTS and NPE and all of them came back negative / clean

 

[Bot]

NexusMods has a generally reliable malware scan, but no system is 100% foolproof. It's good that you've also checked with VirusTotal, KTS, and NPE. While there's always a theoretical risk, the fact that all these scans came back clean significantly reduces the likelihood of malware. However, always ensure to keep your antivirus software updated and monitor your system for any unusual activity.

 

[lokamoka820]

If you checked with KTS and NPE and all of them came back negative / clean, so it is safe to use.

 

[Studynxx]

If you checked with KTS and NPE and all of them came back negative / clean, so it is safe to use.

I know KTS is good and so is NPE, but is there no way some super smart guy could hide some malicious code inside the .PAK file?

Btw does someone know how I could view the actual content of a PAK file? Notepad just gives me gibberish, which either tells me it's some kinda encryption, or notepad can't "open" PAK files. Also tried with 7zip, to no avail, still nothing understandable

 

[lokamoka820]

I know KTS is good and so is NPE, but is there no way some super smart guy could hide some malicious code inside the .PAK file?

Btw does someone know how I could view the actual content of a PAK file? Notepad just gives me gibberish, which either tells me it's some kinda encryption, or notepad can't "open" PAK files. Also tried with 7zip, to no avail, still nothing understandable

Encrypted and password-protected files couldn't harm your system, they need to be unencrypted first to act on your system, and when that happen, any malicious code will be detected by antivirus software.

 

[SpiderWeb]

I think this is all you can do, getting a second opinion from Kaspersky. If they don't catch it, then it's either not malware or very sophisticated 0-day malware. It's hard to tell with mods because they are walking the fine line where it is hard to tell because they are by design injecting into memory, libraries and executable files just like malware.

 

[ForgottenSeer 114717]

but is there [a] way some super smart guy could hide some malicious code inside the .PAK file?

Why yes, they certainly can using multiple methods.

It is the risk you assume as a user when you do things that you should not do. There is constructive legal risk (both civil and criminal) as well dependent upon where the user applying the mod (not the mod creator) resides.

 

[Victor M]

I would say forget about mods, just rely on what's there that is built into the game. Its only a game for crying out loud. You young people are willing to take enormous risks just for a GAME ?!! Put some perspective onto it : some enhanced avatar capability vs a compromised PC affecting everything else you do. Or look at it from a cost perspective: 15 hrs of game play vs time cost repairing the damage + losing all personal info, email social media gaming accounts.

Another thing. 0 day doesn't mean it is sophisticated. It just means it's a new attack; some attacker just got some fresh idea. Plus the game is new, right? So any attack on it is probably new too.

 

[Vitali Ortzi]

I have a couple of Ready Or Not weapon mods I want to try, but since they're from Chinese authors, I want to be extra sure there's no hidden malware in them. I use Kaspersky, ReadyOrNot is the legit version I bought on STEAM, it's in the Trusted app category, so if I understand correctly, any mods that I use for RoN will also have rights in accordance with the "Trusted" app group, but correct me if I'm wrong

This means that if there's malicious code in those .PAK file, then they could theoretically compromise my entire system?

NexusMods show "Safe to Use" with a green checkmark for all those mods in question, I've run them through VirusTotal, KTS and NPE and all of them came back negative / clean

Malware can hide in game dll files , scripts etc
Only way I can thing of making modding , pirating , gaming safe is using a VM with gpu passthrough
Actually I might set up something like that once I get a gaming PC

 

[Studynxx]

Malware can hide in game dll files , scripts etc
Only way I can thing of making modding , pirating , gaming safe is using a VM with gpu passthrough
Actually I might set up something like that once I get a gaming PC

Actually, once it's a GPU passthru, malware can escape the VM. No joke. Generally malware can't, but in the case of GPU passthru, it absolutely can, and it doesn't have to be super sophisticated malware developed by state-level actors. It's the GPU passthru component that's the emphasis here.