A desire to win at games like Fortnite can drive some to cheat - with huge consequences.

Online games have never been more popular, with millions of people spending significant time playing games like Fornite, Apex Legends, League of Legends, and DOTA 2.

It’s a multi-billion-dollar industry, one that has shown no signs of slowing down.

Perhaps it’s understandable, then, that there are a number of people so dedicated to finding an edge that they’re willing to spend money to cheat.

It’s a strange idea, as these cheats are usually used when there isn’t even any money on the line. People who cheat basically only have one purpose: to ruin the fun of everyone else playing the game.

That’s why it may have been cathartic to hear the recent news that a few hundred cheaters, who had paid to get an edge at Apex Legends and Counter-Strike, exposed themselves to data theft.

The exposure happened thanks to malware called Baldr, which was embedded into the cheat engines that were sold to these players.

Baldr is a powerful piece of malware, too. It has the ability to steal everything from login information, credit card details, and others in a short span of time.

This information, once stolen, is then sold on the dark web to anyone willing to pay the asking price.

Next time you’re thinking about getting an edge in a game, think twice. Malicious hackers and other cybercriminals will look to trap us using the channels that we use the most. For many people, that is online gaming.

Remember, they will stop at nothing to steal any information that could be worth selling. Why bother risking it just to get better scores on a game?