Can Video Game “Mods” Expose Players to Malware?

“Hackable?” host Geoff Siskind’s son is a huge fan of the world-building computer game Minecraft — and downloads “mods” for it often. These mods are third-party updates that allow players to alter their favorite game. Whether you want to improve the graphics or add your favorite movie character to a game, there’s a mod for it. But are they safe to download? Do mods allow hackers to conceal malware that threatens your devices and data?

Ep. 4

On the latest episode of “Hackable?” the team investigates if the mods Geoff’s son is downloading are putting his computer at risk. We invited white-hat hacker Tim Martin back on the show to create a Minecraft mod for Geoff. Listen and learn if Tim is able to hide dangerous code in a seemingly innocuous game update.

Listen now to the award-winning podcast “Hackable?”.