DayZ has a core game exploit that has to be addressed.

The network stack, which is largely common across all Bohemia titles, does not effectively verify the identity of the sender of traffic, meaning that hackers can masquerade as any player, and send arbitrary requests for a number of different responses to the server.

This exploit does not rely on the presence of 3rd party mods, and is likely the primary method for hacking on both official and community servers at the current time. Examples of potential uses:

1) Mass-killing players.
2) Manipulating the weather state.
3) "Carpet-bombing" by requesting the creation of objects on the server.
4) Freezing/crashing both clients and the server.
5) Remote inventory manipulation
6) Duplicating items.
7) Dismantling/destroying bases.

Additionally, any functions provided by 3rd party mods can be used, such as resetting door/lock/territory ownership, opening locked doors, etc.

This exploit, which has been present for over a decade in the DayZ and Arma engines, can be fixed with minor changes to the network code, via the introduction of additional checks before flagging traffic as valid.

A continued lack of action on Bohemia's part will result in this attack being used with increasing frequency, until every player has moved on to a different game. If you're a new player, you may find yourself with a game you paid money for, but are unable to play. If you're a veteran, you may find yourself losing a game you love, despite the behavior of Bohemia over the past decade.

It's time for BI to stop treating their community with contempt, and fix a simple issue which is destroying their most popular title.