Answers.Body: <p>The answer is, "Yes." See this article:</p>
  
  <p><a href="http://www.uschess.org/content/view/12677/763" rel="noreferrer">http://www.uschess.org/content/view/12677/763</a></p>
  
  <p>Does your phone application have this capability? Probably no... yes! So don't do it!</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2014-08-26T21:49:42.533Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2014-08-26T21:49:42.533Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: ZL1Corvette
Answers.Body: <p>As far as I have researched on the aspect of using engine assistance (in live games, let alone correspondence games), I had reached an understanding that it is almost close to impossible to detect it. Except for some moves as mentioned by SomePatzer in his answer, which experts can determine is engine like (with high probability in comparison with the player's level). With the option of Multi-PV in UCI engines, which gives "n" best moves in a given situation, a not so monotonous cheater, would choose the move among these n moves in random. So clearly it cannot be detected.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2014-08-25T07:51:26.340Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2014-08-25T07:51:26.340Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Keshav
Body: <p>Consider a mobile chess app which allows to play correspondence chess.</p>
  <p>Some apps, like <a href="http://www.chesspresso.net/faq.jsp#cheats" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this one</a>, state that they'll punish someone (e.g., disable their account) if they discover that the person is cheating.</p>
  <p>Is it really possible to reliably know if someone is cheating (e.g., uses a chess engine to decide on the next move)?</p>
  <p>Are there any heuristics that can exist in the app that will calculate the probability that a player is cheating?</p>
  
Tags: <software><correspondence-chess><cheating>
Title: Is it possible to know if someone is cheating in correspondence chess?
ThreadText: # Is it possible to know if someone is cheating in correspondence chess?
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2014-08-24)
  
  Consider a mobile chess app which allows to play correspondence chess.
  
  Some apps, like [this one](http://www.chesspresso.net/faq.jsp#cheats), state that they'll punish someone (e.g., disable their account) if they discover that the person is cheating.
  
  Is it really possible to reliably know if someone is cheating (e.g., uses a chess engine to decide on the next move)?
  
  Are there any heuristics that can exist in the app that will calculate the probability that a player is cheating?
  
  **Tags:** software, correspondence-chess, cheating
  
  
  ---
  
  ## 2 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_1 on 2014-08-26. Score: 5 | Accepted answer
  
  The answer is, "Yes." See this article:
  
  <http://www.uschess.org/content/view/12677/763>
  
  Does your phone application have this capability? Probably no... yes! So don't do it!
  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_2 on 2014-08-25. Score: 3
  
  As far as I have researched on the aspect of using engine assistance (in live games, let alone correspondence games), I had reached an understanding that it is almost close to impossible to detect it. Except for some moves as mentioned by SomePatzer in his answer, which experts can determine is engine like (with high probability in comparison with the player's level). With the option of Multi-PV in UCI engines, which gives "n" best moves in a given situation, a not so monotonous cheater, would choose the move among these n moves in random. So clearly it cannot be detected.
  
  
  ---
  
  