Fix Easy Anti-Cheat Untrusted system file error in Steam on PC

Are you experiencing an Easy Anti-Cheat error that says Untrusted system file when launching games like Apex Legends, Elden Ring, Lost Ark, New World, Jump Force, Watch Dog, etc. on Steam? Apex Legends is a popular free-to-play battle royale-hero shooter game with millions of users. Many Apex Legends players have reported getting the Untrusted system file error while opening the game on Steam. The error occurs when playing the game via the Steam desktop client.

When this error is triggered, you are likely to get a similar error message as the below one:

Easy Anti-Cheat
Untrusted system file (D:\Program Files\Steam\steamclient64.dll)

Now, what exactly does this error mean? Let us check out below.

What does Untrusted System File mean on Steam?

The Untrusted system file error on Steam means that Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC) is flagging specific game files as untrusted. While EAC prevents hacks and cheats in online gaming, it can also incorrectly flag normal files sometimes. You are likely to encounter this error after installing a Steam update that modifies the DLL file. Due to this, the game might consider the file as an untrusted system file. As a result, it prevents the game from launching. Hence, it becomes crucial to fix the error.

This error could be triggered due to different reasons. Here are the potential causes:

• You might experience this error due to a lack of admin rights to run EAC. If the scenario is applicable, you can try running Easy Anti-Cheat software as an administrator to fix the error.
• It could also occur because of the corrupted or faulty installation of Easy Anti-Cheat. Hence, if the scenario applies, repairing or reinstalling Easy Anti-Cheat should help you resolve the error.
• The corrupted and infected game files of Apex Legends can be another reason causing the error at hand. So, you can try verifying the integrity of game files to fix the error.
• The error might also be triggered due to the corrupted installation of the game itself. Hence, you can try reinstalling the game to fix the error.

Now, if you are one of the affected users getting the same error, you can try the fixes we have mentioned in this post. But before that, try rebooting your PC and then launch the game to check if the error is fixed. If not, you can use the below-mentioned solutions to resolve the error.

Fix Easy Anti-Cheat Untrusted system file error in Steam on PC

If you are receiving the Easy Anti-Cheat – Untrusted system file error when launching Apex Legends, Elden Ring, Lost Ark, New World, Jump Force, Watch Dog, etc. on Steam, you can try the below fixes:

1. Run Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC) as an administrator.
2. Repair Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC).
3. Reinstall Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC).
4. Verify the integrity of game files.
5. Reinstall the game.

1] Run Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC) as an administrator

The first thing you should try doing is running the Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC) software with administrator rights. You might be receiving the error due to a lack of admin privileges. Hence, opening EAC as an administrator to fix the error. Here are the steps you can follow to do so:

1. Firstly, open the Steam desktop client and navigate to its LIBRARY section.
2. Now, right-click on Apex Legends, and from the right-click context menu, select the Properties option.
3. In the Properties window, go to the Local Files tab and press the Browse Local Files button to open up the game installation directory.
4. Next, double-click the EasyAntiCheat folder to open it and press the right-click on the EasyAntiCheat_Setup.exe file.
5. From the opened context menu, click on the Properties option.
6. Now, go to the Compatibility tab and simply tick the Run this program as an administrator option.
7. Finally, press the Apply > OK button to save changes. You can now try relaunching Apex Legends and see if the error is fixed.

If you still receive the same even after running EAC with admin rights, you can try the next potential fix to resolve the error.

See: Fix Apex Legends won’t open on Windows PC.

2] Repair Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC)

The error might be triggered due to corrupted Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC) software. If the scenario is applicable, you can try repairing EAC to fix the error. Here are the steps to repair EAC:

1. Firstly, go to Steam and navigate to LIBRARY to open your games list.
2. Now, right-click on the Apex Legends game, press the Properties option, go to the Local Files tab, and press the Browse Local Files option.
3. In the opened location, open the EasyAntiCheat folder by double-clicking on it.
4. Next, press the right-click on the EasyAntiCheat_Setup.exe file and select the Run as Administrator option.
5. After that, select the Apex Legends game on the setup screen and then choose the Repair Service option to repair EAC.
6. Next, follow the prompted instructions and complete the repair process.
7. When the process is finished, restart your PC and then launch the game to see if the error is fixed.

If repairing EAC doesn’t fix the error for you, you can go ahead and try the next potential fix to resolve the Untrusted system file error.

Read: Fix Apex Legends Engine Error Code 0X887a0006, 0x8887a0005.

3] Reinstall Easy Anti-Cheat (EAC)

If repairing EAC doesn’t work for you, try reinstalling the EAC software. There might be some corrupted files associated with EAC that can only be fixed by reinstallation of the software. Hence, uninstall EAC and then reinstall to fix the error. Here’s how you can do that:

1. Firstly, press the Windows + E hotkey to open File Explorer.
2. Now, navigate to the Apex Legends installation directory. You are likely to find it at the following location:

   C:\Program Files (x86) \Steam\steamapps\common\Apex Legends

3. Next, open the EasyAntiCheat folder and locate the file named EasyAntiCheat_Setup.exe.
4. Next, press the right-click on the file and click on the Run as Administrator option.
5. On the appeared setup screen appears, select the Apex Legends game from the dropdown option and click on the Uninstall button.
6. Follow the prompted instructions to complete the uninstallation.
7. Once done, again right-click on the EasyAntiCheat_Setup.exe file and select the Run as Administrator option.
8. Now, press the ‘Install Easy Anti-Cheat’ option and follow the onscreen instruction to complete the process.
9. Finally, reboot your PC and try launching Apex Legends to check if the Untrusted system file error is stopped now.

If the error is still the same, you can try the next potential fix to resolve it.

Read: Apex Legends Error 0x00000017, Error reading pak file on PC.

4] Verify the integrity of game files

The error might be caused due to infected game files of Apex Legends. Hence, you can try verifying the integrity of game files and repair and replace the bad ones. Here’s how you can do that:

1. Firstly, open the Steam client and navigate to the LIBRARY section to access your installed games.
2. After that, press the right-click on the Apex Legends game.
3. Next, choose the Properties option from the opened context menu.
4. Now, move to the Local Files tab and click on the Verify integrity of game files button. Steam will verify and fix the corrupted and damaged game files in some time.
5. Once the process is finished, try launching the game and see if the error is fixed or not.

If you still get the Untrusted system file error when running the Apex Legends game on Steam, you can move on to the next potential fix.

Read: Connection rejected Invalid token error in Apex Legends on Xbox and PC.

5] Reinstall the game

If nothing else worked, you can try reinstalling the the game to fix the Untrusted system file error. The error might be triggered due to the corrupted installation of the game. Hence, you can try installing the game and then reinstalling it to fix the error. Here’s how you can do that:

1. Firstly, open the Steam client and navigate to LIBRARY.
2. Now, right-click on the game and then go to the Manage option.
3. Next, select the Uninstall option and follow the prompted instruction to complete the uninstallation process.
4. Once the game is uninstalled, reopen Steam and reinstall the game.
5. Finally, try launching the game and see if the Untrusted System File error is resolved.

Hopefully, you won’t get the same error now.

See: Apex Legends voice chat not working on Xbox or PC.

How do I fix Untrusted system error?

To fix the Untrusted system file error, you can try running Easy Anti-Cheat as an administrator. Other than that, you can also try repairing Easy Anti-Cheat or reinstalling it, or verifying the integrity of game files. If nothing helps, you can try uninstalling and then reinstalling the Apex Legends game to fix the error.

Is Easy Anti-Cheat safe?

Easy Anti-Cheat is safe and legitimate. It primarily helps in preventing or reducing cheating in online gaming. During the installation of new EAC-based games, you will be prompted to install Easy Anti-Cheat.

Should I uninstall Easy Anti-Cheat?

Easy Anti-Cheat runs in the background when playing a game that supports it. It doesn’t consume much of your system resources, so running it shouldn’t be a problem. So, having it installed on your system shouldn’t bother you.

Now read:

• Fix NO SERVERS FOUND Error in Apex Legends.
• Fix Apex Legends won’t open on Windows PC.