Pokemon GO: Fastpokemap is back!
Fastpokemap is back! The moment thousands of users around the globe had been expecting for weeks is here. The Fastpokemap tracker went back online a few hours ago, after being completely disabled following security updates that Niantic applied to Pokemon GO, precisely to disallow the use of Pokemon trackers.
The solution to bring Fastpokemap back was not easy, and required the effort of many specialists worldwide, who worked long hours to connect the application to Niantic’s servers again. The main problem was that the protection Niantic implemented was on two levels: the first level was a conventional reCAPTCHA test, which is used on the Internet to differentiate real human users from automated computer systems. The second protection level is an encrypted communication protocol, that makes it impossible for any application that is not authorized by Niantic to connect to the Pokemon GO servers. This second level of protection was the one that had Fastpokemap developers stalled in recent weeks.
And in the end, the encryption could not be cracked directly.
Currently Fastpokemap is using an approach similar to a video game emulator to connect to the game servers. FPM interacts directly with a copy of the Pokemon GO game, running on a virtual cell phone, and sends commands to the game that make to talk to the servers through. The encryption routines are handled within the game, and not directly by Fastpokemap.
The solution works, but according to the FPM admin, it’s a “100% illegal” solution. That’s because they’re using the Pokemon GO binary, without permission, for something that is not the software’s original purpose.
This could bring future problems, and even generate a forced closure of the service if Niantic decides to go legal with it.
It’s worth mentioning, however, that Fastpokemap is already working to adapt the solution in a way that is legal, to avoid future problems. According to the admin, at this time they have an alternative that would bring legal status back to FPM, and they plan to implement it in the coming days. They did not reveal the details of their solution, but said they would be one of the few trackers on the Internet that would be legally accessing the game servers.
The tracker’s performance is currently limited, due to server issues. And it’s possible that in the coming days tracker performance will be a little slow, while all servers that were previously running are brought back on line. Performance should go up as the days pass, until it finally returns to normal.
Good job, and good luck to the guys at FPM!
