How to fix Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree inappropriate activity detected error

Ever since Elden Ring’s Shadow Of The Erdtree update, some players attempting to go on modded co-op adventures have encountered an error message claiming that an undisclosed inappropriate activity was found within the game files. The error kicks players back to the start screen and prevents them from re-entering Elden Ring in online mode.

This is the result of anti-cheat software that can also affect players who are using regular co-op mods, but it’s not meant to mess with players who are joining or being joined by others as the game had intended.

FromSoftware was quick to identify the problem, but has yet to announce an official fix in any of the DLC’s patch notes.

Luckily, the developer was quick to share how players could go about to fix the issue themselves. The process is simple, one that many already know as the go-to to fix many of the issues affecting games on Steam.

If you don’t have any mods that the game could flag for this effect, all you have to do is select Elden Ring in your Steam Library, right click on it, then select Properties. A new window will pop up; select the Installed Files tab. Next, click Verify the Integrity of game files and wait for the process to finish. Everything should be back to normal once you try to play again.

Inappropriate Activity detected on Steam Deck

The official fix doesn’t work on the Steam Deck, and many have complained that they can only play the game in offline mode. Reddit user u/Honeydew-Main was able to come up with a fix that seemingly works for everyone who tried it:

• Enter Desktop mode on your Steam Deck
• Open File Explorer
• Open the Menu (three horizontal lines button) on the top right; choose Show Hidden Files
• Go to “Home/.local/share/Steam/SteamApps/common/ELDEN RING/game”
• Open the menu again and create a new file
• Name the file DLC.bdt (Access the Steam Deck’s on-screen keyboard by pressing the “Steam” button and the “X” button at the same time)
• Copy the DLC.bdt file, and paste it inside the sd file inside Elden Ring’s game folder
• You can now start the game in online mode

Though this is an anti-cheat function meant to catch players using illegal mods to obliterate anyone unlucky enough to encounter them online, no one has complained about receiving a ban after seeing this error message. The fix is simple, so the biggest problem here is the getting frightened at the notion that the game has (incorrectly) deemed you guilty of some shady practices.

You can now play Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC.