Here's how to fix the ELDEN RING 'inappropriate activity' issue on Linux / Steam Deck

A new patch has been rolled out for ELDEN RING, and it's supposed to fix the inappropriate activity detected message from their anti-cheat with a bit of manual effort. Here's what to do. This issue affected Linux desktop, Steam Deck and it seems people on Windows PCs as well.

From their patch notes for version 1.12.3 it notes:

• In the PC Version, the message "Inappropriate activity detected" may appear without cheating.

To fix this issue, please verify the integrity of the game's files before restarting the game.

• In the PC version, unstable framerate may be caused by third party applications that control mouse behavior. Deactivating these third party applications may improve performance.

For once, it wasn't a Linux system specific issue.

To note, I do not have the DLC yet. And it seems FromSoftware haven't been doing thorough testing for people who do not have the DLC. If you do have the DLC, verifying the files might be enough to fix it as they suggest.

What if you don't have the DLC? Well, thanks to an answer on ProtonDB, you can fix it yourself. As always, do my fix suggestions at your own risk.

All you have to do is open up the installed folder, go into the "Game" folder and create an empty "DLC.bdt" file.

So in Steam (Desktop mode for Steam Deck) -> Right click on ELDEN RING -> properties -> Installed files -> Browse. Then go into the Game folder. Two ways to do it (tested using KDE Plasma):

• Right click -> create new -> text file -> name it in the text box "DLC.bdt" (remove the .txt).
• OR Right click in an empty space -> select Open Terminal Here and type "touch DLC.bdt".

And you're done. It will now work.