6 Ways to Fix the “Easy Anti-Cheat is Not Installed” Fortnite Error on a Windows PC

Easy Anti-Cheat is a mandatory anti-cheat program for playing the Fortnite game. Some players have reported they see an “Easy Anti-Cheat is not installed” error message whenever they launch the Fortnite game. Fortnite doesn’t start when this error arises. That error message makes it quite clear that this issue pertains to the East Anti-Cheat program. However, it doesn’t say anything about how you can resolve the error. This is how you can fix the “Easy Anti-Cheat is not installed” error on a Windows 11/10 PC.

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Repair Fortnite’s Game Files

First, start your troubleshooting by repairing (verifying) Fortnite’s game files. That’s not the most widely confirmed potential fix for the “Easy Anti-Cheat is not installed” Fortnite error, but a few players say verifying the game’s files has worked for them. Go through the verification steps on this Epic help page to repair Fortnite’s files.

Create an Easy Anti-Cheat Shortcut

A widely confirmed way to resolve the “Easy Anti-Cheat is not installed” Fortnite error is to create a new Easy Anti-Cheat shortcut with a modified target. Running Easy Anti-Cheat with that shortcut then repairs issues with the cheat software. These are the steps for applying this potential resolution.

1. Open Epic Games to click on Library within that gaming client.
2. Click Fortnite’s ellipses (three-dot) menu button and select Manage.
3. Next, click on the round folder button beside the Uninstallation option.
   
   

   The Open Install Location option

4. Click on the FortniteGame > Binaries > Win64 > EasyAntiCheat folder.
5. Next, right-click the EasyAntiCheat_EOS_Setup.exe file in the EasyAntiCheat folder and select Create shortcut.
   
   

   The Create shortcut option

6. Click Yes on the Shortcut window that asks if you want to create a desktop shortcut.
7. Drag the Easy Anti-Cheat desktop shortcut created into the EasyAntiCheat folder within File Explorer.
8. Next, right-click the EasyAntiCheat_EOS_Setup.exe – Shortcut and select Properties.
9. Click in the Target box and add repair with a space at the end of the target path, as shown in the shot below.
   
   

   The Target box for EasyAntiCheat

10. Select Apply and OK to save the new Easy Anti-Cheat shortcut settings.
11. Double-click the created EasyAntiCheat_EOS_Setup.exe – Shortcut to apply repair.

Select to Repair the Easy Anti-Cheat Program

You can also select to repair Easy Anti-Cheat from a window, which could fix glitches causing the “Easy Anti-Cheat is not installed“ Fortnite error to occur. This is how you can select to repair Easy Anti-Cheat.

1. Go through steps one to four of the previous resolution to open the EasyAntiCheat folder.
2. Double-click the EasyAntiCheat_EOS_Setup.exe file.
3. Select the Current option in the drop-down menu within the Easy Anti-Cheat window.
4. Click on Repair Service.
   
   

   The Easy Anti-Cheat window

5. Select Finish after the repair.

Check the Easy Anti-Cheat Service is Enabled

A disabled EasyAntiCheat service could be another potential cause for the “Easy Anti-Cheat is not installed” Fortnite error occurring on your PC. So, make sure that you’ve got that service enabled. This is how you can enable the EasyAntiCheat service.

1. To access Run, hold the keyboard key with the Windows logo on it and press R.
2. Enter the services.msc Run command and press the Return button.
3. Double-click EasyAntiCheat inside the Servies app.
4. Select Manual for the Startup type setting.
5. Click Start if the EasyAntiCheat service isn’t running.
6. To save the selected service settings, click on Apply > OK.

Disable Antivirus (Security) Software

If the “Easy Anti-Cheat is not installed” Fortnite error persists after applying the resolutions above, security (antivirus) software on your PC might be causing the issue. To address that, disable third-party antivirus software on your PC by right-clicking a system tray icon for it and selecting to turn its shield off from the context menu. Those users who don’t have third-party security apps can temporarily disable Windows Security’s antivirus component as outlined on this Microsoft page. Try playing Fortnite after disabling the antivirus shield.

The Real-time protection option

Create a Firewall Exception for Easy Anti-Cheat

Add Easy Anti-Cheat to firewalls’ allowed lists to ensure they’re not blocking its connections. This Microsoft support webpage has instructions for adding exclusions to the Windows Defender Firewall. You’ll need to select to add the EasyAntiCheat_Setup file to that firewall if it’s not listed there. The Private and Public checkboxes for Easy Anti-Cheat on the allowed list must also be selected.

The Allowed apps firewall list

Many players confirm the resolutions discussed in this guide fix the “Easy Anti-Cheat is not installed” Fortnite error on Windows PCs. They’re mostly straightforward potential resolutions to apply that usually get that issue fixed. Note that the resolutions above can also fix the same error when it occurs for other games that need Easy Anti-Cheat, such as Elden Ring and Sea of Thieves.