Account security is a 2-way street. It is SE's responsibility to make sure your personal and account information is secure on their servers. It is NOT however their responsibility to watch YOUR computer. If you frequent questionable sites, purchase gold, and have a password that a toddler could break; you deserve to have your account compromised. I have almost zero sympathy for people that don't think ahead when using their computer.
Doing the following will help keep you secure.
Install Malwarebytes
Install a "no-script" for his browser.
Use a password with multiple numbers, capitals, and symbols (if allowed)
Don't browse those questionable sites on your main computer.
Don't login to your account from another computer that isn't your own. (Seriously, you don't know what their system security is like)
***** GET AN AUTHENTICATOR! *****
Raquelis in various games Played: Everything Playing: Nioh 2, Civ6 Wants: The World Anticipating:Everquest NextCrowfall, Pantheon, Elden Ring
"Use a password with multiple numbers, capitals, and symbols (if allowed)"
If I may add something. I swear by LastPass. I've been using it for years now. I could've made hundreds of strong and unique passwords and written them down somewhere too :-)
I also use MaskMe for making new email addresses. That way I can find out who's leaking /selling my info. I can also block it from forwarding emails I to my primary email address.
In GW2 if you try to login to your account from an IP other than the usual, they email you and you have to confirm the IP (only once if you want to add it to the list of allowed IPs)
Some people have their accounts hacked due to their own stupidity ie: buying gold, buying anything from RMT sites, replying to obviously false phishing emails etc.
Some people however have their accounts hacked by no fault of their own but due to the lack of security or stupidity of the companies who are in charge of running the MMOs.
What really annoys me though is that the companies will automatically blame the consumer, even if the fault is theirs. This has happened to me 3 times in the last 9yrs. How do I know it is not my fault? well I have 3 comps 1 big state of the art gaming rig that I use for nothing except playing games (I do not browse the internet with it or send or even read emails it is 100% MMO only), the other 2 I use for vent, browsing, emails etc. All my comps are virus and Malware checked every day, I never give out my P. words and have different P. words and email addresses for all my games.
I have 999 computers, 1 for twitter and only twitter, 1 for M$ word and only M$ word, 1 for Facebook and only facebook, 1 for youtube and only youtube, 1 for www.mmorog.com and only www.mmorpg.com.... and so on. I run virus scans every 10 minutes, and I re-install windows twice a day on each computer, I only use internet between 3:13 and 3:15am each day and all other times I have my router unplugged and before I go online I flash the router with the newest firmware and add a 256 character wifi password, I create a unique 32 character password and use a unique email address for every single website and game I sign up to......yet still I get hacked
What I am saying it you talk a good game but we all know you don't do what you say you do.
If a company has not had a breach they are fully entitled to the point the finger at the end user, TAKE RESPONSIBILITY!
Maybe I am a bit over the top careful but then I play games to relieve my very stressful RL so I want to be able to play when I want. However even with all this care my accounts for WOW, AION and AOC were hacked. All I got from these companies was emails telling me how it was all my fault and they will endeavour to help me sort out my stupidity.
I wish companies would stop treating us all like idiotic children when they contact us and give us some respect after all we are the ones paying their wages and giving them a job, it does not matter really if it was our fault or theirs we are still their customers, except online it seems the saying 'the customer is always right' has been forgotten and now the idea is just to make the customer feel stupid (if u want proof of this try emailing them telling them its not your fault it is theirs and see what u get back)
How do you know whether or not it is in fact the Player's fault? How do you know the Player isn't telling the truth? You can't know, and neither can I or anyone else.
There is no real Laws anywhere that would force the Devs to admit to a breach, because Online Games are not seen as serious business endeavors like Banks or Credit Cards are. The Devs could have had a breach in security and they can deny it forever and absolutely no one can force them to admit it.
In the present business climate the "most business worthy" action for the Devs to take IS to deny any kind of breach or security fault occurred, unless of course Hackers enmasse flood FFXIV's server's so bad everyone on the Planet sees it.
All we can do is say "Sorry for your lost Account" and let it go. No of us will ever really know the truth about this one.
Heard it all before, waaah waaah waaah, big bad company blocking my account.
While at the same time you would be just as upset if they done nothing to combat RMT and didn't block your account when they noticed weird logins.
You seem to have enough time and care enough to come post about your account being locked on random third party forums but you didn't say if you followed it up and called them or anything or even what evidence they had that the account had been compromised.
Please don't bother trying to blame them for your account security either. I run a email address for each game complete with a unique password that isn't the same as the email addresses password for all my game accounts and I don't get any mail to the email addresses other than the official emails from the game itself. No spam, no phising, no advertisements from random people - just the emails from the company themselves. The second you use that email address or password elsewhere is when you put yourself at unnecessary risk.
They even offer two factor authentication with a security token or an app for mobile phones and the best part is there's a bloody link about it all on the launcher next to where you put your password every time you log in to the game.
Your account security is your own responsibility. People need to grow up and stop blaming companies for their accounts being 'hacked'.
They are the ones accusing him of committing acts and deleting his account. Why not just work this as a security issue like many other games due and let the account be restated in some form?
Did you miss that fact while you were sniffing your own farts?
Sorry to say most ppl who got hacked are because of simple password, pc virus or using the same password for anything on the internet, falling for idiot scam email.
Its like complaining your house got robbed because you didnt locked your door properly.
They are the ones accusing him of committing acts and deleting his account. Why not just work this as a security issue like many other games due and let the account be restated in some form?
Did you miss that fact while you were sniffing your own farts?
Here's the thing... He said they suspended the account for suspicious activity, and then they unlocked it when he contacted them. Then more suspicious activity ensued, and so they banned the account.
What are they supposed to do? They have a user who keeps losing his account to hackers, which serves to mar the game experience for everyone. So do they keep giving him back his account and park someone to babysit the OP, or do they ban a known source of hacker access?
They are the ones accusing him of committing acts and deleting his account. Why not just work this as a security issue like many other games due and let the account be restated in some form?
Did you miss that fact while you were sniffing your own farts?
Here's the thing... He said they suspended the account for suspicious activity, and then they unlocked it when he contacted them. Then more suspicious activity ensued, and so they banned the account.
What are they supposed to do? They have a user who keeps losing his account to hackers, which serves to mar the game experience for everyone. So do they keep giving him back his account and park someone to babysit the OP, or do they ban a known source of hacker access?
Exactly.
Take your pick.
Threads like this one (Full of hyperbole)
OR
Threads like the one below (Also full of hyperbole)
I am curious... Whose fault is it that a player gets hacked?
And when it happens, what is any game company supposed to do?
I see these kinds of posts with every game, especially just after release. It amazes me what players think should happen. "I got hacked! It is this terrible game company's fault!"
Another thing, while the internet and many MMOs may "seem" like instantaneous responses happen, it takes time to sort through each and every ticket.
I am sorry you are having troubles. I know you are frustrated. Take a step back, breathe deeply, and cool off. It is *your* fault you got hacked, not SE's, unless their site got hacked. Give them time to fix *your* error.
- Al
Personally the only modern MMORPG trend that annoys me is the idea that MMOs need to be designed in a way to attract people who don't actually like MMOs. Which to me makes about as much sense as someone trying to figure out a way to get vegetarians to eat at their steakhouse. - FARGIN_WAR
Sell more copies of the game than your cheap ass server farm can carry.
Block 80% of the accounts for a week claiming the problem will be fixed the following week, following week comes problem is still there, but now we have a serious problem because people are demanding their money back.
EUREKA!!
Accuse 50% of the player base of hacking so you can terminate their accounts thereby making your capacity issue vanish at the same time denying them refunds.
BRILLIANTLY EVIL!
Now they can re-open sales again to steal even more money...
Muhahahahaha
OMG it reminds me of that European game that I can not remember the name of. Hyped hell out of the game sold the hell out of it and immediately pulled the plug keeping all the money. Three months later they turned the servers back on and started reselling the game with a new name.
I think you're going a little crazy with this one...
It was suppose to be funny, guess the witty sarcasm is hard to read.
Originally posted by evianwaterJust look at this thread...how many people put the *entire* responsibility for this on me, and zero responsibility on Square Enix ? Not even a hint that maybe they messed up too..just the customer.
Because client is the weakest security point. Or do you spend as much resources and security measures on your home PC as companies do on securing their servers?
Your account security is your own responsibility. People need to grow up and stop blaming companies for their accounts being 'hacked'.
In some cases, employees reset accounts that are idle for a long time and sell them. Though in this case, I doubt that is what happened. The point is sometimes the companies are to blame, especially those who outsource their tech support to India and the likes. When you live off 1$ a week and get insulted non-stop because of the short comings of a rich american company, the chance to sell an account for 5$ to some russian is tempting and quite frankly, in their place, I'd do exactly the same thing. The companies are to blame, often.
Boycotting EA. Why? They suck, even moreso since 2008.
So the way that Square Enix is handling their recent spate of hacking is to blame the players apparently..
Dear Customer: This notice is to inform you that we have suspended the FINAL FANTASY XIV service account registered to this e-mail for one or more violations of the FINAL FANTASY XIV User Agreement that occurred on 9/11/2013. Specifically, you have violated following Section(s) of the FINAL FANTASY XIV User Agreement.
------------------ SQUARE ENIX ACCOUNT TERMS OF USE 1. Registered Users Use of the Website or Services is limited to those satisfying the following conditions: (b)You represent and warrant that you will not use the Website or Services in any manner that is in violation of this Agreement or of any applicable law or regulation;
FINAL FANTASY XIV User Agreement 2.2 Real Money Trading, Farming and Power-Leveling. You may not sell,purchase or exchange for real-world money or value any in-game currency,accounts, characters, in-game services, or in-game virtual items. Youmay not play the Game for the purpose of acquiring virtual items or advancement in game play on behalf of a third-party or for the purpose of selling any virtual assets to a third party for real-world money, specifically including $B!H(Bgold-farming$B!I(Band power-leveling services. ------------------ Every action we issue is based on conclusive evidence of a violation and is reviewed for accuracy. Here is an excerpt from the activity log regarding this termination:
Based on the actions in this most recent incident and any prior record on the service account, we have terminated the FINAL FANTASY XIV service account registered to this e-mail in accordance with the FINAL FANTASY XIV User Agreement. To best understand the penalties taken against the service account, please review the Account Penalty Policy section on the Support Center at the following link:
For information on prohibited activities in FINAL FANTASY XIV, please refer to the Square Enix Account Terms of Use, the FINAL FANTASY XIV User Agreement, and the following URL:
As your account has been terminated due to a violation, you will be unable to create another FINAL FANTASY XIV service account. Unfortunately, you have shown yourself to be unwilling to follow the rules of the FINAL FANTASY XIV community. If we find that you have created another FINAL FANTASY XIV service account, we reserve the right to terminate that account as well in our sole discretion.
(links removed)
So..yeah..that part about "reviewed for accuracy" is particularly annoying..because distinct IP addresses would clearly vindicate me if they actually put any effort into their "investigation".
This is a major reason I never buy any of their product as their customer support is bollocks and they don't give a shit once they have your box payment. If they investigated they would see many of the bans are due to a lack of their system failure or to provide the gamer with extra security in this modern day and age of gaming.
Of course my comments wont help you resolve your issues with these people but at least you can see we not all against the customer and I feel gamers accept this sort of BS far to often and don't fight it as they never win and this needs to stop.
I could understand if it was a F2P game but I'm sure while there are many who do get hacked and abused there can only be a small % of people who do take the piss and deserve bans. If I were you and you manage to get your account un blocked I would be seeking compensation or even a refund. But don't hold your breathe!
This is a major reason I never buy any of their product as their customer support is bollocks and they don't give a shit once they have your box payment. If they investigated they would see many of the bans are due to a lack of their system failure or to provide the gamer with extra security in this modern day and age of gaming.
Of course my comments wont help you resolve your issues with these people but at least you can see we not all against the customer and I feel gamers accept this sort of BS far to often and don't fight it as they never win and this needs to stop.
I could understand if it was a F2P game but I'm sure while there are many who do get hacked and abused there can only be a small % of people who do take the piss and deserve bans. If I were you and you manage to get your account un blocked I would be seeking compensation or even a refund. But don't hold your breathe!
Fortunately, I've only had to deal with the CS once, and that was to get my CE code applied to the correct account.
I've played many, F2P games and have never been hacked or compromised. I've played EQ2 and have been only compromised once (and that was before EQ2 went F2P). I purchased an authenticator and haven't had a problem since then.
For WoW, I've watched friends get their accounts compromised. They purchased authenticators and haven't had a problem since.
If the developer is clearly in the wrong for an account or server compromise, then I would agree that SE was heavy handed. Lets face reality though: The number of account hacks that are a result of horrible server security are substantially fewer than the compromises that are a result of user stupidity. PLBKAC and all that.
Raquelis in various games Played: Everything Playing: Nioh 2, Civ6 Wants: The World Anticipating:Everquest NextCrowfall, Pantheon, Elden Ring
This is a major reason I never buy any of their product as their customer support is bollocks and they don't give a shit once they have your box payment. If they investigated they would see many of the bans are due to a lack of their system failure or to provide the gamer with extra security in this modern day and age of gaming.
Of course my comments wont help you resolve your issues with these people but at least you can see we not all against the customer and I feel gamers accept this sort of BS far to often and don't fight it as they never win and this needs to stop.
I could understand if it was a F2P game but I'm sure while there are many who do get hacked and abused there can only be a small % of people who do take the piss and deserve bans. If I were you and you manage to get your account un blocked I would be seeking compensation or even a refund. But don't hold your breathe!
This totally cracks me up!
Square Enix DOES give you extra Security options via a FREE mobile authenticator or a physical authenticator you can buy from their store!
Square Enix was actually one of the first Gaming Companies that offered a physical authenticator years back with FFXI already.
Every time you fire up Your launcher you are Facepalmed With the One Time Password option With a help link directly under it that Directs you to page informing you about the authenticator options and how to apply one to Your account.
Only takes you a couple minutes to set up the FREE mobile authenticator and Your account is SAFE!
This is a major reason I never buy any of their product as their customer support is bollocks and they don't give a shit once they have your box payment. If they investigated they would see many of the bans are due to a lack of their system failure or to provide the gamer with extra security in this modern day and age of gaming.
Of course my comments wont help you resolve your issues with these people but at least you can see we not all against the customer and I feel gamers accept this sort of BS far to often and don't fight it as they never win and this needs to stop.
I could understand if it was a F2P game but I'm sure while there are many who do get hacked and abused there can only be a small % of people who do take the piss and deserve bans. If I were you and you manage to get your account un blocked I would be seeking compensation or even a refund. But don't hold your breathe!
This totally cracks me up!
Square Enix DOES give you extra Security options via a FREE mobile authenticator or a physical authenticator you can buy from their store!
Square Enix was actually one of the first Gaming Companies that offered a physical authenticator years back with FFXI already.
Every time you fire up Your launcher you are Facepalmed With the One Time Password option With a help link directly under it that Directs you to page informing you about the authenticator options and how to apply one to Your account.
Only takes you a couple minutes to set up the FREE mobile authenticator and Your account is SAFE!
This is only the case for those who have the phone that supports such apps.
As for the one-time password deal. Anyone coming from something like TOR could easily confuse that for the "one time password" system they use and pay it no mind. In their case it's a unique password that's emailed to you when you haven't logged in for a while, you're locked out until you enter it.
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
This is a major reason I never buy any of their product as their customer support is bollocks and they don't give a shit once they have your box payment. If they investigated they would see many of the bans are due to a lack of their system failure or to provide the gamer with extra security in this modern day and age of gaming.
Of course my comments wont help you resolve your issues with these people but at least you can see we not all against the customer and I feel gamers accept this sort of BS far to often and don't fight it as they never win and this needs to stop.
I could understand if it was a F2P game but I'm sure while there are many who do get hacked and abused there can only be a small % of people who do take the piss and deserve bans. If I were you and you manage to get your account un blocked I would be seeking compensation or even a refund. But don't hold your breathe!
This totally cracks me up!
Square Enix DOES give you extra Security options via a FREE mobile authenticator or a physical authenticator you can buy from their store!
Square Enix was actually one of the first Gaming Companies that offered a physical authenticator years back with FFXI already.
Every time you fire up Your launcher you are Facepalmed With the One Time Password option With a help link directly under it that Directs you to page informing you about the authenticator options and how to apply one to Your account.
Only takes you a couple minutes to set up the FREE mobile authenticator and Your account is SAFE!
This is only the case for those who have the phone that supports such apps.
As for the one-time password deal. Anyone coming from something like TOR could easily confuse that for the "one time password" system they use and pay it no mind. In their case it's a unique password that's emailed to you when you haven't logged in for a while, you're locked out until you enter it.
If you don't have the phone you can buy the physical one.
Account Security is YOUR responsibility.
Square Enix has the responsibility to keep Your stored account info safe and password and credit card info encrypted. Which they do! As is required by both Law and banks/credit card Companies!
It is YOUR responsibility to use strong not easy to guess passwords and not use the same password all over the internet for years on end. Which I guarrantee you 95% of the population does!
Loads of People asked to be hacked, as they use ridiculously simple passwords and use these same passwords on unsecure Public sites as they use on their Game Accounts!
You cannot make it any easier for hackers this way. But loads of People just don't want to see this very fact!
It's way easier, after being hacked, to Place yourself in the victim role and start venting Your anger and frustration here and blame the gaming Company for Your own ignorance.
This whole thread is like..a microcosm of politics. There's a minority that try to defend the customer, a horde of big-business supporters that violently lash out and blame the customer, a third group that is somewhat rational, but still siding with the big-buisiness, and then a fourth group that is talking about an entirely different an unrelated subject.
Believe it or not..no, I didn't try to buy gold, or sell it. I didn't try to "change the game code" or use 3rd party programs. I simply logged in..played the game since beta 3 with the same name and password and was hacked.
My password wasn't great, nor is my username. It was a hold-over from Beta where i didn't care what my info was, I was too slow to change it. I admit that, but sorry I still pay for the product and as people have already stated, basic security protocols aren't being taken by SE in the first place. I had no problem with them freezing my account, I appreciated that. What I do have a problem with is the ban and the subsequent lack of response I've received thus far (not even auto-mated) after I followed the instructions they gave me to get the account unfrozen. (including the one-time key)
Lastly, those of you claiming you've "never been hacked"..that's not because you do everything right and everyone else does everything wrong...get the f over yourself. It's a numbers game, and you've been lucky so far. In 16 years I've been "hacked" 4 times. Three times on WoW in quick succession, where they very rudely told me to buy their authenticator (*Buy*), and now here. I've played...EQ,Eq2,UO,FFXI,WoW,Rift,SWTOR,EVE,WAR,Neverwinter,DDO,LOTRO,Vindictus...etc...etc and the only games I've ever had problems with are WoW and FFXIV.
Not even when SOE had that massive attack..did I ever have my information compromised, it's similar to personal health..you can do everything right and still get cancer, you can do everything wrong and live to be 100...there's a luck factor that seems to be ignored.
Lastly, I wanted to point out because it seems to have gone unnoticed. I AM NOT BLAMING SE FOR GETTING HACKED. I do think their security relies far too heavily on the user compared to other games, but that's beside the point. Instead, I am upset with how they have handled it, their sham of an "investigation' and the subsequent banning of my account when literally all you have to do is look at the IP address used to access the account during the suspicious activity. I have never been banned from a game, and I find this utterly ridiculous.
But go on, tell me how you have no sympathy and that it's my fault. It provides me with entertainment while I wait to see if SE releases any press releases or actually kicks back a response to my support requests. Oh and continue to defend the big companies..it'll make it so much sweeter when you realize they don't give a shit about you
I've seen a lot of hacking going on. Over 50% of the "spammers" I block in game have a "legit name" as in they seem to be names someone actually gave them and then they were hacked.
Couple that with these threads about being hacked, lead me to the decision to activate the physical security token I got with my Collector's Edition of FFXIV Reborn. I've never ever been hacked, but yeah, better more safe than sorry.
On Hyperion it's more like "100%" of the spammers are hacked accounts. And since new character creation is still blocked on that server, at least once they're banned... they stay banned.
The gold sellers are getting more and more aggressive and once they decide to brute force their way into your account no amount of protection is going to help.
To assume that if someone got his account got hacked it must be because he visited a fishy site or bought gold is not true. You can keep your computer as clean as you want with extra lare of securities for your gaming account but if gold sellers get lucky in brute forcing they will get in.
It is just about your luck and it can happen to anyone. Karma is a bitch so be careful before you lash out at people like OP because people who are the most over confident and say stuff like ' it can never happen to me' are always in for big surprise.
The gold sellers are getting more and more aggressive and once they decide to brute force their way into your account no amount of protection is going to help.
To assume that if someone got his account got hacked it must be because he visited a fishy site or bought gold is not true. You can keep your computer as clean as you want with extra lare of securities for your gaming account but if gold sellers get lucky in brute forcing they will get in.
It is just about your luck and it can happen to anyone. Karma is a bitch so be careful before you lash out at people like OP because people who are the most over confident and say stuff like ' it can never happen to me' are always in for big surprise.
They can only brute force their way in, when:
1. People use simple and easy to guess passwords.
2. People use the same password all over the internet for years, including unsecure Public sites and hackers have obtained a password list from one of those unsecure Public sites that got hacked.
And just two posts ago, the OP has finally admitted the very fact he was slacking on his own Security and used a simple username and password. So he got hacked based on point 1.
If you use a complex password. No way they can brute force their way in. It would take too long time and will cause Your account to be flagged and suspended.
And when you attach an authenticator to Your account, be it the software one or physical one. You will be safe!
Comments
Account security is a 2-way street. It is SE's responsibility to make sure your personal and account information is secure on their servers. It is NOT however their responsibility to watch YOUR computer. If you frequent questionable sites, purchase gold, and have a password that a toddler could break; you deserve to have your account compromised. I have almost zero sympathy for people that don't think ahead when using their computer.
Doing the following will help keep you secure.
Raquelis in various games
Played: Everything
Playing: Nioh 2, Civ6
Wants: The World
Anticipating: Everquest Next Crowfall, Pantheon, Elden Ring
If I may add something. I swear by LastPass. I've been using it for years now.
I could've made hundreds of strong and unique passwords and written them down somewhere too :-)
I also use MaskMe for making new email addresses. That way I can find out who's leaking /selling my info. I can also block it from forwarding emails I to my primary email address.
FF 14 should take a nod from GW2's login setup.
In GW2 if you try to login to your account from an IP other than the usual, they email you and you have to confirm the IP (only once if you want to add it to the list of allowed IPs)
How do you know whether or not it is in fact the Player's fault? How do you know the Player isn't telling the truth? You can't know, and neither can I or anyone else.
There is no real Laws anywhere that would force the Devs to admit to a breach, because Online Games are not seen as serious business endeavors like Banks or Credit Cards are. The Devs could have had a breach in security and they can deny it forever and absolutely no one can force them to admit it.
In the present business climate the "most business worthy" action for the Devs to take IS to deny any kind of breach or security fault occurred, unless of course Hackers enmasse flood FFXIV's server's so bad everyone on the Planet sees it.
All we can do is say "Sorry for your lost Account" and let it go. No of us will ever really know the truth about this one.
They are the ones accusing him of committing acts and deleting his account. Why not just work this as a security issue like many other games due and let the account be restated in some form?
Did you miss that fact while you were sniffing your own farts?
Here's the thing... He said they suspended the account for suspicious activity, and then they unlocked it when he contacted them. Then more suspicious activity ensued, and so they banned the account.
What are they supposed to do? They have a user who keeps losing his account to hackers, which serves to mar the game experience for everyone. So do they keep giving him back his account and park someone to babysit the OP, or do they ban a known source of hacker access?
Exactly.
Take your pick.
Threads like this one (Full of hyperbole)
OR
Threads like the one below (Also full of hyperbole)
http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/446/view/forums/thread/396145/Typical-FFXIV-chat-window.html
It's a catch 22.
The only real solution is for players to take responsibility for their own account security,
I am curious... Whose fault is it that a player gets hacked?
And when it happens, what is any game company supposed to do?
I see these kinds of posts with every game, especially just after release. It amazes me what players think should happen. "I got hacked! It is this terrible game company's fault!"
Another thing, while the internet and many MMOs may "seem" like instantaneous responses happen, it takes time to sort through each and every ticket.
I am sorry you are having troubles. I know you are frustrated. Take a step back, breathe deeply, and cool off. It is *your* fault you got hacked, not SE's, unless their site got hacked. Give them time to fix *your* error.
- Al
Personally the only modern MMORPG trend that annoys me is the idea that MMOs need to be designed in a way to attract people who don't actually like MMOs. Which to me makes about as much sense as someone trying to figure out a way to get vegetarians to eat at their steakhouse.- FARGIN_WAR
Nothing funny, witty or sarcastic to be read.
Because client is the weakest security point. Or do you spend as much resources and security measures on your home PC as companies do on securing their servers?
I have a security key that Square gave me with my collectors edition.
Maybe you need to get one so you don't get hacked in the future.
In some cases, employees reset accounts that are idle for a long time and sell them. Though in this case, I doubt that is what happened. The point is sometimes the companies are to blame, especially those who outsource their tech support to India and the likes. When you live off 1$ a week and get insulted non-stop because of the short comings of a rich american company, the chance to sell an account for 5$ to some russian is tempting and quite frankly, in their place, I'd do exactly the same thing. The companies are to blame, often.
Boycotting EA. Why? They suck, even moreso since 2008.
This is a major reason I never buy any of their product as their customer support is bollocks and they don't give a shit once they have your box payment. If they investigated they would see many of the bans are due to a lack of their system failure or to provide the gamer with extra security in this modern day and age of gaming.
Of course my comments wont help you resolve your issues with these people but at least you can see we not all against the customer and I feel gamers accept this sort of BS far to often and don't fight it as they never win and this needs to stop.
I could understand if it was a F2P game but I'm sure while there are many who do get hacked and abused there can only be a small % of people who do take the piss and deserve bans. If I were you and you manage to get your account un blocked I would be seeking compensation or even a refund. But don't hold your breathe!
Asbo
http://absoluteretribution.enjin.com/ Guild Website and Recruitment link
Fortunately, I've only had to deal with the CS once, and that was to get my CE code applied to the correct account.
I've played many, F2P games and have never been hacked or compromised. I've played EQ2 and have been only compromised once (and that was before EQ2 went F2P). I purchased an authenticator and haven't had a problem since then.
For WoW, I've watched friends get their accounts compromised. They purchased authenticators and haven't had a problem since.
If the developer is clearly in the wrong for an account or server compromise, then I would agree that SE was heavy handed. Lets face reality though: The number of account hacks that are a result of horrible server security are substantially fewer than the compromises that are a result of user stupidity. PLBKAC and all that.
Raquelis in various games
Played: Everything
Playing: Nioh 2, Civ6
Wants: The World
Anticipating: Everquest Next Crowfall, Pantheon, Elden Ring
This totally cracks me up!
Square Enix DOES give you extra Security options via a FREE mobile authenticator or a physical authenticator you can buy from their store!
Square Enix was actually one of the first Gaming Companies that offered a physical authenticator years back with FFXI already.
Every time you fire up Your launcher you are Facepalmed With the One Time Password option With a help link directly under it that Directs you to page informing you about the authenticator options and how to apply one to Your account.
Only takes you a couple minutes to set up the FREE mobile authenticator and Your account is SAFE!
This is only the case for those who have the phone that supports such apps.
As for the one-time password deal. Anyone coming from something like TOR could easily confuse that for the "one time password" system they use and pay it no mind. In their case it's a unique password that's emailed to you when you haven't logged in for a while, you're locked out until you enter it.
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
If you don't have the phone you can buy the physical one.
Account Security is YOUR responsibility.
Square Enix has the responsibility to keep Your stored account info safe and password and credit card info encrypted. Which they do! As is required by both Law and banks/credit card Companies!
It is YOUR responsibility to use strong not easy to guess passwords and not use the same password all over the internet for years on end. Which I guarrantee you 95% of the population does!
Loads of People asked to be hacked, as they use ridiculously simple passwords and use these same passwords on unsecure Public sites as they use on their Game Accounts!
You cannot make it any easier for hackers this way. But loads of People just don't want to see this very fact!
It's way easier, after being hacked, to Place yourself in the victim role and start venting Your anger and frustration here and blame the gaming Company for Your own ignorance.
This whole thread is like..a microcosm of politics. There's a minority that try to defend the customer, a horde of big-business supporters that violently lash out and blame the customer, a third group that is somewhat rational, but still siding with the big-buisiness, and then a fourth group that is talking about an entirely different an unrelated subject.
Believe it or not..no, I didn't try to buy gold, or sell it. I didn't try to "change the game code" or use 3rd party programs. I simply logged in..played the game since beta 3 with the same name and password and was hacked.
My password wasn't great, nor is my username. It was a hold-over from Beta where i didn't care what my info was, I was too slow to change it. I admit that, but sorry I still pay for the product and as people have already stated, basic security protocols aren't being taken by SE in the first place. I had no problem with them freezing my account, I appreciated that. What I do have a problem with is the ban and the subsequent lack of response I've received thus far (not even auto-mated) after I followed the instructions they gave me to get the account unfrozen. (including the one-time key)
Lastly, those of you claiming you've "never been hacked"..that's not because you do everything right and everyone else does everything wrong...get the f over yourself. It's a numbers game, and you've been lucky so far. In 16 years I've been "hacked" 4 times. Three times on WoW in quick succession, where they very rudely told me to buy their authenticator (*Buy*), and now here. I've played...EQ,Eq2,UO,FFXI,WoW,Rift,SWTOR,EVE,WAR,Neverwinter,DDO,LOTRO,Vindictus...etc...etc and the only games I've ever had problems with are WoW and FFXIV.
Not even when SOE had that massive attack..did I ever have my information compromised, it's similar to personal health..you can do everything right and still get cancer, you can do everything wrong and live to be 100...there's a luck factor that seems to be ignored.
Lastly, I wanted to point out because it seems to have gone unnoticed. I AM NOT BLAMING SE FOR GETTING HACKED. I do think their security relies far too heavily on the user compared to other games, but that's beside the point. Instead, I am upset with how they have handled it, their sham of an "investigation' and the subsequent banning of my account when literally all you have to do is look at the IP address used to access the account during the suspicious activity. I have never been banned from a game, and I find this utterly ridiculous.
But go on, tell me how you have no sympathy and that it's my fault. It provides me with entertainment while I wait to see if SE releases any press releases or actually kicks back a response to my support requests. Oh and continue to defend the big companies..it'll make it so much sweeter when you realize they don't give a shit about you
On Hyperion it's more like "100%" of the spammers are hacked accounts. And since new character creation is still blocked on that server, at least once they're banned... they stay banned.
Cluck Cluck, Gibber Gibber, My Old Mans A Mushroom
The gold sellers are getting more and more aggressive and once they decide to brute force their way into your account no amount of protection is going to help.
To assume that if someone got his account got hacked it must be because he visited a fishy site or bought gold is not true. You can keep your computer as clean as you want with extra lare of securities for your gaming account but if gold sellers get lucky in brute forcing they will get in.
It is just about your luck and it can happen to anyone. Karma is a bitch so be careful before you lash out at people like OP because people who are the most over confident and say stuff like ' it can never happen to me' are always in for big surprise.
They can only brute force their way in, when:
1. People use simple and easy to guess passwords.
2. People use the same password all over the internet for years, including unsecure Public sites and hackers have obtained a password list from one of those unsecure Public sites that got hacked.
And just two posts ago, the OP has finally admitted the very fact he was slacking on his own Security and used a simple username and password. So he got hacked based on point 1.
If you use a complex password. No way they can brute force their way in. It would take too long time and will cause Your account to be flagged and suspended.
And when you attach an authenticator to Your account, be it the software one or physical one. You will be safe!