Account Closures

Posted by Stropp on October 13, 2006

Blizzard have announced that they have closed more than 76,000 accounts and have removed an incredible 11,000,000 gold from the game. The accounts that have been closed have violated Blizzards terms of use by using third party programs to macro farm gold and items, and selling gold, items, and characters.

It appears that many of the account closures happened due to players tipping off Blizzard after encountering suspicious activities in the game.

Hooray! I say. While I am sometimes in two minds about people buying gold or items from outside the game, since it’s not always easy for people with limited time to get the equipment they need to progress, it unfortunately supports an industry of farmers, bots, and ninjas. While these activities are enough to spoil fun for many players, there are more insidious effects of the gold selling industry.

The rise of sweatshops in countries without the regulations and laws to protect their workers, means that unscrupulous ‘employers’ work their slaves for hours to earn a pittance, while they reap the rewards of sold gold.

Organised criminals, and some disorganised ones as well, use illegal methods to break into players accounts and strip them bare. Selling anything soulbound, and transfering all the gold and other items to fences, leaving a devastated player in their wake.

So again, I say hooray for Blizzard. I certainly hope this is more than just a speedbump for these scum.

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