Possible anti-RMT idea?

Since we have so many problems with bots, I was wondering if it's possible for a simpler solution:

SE creates a couple accounts on each server that aren't named anything special and are lvl xx. As RMT does their shouts, SE captures all names that send shout to name-capture character; a name-capture bot, if you will.

It's an incognito way to have SE with their pulse to the servers, while gathering all data. In addition, I imagine this would be easier than reading countless reports or more reliable than players that have given up reporting individual RMT names.

Other Ideas:

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Originally Posted by Miakisu

mmhmm. Or as an alternative, right-click name-->block also has an additional option, Right-click--> Report RMT, with an auto add-to-blacklist option

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Originally Posted by Miakisu

I suggested that in another thread we have SE GM's just take a look at when very large sums of money are transferred between players. Flag up when a couple hundred thousand to million (or whatever number they want) to assist with catching cheaters.

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Originally Posted by Avenger

I am also leaning toward the whitelist or communications prefs approach:

Friends can: [√]tell [√]invite [√]invite to alliance [√] invite to FC ...
or
Allow /tell from: [√]friends [√]party [√]fc [√]linkshell ... [√]whitelist [ ]spammers [ ]anyone

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I assume you mean tells instead of shouts... might not be a bad idea but the list would need review by a human; bots use the same in game search function individual players can use themselves. The chance of a player /tell'ing a person randomly are low, but it's very possible.

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Originally Posted by Risvertasashi

I assume you mean tells instead of shouts... might not be a bad idea but the list would need review by a human; bots use the same in game search function individual players can use themselves. The chance of a player /tell'ing a person randomly are low, but it's very possible.

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Of course. I'm just eliminating the middleman, which is a player with a 150/200 character-filled blacklist that has given up on reporting :) It becomes a little tedious to copy every name on my list to GM's, especially when they are written as dsflkgjdflkgjdkslfjg or something of that sort.

It definitely needs to be streamlined one way or another. My favored method would be right click > report, but a tell-trap could work as well.

mmhmm. Or as an alternative, right-click name-->block also has an additional option, Right-click--> Report RMT, with an auto add-to-blacklist option

Why not place an account in "review" automatically once they've been blacklisted by a certain amt of players in a specified amount of time? They can still play, but cannot send tells until reviewed by a human at SE.

Also they should place hard limits on the amount of tells that can be sent out. Theres little legitimate reason to send out tells to more than a handful of players within the span of a minute, for example. Put limits on tells sent from a character under a certain level limit, or on new accounts.

lots of ways to address this. These are just off the top of my head and may or may not be workable. But the point is there's a lot more SE could be doing. Every week they say hundreds of accounts have been banned, but I still see them in my blacklist after months.

They should just copy Warcraft's anti spam idea, which offers a right click -> report spam option that auto blocks the spammer from shouts/tells when x amount of people report them.

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Originally Posted by OMG

They should just copy Warcraft's anti spam idea, which offers a right click -> report spam option that auto blocks the spammer from shouts/tells when x amount of people report them.

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This is the best idea so far, you just have to worry about jerks that have jerky friends, that report innocents. In this case its, does the good outweigh the bad, but I think of it as, it would suck if I were put in that situation. To have to clear my name and who know's where it will go from there :(

-Tari

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Originally Posted by Meshico

This is the best idea so far, you just have to worry about jerks that have jerky friends, that report innocents. In this case its, does the good outweigh the bad, but I think of it as, it would suck if I were put in that situation. To have to clear my name and who know's where it will go from there :(

-Tari

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With the mass volume of tells they send out, it's easy to set the threshold pretty high. It can also have comparatively little consequence until a GM can review: Just block the reported account from shout and tell, then the banhammer can come (or not, in the case of abuse) when Square's people confirm it.

Except hunts exist. Someone "early pulls", all QQers instantly report him as RMT

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Originally Posted by randysquirrel

Except hunts exist. Someone "early pulls", all QQers instantly report him as RMT

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Nobody does this. This isn't a F2P filled with children.

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Originally Posted by randysquirrel

Except hunts exist. Someone "early pulls", all QQers instantly report him as RMT

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And they could easily have their accounts suspended or banned for filing a false report?

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Originally Posted by randysquirrel

Except hunts exist. Someone "early pulls", all QQers instantly report him as RMT

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Even if that did happen, which isn't likely, it wouldn't be a problem. A SE rep would review and see that they were false reports, and that would be that.

Hi Miakisu,

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How does this sound to you?

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Yes. I agree.
Here's an idea with a high probability of wiping out all RMT fast,
but a low probability that anyone in El Segundo would have the
nerve to do it.

Copies of all RMT /Tell spam messages should be
auto-forwarded straight into the email accounts of
Mr. Matsuda and Mr. Rogers.

If we're to endure RMT harassment, as an implied "condition"
of being able to subscribe to the game, then the
Square Enix Company Holdings' board of directors
should, likewise, experience the same abuse that
paying, reputable customers have to.

What do you think?

Thanks.

We are in desperate need of some anti-bots measures!! I get tells nearly everyday. I see bots everywhere I go. Gathering, leveling, walking about etc.......

It's really annoying they're just there farming gil/exp/spiritbonding and it just makes me wonder how much they are affecting the economy in the game...

They even have chocobo's healing them when spiritbonding for gods sake!!! that way we can't kill them by opening a trade with them when they pull a monster.

The way it is now.
We are customers.

We're paying for entertainment.
We're getting a mixture of entertainment, RMT harassment, RMT verbal abuse,
and RMT interference from battle bots. RMT criminals are enjoying
Carte Blanc to abuse Square Enix terms of service.
Entertainment is decreasing while RMT abuse is increasing.
Good suggestions, from customers, are being ignored.

As a paying customer, may I respectfully ask?

Any Square Enix employee, anywhere ....

Will RMT countermeasures ever be implemented?

Yes?
No?
Maybe?
Maybe not?
Don't know?
Don't care?

Will you ever protect your networks from the RMT threat?

Yes?
No?
Maybe?
Maybe not?
Don't know?
Don't care?

Will any, of the excellent in-game countermeasure suggestions,
on this very website, ever be implemented?

Yes?
No?
Maybe?
Maybe not?
Don't know?
Don't care?

First priority (IMO) should be coming down major league hard time on the buyers. Get rid of the players buying Gil and the rest will collapse on itself.

No slapped wrist, no warnings or suspension, full time b*tch slap in the face with the proverbial ban hammer to the buyers.

Not sure how these will work in a mmo, but what if they implemented those weird confirmation numbers you have to enter to prove you are a person?

Though I think the best immediate/short term solution it to limit how many character's you can make. As it stands you can make 32 characters max.

I can understand people having alts as mules and such. But is it necessary to have 32?

Hi Myahele,

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Originally Posted by myahele

...those weird confirmation numbers you have to enter to prove you are a person?

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A sophisticated CAPCHA requirement pinned to each character's login
might slow down the bot's process enough that the bot owner would
have to enter the CAPTCHA requirement each time he cycles a spambot
in and out of the game. CAPCHA's aren't foolproof. Sophisticated
hacks can circumvent a CAPTCHA requirement, particularly where
spambot owners are diddling with the data stream in the first place.

I'm not saying not to do it. It comes with the caveat that
spambot softwares may circumvent it via code injection.

We need to keep in mind that RMT criminals are cycling over
1000 spambot accounts per server per day (according to
Reddit), and constantly creating new paying accounts using
cheap stolen credit card numbers. They do all this in software
with minimum human intervention.

STEP-1. Square Enix leadership needs to recognize the
magnitude of the server-side network security threat.
And this is not being done.

I suggested that in another thread we have SE GM's just take a look at when very large sums of money are transferred between players. Flag up when a couple hundred thousand to million (or whatever number they want) to assist with catching cheaters.

OP is suggesting the honeypot idea (also used vs. malware, e-mail spam, etc.) and SE should certainly do it if they aren't already!

I am also leaning toward the whitelist or communications prefs approach:

Friends can: [√]tell [√]invite [√]invite to alliance [√] invite to FC ...
or
Allow /tell from: [√]friends [√]party [√]fc [√]linkshell ... [√]whitelist [ ]spammers [ ]anyone
...

The main disadvantage is it would probably kill off random global /tell, which is a nice feature if it's to/from real players and not RMT spambots.

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Originally Posted by SCUBA_Instr

Hi Miakisu,
Yes. I agree.


Copies of all RMT /Tell spam messages should be
auto-forwarded straight into the email accounts of
Mr. Matsuda and Mr. Rogers.

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While I think it'd be hilarious, I think it wouldn't be productive. It seems like a quick way to their email blacklist and or ban. I just wish someone could go to a fanfest and ask Yoshi-P this in order to bring it to his attention for visibility.

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Originally Posted by Miakisu

I just wish someone could go to a fanfest and ask Yoshi-P this in order to bring it to his attention for visibility.

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I'm surprised that RMT mitigation questions aren't voted up more in the Q&A submission threads for the Letters from the Producer LIVE - it's definitely a major QoL issue that affects many players.

I do remember Yoshi-p saying that they planned to "exterminate" (I think that's the verb that was used in the English translation?) the RMTs, but since then it's clear that more effective measures are needed.

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Originally Posted by Avenger

I'm surprised that RMT mitigation questions aren't voted up more in the Q&A submission threads for the Letters from the Producer LIVE - it's definitely a major QoL issue that affects many players.

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I'm curious if community managers have been told to keep that off their lists of things to bring up-possibly as a publicity issue.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Avenger

I do remember Yoshi-p saying that they planned to "exterminate" (I think that's the verb that was used in the English translation?) the RMTs, but since then it's clear that more effective measures are needed.

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Honestly, I think they need to hire more people for STF, specifically for NA and EU servers. In addition, they need to give them a little more power. When was the last time you heard a story about someone going to Mordion Gaul? ;)