How to deal with ingame suicide threats?

[Straef]

Hi,

As you can probably tell, this is my first post on this forum. Not having been active on here, forgive me for not getting whatever local forum etiquette I might be missing out on in this post.

About twenty minutes ago someone was threatening to end her (assuming from the character's name) life over the Limsa "shout" chat, followed by some more generic messages. I'm not quite sure what to do with this, as there doesn't seem to be an adequate ingame way available to deal with such a scenario. The only quick way to file a report relates to RMT, which isn't the case, and simultaneously show where the company's priorities lie. The other options I could find relate to harassment, cheating, and bugs.

I realize odds are it's someone trolling, looking for attention, or otherwise not serious about it. Having previously dealt with Square Enix's customer support (and their zero responses to my several filings), I don't feel comfortable using any of the options available ingame. Though the forums don't seem like the most appropriate place to deal with these issues, I don't feel at easy just doing nothing.

Having both dealt with years of depression myself, and having seen game-related suicides (and just suicides in general) in the news, it's hard to not feel queezy when you randomly read about someone threatening or claiming to end their life. Seeing as this post is turning out longer than intended, I guess I'm trying to achieve the following two things with this post:

- Find out where to send screens/info/reports of such cases (such as tonight)
- Perhaps gain more insight into the situation and, if necessary, shed some light on it and hope it leads to more adequate ingame means for non-traditional ingame problems.

If someone could tell me that there's actually a place I can contact over such issues, feel free to let me know.

In case this is all deemed inappropriate, please understand that I'm new to the forums, rather surprised by the whole situation, and entirely unsure as to where such things should be posted, if at all...

Finally, I'm guessing people will be able to either know or guess the person I'm on about if they were online at the time, but I reckon it's better not to reveal their identity to someone other than a SE employee or forum moderator, though I could be wrong.

[Dustytome]

File a harassment report with the information and square can contact someone based off the character's account information. Alternatively you can go to the info tab, type 'contact gm' in the search box at the bottom, choose 'How do I contact a Game Master?' and click "File a Report" at the bottom. Make sure to be precise with the information you provide (who said it, what they said, when they said it, where they said it and server info). Here's an old thread with a GM response on the subject, but no specifications in regards to how specifically to report it.









(still faster to use the harassment option and I received errors multiple times navigating through to get these screen grabs)

[AppleJinx]

The reason there isn't a place to report in game suicide threats is because it's almost like it isn't SE's responsibility to deal with such incidents

[Nihility]

it honestly really isn't S-E's job to deal with that sort of stuff.

more likely you'd take screenshots and info to your local police and they'd contact S-E for more if they think it warrants further investigation.
problem with online is people do stuff like that all the time because it becomes some faceless, anonymous, doesn't matter if i say provocative stuff situation

[Dustytome]

it honestly really isn't S-E's job to deal with that sort of stuff.

Perhaps not, but as per the thread I linked above, they have procedures in place for dealing with this sort of thing and encourage it to be reported.

To begin with (and, hopefully, offer the most assurance related to your concerns), we do have a procedure for handling various types of threats, both for customers who may engage in self harm and those who make threats. As others have pointed out, however, these situations are very private, and we take that privacy very seriously. While we will investigate any threats that are made, we cannot give out any information related to those investigations. Please also note that our investigations may not always be the most efficient way of handling a threat; often, for threats against a person, the threatened person would benefit more in the short run from contacting the police themselves than having the GMs investigate. This can certainly come across as dismissive of a threat; however, since we cannot discuss the investigation that will be conducted, this may be the best advice we can offer in those situations, and does not mean we are not looking into the threat or handling it to the best of our ability.

So, when you do encounter this type of concerning behaviour, we do encourage you to report it, and we will investigate it to determine the proper course of action according to our policies. The GMs will handle these cases based on the information they are provided to be able to take the best course of action.

In addition, it's probably a lot easier for someone from SE's team to call out than it is for anyone to call in quickly, especially as they would need to verify anyone calling in for user information.

[Paladinleeds]

In addition, it's probably a lot easier for someone from SE's team to call out than it is for anyone to call in quickly, especially as they would need to verify anyone calling in for user information.

Exactly, GMs are working around the clock. Discord has a policy in place too, threats of self-harm and suicide are to be reported to the Trust and Safety Team. Had a friend go through that (and unfortunately was serious on the self-harm front). Discord investigated and made sure my friend had links to get help. And I've also rung the crisis team on friends before living in the opposite end of the country because of friends feeling suicidal (I had the information the crisis team needed)... psychological therapist dispatched to the house, person taken to hospital for the night and made sure they were looked after. Now they're getting support and turning their life around. Trust me, it CAN help. And if people care enough to get that train going, then that's a good thing. We're all warriors of light together. I want to care for my fellow WoLs.

[Etrius]

Usually, when I have suicidal thoughts, I don't shout them for random people, those who do it just want/need the attention or are trolling, reporting them as others instructed are the "best" way to deal with it.

Also, as Enkrateia mentioned, this stuff is very private and every individual has its own web of IRL problems to deal with in a daily basis.

[Iscah]

it honestly really isn't S-E's job to deal with that sort of stuff.

more likely you'd take screenshots and info to your local police and they'd contact S-E for more if they think it warrants further investigation.
problem with online is people do stuff like that all the time because it becomes some faceless, anonymous, doesn't matter if i say provocative stuff situation

The problem with that approach is that it's going to be really slow. You gather information, you talk to the police, they contact SE (maybe), the person they spoke to contacts the GM...

If the player saying those things is genuine, you want to alert people faster than that.

Thus, alerting a GM who has access to the chat log, the player's information, and can potentially (if trained for it) actually speak to the player in-game immediately, or connect them with someone who is better enabled to help, or at very least monitor their chat and what people say back to them.


On the other hand, it would make more sense (as noted in Dustytome's quote from the GM) that if someone is threatening you with harm, then you take it to the police as it's potentially a local real-world issue that they would have more control over.

[SaitoHikari]

The reason there isn't a place to report in game suicide threats is because it's almost like it isn't SE's responsibility to deal with such incidents

You'd actually be wrong on that front. Even if it legally isn't their responsibility, I imagine they are obligated to take them seriously for various reasons, if not just for actual decency.

Back when I was actually a moderator/informant for one of Nexon's games, there was someone on the forums who was highly implying that they were going to inflict some manner of self-harm. I watched as the staff moved to do a wellness check, and a group of about four of us even went to look for the player in-game to talk to them when other players told me their IGN and notified me that they were online. It appeared as if the staff also had an idea of where the player lived, or at least their general area, and started looking up information such as the local police department and suicide hotlines in case the situation escalated.

SE probably has better resources to figure out where each player lives, if necessary.

[Straef]

File a harassment report with the information and square can contact someone based off the character's account information. Alternatively you can go to the info tab, type 'contact gm' in the search box at the bottom, choose 'How do I contact a Game Master?' and click "File a Report" at the bottom. Make sure to be precise with the information you provide (who said it, what they said, when they said it, where they said it and server info).

Thanks, I think that's pretty much what I was looking for. I hadn't found the "contact GM" bit.