Payment Method Registration Errors [Error Code 401 and 601]

[siverstorm]

I have had a response for SE!

We would like to ask you to please ensure that there are enough funds in the account the card belongs to and please send us an image of the card to sel-id@square-enix.com to be able to whitelist it and for you to use it.

Maybe this is an EU feature, but sending your credit card info via email (whether it's an image or plaintext) feels like a setup for a bad time. I mean if it works, then hey, nice.

[kawaiiryuko]

Did it work? I'm in NA and having problems with my credit cards - I've tried four cards, all rejected. Given the number of $1 pre-auth transactions I see, I'm guessing I'm locked out. :( And with the NA support center gone until Monday..wtf!

Why is it so hard to pay you, SE???

[Marcie]

They've passed my information onto the right department - I'm awaiting a response with an outcome of my situation, hopefully they will whitelist my card.

[mosaicex]

Just encountered this problem while trying to extend my subscription as well.

This is really awful, and the fact that SquareEnix seems to ignore it is even worse.

[Leoimy]

oh my lord, the same problem. i messed around and contacted customer support and they swore down to me that it was my card and said it wasnt letting them take the little 1 dollar charge or whatever that is, WELL GUESS WHAT? on my debit card, you can CLEARLY see then take 1 buck EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. and now, i try to just log in and see if i can download the patches, now it says my registry is missing? MY REGISTRY?!?! how was i playing the game without ps4 registry? how? and i even tried my friend's card whiched worked a month before which to my amazement DOSENT work now. and to combat this registry thing i bought the game again, and in the market the collectors edition is equal to that of a new game but oh wait, i'm not going to get that back either huh? theres nothing else i can do. i'm giving up if the game card i just ordered dosen't magically give me my registry back and that this bug gets fixed.

[Minkaa]

This started happening to me today as well. Error 401 over and over again. I tried 3 different cards, 3 different browsers. I know it's not the bank rejecting payments. I've used all 3 cards recently for both online and offline purchases and they work flawlessly in anything other than Square Enix's account management system. I guess if it's true that they lock us out for 24 hours every time we get the 401 error, I may be blocked for months by now... I've probably made dozens of attempts. I'm sure I'll have fun chatting with support every day until they fix it - frustration comedy gold.

Are there any alternative forms of payment still available? I've heard other people suggesting "pay by paypal" or "use UltimatePay" or "Pre-Paid Game Cards" etc... but none of those options seem to be available anymore. Only Click-n-Buy which is completely down.

By trade, I'm a programmer and have set up many online billing and subscription systems. Whenever I do, I set it up so that if there is even a single error, it sends me an email so I can go investigate it and fix the problem immediately. From the look of this thread, this error has been persisting since at least 2011 and SE is still blaming the players? It's extremely frustrating because I know all it would take is ONE responsible employee at SE to go in and fix it. It's not that difficult.

[TessaJalloh]

This started happening to me today as well. Error 401 over and over again.-snip-

Me too, and at roughly the same time. I was trying to buy a Fantasia and i got the error and now can't use either of my cards, can't buy crysta, and thanks to the elimination of the ultimate pay option i can't use paypal either.

[Hoboflan]

Honestly I quit this game the moment I realised this problem has been ignored since the launch of the game.
Not even going to waste time or money stressing about a fix for this or finding a more expensive way to play the game.
Thanks Square Enix...
Fucking DERP

[Minkaa]

According to chat support, the 24 hour lockout only extends from your most recent attempt:

You: I tried probably 30 times. Does that mean I'll be locked out for 720 hours?
Agent Jordan R: No. Just 24 hours. Do not attempt again, as you will only reset the 24 hour timer if you do.

Also, their billing system is run by rogue robot chimpanzees from outer space:

You: I tried with Firefox and Internet Explorer, as well as Chrome. None of them work. Is there any way you can reset my timer? There's no reason to be locked out for 24 hours after your processor declined my card.
Agent Jordan R: Unfortunately, the billing system is a fully-automated system. There is no person or persons overseeing the transactions and manually choosing which cards to decline. But once an error 401/406/601 is given, a 24 hour hold is placed on the account and any further attempts for payment will automatically get declined by the billing system. At this point, we can only advise to wait 24 FULL hours and try again tomorrow, preferably using a different browser and/or PC. Unfortunately, there is nobody in the Support Center with manual controls to the automated billing system and we do not possess the proper tools to bypass these errors. We sincerely apologize for the frustration this may be causing you, but unfortunately, we can only provide the suggestion to please remain patient and try again in 24 hours.

I guess I'll be trying again tomorrow and hoping real hard that it doesn't happen again, because that would mean another 24-hour lockout that apparently Square Enix itself is unable to bend - just in time for the weekend yay! I never imagined it could be so difficult to spend money.

[Vashzaron]

Got both these errors when trying to use 2 separate cards. Thing is one of which was what I used last month to sub without a problem. ???

Though I see they place a hidden 24 hour lockout if you get any of these errors, yet meanwhile I got enough authorization charges to pay for a month of gameplay.