LM-17 wtf

[Butcher]

Tried the online support again today (was banned during the 3rd week of june). Rep said that it was noted on the acct file that it was perma banned and would not go through any investigation. Best part of it was "Thank you for visiting PlayOnline Chat support, Take care and HOPE TO SEE YOU ONLINE!" after telling me i was perma banned.

[WyldFyre]

Guys, you're giving in and giving up far too easy. You have to quote these people and point out the contradictions. The e-mail states you can get your account back with no strikes. That's it. Cut and dry. You have to stick to that and keep going up the chain of command as much as needed and bitch as much as needed until they give you an acceptable resolution.

And yes I know that you shouldn't need to harass them to get things corrected, but this is the real world. Companies do this kind of shit all the time and unless you harass them about it, nothing will change. They know that. It's why they're like that. So stop being idealist and go after them.

Initially I was told on the phone it was perma for irregular activity. Decided to hop online and try to see if I couldn't scare up a supervisor to help clear some of this up. I did indeed request a charge back b/c I was billed improperly.

I was irritated enough that I wasn't going to bother with the notary form, but I think I'm going to try to do so now in hopes of them making another mistake. I was told absolutely that I would have my account reinstated with no strikes or penalties and there would be no investigation and I'm going to hold them to it.

I think you're missing the real point of the request for the id card.

They don't care if you're uglier than sin. I think they want to compare the address on the identification with the location that the player is logging in. If address and IP are same/similar, welcome back. If not ... kthxbai.


And, since there's no way to explain why one may or may not have the same location in both places, tough shit.

[krazylakshmi]

yea i hate that part then before that he said well i have already told you how to fix this..lol

[Furor]

I was hit by the July 29th bannings for "misuse of credit cards", and received an email saying to just call the information center with my PoL ID and the first and last 4 digits of the credit card.

This was the first time I was hit by these so I called today around noon PST. Was on hold for about 30 minutes then a guy picked up and I told him I got an email stating I requested a charge back and was to call the Playonling info center.

He then said one moment and came back telling me it wasn't for a charge back, but rather that their automated system had picked up my account for irregular activity. Now the only thing I do is salvage, ENMs, and some sky and sea farming. However when I sell stuff I sell to NPCs as well as on the AH. When we get items from ENMs we sell and split and since I'm the one selling I then send the gil through the D.box or trade to the people I do them with. I usually hold my gil though since I'm saving for a relic. So this is what probably got the system's attention, the fact I keep selling stuff and just store the gil or split it with friends.

I told the rep. that this was weird how I do normal stuff with my friends and he said not a problem, and took down my info and said one moment while he reverses the ban. 2 minutes later he said ok the ban was reversed and I could log in. He also said it shouldn't happen again, but he wasn't sure as this was an automated system that picks up flagged accounts for potential irregular activity. So I logged in my account like 10 minutes later and had to reactivate it and everything was fine.

So all I can say is if you just recently got hit again try calling them instead of using the web chat. The rep seemed nice and was very willing to reverse the ban for me, however this was the first time and didn't count as any negative strikes on my account.

[Demosthenes11]

I love how once SE fucks up your account, it's a crapshoot whether you get it back based on what rep answers your call

[cpu]

I've spoken to these guys multiple times about multiple accounts and the summary is this:

There is no way to guarantee the you will be unbanned even if the name on the credit card used matches the name on the account.

The most common response is a request for you to fax in a photo ID of the name on the account along with the POL ID and eventually you'll be switched from banned status to "inactive" (update payment info status).

If your name is not the name of the original owner of the account then you will either need to photoshop a fake ID (there are potential legal consequences to this action if it is reported as fake to authorities by SE, although it is very unlikely) or contact the original owner to have them fax in their ID or send you a scan of their ID to fax in.

Depending upon the representative you speak to you may be told that the account has been banned for "irregular activities" or that you need to fax in a photo ID, I was given both of these responses by two different reps (POL SE Chris and POL SE Paul for the same POL ID). My suggestion is to keep trying until you reach a representative who tells you that the account will not be unbanned without a photo ID and then to fax one in or request a notary form as with the poster above.

[icharis]

Is this real? Looks too good to be true or is there some background story when you had to contact and spam the POL service for 5 weeks?

I think maybe I was unclear. I was banned a few months ago on a friends account that I was paying for. That's a done deal. Called. Live chat. Send ID. Permabanned.

Now Thursday night, my REAL character was banned. Got an email this time though. Said to call and verify info to have my account unbanned. I did this today (Friday), and my account is mine again.

This is how it started with my friends account, only last time I didn't get an email. So hopefully, I won't be banned next month like my other account was.

[Mistress Stowastiq]

This is what i am assuming. Which is lame cause some people my use a different CC like a friends or parents or something if they have money issues or what not and they are just making it more difficult/ frustrating for people to have an account. Yes it may stop the once in a while idiot who loses their shit by giving away log in info and someone stealing it but that's what the GM's/ Info center is there to help if that does happen. So lame if you ask me.

It is against policy to share accounts and I realize it is your friend's and he is ok with it but if you tell them that you are using a friend's account, there is a large chance that they will quote the tos and ban. Just a heads up.

[Kikaru]

So apparently, SE aren't the only ones being anal about chargebacks. Just saw this on kotaku tonight Chargeback Snafu Results in Warcraft Account Suspensions - Blizzard - Kotaku . Basically, same thing happening to you guys is happening to WoW players too.

[Gadritan]

I think you're missing the real point of the request for the id card.

They don't care if you're uglier than sin. I think they want to compare the address on the identification with the location that the player is logging in. If address and IP are same/similar, welcome back. If not ... kthxbai.


And, since there's no way to explain why one may or may not have the same location in both places, tough shit.

I'm not missing the point. There's no reason the locations need to match. I can play my account from wherever I'd like to. It wasn't compromised and all of the addresses on POL and the CC match with my current address, and have matched for the 6yrs or so I've been playing.

Explain to me what that has to do with requesting a charge back if I'm somehow missing something. They billed me improperly and I had to request a charge back to get it sorted out and that's what my account was banned for. Explain what that has to do with ID verification.

What it comes down to is they overcharged me, I got my money back, and they're not happy about that. I have no debt with them. I didn't charge back money due. Correcting a mistake made by THEM shouldn't dictate getting your account banned. That's my point.

[Cdaykris]

what i find funny is this..... I was LM-17 on 29th

POS DEBIT 858-7907529SQUAREENIX4 LOS ANGELES CA $32.93

This was in the pending Section of my statment

[shaddix]

what i find funny is this..... I was LM-17 on 29th

POS DEBIT 858-7907529SQUAREENIX4 LOS ANGELES CA $32.93

This was in the pending Section of my statment

That shit happened to me last month, if it happens again this month I won't be back

[DiomedesSylph]

N4G.com : Has Square Enix Banned Logic?

Spoiler: show

Has Square Enix Banned Logic?
Written by Thayos and ElmerThePointy

Relax -- Final Fantasy XI will be just fine.

That's what the development team said two months ago, right after Square Enix announced the upcoming release of Final Fantasy XIV. Although the news was embraced across the MMO universe, many FFXI players voiced concern over how this would affect their game. The development team reacted quickly, saying they already had a year’s worth of updates all planned out, and that they had no intention of stopping after that.

But is everything OK in Vana'diel?

In the weeks following the announcement -- a time when Square Enix should have been reassuring its FFXI fanbase -- scores of players were suddenly banned from Vana'diel. They temporarily banned droves of players for selling gardened goods to NPCs. Then they started banning people who did so little as to change their billing information. Then, with their playerbase already in a frenzy, they changed their longtime billing rules with less than one day of notice.

Whether they’re trying to crush RMT or simply trying to make accounts more secure, the folks at Square Enix have dealt some serious collateral damage to their fans through this wave of hastily implemented security measures.

These gaffes by Square Enix could not have come at a worse time.

Many of these players were reinstated, but Square Enix never gave an official explanation as to why the bannings took place. Through conversation on various forums, players began to realize that most who had been banned had gardening mules on their accounts. Players suspect the bannings were an unintended result of Square Enix's patented "RMT-PWNER," an automated program designed to punish and ban RMT.

Then came the credit card bannings. Some players noticed they had been billed twice by Square Enix, and some said they were banned after attempting to correct the issue through their banks or financial institutions. Some players were reportedly banned for "irregular activity" on their credit cards; others banned for the same reason were not specifically told it was regarding their credit cards, leaving them to guess what exactly "irregular activity" means.

Given the nonsense of the previous two months, is it surprising that people freaked out when Square Enix announced a sudden change to the terms of service? And with just one day of notice?

Starting immediately, all North American Final Fantasy XI players must register their credit card with VerifiedByVisa or MasterCard SecureCode. However, there are many Final Fantasy XI players who might not possess their own credit cards. Furthermore, as many are discovering, their cards may not even be eligible for the service. What are players supposed to do? Square Enix has provided a bare minimum of explanation, and people across America are left scrambling and asking questions - a situation that is all too familiar.

Makes you wonder, will players be faced with similar hurdles in Final Fantasy XIV?

What is Square Enix trying to accomplish here?

There is a trend in Japanese business (and around the world) to become more and more internationalized. Square Enix has subsidiaries located in North America and Europe, recently acquired Eidos Interactive, and has also made a deal with French gaming company Ubisoft to distribute foreign games in Japan. They appear to have the savvy to play on the world stage, but do they have the cultural know-how required to support this diverse set of customers?

According to the most recent change to the terms of service, the answer to that question is a resounding "no". This new provision seems to only affect players in North America. While the change may reduce the number of credit card billing errors (and subsequent knee-jerk bannings), many players are growing weary of jumping through hoops to play a video game. Meanwhile, in Japan, a player can stroll into any number of convenience stores and throw down a little cash for electronic "Web Money" to fuel their account. There is no signature or ID required; you can buy it like any old bag of squid-flavored chips.

Perhaps Square Enix added the credit card verification requirement to reduce errors in its North American accounting process. Recently, Japanese companies have been pressured by their government to keep impeccable financial records. Financial reports, once compiled twice a year, are now required to be submitted to the Ministry of Finance and Tokyo Stock Exchange four times every fiscal period.

Regardless, improving overseas customer service should be a top priority, especially with the global launch of a new flagship title looming on the horizon. If Square Enix cares to improve its global image, then why are North American players being treated so differently than Japanese players? There seems to be a large difference here between the type of customer Square Enix may be used to in their home country versus those around the world - customers they never had to deal with in the intricate way an MMO demands.

The gardening bans didn't help in that department, either.

For years, SE has been methodically eradicating RMT from Vana'diel. Gil sellers used to camp every spawn point in sky, monopolize most NMs, manipulate the auction house, fish on every shoreline and mine 24 hours a day. Now, the RMT left in FFXI are just shadows of their former selves. Most players only really notice RMT when they get a /tell advertising a gil-selling site.

When looking at the big picture, Square Enix deserves praise for carrying on its relentless attack against RMT.

However, not one legitimate player should have been banned when SE decided to scorch the flowerpots of the gilsellers. The gardening bans were blind, careless and showed a complete lack of regard for the well-being of the playerbase. There's simply no valid reason why innocent players were carpet bombed in order to get at the RMT.

The people at Square Enix are trying to change. Premier sites such as Allakhazam are getting more attention. Fan Festivals are now regularly planned to occur in North America.

Still, there appears to be this lack of sensitivity to foreign players that has not caught up with the times and continues to cause these baffling situations. If the company hopes to maintain and grow its global MMO audience, then there are some basic truths that SE must embrace:

1. We want to hear from you. If you're going to ban legitimate players, they have a right to know the reason. Don't expect to be forgiven until you explain your actions.

2. We want to be heard. Players have made several suggestions over the years that would have significantly improved gameplay while also quelling the RMT and account security issues. By and large, we feel we've been ignored.

3. We will not tolerate being banned for no reason. Your terms of service may give you the right to do so, but to us, that's an unacceptable way to treat a longtime customer -- even if it's only temporary.

There's more, but that's a good start.

We're willing to cut SE a little bit of slack. They've shown that they're interested in better serving our needs. When players hear Tanaka joke about "meeting players halfway and partying in Hawaii for Fan Fest," or see Sage Sundi with a BlueGartr cap at the Developer's Panel, they cannot help but smile. It displays some humanity from the mysterious creators of Vana'diel and a connection with the players that transcends cultural boundaries and boosts our confidence in the product.

The recent gaffes are frustrating not only because they discourage us as customers, but because they severely undercut Square Enix's efforts to move forward as a global player in the MMO world. With their new MMO title scheduled to launch next year, these are mistakes they simply cannot afford to make.

Full Story:
Has Square Enix Banned Logic? :: ZAM News

Surprised this hasn't been posted yet, bit of a wall-o-text.

[Aksannyi]

It was posted in advanced.

[ryskar]

It makes me smile every time SE has those kinds of articles written about them.

Now to wait for the SE defense force to inevitably start posting.

[cpu]

I received identical emails for 2 different accounts (both stating that the issue was a creditcard chargeback and that I would be able to reactivate by providing the first/last four # of the CC) , after talking with two separate agents (1 for each account) I've faxed in an ID upon request for one account and was told that the other was banned for "irregular activities" and that a ban complaint would be filed on my behalf and I would be contacted if the ban was reversed. Now begins the inevitable waiting period

[WyldFyre]

I'm not missing the point. There's no reason the locations need to match. I can play my account from wherever I'd like to. It wasn't compromised and all of the addresses on POL and the CC match with my current address, and have matched for the 6yrs or so I've been playing.

Explain to me what that has to do with requesting a charge back if I'm somehow missing something. They billed me improperly and I had to request a charge back to get it sorted out and that's what my account was banned for. Explain what that has to do with ID verification.

What it comes down to is they overcharged me, I got my money back, and they're not happy about that. I have no debt with them. I didn't charge back money due. Correcting a mistake made by THEM shouldn't dictate getting your account banned. That's my point.

Mismatched locations is a sign that it is likely to be a bought account. Any stories to justify mismatched locations can be cast aside as they respond with "accounts may be banned for any or no reason".

r/l examples are fun, let's use one.

You are driving down the road, minding your own business, when you come upon a roadblock. Turns out, police are doing a standard DUI check. Since you've had nothing to drink, you don't sweat it and hand the cop your driver's license.

Oh but what's this? You're driving around with a kilo of cocaine in the back seat! So even though you're innocent of the DUI charges, your ass is still sitting in a jail cell.

Only problem is, you can't make your case to the judge. You're convicted without a trial.

[lovehatehero]

Mismatched locations is a sign that it is likely to be a bought account. Any stories to justify mismatched locations can be cast aside as they respond with "accounts may be banned for any or no reason".

r/l examples are fun, let's use one.

You are driving down the road, minding your own business, when you come upon a roadblock. Turns out, police are doing a standard DUI check. Since you've had nothing to drink, you don't sweat it and hand the cop your driver's license.

Oh but what's this? You're driving around with a kilo of cocaine in the back seat! So even though you're innocent of the DUI charges, your ass is still sitting in a jail cell.

Only problem is, you can't make your case to the judge. You're convicted without a trial.

OR....We can take a more realistic route instead of some retarded story that doesnt even come close to what gard said. You start up the game and play for years. Decided you want to move and do so. You ID would still say your old address while your new one you would prob update in POL cause your billing address would change. I know i don't update my address and get a new ID every time i move because the military moves me so much it would be a waste of money really. So now thats cause for bannings. At least so they say. Still retarded. The ID would would prove nothing cept you moved.

[Gadritan]

That's what I was trying to explain Wyld. Nothing changed on my account. It was banned for requesting a charge back, not b/c of mismatched locations. I do appreciate you trying to help a fellow player out with an explanation, but we were talking about two different scenarios, lol.

[Vite]

Why pay these people money when they can act like this and feel they have no need to answer to anyone... a few of my friends got hit by this and its really making me question whether or not its worth to invest my time and effort any further into this game.

word