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Updates to Anti-Fraud Measures
nitocris83
Member, Cryptic Developer, Administrator Posts: 4,498Cryptic Developer › Cryptic Developer
In order to further reduce the impact of fraud and gold-seller behavior on game economies, we are refining detection systems that are currently in place in both Neverwinter and Star Trek Online. These systems identified potential problem cases and permanently bound tradeable items to the player account. For instance, if a lockbox key or a package with a collection of items was purchased, all contents of these items would also become account bound.
To improve the player experience, we are implementing a change so that such binding will no longer be permanent. Instead, these items will be bound to account for a limited duration, shown by a countdown timer. After this, the items will become tradeable. If you do not see the countdown timer, the item is permanently bound to account by design. You can tell if an item has this timer in the Neverwinter UI as per the images below:
This update will be implemented across all platforms for both Neverwinter and Star Trek Online. We plan to adjust the sensitivity of the system over time to minimize the impact on our legitimate customers. We welcome your feedback and appreciate your patience in this matter.
*Note: Previous images displaying Enchanted Keys were for messaging example purposes only - Enchanted Keys will always remain bound. Images have been updated for clarity.
To improve the player experience, we are implementing a change so that such binding will no longer be permanent. Instead, these items will be bound to account for a limited duration, shown by a countdown timer. After this, the items will become tradeable. If you do not see the countdown timer, the item is permanently bound to account by design. You can tell if an item has this timer in the Neverwinter UI as per the images below:
This update will be implemented across all platforms for both Neverwinter and Star Trek Online. We plan to adjust the sensitivity of the system over time to minimize the impact on our legitimate customers. We welcome your feedback and appreciate your patience in this matter.
*Note: Previous images displaying Enchanted Keys were for messaging example purposes only - Enchanted Keys will always remain bound. Images have been updated for clarity.
Post edited by nitocris83 on
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Comments
"The reason is that in the past, you could make a new account, charge from steam $100 (or whatever) buy goods or convert to AD and th4en send those items/AD to another account or friend and as final step do a chargeback claim on steam and have both the items/AD and your money.
The reason that is 7 days is that is the max days that it takes for the refund period (I think)." im quoting this from a fb post explaining the 7 d timers, to stop players exploiting the zen charge/refund systemn, now all is clear. well done.
You create the potential to hamper your whales if they can't offload as they go.
Personally, I couldn't care less. I don't get enough good drops to worry about selling stuff, and mot of my loot gets converted for RP, if I do get something I can wait and waiting will soon/eventually become normal.
And I don't commit fraud so I don't anticipate being locked permanently.
This is my second thought...
Question.
If I get say, (as per the example above) a R7 Bonding Runestone, and I already have 3, will the new one stack separately, or will it join the existing stack and cause that entire stack to be time locked, or will the stack be immediately unlocked?
Or am I completely misunderstanding?
I'm asking if that has been taken into account during the design of the temporary flag code.
It may well be that they are creating a whole new set of items with timers attached, which will all disappear and be replaced with the old ones when the timer runs down. In which case, of course, they will stack separately and the creation of the new one will add it to any existing stack in the normal manner.
If there are any glitch issues with stuff not converting to Unbound when the timer runs down, for instance, people will rightly be annoyed.
Something that deals with an issue so directly linked to cash spending has to be damn near perfect first time, every time.
It's not going to be one of those "Oh, we can live with it till they get round to fixing it." issues like Alchemy progression on a double Professions event in the old system.
Likewise whatever they are using to identify the naughty boys and girls needs to be very good at it's job. False positives will need to be VERY quickly and accurately dealt with.
It won't be the sort of thing people will forgive and forget in a hurry otherwise.
This has to be one of the least cash-grabby f2p games I know of.
I call them ghost teams - whatever you want to call them - the two other 'players' in the 3 man dungeon following along behind my alt in lock step to each other.
It's honestly one of the weirdest aspects of the current game for me - creepier than anything designed into the game.
Without going into specific details that I'm not privy to, I'm pretty sure it will only have an effect on people who are purchasing Zen through methods that they do not usually purchase it, such as through Steam when they usually use the Arc app, or with a new credit card. Basically the same thing that put your account on probation for the past 4 years, will probably continue to do so, but with a nice quality of life update. Previously, if you bought things while on probation due to purchases, those items would be permanently bound to your account. Now after that update, they will only be temporarily bound. This is a GOOD and welcome change, which still will not have any effect at all on the majority of the player base.
Any of my comments not posted in orange are based on my own personal opinion and not official.
Any messages written in orange are official moderation messages. Signature images are now fixed!
https://www.arcgames.com/en/games/neverwinter/news/detail/11102103
i.e. they bought Zen through Steam and then (unlike regular player) whatever they bought from Zen store (in their early game life) became bound forever,
Now, these stuff can be unbound after 7 days (assuming that is the time it takes Steam to clear the payment to Cryptic).
@akuvar#2397 - Neither are broken but the issue with steam is they don't pay cryptic immediatly, it's like a weekly batch payment or something like that. This gives frauders the chance to stop payment on the credit card and cryptic doesn't know for several days. Buying though other places pays directly and if there is a chargeback it's caught right away.
> the only thing you have done is hurt legitimate players by making us wait 7 days sellers are in no hurry can afford to hold onto stuff they are selling
>
> Just buy Zen directly, instead of going through Steam - then the problem does not arise in the first place, right ?
Some people play a number of games and prefer to keep the gaming budget in their steam wallet before they decide which game and items they want to spend it on. Also that keeps one's credit card numbers in one place instead of a number of different game company's systems at once, which reduces its footprint and the risk of a hacker getting the number (unless of course they happen to target steam instead of a game company), though it costs the player some extra hassle to make the exchange compared to a direct zen buy via ARC.
Anyway, this new rule is a relaxation of a penalty that could be applied by mistake so it is a good thing not a bad one.
> If you have 3 unbound bonding stones and get a temp bound stone why would it stack with your unbound? They wouldn't stack currently.
I’m guessing they are going to use existing effects to implement this. If they use timers and temporary item rules found on other stuff scattered around the world like the timers on temporary masks and a few other things that stack.
The stack shows the time left on the next one to disappear. (Or in this case unlock)
It leaves the locked pile and starts a new pile of normal items, or then merges with existing items.
So if you have a stack of 100 gems and get a locked one, you have a stack of 100 and a stack of 1 (with a timer). At times end you have a stack of 101.
If you have 1locked items it will be 1 stack with (1day) shown then if you get another with a 7day lock it will say 2 (1day) gems, the lowest timer. Until that gem becomes normal in 1 day then the other will say (6days)
Again this is just based on timed and temporary things already found in the game.
It may be different, but i don’t know why they would change it up.
Because thats annoying. I want to put up my 13 potency marks from my boxes as fast as i can because i have other things to do.
Or is this an unrelated issue? Still annoying.
Only since patch may 7 (well, it used to happen and seems to be again for me):
https://www.arcgames.com/en/forums/neverwinter#/discussion/1243496/unable-to-post-on-tradehouse
Again not sure how you got your 5k Zen was it via AD or IRL money but if it did not effect you then you where just lucky. I've asked around and everyone says it happened to them as well.