Console Ban 3-9-11 (Mod Warning Post #755)

Markuspark · 14-09-2011 01:21PM

Con_R wrote: »

Cheers dude, I'm glad someone appreciates us lol And in complete honesty, we haven't been told a single thing about this whole situation, we're just treating it like any other console ban wave.

I have experienced a console ban and have had lengthy but amicable chats with your colleagues at xbox live support to try to determine the cause.

We own a "family" console which is used by myself (aged 42) and two sons (aged 9 & 12).

As I see it Microsoft state they have a foolproof system - permanently banning a console only after a full investigation and therefore I must have somehow violated the terms of use.

As I am 100% sure the console was purchased from a reputable retailer, has not been tampered with and all games played are purchased new from the same retailer, then something we have done whilst online has been flagged up as a violation.

After converations with xbox support to determine what we could have possibly done wrong, we are still no wiser and I am certain that any violation was purely unintentional & accidental

Problem is that whatever "in my opinion" minor violation we have done is still treated with the same degree of punishment as the most major violations - with no means of recourse & no explanations provided!

It would be so much easier if I only knew!!!

At present as a parent I am left with the dilemmas of:

1. Kids being punished for something they're completly unaware they have done and are unable to address as no explanations provided

2. If & this is a big if - a new xbox console is purchased and we continue to use for the same good honest gameplay, how do we know we are not going to commit the same unexplained violations!

I have put both these points & more directly to Mircosoft HQ and currently await a reply. I am not hopeful of any resolution!

Sorry for the rant!

Con_R · 14-09-2011 01:40PM

NORTH1 wrote: »

I was chatting to UK support guy he said almost the same as above.

As this is my first experience of console ban or any type of punishment in seven years of using the service Microsoft I can tell you the experience is quite new to me.

Does this feel like previous console bans?

Honestly, no it doesn't. What I meant though is that we've not been told to treat it any differently, as we actually haven't been told anything at all.

Dr Bob · 14-09-2011 02:12PM

I don't know what the scarier thing here is ,
that MS can ban your console , fair enough its their network, but then wont tell you why ?
Or that fact that so many gamers these days are totally OK with that!

Ri_Nollaig · 14-09-2011 03:55PM

luas_dublin wrote: »

Or that fact that so many gamers these days are totally OK with that!

I guess if someone is banned for a good reason (cheated the Market Place, stealing basically). Then fair enough.
You are right though, so many seem so quick to say "tough shít".

luckyfrank · 14-09-2011 04:01PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsEa27K2ACM&feature=related

Helix · 14-09-2011 04:10PM

Meesared wrote: »

Oh so your writing deliberately controversial articles, no matter how flaky and weak the evidence is, for the sake of advertising revenue?

Think that's any credibility you had gone.

nope. not a contraversial article. im publishing the fact that there may be a link. the article uses plenty of mays, possiblys and could bes

Healium wrote: »

There are better ways to get a comment from a company other than blackmail and lies

article is neither blackmail nor lies.

Healium wrote: »

If you can't get an official response (which you tried, and didn't), you don't go off and make up a story without some valid sources.

i didnt go and make up the story, i reported what was here

Healium wrote: »

So, we should have no journalistic standards, because it's video games? Bull. You don't write for the Daily Mail.

someone saying that theyve spoken to someone working for ms who confirms that the bans are happening because of a glitch is something that should be made public knowledge.

Healium wrote: »

You may know him in person, but your source is still a "friend of a friend", not exactly reliable.

hence the coulds, maybes and possiblys

Healium wrote: »

This guy also only started working there recently. We have a number of support staff here, and I could be wrong, but since they go out of their way in some of the replies here (and potentially break company policy), I can't imagine that if they knew something, they wouldn't at least mention it here (Even a "we've been informed about the issue. Wait for a statement" response). That's just the impression I get. I genuinely don't think they've been told of any fault on Microsoft's end.

or they have, and its known they use boards so they'd like to hold onto their jobs?

Healium wrote: »

You make up a story about Black Ops DLC flagging consoles for Marketplace theft, QJ.net makes up a story that the DLC causes consoles to get flagged as stolen units....

i didnt make it up though?

Con_R · 14-09-2011 04:29PM

Helix wrote: »

someone saying that theyve spoken to someone working for ms who confirms that the bans are happening because of a glitch is something that should be made public knowledge.

Nothing was confirmed. I believe what you're referring to is known as 'hearsay'. This friend of a friend, though he might work here in support, sounds like he's just speculating with the facts that he does have at the moment. But similar to what a lot of people are saying, support staff or otherwise, it is purely speculation. Nothing has been confirmed about these console bans and we haven't been given any information about it whatsoever. We were as surprised as everyone else to see this tidal wave of console bans.

Helix · 14-09-2011 04:37PM

Con_R wrote: »

Nothing was confirmed. I believe what you're referring to is known as 'hearsay'. This friend of a friend, though he might work here in support, sounds like he's just speculating with the facts that he does have at the moment. But similar to what a lot of people are saying, support staff or otherwise, it is purely speculation. Nothing has been confirmed about these console bans and we haven't been given any information about it whatsoever. We were as surprised as everyone else to see this tidal wave of console bans.

it's definitely just hearsay, and that's how the article has been presented

me-skywalker · 14-09-2011 04:53PM

Well lets say MS have a team scanning the web for Xbox related mentions on large forum websites and come across this and now this will be flagged up on their reporting as spikes. These spikes will be looked at and the content will then be looked at. It will be escalated up the line to the relevant managers/team leaders and queried. Now anybody that has posted saying the currently work for MS and has even given a hint of info here will be investigated and sacked.

Helix · 14-09-2011 05:11PM

me-skywalker wrote: »

Well lets say MS have a team scanning the web for Xbox related mentions on large forum websites and come across this and now this will be flagged up on their reporting as spikes. These spikes will be looked at and the content will then be looked at. It will be escalated up the line to the relevant managers/team leaders and queried. Now anybody that has posted saying the currently work for MS and has even given a hint of info here will be investigated and sacked.

you reckon a thread in an xbox section of a major forum might be flagged for mentioning xbox? specifically this thread like? whats the difference between this one and any of the other xbox threads in this xbox forum?

KERSPLAT! · 14-09-2011 05:15PM

And how will a MS employee be linked to an anonymous forum account??

Cant see Boards.ie releasing info

me-skywalker · 14-09-2011 05:24PM

Helix wrote: »

you reckon a thread in an xbox section of a major forum might be flagged for mentioning xbox? specifically this thread like? whats the difference between this one and any of the other xbox threads in this xbox forum?

IPAM wrote: »

And how will a MS employee be linked to an anonymous forum account?? Cant see Boards.ie releasing info

Well only because of the content in this thread could lead to a further security breach if such a member is indeed an employee and purposefully or inadvertently releases information that MS deems privy to nobody outside its walls. It is known that a certain mobile company does indeed 'scan' boards.ie....

Con_R · 14-09-2011 06:46PM

me-skywalker wrote: »

Well only because of the content in this thread could lead to a further security breach if such a member is indeed an employee and purposefully or inadvertently releases information that MS deems privy to nobody outside its walls. It is known that a certain mobile company does indeed 'scan' boards.ie....

Only thing is, we don't actually have any information to leak other than what we're already telling people on the phone, which is what everyone knows anyway.

Corben Dallas · 14-09-2011 07:22PM

Following this thread with huge interest, I feel that a lot of ppl have DL'ed the zombie maps(quite popular ya know) so if its the DL then 1000's of players would be affected. I doubt its this.
It could be how the points were got to DL the maps in first place?

Also lot of parents are clueless to what their kids and their m8's DL and put on USB sticks, alter their XBox code thru Windows PC Media Centre connected to XBOX etc ....while your not using it yourself.
(+MW2 is an 18's game so should they even be playing it?)

I'm thinking its a hack to get Ms points that they got from a mate etc.

It could be something like an in game hack that you might think is harmless but destroys FPS shooters for everyone else playing the 'normal' (as its released by Activision) game online.

IMO they should ban ppl for this, 3 day bans, then a week, then console bans.

MS should def explain why. Pls let us know.

lankz92 · 14-09-2011 07:28PM

just thinking there, microsoft has not denied nor confirmed the rumors,
i would imagine with it being on so many gaming sites now theyd have something to say

starting to remind me of all the psn crap a few months back, took sony weeks to admit they had a security breech

not saying it is microsofts fault or anything, just if it wasnt true youd imagine they would have denied it by now no?

chopperbyrne · 14-09-2011 07:35PM

lankz92 wrote: »

just thinking there, microsoft has not denied nor confirmed the rumors,
i would imagine with it being on so many gaming sites now theyd have something to say

starting to remind me of all the psn crap a few months back, took sony weeks to admit they had a security breech

not saying it is microsofts fault or anything, just if it wasnt true youd imagine they would have denied it by now no?

The sites are saying it's a problem with how some DLC was coded. (It's also not this at all, unless several different pieces of code from several different publishers were coded wrong as people who don't have Black Ops and haven't got the map packs have been banned.)

That would be the publishers fault and they'd have to issue the apology, not Microsoft.

lankz92 · 14-09-2011 07:36PM

Corben Dallas wrote: »

Following this thread with huge interest, I feel that a lot of ppl have DL'ed the zombie maps(quite popular ya know) so if its the DL then 1000's of players would be affected. I doubt its this.
It could be how the points were got to DL the maps in first place?

Also lot of parents are clueless to what their kids and their m8's DL and put on USB sticks, alter their XBox code thru Windows PC Media Centre connected to XBOX etc ....while your not using it yourself.
(+MW2 is an 18's game so should they even be playing it?)

I'm thinking its a hack to get Ms points that they got from a mate etc.

It could be something like an in game hack that you might think is harmless but destroys FPS shooters for everyone else playing the 'normal' (as its released by Activision) game online.

IMO they should ban ppl for this, 3 day bans, then a week, then console bans.

MS should def explain why. Pls let us know.

i agree people ruin games like mw2 by hacking them, maybe not give them a console ban, but ban them from game servers, iv seen this done on black ops a few times, mite make them think twice about doing it,

but from what iv heard mw3 is supposed to be reasonably patched up, the took in teams of hackers to test it, and will be continuing to do so through the year, so hopefully that will keep hackers at bay,

and also as you said about kids parents not knowing what there putting on their xbox's, well surely theyd have been caught before now? so many bans couldnt be linked to the same source? unless some sort of detection method was added along with it, after all its only lately theyve been wising up to marketplace theft

lankz92 · 14-09-2011 07:39PM

chopperbyrne wrote: »

The sites are saying it's a problem with how some DLC was coded. (It's also not this at all, unless several different pieces of code from several different publishers were coded wrong as people who don't have Black Ops and haven't got the map packs have been banned.)

That would be the publishers fault and they'd have to issue the apology, not Microsoft.

thought it had to pass microsoft testing before it was released tho?
so surely if it was a codeing problem it would have been noticed

but as iv said in my last post, could just happen that microsoft swung the ban hammer on market place thefts as theve only started to crack down on it recently

garv123 · 14-09-2011 08:17PM

me-skywalker wrote: »

Well lets say MS have a team scanning the web for Xbox related mentions on large forum websites and come across this and now this will be flagged up on their reporting as spikes. These spikes will be looked at and the content will then be looked at. It will be escalated up the line to the relevant managers/team leaders and queried. Now anybody that has posted saying the currently work for MS and has even given a hint of info here will be investigated and sacked.

since a court order is needed for any of that to happen.

nevaeh-2die-4 · 14-09-2011 08:28PM

lankz92 wrote: »

i agree people ruin games like mw2 by hacking them, maybe not give them a console ban, but ban them from game servers, iv seen this done on black ops a few times, mite make them think twice about doing it,

but from what iv heard mw3 is supposed to be reasonably patched up, the took in teams of hackers to test it, and will be continuing to do so through the year, so hopefully that will keep hackers at bay,

and also as you said about kids parents not knowing what there putting on their xbox's, well surely theyd have been caught before now? so many bans couldnt be linked to the same source? unless some sort of detection method was added along with it, after all its only lately theyve been wising up to marketplace theft

Your spelling and grammar is a appalling

garv123 · 14-09-2011 08:32PM

nevaeh-2die-4 wrote: »

Your spelling and grammar is a appalling.

FYP.

FutureGuy · 14-09-2011 08:37PM

nevaeh-2die-4 wrote: »

Your spelling and grammar is a appalling

pot. kettle. off-topic.

Keep the posts on topics guys.

lankz92 · 14-09-2011 08:58PM

does it matter what my spelling and grammar is like, no need to insult me!!

Meesared · 15-09-2011 09:03AM

me-skywalker wrote: »

Well lets say MS have a team scanning the web for Xbox related mentions on large forum websites and come across this and now this will be flagged up on their reporting as spikes. These spikes will be looked at and the content will then be looked at. It will be escalated up the line to the relevant managers/team leaders and queried. Now anybody that has posted saying the currently work for MS and has even given a hint of info here will be investigated and sacked.

Riiiight

NORTH1 · 15-09-2011 01:15PM

Posted by Lazarus718 today on the xbox forums. 12 days in....

Like others in this thread I was banned and have no explanation why. I've done the same typical stuff i.e. contact support, post in the forums, twiddle my thumbs, etc. The only conclusion I can come to is that Microsoft has had their system exploited and wants to keep it under wraps. They want to do their best to maintain their 0% false positive rating with console bans and to avoid any class-action suits headed their way. The fact that they have simply stone-walled so many long term supporters and CUSTOMERS (let's not forget that they are who they are because we give them our money) suggests that they are covering their tracks. The truth of the matter is that they do not have a perfect record with console bans and they DO have the ability to reverse a ruling that they have made in regards to a ban. They know that if they admit fault in one instance that they will have to face a poop storm of litigation for years to follow. So what do they do...they take control of the information and hide it in their sock drawer. The only way around this for any of us is to grow in mass and to raise awareness of a great big "up yours" by MS in regards to our nations business law regulations. I promise you that a lawsuit will come from this. There will be a lawyer or a group of lawyers down the road that will litigate this matter. It is not "legal" and karma will catch up with the executives of this company that perpetuate this unethical behavior. Due process will prevail and the company will be reprimanded for basically what will come to be known as a significant mistake in business practice. I know I will not purchase Microsoft's newest and greatest gaming rig after this experience; I will go with Sony.

Jelle1880 · 15-09-2011 01:21PM

Another one who thinks Microsoft will leave themselves open to lawsuits like amateurs...

I fully understand if people want to take legal action, but do you honestly think that a multi-billion dollar company would just try and cover stuff up like that ?

As for his threat to go with Sony: May be better off going with Nintendo then

15-09-2011 01:23PM

Jelle1880 wrote: »

Another one who thinks Microsoft will leave themselves open to lawsuits like amateurs...

I fully understand if people want to take legal action, but do you honestly think that a multi-billion dollar company would just try and cover stuff up like that ?

As for his threat to go with Sony: May be better off going with Nintendo then

No right now they are just buying time to assess the situation before making a statement. Which is the right thing to do. They did the same at the birth of the RROD.

gizmo · 15-09-2011 01:25PM

Yep, Sony will welcome you with open arms, once you sign their new Terms Of Service of course.

From looking around on various forums has anyone got a rough idea of how many people are affected by this yet?

Meesared · 15-09-2011 01:32PM

Deleted User wrote: »

No right now they are just buying time to assess the situation before making a statement. Which is the right thing to do. They did the same at the birth of the RROD.

How do you know that?

hightower1 · 15-09-2011 01:36PM

Deleted User wrote: »

No right now they are just buying time to assess the situation before making a statement. Which is the right thing to do. They did the same at the birth of the RROD.

Soc -> Conspiricy theories -> this way...... :rolleyes:

Console Ban 3-9-11 (Mod Warning Post #755)

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