It is time for a secure crown gifting system.

Xinihp

Years ago, ZOS made the conscious decision to facilitate an exchange of real money currency (crowns) for time-based currency (gold) in-game.

Since its inception, the primary use of this system has and continues to be trading in-game gold for crown store items. While some may claim this is an unintended use such views are either misinformed or disingenuous. Not only have ZOS repeatedly stated such exchanges are NOT against their policy on the use of this system, they do NOT ban or otherwise discipline accounts engaging in it and furthermore, they maintain an official company staff presence to facilitate this exchange on the largest Crown Exchange monopoly sites.

To continue claiming this is somehow unintended flies in the face of overwhelming evidence.

The simple and obvious question is, why after so many years is the in-game method of conducting these exchanges STILL totally unsafe and unsecured?

The question is particularly relevant as REAL MONEY is involved, and even more so when it was revealed that IF you are scammed ZOS's official policy is to only help customers restore their lost currency ONCE, after which they are told they will receive no further support whatsoever.

How is it acceptable for a company to facilitate a real money exchange and NOT include a secure system for exchanging that currency?

Further, by NOT securing the in-game exchange system they create a scenario where these one or two monopoly exchange sites, seizing on the demand for a "safe" way to exchange currencies, have literally TRIPLED the conversion rate over just the past couple years.

ZOS directly benefits from this (at least in the short term) while customers suffer, as their time is worth less and less as the middlemen drive prices higher and higher.

Because most newer players and even veterans simply can no longer afford 4+ million gold for basic crown purchases like a banker NPC, they are put in a position of either going without (not everything is available with Endeavor Seals and those take MONTHS to save up), or simply buying the item with real money.

The more people forced out of the exchange market into using real money, the more ZOS pads it's short term profit margins.

HOWEVER on the reverse edge of the double-sided FOMO sword, this also leads to BURNOUT in the long term which ultimately HURTS profits.

Furthermore, by officially supporting crown to gold exchange with company staff presence on these sites, ZOS is knowingly facilitating an UNSECURED and UNSAFE exchange of REAL MONEY with no protection and NO SUPPORT after the first time you get scammed.

How do people get scammed?

The game provides no direct method of exchange. Instead, one party must either send the other the gold first, otherwise the other part must send the crown store item first. All one party would need to do is wait to receive the other person's trade, then disconnect, go offline, or otherwise run away without paying their half. ZOS provides NO SUPPORT for this after the first offense, making is easy for people to create duplicate accounts, scam multiple people out of millions of gold, then either get by with a reprimand or lose a throwaway account with basically no other consequence.

Meanwhile, the person getting scammed is left simply out of luck with the official company stance being NO SUPPORT after the first incident.

How to solve the problem?

ZOS could literally spend 15 minutes coding a secure in-game interface widget to allow people to queue up crown items in exchange for gold. I offer to code this for them FREE OF CHARGE (and it would literally take me 15 minutes).

There is simply no justifiable reason to continue to facilitate unsecured and unsafe real money transactions, especially in a game targeted primarily at young people.

@ZOS_GinaBruno
@ZOS_KaiSchober
@ZOS_Kevin

Can we please and finally get an official statement as to how this easily avoidable security vulnerability has been allowed to persist in-game so long and what your plans are for addressing this serious problem for your loyal customers?

VaranisArano

Agreed. It's past time. We've been asking for such an exchange system since it was clear that players were going to trade gifts for crowns while the system was still on PTS.

But ZOS didn't even clarify that the gifts for crowns trade was legitimate and not against the TOS until after it went Live, so ESO seems pretty wedded to the idea that this system is supposed to be used for gifts (that you know the recipient wants and doesn't already own.)

So unless there's some ideological or legal reason why not, I simply don't understand why ZOS has not provided a safe, secure way to trade crown gifts for gold.

If nothing else, surely it would be easier for their customer support in cases of fraudulent trades.

kargen27

Real money isn't involved. Items purchased with real money are involved. Crowns and gold are both worthless outside the game.
There is no monopoly.
A secure system in game would be nice but how do you propose they create that? Part of the transaction takes place outside of the game. The gold would need to be held in game while the crown transaction is made outside the game. Once the gold is held there it would have to be locked with no way for the buyer to back out of the deal. The game would then need to do a check that the correct item is being offered before the gold can be released to the person selling the item. The game would then need to complete the purchase with neither player being able to opt out. The game would need to keep account of all items and the gold for each transaction until complete.
If the buyer backs out of a transaction involving in game items only each gets back what they offered. Because crown sales are final that wouldn't happen if a crown item for gold deal fell apart.

DagenHawk

This is what I believe has happened

They looked the possibility over they asked themselves: "How can we break this?"

My guess is they found a way...Big time.

I could be wrong though /shrug

deleted221205-002626

kargen27 wrote: »

Real money isn't involved. Items purchased with real money are involved. Crowns and gold are both worthless outside the game.
There is no monopoly.
A secure system in game would be nice but how do you propose they create that? Part of the transaction takes place outside of the game. The gold would need to be held in game while the crown transaction is made outside the game. Once the gold is held there it would have to be locked with no way for the buyer to back out of the deal. The game would then need to do a check that the correct item is being offered before the gold can be released to the person selling the item. The game would then need to complete the purchase with neither player being able to opt out. The game would need to keep account of all items and the gold for each transaction until complete.
If the buyer backs out of a transaction involving in game items only each gets back what they offered. Because crown sales are final that wouldn't happen if a crown item for gold deal fell apart.

All you would need is a COD option on the gift.. As for the purchase of the crowns thats a different story and unrelated to what happens ingame.. Crowns are generated from multiple sources such as eso+ and purchasing them from website etc usualy when they're on sale and in advance of selling them, likly in the hopes of selling them later at 1200:1 instead of 400:1 after the sale cuz like why not =p

ectoplasmicninja

Just do it similarly to regular trading. Someone initiates a gift action, maybe just as a second tab in the trade menu. A window opens. One person adds gold and the other a crown store item - or maybe just an amount of crowns. A couple seconds pass and the items are locked in place. Each player is prompted to accept or decline. One player declines, the window closes and no items are transferred. Two players accept, the transaction happens. I don't think it needs to be complicated.

kargen27

Yes it would have to be a COD option but it isn't as simple as a COD for in game items. Part of the transaction must take place outside the game. That is the sticky part. Again I like the idea of secure transactions. I just don't think it would be as simple as some are thinking.

EnerG

I also heavily agree, there is no reason that gifting crown store items cant have a Cash On Delivery option, I would sure as hell be selling more crowns (meaning I buy more FROM you ZOS) if I knew I could setup shop in Belkarth and not have fear to be out real money,

deleted221205-002626

kargen27 wrote: »

Yes it would have to be a COD option but it isn't as simple as a COD for in game items. Part of the transaction must take place outside the game. That is the sticky part. Again I like the idea of secure transactions. I just don't think it would be as simple as some are thinking.

It would be because like I said the actual purchase of the crown would never be a part of the secure transaction as they come from multiple places. and COD would work perfectly as you can already return a gift and they get theyre crowns back.

EnerG

kargen27 wrote: »

Yes it would have to be a COD option but it isn't as simple as a COD for in game items. Part of the transaction must take place outside the game. That is the sticky part. Again I like the idea of secure transactions. I just don't think it would be as simple as some are thinking.

Oh but it is simple my friend, they arent buying crowns on behalf of anyone.

When you purchase crowns it gets added to your in game client as a digital piece of in game currency, no diffrent from gold, alliance points or even the new seals of endevor, completely seperate from the method used to obtain them, the gifting option is already in the game for crowns, and the COD code is alread made for mail, they would simply have to rewrite the code for COD using the crown store and crowns as the currency and add the UI element too the gifting menu.

Now this isn't something as simple as a weekend project I understand, however it is far from complicated.

tmbrinks

As somebody who actually helps staff one of the "monopoly crown exchanges..."

PLEASE, PLEASE let ZoS implement this. Let us be done with providing this service to both buyers and sellers as safe as we can, and get the 100% supported version from ZoS. Let us just be done with all of it.

Also, @Xinihp , you might want to edit your post, as your first statement about an "official ZoS presence" is incorrect. There is none, one used to be in the server, but they left years ago.

ZOS_GregoryV

Greetings all,

After review, we have decided it best to close this thread due to Conspiracy Theories and Misinformation, which is a violation of the Community Rules, and is stated as follows:

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