BOTS - Tell Me Where They Are and I'll Video Capture Them For Bot Reporting!

Dolnor

Hey Everyone!

I am back to increase my captured Bots-Farming-Mobs videos (I have some on YouTube as Unlisted) so I can report them via Support Tickets.

I need everyone to tell me where they are occuring. Zone, Location (I don't use any Mods so I can't see x, y, z locations). Just tell me direction from towns/cities/landmarks in the zones. I'll go capture them in the act and submit reports with links to the YouTube videos which I'll upload.

Just here to help Zenimax keep our gaming environment a bit less hacked! -)

TQQdles™,

Dolnor Numbwit
Eternal Bot Reporting Newbie

VaranisArano

So the first thing to know about bot reporting is that there are multiple instances of zones. You can log into Grahtwood once and Haven beach will be empty. Wonderful, you think. Then later on you log in and there's a bot train. Its a different instance. Sometimes you even have two instances of a location and they each have their own bot train(s)!

Bot locations I've tracked on PC/NA:
Haven Beach, Grahtwood
Karthdar, Grahtwood
Silverhoof Vale, Rivenspire
Near some of the Shadowfen Dolmens

Now, the trains I was tracking got wiped when a ZOS Gamemaster dropped in on the weekend and, uh, dealt with them. But the spots are still good and there were bot trains back a couple of days later.

Jake1576

Wished ppl was this serious about trying to get the bots on ps4 na server banned lol

clocksstoppe

Don't you have anything useful to do with your life?

Ackwalan

I remember when I thought reporting bots actually did anything, all that wasted effort.

Runefang

We are legion.

dekzz

Gonna sound like a pleb now, not knowing it, but what exactly are people botting ? I mean im familiar with the fact that theres plenty of them on our servers, I just never figured out what for, what do they do ? xD

Valykc

I did this once when my grind spot was taken over, then I took a three month break and came back to see that the same bots were still there despite my ticket and video submission. Except instead of being Lvl 11-15, they were CP500+. After that I stopped caring because I was under the impression that ZOS didn’t.

Turelus

Ackwalan wrote: »

I remember when I thought reporting bots actually did anything, all that wasted effort.

In fairness to ZOS they do ban them, the problem is new ones just appear the same or next day to replace them.

Without some kind of improved auto-detection systems and a dedicated full time team it's never going to be fixed.
Remember that we can all help by reminding others not to support them by buying gold.

The_Brosteen

Turelus wrote: »

Ackwalan wrote: »

I remember when I thought reporting bots actually did anything, all that wasted effort.

In fairness to ZOS they do ban them, the problem is new ones just appear the same or next day to replace them.

Without some kind of improved auto-detection systems and a dedicated full time team it's never going to be fixed.
Remember that we can all help by reminding others not to support them by buying gold.

In fairness, the ones I reported never got banned. They were the most obvious bots I've ever seen in my life.

Turelus

The_Brosteen wrote: »

Turelus wrote: »

Ackwalan wrote: »

I remember when I thought reporting bots actually did anything, all that wasted effort.

In fairness to ZOS they do ban them, the problem is new ones just appear the same or next day to replace them.

Without some kind of improved auto-detection systems and a dedicated full time team it's never going to be fixed.
Remember that we can all help by reminding others not to support them by buying gold.

In fairness, the ones I reported never got banned. They were the most obvious bots I've ever seen in my life.

You're 100% sure these were the same names/bots after a few days? From what most have been saying reports seem to get managed but it can take a couple of days, then after that new ones just come back.

Elsonso

Dolnor wrote: »

Hey Everyone!

I am back to increase my captured Bots-Farming-Mobs videos (I have some on YouTube as Unlisted) so I can report them via Support Tickets.

I need everyone to tell me where they are occuring. Zone, Location (I don't use any Mods so I can't see x, y, z locations). Just tell me direction from towns/cities/landmarks in the zones. I'll go capture them in the act and submit reports with links to the YouTube videos which I'll upload.

Just here to help Zenimax keep our gaming environment a bit less hacked! -)

TQQdles™,

Dolnor Numbwit
Eternal Bot Reporting Newbie

You are going to be busy. Currently, on my "in the last two weeks" list on PC NA, I have 110 accounts. There were 23 of them just at Karthdar/Grahtwood a couple days ago.

A good portion of them are lone bots out farming resources by themselves in the wilds. For humans farming for resources, it is important to know where these bots are, since they interfere with that activity by keeping an area of the zone largely stripped of resources. If there are too many of them in a zone, it is better to move on to another zone.

Turelus wrote: »

Ackwalan wrote: »

I remember when I thought reporting bots actually did anything, all that wasted effort.

In fairness to ZOS they do ban them, the problem is new ones just appear the same or next day to replace them.

Without some kind of improved auto-detection systems and a dedicated full time team it's never going to be fixed.

They can't even start to fix them until they decide to dedicate some staff to just going out into the game on a daily basis and live tagging them for termination. That is essentially what the players are doing for them, except that our reports have to be checked, verified, cross referenced, and compiled before they do the termination. By the time they finish that process, the bots are so old they are running their circuits in a wheelchair.

Sawzallz

Alkr desert there's a mission about a cursed sword and a ghost there's usually bots there

Malmai

Dolnor wrote: »

Hey Everyone!

I am back to increase my captured Bots-Farming-Mobs videos (I have some on YouTube as Unlisted) so I can report them via Support Tickets.

I need everyone to tell me where they are occuring. Zone, Location (I don't use any Mods so I can't see x, y, z locations). Just tell me direction from towns/cities/landmarks in the zones. I'll go capture them in the act and submit reports with links to the YouTube videos which I'll upload.

Just here to help Zenimax keep our gaming environment a bit less hacked! -)

TQQdles™,

Dolnor Numbwit
Eternal Bot Reporting Newbie

Zenimax must eat too...

Elevenstorm

Grahtwood, Karthdar
Grahtwood, South of Sacred Wood Grotoo

JamieAubrey

I sung your title to this song

https://youtu.be/jnavMpJR6k0?t=54s

Runefang

A script can generate an account in minutes, so banning manually is never going to work.

Elsonso

Runefang wrote: »

A script can generate an account in minutes, so banning manually is never going to work.

Banning accounts quickly, even if manually, burns through the accounts much faster and is a disruption. A lot more of a disruption than letting them run for days or weeks.

Dolnor

VaranisArano wrote: »

So the first thing to know about bot reporting is that there are multiple instances of zones. You can log into Grahtwood once and Haven beach will be empty. Wonderful, you think. Then later on you log in and there's a bot train. Its a different instance. Sometimes you even have two instances of a location and they each have their own bot train(s)!

Bot locations I've tracked on PC/NA:
Haven Beach, Grahtwood
Karthdar, Grahtwood
Silverhoof Vale, Rivenspire
Near some of the Shadowfen Dolmens

Now, the trains I was tracking got wiped when a ZOS Gamemaster dropped in on the weekend and, uh, dealt with them. But the spots are still good and there were bot trains back a couple of days later.

Thanks! I am aware of the instances. In "Reporting Mode", I'll log in to the locations several times. I'll grab a video capture of bots then relog in several times to see if I'm getting the same instance or different ones. I've found different mobs-of-bots using the same location but different bot names. I report them all. -)

TQQdles™

Dolnor

clocksstoppe wrote: »

Don't you have anything useful to do with your life?

Yes...but gaming/testing/reporting is also a part of it. I am older, I have the time, and I'm a bit of a "spreadsheet junkie" in my normal life! -)

Besides, I enjoy helping others. I've been volunteering in Real Life for 35 years...it is just part of my Life! -)

TQQdles™

Dolnor

dekzz wrote: »

Gonna sound like a pleb now, not knowing it, but what exactly are people botting ? I mean im familiar with the fact that theres plenty of them on our servers, I just never figured out what for, what do they do ? xD

Bot Farmers will raise characters to max levels then sell the accounts on the "grey marketplace" for profit. They run scripts and only need an extra computer to run their bots. Often they are just looking for extra income...much like the students at colleges/universities running Bitcoin Mining operations in their dorms...they get the electricity & internet access free-of-charge. The differences are: Bitcoin Mining is legal, selling game accounts for profit is against Zenimax's EULA.

TQQdles™

DoctorESO

.

kip_silverwolf

NA PC
Bot train running a circle through the Hag Fens in Glenumbra, between the Coven Cottage house & Spindleclutch.

Good on you for your efforts in reporting! I hope you have some success in ridding this great game of such a plague.

Runschei

Grathwood. In the north somewhere near Reliquary of the Stars

Elsonso

Runschei wrote: »

Grathwood. In the north somewhere near Reliquary of the Stars

Possibly Karthdar, to the east. Long standing botting area, and one reason why a simple daily visit from CS would be effective there.

Runschei

lordrichter wrote: »

Runschei wrote: »

Grathwood. In the north somewhere near Reliquary of the Stars

Possibly Karthdar, to the east. Long standing botting area, and one reason why a simple daily visit from CS would be effective there.

It's all over the north there sadly

Elsonso

Runschei wrote: »

lordrichter wrote: »

Runschei wrote: »

Grathwood. In the north somewhere near Reliquary of the Stars

Possibly Karthdar, to the east. Long standing botting area, and one reason why a simple daily visit from CS would be effective there.

It's all over the north there sadly

Yeah, there are around 20 of them running in that general area on PC/NA right now.