Are bots worth reporting?

lazywhiteseal · February 2021

there are some games i dont bother reporting because the devs and staffs wont ban them or its hard to catch.
while i was doing quest for achievements ive seen several toons walking in a very computer like way killing mobs.
are these worth reporting?
kinda annoyed me for rest of the day thinking they will disrupt the in game economy. probably bots farming gold so they can sell it for real money. which is worse because value of the currency can be affected.
also if these bots managed to avoid detection and bans, how will they be caught when they actually do real world trade?
not questioning zos' system since mmorpgs having bots and cheaters is inevitable. i know multiple report in a period of time can red flag users. but wondering if me reporting bots alone has any effect. wouldnt wanna be wasting my precious time to report 5 or more players if its never gonna have an effect in any way.

best i can do is call them in zone chat and make other people report them with me?

Kurat · February 2021

Don't waste your time reporting, Zos won't do anything.

renne · February 2021

No, you're required to do way too much work (once you report then they eventually send an email and you have to send specific proof) because they don't actually investigate reports otherwise.

lazywhiteseal · February 2021

Kurat wrote: »

Don't waste your time reporting, Zos won't do anything.

so a bot user get ton of high demand materials, sell them in market disrupting the prices in process, and sell the gold through real world trade disrupting gold value and they wont be noticed or banned even if multiple players report them?

if this is actually true then this is a big problem

if this is true i request a forum moderator to delete this thread as it can encourage more people to use cheats and bot.

Kurat · February 2021

lazywhiteseal wrote: »

Kurat wrote: »

Don't waste your time reporting, Zos won't do anything.

so a bot user get ton of high demand materials, sell them in market disrupting the prices in process, and sell the gold through real world trade disrupting gold value and they wont be noticed or banned even if multiple players report them?

if this is actually true then this is a big problem

if this is true i request a forum moderator to delete this thread as it can encourage more people to use cheats and bot.

Mat or gold farming bots want the gold for a reason. They most likely buy crowns which is profit for Zos. Why would they ban them lol.

WiseSky · February 2021

I report them all the time teabaging in front of Vvandefell bank.

And I think they get banned.

ManwithBeard9 · February 2021

Kurat wrote: »

lazywhiteseal wrote: »

Kurat wrote: »

Don't waste your time reporting, Zos won't do anything.

so a bot user get ton of high demand materials, sell them in market disrupting the prices in process, and sell the gold through real world trade disrupting gold value and they wont be noticed or banned even if multiple players report them?

if this is actually true then this is a big problem

if this is true i request a forum moderator to delete this thread as it can encourage more people to use cheats and bot.

Mat or gold farming bots want the gold for a reason. They most likely buy crowns which is profit for Zos. Why would they ban them lol.

No the bot sellers sell the gold via third party sites. They put mats up in guild stores so they gain more gold and guess what, sell it on third party sites. People buy the gold off of those sites so they can then trade the gold for crown store gifts, buy stuff from guild stores, or buy carries for content. I would imagine the bot accounts that aren't removed and wind up gaining some levels and CP are also sold online.

Starlock · February 2021

If you are playing on xbox, it is better to report to Microsoft. In my experience they've given more of an impression of acting on reports and they also have more power to resolve the situation. The software that enables botting on console is against Microsoft's Terms of Service and can cause the guilty party to get a hardware ban, not just an ESO account ban.

Tsar_Gekkou · February 2021

Most people won't report them because they keep gold mats more affordable, but zos does go on a banwave every now and then that causes prices to surge, but then the bots come back and prices settle again.

Fuzzybrick · February 2021

Tsar_Gekkou wrote: »

Most people won't report them because they keep gold mats more affordable, but zos does go on a banwave every now and then that causes prices to surge, but then the bots come back and prices settle again.

pooo

i report them... no one cares.

Kory · February 2021

I wonder the same myself. Especially if they are just farming xp near dolmens, and you see this perfectly repeated robotic routine they do lol I reported one the other day, and the person disappeared when I happen to return to the area like 7 min later. Might have been banned.
But who knows? Hey they could also be using those bots and macros for a competitive edge, especially pvp. So they'll get a report from me when I see some BS like that.

Fuzzybrick · February 2021

..... Why isn't this letting me link a picture on the forum? Got one I took a while ago with 50 bots stacked up on top of each other

And they aren't farming exp... They are your old fashioned gold farmers from the good old days... [Snip]

[Edited for inappropriate content]

lazywhiteseal · February 2021

Starlock wrote: »

If you are playing on xbox, it is better to report to Microsoft. In my experience they've given more of an impression of acting on reports and they also have more power to resolve the situation. The software that enables botting on console is against Microsoft's Terms of Service and can cause the guilty party to get a hardware ban, not just an ESO account ban.

they should do that for pc as well since microsoft owns zos lol

Scardan · February 2021

How do you know it is a bot?
Can I be reported for doing grinding for hours because somebody think I am a bot ?

starkerealm · February 2021

Tsar_Gekkou wrote: »

Most people won't report them because they keep gold mats more affordable, but zos does go on a banwave every now and then that causes prices to surge, but then the bots come back and prices settle again.

No, most people don't report them because it feels like a waste of time.

starkerealm · February 2021

Scardan wrote: »

How do you know it is a bot?
Can I be reported for doing grinding for hours because somebody think I am a bot ?

You can recognize a bot when you see them. They're very distinct. If you're not playing using a macro, you're not going to look like a bot.

Fischblut · February 2021

while i was doing quest for achievements ive seen several toons walking in a very computer like way killing mobs.
are these worth reporting?

Always report, no matter if it's material farming or exp farming bot.
On PC, it's easy to make report with addon - before it, it was impossible/very difficult to report multiple bots, cause bots rarely go alone (and alone bot is easy to report even without addon).

From my experience, bots are always removed after reports (sometimes it takes few hours, sometimes a day or two).

How do you know it is a bot?
Can I be reported for doing grinding for hours because somebody think I am a bot ?

Depending on your behaviour, somebody might think that you are a bot, especially if it's new player who've never seen bots before. New player sees you running fast from node to node, using your increased gathering speed CP pasive - it looks so weird to new player

Or you might be killing lot of mobs in the area very fast - it can also look like unholy magic to new players

But a real human person can always be identified, even if you have farm route. After years I've learned to identify and report even bots with very complex "behavior". There is no place for bots in game where normal players have to sacrifice their lifetime in order to farm materials and/or experience

Skcarkden · February 2021

i'm sure bots could be stopped from the outside with a series of charge backs.... in theory at least.

TragedyOA · February 2021

Tsar_Gekkou wrote: »

Most people won't report them because they keep gold mats more affordable, but zos does go on a banwave every now and then that causes prices to surge, but then the bots come back and prices settle again.

We need moar bots.

Finneholt · February 2021

Bots are counted as a part of the concurrent number of ESO players LOL. Hey, bots have accounts and names too :-o

Eedat · February 2021

I have no idea about consoles but they're petty much all ban hammered on PC. Consequently the prices for materials has gone absolutely ballistic

Starlock · February 2021

lazywhiteseal wrote: »

Starlock wrote: »

If you are playing on xbox, it is better to report to Microsoft. In my experience they've given more of an impression of acting on reports and they also have more power to resolve the situation. The software that enables botting on console is against Microsoft's Terms of Service and can cause the guilty party to get a hardware ban, not just an ESO account ban.

they should do that for pc as well since microsoft owns zos lol

As I understand it the acquisition deal is still being finalized, but they can't really do this for PC/Mac because they do not own the hardware and it does not fall under their ToS. Microsoft cannot do a hardware ban of your computer for using botting/cheating programs in a single game you have on your computer.

linuxlady · February 2021

lazywhiteseal wrote: »

Kurat wrote: »

Don't waste your time reporting, Zos won't do anything.

so a bot user get ton of high demand materials, sell them in market disrupting the prices in process, and sell the gold through real world trade disrupting gold value and they wont be noticed or banned even if multiple players report them?

if this is actually true then this is a big problem

if this is true i request a forum moderator to delete this thread as it can encourage more people to use cheats and bot.

Bots are going mainstream. ZOS calls them companions now. Part of the game design.

KhajiitLivesMatter · February 2021

stop reporting bots !
if u report / ban them
price for gold mats will even be more insane and that would be stupid

UppGRAYxDD · February 2021

About as much as reporting bad game performance...

Oreyn_Bearclaw · February 2021

I wont say they have been eliminated on PC, but ZOS has made an effort recently to stop them. This is one of those, "careful what you wish for" scenarios because you can see the impact on mat prices, which have gone through the roof. I don't really care as I don't buy mats, I do writs. Other than finding a something very underpriced in a trader, I have never bought gold mats in this game (sitting on thousands).

If you see something and you are sure it's a bot, you should definitely report it. I just wouldn't expect to see lighting strike from the heavens and remove it before your eyes.

Sahidom · February 2021

I'll just toss this out there. Since bots generally are ignored by ZOS. Anyone know a good bot engine to get on board with farming mats? I wouldn't mind setting up a dummy account to try and get raw mat and score my share of gold upgrade materials. Seems the cost to benefit out weighs the risk.

WiseSky · February 2021

If all else fails, I role play that Clockwork people made life like machines to earn them gold.

It’s lore cause “dragon break”

Ermiq · February 2021

If you trade, you'd better report bots. The less bots farm wolves and bears, the higher price for leather. There's a reason why leather price is laughably low compared to any other resource in the game, and the reason is bot packs.
If you would like ZOS to earn some more money, you'd better report bots. The more times they buy the game after being banned, the more financial success and better statistics on amount of game copies sold.
If you don't care, you don't care.

virtus753 · February 2021

lazywhiteseal wrote: »

Starlock wrote: »

If you are playing on xbox, it is better to report to Microsoft. In my experience they've given more of an impression of acting on reports and they also have more power to resolve the situation. The software that enables botting on console is against Microsoft's Terms of Service and can cause the guilty party to get a hardware ban, not just an ESO account ban.

they should do that for pc as well since microsoft owns zos lol

Microsoft doesn’t own ZOS. Microsoft and ZOS agreed to the acquisition, but the deal is still under regulatory review. The EU regulators are expected to announce their decision by March 5. In the meantime, they need to act like they’re still two separate companies because they are.

DaveMoeDee · February 2021

Of course report them if you don't want bots. Ignore people who come up with reasons to do nothing. If a bot gets reported multiple times, they are more likely to get on ZOS' radar.

Don't get caught up on ZOS not having a perfect response to ever bot report. Just provide them more info.

People are saying you need to send too much proof. You don't. Just report them in-game. Don't worry about what happens. Just send a quick report.