Follow-Up On This Week's Ban Wave

Izanagi.Xiiib16_ESO · June 5

Etherea1 wrote: »

@ZOS_Kevin , Is there a way to get exact details on violation, like date (timestamp) and some activity data.
It either me trying to fool all of you, or review is not so "thorough" as it seems.

They will never give this because it allows bot users to 'tune' their bots to avoid bans.

The only way a botting program will have traces on your system is if you installed it. It doesn't matter if you only used it once to catch 10 fish or caught 1000.

Elsonso · June 5

Izanagi.Xiiib16_ESO wrote: »

Etherea1 wrote: »

@ZOS_Kevin , Is there a way to get exact details on violation, like date (timestamp) and some activity data.
It either me trying to fool all of you, or review is not so "thorough" as it seems.

They will never give this because it allows bot users to 'tune' their bots to avoid bans.

The only way a botting program will have traces on your system is if you installed it. It doesn't matter if you only used it once to catch 10 fish or caught 1000.

Yes, getting into too much detail can allow botters to tune thing to avoid detection. They are doing this whether ZOS gives them hints or not, so it is security through obscurity. That depends on the studio being smarter than the people making the botting software.

It also avoids exposing problems in the way that these things are detected and the decisions that go into what constitutes a level of violation that results in a ban or suspension. A faulty process to determine guilt can persist for a long time in this manner.

No one, not even ZOS, should be 100% confident in detecting "traces" and then extrapolating that into a ban or suspension. Detection can generate false alarms and whatever they detect, or think they detect, may have nothing to do with Elder Scrolls Online at all.

My hope is that the bar is higher than "traces" and that they can link those traces to verifiable activity in the game before they drop the ban hammer.

JavaRen · June 5

So I'll admit to not being the most tech savy, how would ZOS know you had the fishing bot installed of you didn't use it?

Etherea1 · June 5

SpiritKitten wrote: »

Etherea1 wrote: »

I admit having traces and signatures of said fishing bot on my pc, have found it and cleaned everything. But having it alone should not be only reason for ban. I believe I have not being using it with TESO and I think examining gameplay data should prove that. I believe (I may be wrong) appeal was rejected without examining game logs. For example, I am not active fisherman, maybe got 10 fish in half a year for daily endevour.

Wait, so you just admitted having the bot and not just the Lib?

No

Etherea1 · June 5

JavaRen wrote: »

So I'll admit to not being the most tech savy, how would ZOS know you had the fishing bot installed of you didn't use it?

Just the lib. They can see item transfers, so game activity aswell, like number fish caught over month, week, etc.

JavaRen · June 5

If all they can see is the lib and gameplay, are you claiming you were banned for having the lib installed? Or that they snooped your system and saw "traces(?)" of the bot? Or what?

Etherea1 · June 5

JavaRen wrote: »

If all they can see is the lib and gameplay, are you claiming you were banned for having the lib installed? Or that they snooped your system and saw "traces(?)" of the bot? Or what?

I don't know what they see, no details provided
I dont know whether it is curiosity drives you or just boredom, but it leads this topic away and helps bury my inqury behind tons of useless posts.

Dock01 · June 5

Etherea1 wrote: »

JavaRen wrote: »

If all they can see is the lib and gameplay, are you claiming you were banned for having the lib installed? Or that they snooped your system and saw "traces(?)" of the bot? Or what?

I don't know what they see, no details provided
I dont know whether it is curiosity drives you or just boredom, but it leads this topic away and helps bury my inqury behind tons of useless posts.

wow you're still trying to get your account back. so i guess you've invested alot in this account? idk if you'll get it back but if you dont ... are you going to be one of those haters on twitter DX negatively nuking every post .. ;~;

madman65 · June 5

Thoriorz wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Hello everyone,

We want to take a moment to address an enforcement action regarding the use of unauthorized third-party software in our game. We recently took action against 57 accounts found using unauthorized third-party software—specifically, a program known as "FishyBot" or "FishyBot ESO"—to automate gameplay. These accounts have been permanently banned following a thorough investigation by our Safety Team.

We want to remind everyone, that the use of bots, scripts, automation tools, or unapproved third-party software for The Elder Scrolls Online is a direct violation of our Terms of Service and Code of Conduct. We are committed to maintaining a fair and secure environment for all players and will continue to monitor and enforce these policies.

We appreciate those who play fairly and help keep the game enjoyable for everyone. If you suspect a violation of our rules, please report it from in-game or our help portal: https://help.elderscrollsonline.com/#en/home/category/28.

So automation tools, how about for example these addons:
https://www.esoui.com/downloads/info1346-DolgubonsLazyWritCrafter.html

https://www.esoui.com/downloads/info1605-WritWorthy.html ?

I believe the vast majority of people use it, just in terms of its features, automatic crafting and other things, is this illegal or?
Because this will do various craft things in the game instead of you so practically it's what you're writing about "automation tool", so tomorrow 90% of players get banned or is this ok?

I agree that if one software that automatically does something for you and you get banned but another software does the automated need and not get banned then ESO needs to re-think the policies they have in place. Software is software, fishybot and writworthy both does automatic processes.

Elsonso · June 5

Dock01 wrote: »

Etherea1 wrote: »

JavaRen wrote: »

If all they can see is the lib and gameplay, are you claiming you were banned for having the lib installed? Or that they snooped your system and saw "traces(?)" of the bot? Or what?

I don't know what they see, no details provided
I dont know whether it is curiosity drives you or just boredom, but it leads this topic away and helps bury my inqury behind tons of useless posts.

wow you're still trying to get your account back. so i guess you've invested alot in this account? idk if you'll get it back but if you dont ... are you going to be one of those haters on twitter DX negatively nuking every post .. ;~;

My guess is that the Etherea1 ban will be reversed, but it will take a while and a lot of persistence.

UrQuan · June 5

madman65 wrote: »

Thoriorz wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Hello everyone,

We want to take a moment to address an enforcement action regarding the use of unauthorized third-party software in our game. We recently took action against 57 accounts found using unauthorized third-party software—specifically, a program known as "FishyBot" or "FishyBot ESO"—to automate gameplay. These accounts have been permanently banned following a thorough investigation by our Safety Team.

We want to remind everyone, that the use of bots, scripts, automation tools, or unapproved third-party software for The Elder Scrolls Online is a direct violation of our Terms of Service and Code of Conduct. We are committed to maintaining a fair and secure environment for all players and will continue to monitor and enforce these policies.

We appreciate those who play fairly and help keep the game enjoyable for everyone. If you suspect a violation of our rules, please report it from in-game or our help portal: https://help.elderscrollsonline.com/#en/home/category/28.

So automation tools, how about for example these addons:
https://www.esoui.com/downloads/info1346-DolgubonsLazyWritCrafter.html

https://www.esoui.com/downloads/info1605-WritWorthy.html ?

I believe the vast majority of people use it, just in terms of its features, automatic crafting and other things, is this illegal or?
Because this will do various craft things in the game instead of you so practically it's what you're writing about "automation tool", so tomorrow 90% of players get banned or is this ok?

I agree that if one software that automatically does something for you and you get banned but another software does the automated need and not get banned then ESO needs to re-think the policies they have in place. Software is software, fishybot and writworthy both does automatic processes.

There's a massive difference between an addon that works with ESO's API to do things specifically exposed as being doable by that API and an unapproved 3rd party exe that does things that the API doesn't allow, and that specifically says on the site where you can download it that it's a bot that violates the ESO user agreement and can lead to you being permanently banned. Seriously, they say it right on the download site.

robwolf666 · June 5

I'm not computer savvy either - I'm guessing that "lib" means library, as in a file library?
So how would something like that get on a computer unless the program associated with it was actually installed to add it in the first place?
It couldn't, right?

Aylish · June 5

robwolf666 wrote: »

I'm not computer savvy either - I'm guessing that "lib" means library, as in a file library?
So how would something like that get on a computer unless the program associated with it was actually installed to add it in the first place?
It couldn't, right?

The library for the fishing bot is also used for other fishing addons that just check whether it‘s time to press E at the fishing hole.

What the bot did, was using the fishing state through the library and then press E for you.

So there might be people around that used the Fishing State thing but not the bot.

Dock01 · June 5

damnnn

Dock01 · June 5

Etherea1 wrote: »

Question Reference # 250527-002208

Date Created: 05/27/2025 01:29 PM
Date Last Updated: 05/30/2025 04:39 PM
Status: Read Answer Provided
The Elder Scrolls Online Team response on 05/30/2025 04:39 PM
Greetings,

After a thorough review of your appeal, we have confirmed that the account violated the Code of Conduct through the use of unauthorized third-party automation software. Our policy clearly prohibits the use of any external applications, scripts, or tools that alter gameplay.

Due to the severity of this violation, the ban will remain in place and all associated services will remain permanently deactivated.

This decision is final.

Regards,
The Elder Scrolls Online Team

seeeshhh this looks scary

Dock01 · June 5

Izanagi.Xiiib16_ESO wrote: »

Etherea1 wrote: »

@ZOS_Kevin , Is there a way to get exact details on violation, like date (timestamp) and some activity data.
It either me trying to fool all of you, or review is not so "thorough" as it seems.

They will never give this because it allows bot users to 'tune' their bots to avoid bans.

The only way a botting program will have traces on your system is if you installed it. It doesn't matter if you only used it once to catch 10 fish or caught 1000.

This is very intresting

Elsonso · June 8

Dock01 wrote: »

Izanagi.Xiiib16_ESO wrote: »

Etherea1 wrote: »

@ZOS_Kevin , Is there a way to get exact details on violation, like date (timestamp) and some activity data.
It either me trying to fool all of you, or review is not so "thorough" as it seems.

They will never give this because it allows bot users to 'tune' their bots to avoid bans.

The only way a botting program will have traces on your system is if you installed it. It doesn't matter if you only used it once to catch 10 fish or caught 1000.

This is very intresting

Especially interesting to know whether ZOS is saying that it was active while the game was running, or if it was just active at some point and they don't know when, or even if the game client was active at the same time.

DenverRalphy · June 8

madman65 wrote: »

Thoriorz wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Hello everyone,

We want to take a moment to address an enforcement action regarding the use of unauthorized third-party software in our game. We recently took action against 57 accounts found using unauthorized third-party software—specifically, a program known as "FishyBot" or "FishyBot ESO"—to automate gameplay. These accounts have been permanently banned following a thorough investigation by our Safety Team.

We want to remind everyone, that the use of bots, scripts, automation tools, or unapproved third-party software for The Elder Scrolls Online is a direct violation of our Terms of Service and Code of Conduct. We are committed to maintaining a fair and secure environment for all players and will continue to monitor and enforce these policies.

We appreciate those who play fairly and help keep the game enjoyable for everyone. If you suspect a violation of our rules, please report it from in-game or our help portal: https://help.elderscrollsonline.com/#en/home/category/28.

So automation tools, how about for example these addons:
https://www.esoui.com/downloads/info1346-DolgubonsLazyWritCrafter.html

https://www.esoui.com/downloads/info1605-WritWorthy.html ?

I believe the vast majority of people use it, just in terms of its features, automatic crafting and other things, is this illegal or?
Because this will do various craft things in the game instead of you so practically it's what you're writing about "automation tool", so tomorrow 90% of players get banned or is this ok?

I agree that if one software that automatically does something for you and you get banned but another software does the automated need and not get banned then ESO needs to re-think the policies they have in place. Software is software, fishybot and writworthy both does automatic processes.

Addons don't automate anything for the player in the sense that the player has to be present to tell it to execute each action. Writworthy does not allow you to get up, walk away from your machine, and keep playing the game for you.

When they say anything that automates, they mean anything that plays the game for you.

Huge difference.

Elsonso · June 8

DenverRalphy wrote: »

Addons don't automate anything for the player in the sense that the player has to be present to tell it to execute each action. Writworthy does not allow you to get up, walk away from your machine, and keep playing the game for you.

When they say anything that automates, they mean anything that plays the game for you.

Huge difference.

Before they added the multi-fillet ability at the cooking fires, there was an addon that would go through all of the fish in inventory and fillet them as if the player had initiated the action for each fish. One at a time. It could take several minutes for the addon to process all of the fish, and the player could easily walk away and do other things while this was happening.

As far as I know, no one got banned for doing that, but it was clearly an addon that was automating the actions of the character and the player did not need to be present.

My thinking is that if players did not get banned for that, it would be hard for any addon to be the reason for a ban.

johnicus · June 8

Thanks for getting rid of those pesky fishing cheaters! Now.....about cyrodiil....

DenverRalphy · June 8

Elsonso wrote: »

DenverRalphy wrote: »

Addons don't automate anything for the player in the sense that the player has to be present to tell it to execute each action. Writworthy does not allow you to get up, walk away from your machine, and keep playing the game for you.

When they say anything that automates, they mean anything that plays the game for you.

Huge difference.

Before they added the multi-fillet ability at the cooking fires, there was an addon that would go through all of the fish in inventory and fillet them as if the player had initiated the action for each fish. One at a time. It could take several minutes for the addon to process all of the fish, and the player could easily walk away and do other things while this was happening.

As far as I know, no one got banned for doing that, but it was clearly an addon that was automating the actions of the character and the player did not need to be present.

My thinking is that if players did not get banned for that, it would be hard for any addon to be the reason for a ban.

Come now. You know that's really stretching it. The add-on isn't playing the game on behalf of the player. It's not simulating keyboard/controller input. It's not moving the character around in the game world or going from node to node harvesting resources. It's not automatically casting skills. It's not initiating interaction with any objects like merchants/resource nodes/containers/etc.. The player couldn't walk away and come back to find that after the filet job was done that the addon then kept playing the game on the player's behalf.

Elsonso · June 8

DenverRalphy wrote: »

Elsonso wrote: »

DenverRalphy wrote: »

Addons don't automate anything for the player in the sense that the player has to be present to tell it to execute each action. Writworthy does not allow you to get up, walk away from your machine, and keep playing the game for you.

When they say anything that automates, they mean anything that plays the game for you.

Huge difference.

Before they added the multi-fillet ability at the cooking fires, there was an addon that would go through all of the fish in inventory and fillet them as if the player had initiated the action for each fish. One at a time. It could take several minutes for the addon to process all of the fish, and the player could easily walk away and do other things while this was happening.

As far as I know, no one got banned for doing that, but it was clearly an addon that was automating the actions of the character and the player did not need to be present.

My thinking is that if players did not get banned for that, it would be hard for any addon to be the reason for a ban.

Come now. You know that's really stretching it. The add-on isn't playing the game on behalf of the player. It's not simulating keyboard/controller input. It's not moving the character around in the game world or going from node to node harvesting resources. It's not automatically casting skills. It's not initiating interaction with any objects like merchants/resource nodes/containers/etc.. The player couldn't walk away and come back to find that after the filet job was done that the addon then kept playing the game on the player's behalf.

No, it is not stretching it. Really, it is not. Suggesting that the addon didn't run off after filleting and play the game does not absolve it from being automation. That simply means that the addon was limited to only automating a portion of the game play.

In an alternate reality, that addon could have resulted in bans all around. ZOS chose wisely, in this reality.

spartaxoxo · June 8

There's a massive difference between an add-on doing what the api allowed and third party software that intentionally does everything for you so you can obtain things you wouldn't have on your own far broader than what is allowed. This particular third party software advertised itself as something that would get you banned in big bright letters. Anyone who used knew exactly what they were doing.

Neither the filet add-on nor lazy writ allows people to get any new resources they didn't already earn. ZOS api doesn't allow for that. That is why people did it that through third party bots. Bots that explained this distinction themselves and told people they were doing things that were not authorized and that they could get banned.

The comparisons between sanctioned activity and activity that advertised itself as tos breaking is disingeous. It is ZOS's game. The game makers make the rules. Cheating is going outside those rules. Botting is cheating.

Grizzbeorn · June 8

Elsonso wrote: »

No, it is not stretching it. Really, it is not.

Yes. It really is.

Etherea1 · June 9

Dock01 wrote: »

Etherea1 wrote: »

JavaRen wrote: »

If all they can see is the lib and gameplay, are you claiming you were banned for having the lib installed? Or that they snooped your system and saw "traces(?)" of the bot? Or what?

I don't know what they see, no details provided
I dont know whether it is curiosity drives you or just boredom, but it leads this topic away and helps bury my inqury behind tons of useless posts.

wow you're still trying to get your account back. so i guess you've invested alot in this account? idk if you'll get it back but if you dont ... are you going to be one of those haters on twitter DX negatively nuking every post .. ;~;

I am already started new one. It is a bit faster when you have 5 year of knowledge behind you and friends willing to craft you some gear.

But I miss my old account. I even have a picture of my main char drawn by an artist :-)

@ZOS_Kevin , is there really no hope left?
My second appeal has no answer yet over a week passed. I hope investigation is going and don't want to rush it to force them to give quick "no" answer to comply with ticket reaction time.

Dock01 · June 9

Etherea1 wrote: »

Dock01 wrote: »

Etherea1 wrote: »

JavaRen wrote: »

If all they can see is the lib and gameplay, are you claiming you were banned for having the lib installed? Or that they snooped your system and saw "traces(?)" of the bot? Or what?

I don't know what they see, no details provided
I dont know whether it is curiosity drives you or just boredom, but it leads this topic away and helps bury my inqury behind tons of useless posts.

wow you're still trying to get your account back. so i guess you've invested alot in this account? idk if you'll get it back but if you dont ... are you going to be one of those haters on twitter DX negatively nuking every post .. ;~;

I am already started new one. It is a bit faster when you have 5 year of knowledge behind you and friends willing to craft you some gear.

But I miss my old account. I even have a picture of my main char drawn by an artist :-)

@ZOS_Kevin , is there really no hope left?
My second appeal has no answer yet over a week passed. I hope investigation is going and don't want to rush it to force them to give quick "no" answer to comply with ticket reaction time.

aww thats very sad to hear.. although isn't it against tos to make a new account after being banned idk i forgot tho it d be nice to get ur first one back

sometimes its not the same..

coop500 · June 9

UrQuan wrote: »

madman65 wrote: »

Thoriorz wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Hello everyone,

We want to take a moment to address an enforcement action regarding the use of unauthorized third-party software in our game. We recently took action against 57 accounts found using unauthorized third-party software—specifically, a program known as "FishyBot" or "FishyBot ESO"—to automate gameplay. These accounts have been permanently banned following a thorough investigation by our Safety Team.

We want to remind everyone, that the use of bots, scripts, automation tools, or unapproved third-party software for The Elder Scrolls Online is a direct violation of our Terms of Service and Code of Conduct. We are committed to maintaining a fair and secure environment for all players and will continue to monitor and enforce these policies.

We appreciate those who play fairly and help keep the game enjoyable for everyone. If you suspect a violation of our rules, please report it from in-game or our help portal: https://help.elderscrollsonline.com/#en/home/category/28.

So automation tools, how about for example these addons:
https://www.esoui.com/downloads/info1346-DolgubonsLazyWritCrafter.html

https://www.esoui.com/downloads/info1605-WritWorthy.html ?

I believe the vast majority of people use it, just in terms of its features, automatic crafting and other things, is this illegal or?
Because this will do various craft things in the game instead of you so practically it's what you're writing about "automation tool", so tomorrow 90% of players get banned or is this ok?

I agree that if one software that automatically does something for you and you get banned but another software does the automated need and not get banned then ESO needs to re-think the policies they have in place. Software is software, fishybot and writworthy both does automatic processes.

There's a massive difference between an addon that works with ESO's API to do things specifically exposed as being doable by that API and an unapproved 3rd party exe that does things that the API doesn't allow, and that specifically says on the site where you can download it that it's a bot that violates the ESO user agreement and can lead to you being permanently banned. Seriously, they say it right on the download site.

Are people really not getting the difference between a UI API access addon and a bot that actively moves your character around and plays the game for you?

DenverRalphy · June 9

coop500 wrote: »

UrQuan wrote: »

madman65 wrote: »

Thoriorz wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Hello everyone,

We want to take a moment to address an enforcement action regarding the use of unauthorized third-party software in our game. We recently took action against 57 accounts found using unauthorized third-party software—specifically, a program known as "FishyBot" or "FishyBot ESO"—to automate gameplay. These accounts have been permanently banned following a thorough investigation by our Safety Team.

We want to remind everyone, that the use of bots, scripts, automation tools, or unapproved third-party software for The Elder Scrolls Online is a direct violation of our Terms of Service and Code of Conduct. We are committed to maintaining a fair and secure environment for all players and will continue to monitor and enforce these policies.

We appreciate those who play fairly and help keep the game enjoyable for everyone. If you suspect a violation of our rules, please report it from in-game or our help portal: https://help.elderscrollsonline.com/#en/home/category/28.

So automation tools, how about for example these addons:
https://www.esoui.com/downloads/info1346-DolgubonsLazyWritCrafter.html

https://www.esoui.com/downloads/info1605-WritWorthy.html ?

I believe the vast majority of people use it, just in terms of its features, automatic crafting and other things, is this illegal or?
Because this will do various craft things in the game instead of you so practically it's what you're writing about "automation tool", so tomorrow 90% of players get banned or is this ok?

I agree that if one software that automatically does something for you and you get banned but another software does the automated need and not get banned then ESO needs to re-think the policies they have in place. Software is software, fishybot and writworthy both does automatic processes.

There's a massive difference between an addon that works with ESO's API to do things specifically exposed as being doable by that API and an unapproved 3rd party exe that does things that the API doesn't allow, and that specifically says on the site where you can download it that it's a bot that violates the ESO user agreement and can lead to you being permanently banned. Seriously, they say it right on the download site.

Are people really not getting the difference between a UI API access addon and a bot that actively moves your character around and plays the game for you?

It's usually more an attempt to generate wiggle room to deny complicity should someone get caught. Twisting semantics or nitpicking over interpretations whenever possible. Anything to improve the ability to avoid a ban.

Elvenheart · June 9

Elsonso wrote: »

DenverRalphy wrote: »

Elsonso wrote: »

DenverRalphy wrote: »

Addons don't automate anything for the player in the sense that the player has to be present to tell it to execute each action. Writworthy does not allow you to get up, walk away from your machine, and keep playing the game for you.

When they say anything that automates, they mean anything that plays the game for you.

Huge difference.

Before they added the multi-fillet ability at the cooking fires, there was an addon that would go through all of the fish in inventory and fillet them as if the player had initiated the action for each fish. One at a time. It could take several minutes for the addon to process all of the fish, and the player could easily walk away and do other things while this was happening.

As far as I know, no one got banned for doing that, but it was clearly an addon that was automating the actions of the character and the player did not need to be present.

My thinking is that if players did not get banned for that, it would be hard for any addon to be the reason for a ban.

Come now. You know that's really stretching it. The add-on isn't playing the game on behalf of the player. It's not simulating keyboard/controller input. It's not moving the character around in the game world or going from node to node harvesting resources. It's not automatically casting skills. It's not initiating interaction with any objects like merchants/resource nodes/containers/etc.. The player couldn't walk away and come back to find that after the filet job was done that the addon then kept playing the game on the player's behalf.

No, it is not stretching it. Really, it is not. Suggesting that the addon didn't run off after filleting and play the game does not absolve it from being automation. That simply means that the addon was limited to only automating a portion of the game play.

In an alternate reality, that addon could have resulted in bans all around. ZOS chose wisely, in this reality.

Right now in the game with no addons I can craft 100 bows by selecting multiple and while they are crafting I can get up and walk way from my computer while they finish (it probably happens so fast I wouldn’t have much time, I’ve not had a reason to craft 100 bows at once). The fish filet addon was just a QoL addon that would do the same thing, not some insidious automation tool. 🙂 🐟

Elsonso · June 9

Elvenheart wrote: »

Elsonso wrote: »

DenverRalphy wrote: »

Elsonso wrote: »

DenverRalphy wrote: »

Addons don't automate anything for the player in the sense that the player has to be present to tell it to execute each action. Writworthy does not allow you to get up, walk away from your machine, and keep playing the game for you.

When they say anything that automates, they mean anything that plays the game for you.

Huge difference.

Before they added the multi-fillet ability at the cooking fires, there was an addon that would go through all of the fish in inventory and fillet them as if the player had initiated the action for each fish. One at a time. It could take several minutes for the addon to process all of the fish, and the player could easily walk away and do other things while this was happening.

As far as I know, no one got banned for doing that, but it was clearly an addon that was automating the actions of the character and the player did not need to be present.

My thinking is that if players did not get banned for that, it would be hard for any addon to be the reason for a ban.

Come now. You know that's really stretching it. The add-on isn't playing the game on behalf of the player. It's not simulating keyboard/controller input. It's not moving the character around in the game world or going from node to node harvesting resources. It's not automatically casting skills. It's not initiating interaction with any objects like merchants/resource nodes/containers/etc.. The player couldn't walk away and come back to find that after the filet job was done that the addon then kept playing the game on the player's behalf.

No, it is not stretching it. Really, it is not. Suggesting that the addon didn't run off after filleting and play the game does not absolve it from being automation. That simply means that the addon was limited to only automating a portion of the game play.

In an alternate reality, that addon could have resulted in bans all around. ZOS chose wisely, in this reality.

Right now in the game with no addons I can craft 100 bows by selecting multiple and while they are crafting I can get up and walk way from my computer while they finish (it probably happens so fast I wouldn’t have much time, I’ve not had a reason to craft 100 bows at once). The fish filet addon was just a QoL addon that would do the same thing, not some insidious automation tool. 🙂 🐟

Not "insidious". Just "automation". I never said it was bad, I used it myself, but it was automation. ZOS wisely didn't act on it. Other studios might have.