Blizzard adds Temporary Economy Holds to fight gold buying on the Forever beta
· ForeverDB
Accounts suspected of Real Money Trade can now be put under a Temporary Economy Hold, which restricts trade, mail, guild banks and the Auction House while Blizzard investigates. Blizzard says normal play is unlikely to trigger it, and a hold alone leaves no permanent strike on your account.
On October 13 Kaivax posted a new measure against gold buying on the WoW Forever beta: the Temporary Economy Hold. If Blizzard suspects an account of Real Money Trade (RMT), it can lock that account out of parts of the game's economy while it looks into the matter.
This is a Blizzard forum post about a measure against gold buying (RMT), not a change in the beta client's data. There is nothing in the game files to check it against.
What a hold does
Blizzard says the hold restricts four things while it is in place:
- Trade
- Guild banks
- The Auction House
In Blizzard's words:
If your account is suspected of being involved in RMT, either the selling or receiving of illicit gains, you may find your account subject to a Temporary Economy Hold. You will have restricted use of trade, mail, guild banks and the Auction House while this economic hold is in place. Kaivax, Community Manager
The aim is to stop suspect gold moving before it reaches the wider economy, and to buy Blizzard time to investigate. Blizzard says the system targets both the selling and the receiving of gold.
What it means if you are playing normally
Blizzard says ordinary play is unlikely to set it off, and that a hold on its own is not a punishment on your record.
If you are just playing the game normally, it is unlikely you will ever see this restriction applied to your account. If this restriction is applied to your account, it will be either automatically removed when the actions that triggered it have been investigated and found false, or you will receive account actions if found to have been involved in RMT. Kaivax, Community Manager
So a hold ends one of two ways: it is lifted automatically if the investigation clears you, or it turns into an account action if you are found to have been involved in RMT.
It is new, and there may be false positives
Blizzard is upfront that the system is still being tuned, and that a hold by itself leaves no mark on your account.
This system is new. There may be false positives while things are fine tuned, but merely having a Temporary Economy Hold will leave no permanent strikes against your account unless also later proven to be RMT motivated. Kaivax, Community Manager
Blizzard also says the measure may spread beyond WoW Forever if it works:
We remain committed to ensure that WoW Forever is not marred by the Real Money Trade, and all of these systems will also be deployed to all versions of World of Warcraft if proven successful. Kaivax, Community Manager
This is a beta system. Blizzard says it may change as it is fine tuned, and gave no detail on how long a hold lasts or how to appeal one.