My World of Warcraft account lapsed some time ago. I haven’t been in the game since some time in April.
But some of our guild is still subscribed and playing. And apparently somebody has had some trouble.
A character on my account holds the position of guild leader, primarily because I usurped the old leader when he stopped playing for a year. (Sorry Mark!)
But since my account holds that position, I got this email last evening:
Grettings!
Account Name:
Realm: Eldre’Thalas
Character Name: Tistann
Guild Name: Twilight Cadre
Item(s) Restored: Bolt of Imbued Netherweave x15
Bolt of Runecloth x28
Dawnstone
Diamond-Cut Refractor Scope x4
Ebonweave x2
Embersilk Cloth x4
Eternal Earth x30
Heavy Borean Leather x40
Heavy Netherweave Bandage x20
Living Ruby
Moonshroud
Netherweave Cloth x15
Nightseye
Noble Topaz
Saronite Bar x4
Scarlet Ruby x2
Shining Spellthread
Spellweave x2
Star of EluneIt has come to our attention that your guild bank had items removed without the guild’s consent, resulting in item theft.
We are very happy to inform you that we were able to assist your guild in this particular case.
Please keep in mind that In-Game Support will review reported guild bank theft, but that restoration for any such losses are not guaranteed. We strongly recommend that guild withdrawal limitations are set to be more conservative to help prevent incidents like this occurring in the future. While we will make every effort to verify and restore your loss, the decision to go forward with a restoration is entirely at Blizzard’s discretion.
You will find the item(s) already in your character’s inventory or in the mailbox as an attachment. If the item(s) was lost due to an accidental sale, the appropriate amount of money will be charged. If you do not pay the COD to retrieve the item from the mail, and the mail expires, unfortunately your restoration will be forfeit.
Please note that items with random modifiers (of the Bear, of the Eagle, etc.) are randomly generated; therefore we are unable to guarantee that you will receive the same modifier you had on your original item. We are also unable to guarantee the restoration of enchantments or add-ons (such as gems, scopes, etc.) the items may have possessed. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience you may have been caused.
For further information please check our Restoration Policy located at (http://us.blizzard.com/support/article/20457)
Thank you again for contacting us. We hope you continue to enjoy your experience in World of Warcraft!
Regards,
Game Master Shendranikus
Customer Services
Blizzard Entertainment
www.blizzard.com/support
Well crap.
Somebody else in our guild got their account hacked… again! Not a new story here I am afraid. Even the guild bank looting we’ve been through before. It is one of the most pressing issues facing WoW, and I cannot escape it.
I think there are maybe 8 or 9 accounts maximum in our guild, and at least three of them have authenticators attached. But in total I think we’re batting 33% of accounts hacked now, or 50% of those without authenticators.
I’ve mocked Sony for getting their system invaded and brought down for weeks, and we have heard that the same happened to Codemasters and Bethesda, though the latter of which apparently didn’t even notice. (Which probably isn’t that uncommon.)
But Blizzard, as yet unhacked on the large scale as far as we know, seems to be suffering the death of a thousand cuts as account after account falls. Did I say a thousand cuts? There are millions of accounts out there without authenticators, which seems to be the only thing that slows the hackers down. I have had one on my account for two years now.
From top to bottom, that is my mother’s, my daughter’s, and my authenticator. That is three of the accounts in the guild covered.
And the galling bit is, because I hold the guild leadership on my account, to recover the items that have been restored, I have to reactivate my account.
I learned, through the experience of another friend whose account was hacked (I’ve lost count on people I know but who are not in our guild) that items restored to you through the in-game mail have the same timer on them as any other in-game mail. His account got hacked and restored just before it lapsed, so he didn’t collect his items. Then, months later, when he came back, his restored items were nowhere to be found. So if I do not resubscribe soon, there won’t be anything there to recover.
Though I am not sure if there is anything on that list that is really worth recovering.
I do wonder whose account got hacked this time. Was it somebody’s first time, or a repeat event?
And are we looking forward to a further hacking spree when Diablo III comes along?