Clarification on TOS?
I see here a lot of back and forth conversations on rules, but if it is not specially covered by TOS, then how is it against the rules?
In my mind, I follow TOS, and not worry about hearsay in this forum. Anyone want to challenge that? Thank you.
Post edited by NianticVK on
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What specific action are you concerned violates TOS? While not stated directly, all forms of cheating, multiaccounting, spoofing, etc are covered under the "do not cheat" umbrella.
If it's related to what was posted in that other thread, that's covered by "don't do anything illegal according to local and all applicable laws" umbrella
Regarding applicable actions for reporting any TOS violations, you need to follow the process set forth by Niantic which is reporting via the proper avenues. That does NOT include doing any actions that threatens harm to the individual or violates the law. Trying to gather "evidence" for a support ticket does NOT mean you can violate the law to gether it.
That pretty much is what I thought. If it's not in TOS it is fine. Thank you for your response.
That is the exact opposite of what I was saying
"Do not cheat" is meaningless if which actions constitute cheating are not defined. It would leave the door open for them to arbitrarily say that any given action is or is not cheating.
Includes but not limited too.......
The same reason wintrading was explicitly deleted from the TOS
"Don't cheat" does a lot of heavy lifting.
From Niantic Terms of Service:
Please read these Niantic Terms of Service and any applicable App guidelines (the “Guidelines” and, collectively, the “Terms”), because the Terms govern your use of such Apps.
From the Niantic Player Guidelines (which as per above are part of the Terms of Service):
Don’t cheat. Our games are meant to be played outside on mobile devices and create adventures in the real world. Don’t deny yourself or someone else a fair gameplay experience by cheating.
Unfortunately, methods of cheating are limited only by cheaters’ imaginations, and include the following:
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Note that "and include the following" does not preclude any other activities that Niantic deems to be cheating. So no, it doesn't have to be explicitly in the ToS to be cheating, and thus you are required by the Terms of Service to be mindful of your own play and don't cheat.
An examples of a ruling by Niantic that isn't explicitly in the ToS:
And remember:
If you breach these Terms we may take action against you, including but not limited to terminating your account. You acknowledge that Niantic has no obligation to, and will not, reimburse or refund you for Services lost due to involuntary suspension or termination of your account.
Niantic can and will ban your account if you're caught cheating by their own determination. No matter how much you complain "But it's not in the TOS" they will not care. You will be banned for activities they deem cheating, and you will lose your account.
You are not the one who judges whether you're cheating, Niantic is. You can't rules laywer yourself out of that.
Yet, Niantic does not guarantee the safety of its players against stalkers and bad actors who like to threaten and cause bodily harm to others. Isn't Ingress considered a "social game?" I guess that's where social engineering came from...
Niantic will not take action against players that threaten others. They aren't the police. So reach out to authorities if you feel you need to but never assume Niantic will do anything. If they actually did then many would simply submit false reports and get everyone banned. Because if nothing else Ingress taught me just how hateful some people can be. It's definitely been eye opening over the years. It's been an interesting social experiment.
Hint: If you're being harassed in public, you contact the proper authorities.
Hateful is an understatement. Ingress Prime showed us how evil and Machiavellian people could be.
To reiterate: Ingress is not a different universe. If you are being threatened, stalked, or harassed, go to the proper local authorities.
Thanks for the lively discussion on this thread. Based on the content of the discussion, I will be closing it for future comments. I appreciate your understanding.