Ban COMM for an unknown reason (#25152320)

Good evening.


I was banned from COMM on August 22, for the next 30 days and for a reason that I can't explain and that the support team can't or won't give me. All I get is a link to the TOS.


I would like to have some explanations, clear and concise.


According to the email initially received on August 22, I allegedly harassed or threatened one (or more) player(s) on the COMM.


I speak very little about the COMM.

Exceptionally, I had published two messages the day before:

- one to lament the fact that a portal I had been monitoring for over an hour had passed neutral, without my seeing the slightest attack. It was just an observation, without mentioning the name of the portal or the name of a player.

- another to remind that riding a scooter on a sidewalk was a dangerous attitude, to be avoided. Again, I didn't mention any player name.


How can these messages constitute a violation of the TOS? I did not **** or threaten anyone.


I need to understand what could have motivated this sanction, @Thia or someone else...


Regards

Comments

  • I share you all the received and sent emails with the Niantic support.


  • joecainjoecain ✭✭✭✭✭

    I think it's ridiculous that niantic doesn't tell you *which specific messages* caused your timeout.

    Without those details it just seems like an arbitrary and random ban.

    Can our community manager chime in?

  • IcyBlueHeartIcyBlueHeart ✭✭✭✭

    Don't you just hate it when inconvenient facts start popping up and messing with your storyline?

  • mortuusmortuus ✭✭✭✭✭

    avoid comms, u can write something innocent and ppl will still report u for harassments

  • MoogModularMoogModular ✭✭✭✭✭

    Niantic isn't going to comment on this publicly and most likely will close this topic.

  • joecainjoecain ✭✭✭✭✭

    Maybe nianticvk got sacked?

  • I agree on the part that the most innocent things can lead up to a comm ban. People who are the real herrassers aren't getting the ban they deserve.

  • MJ78MJ78 ✭✭✭

    I still believe that both sides of the story need to be obtained before any decision/punishment is handed out.

    As it currently stands, the person who logs a complaint can make up an utter pack of tales and lies and it automatically believed by NIA. With the other player receiving 'punishment' without any opportunity to give their side of the story.

    One such example was a player who stole other players capsules and deliberately annoyed others during gameplay. When they were called out on comms, they were the one who complained to NIA. With the players affected by this player getting the warnings, bans and other such punishment. None were given the opportunity to state their side of the story.

    If NIA were in charge of the law courts, you would be automatically guilty and sentenced to imprisonment, without a chance to stand in the Dock and give your version of events.

  • I stopped reading when one of the Niantic responses said "Rest assured we will conduct a thorough investigation..."

    Yeah. You're notorious for your "thorough" investigations.

  • Kevinsky86Kevinsky86 ✭✭✭
    edited September 2023

    Niantic just getting back to you with some FAQ/TOS link and without anything of substance is totally in character.

    They never really give you info on anything, you're supposed to trust their absolutely really truely immaculate system and use their link to free-associate about what it is you did wrong.

    But then again this is just COMM. Only used for greeting newbies and griefing. You lost nothing.

  • No official response in 24 days, it's amazing.


    I imagine you had other priorities than responding to one of your customers.

    Fortunately I don't do the same with my community of 450 players...


    So to make things clear, I maintain that none of the messages I published in the COMM violated the TOS, and that the sanction imposed on me is completely unfair, and even biased.



    The messages did not mention any player names or location names.

    They could not be considered a threat to a player.

    For harassment... Harassment refers to repetition. In other words, the player behind the report necessarily felt concerned by my preventive message "don't ride a scooter on the sidewalks". I don't know if he proved to you that he was indeed targeted by my comments (I don't see how he could have done it, but in my opinion, for his "complaint" to be valid, he should have done it) , but you considered it sufficiently credible to sanction me. In other words, his report is a form of confession: he rode a scooter on the sidewalks, or he does it regularly.


    I know that you are committed to making Ingress a fun game and a safe experience for all players.

    I therefore ask you to take action against this player who made this report, since he acknowledges not acting in accordance with the Agent Protocol.

    If there are several players behind this report, sanction them all: this Protocol applies to everyone.



    I am also looking for the option that would allow me to no longer be able to write in the COMM, while continuing to read it.

    If this option does not exist, please extend my sanction indefinitely (change it to 99 years).

    It appears that even a simple "hello" is likely to be considered **** for some players, and that this greeting could lead to account suspension. But I want to be able to report insults and derogatory remarks from other players.



    Last point: it is unacceptable that support cannot, or does not want to, answer a question as simple as 'why have I been sanctioned?'.

    I cannot advise you enough to investigate this case, because the feedback I obtained suggests that the support did not have the information. Was the report carried out normally?

    Or maybe you could replace the support with a bot that sends formatted messages automatically, at a lower cost and without loss of efficiency? ?

  • ZeroHecksGivenZeroHecksGiven ✭✭✭✭✭

    The fact that you seem so surprised by all of this is actually surprising to me.

    A couple things. How do you know your COMM ban is coming from the messages you posted on the 21st? What about the messages in July? You were insinuating that someone was cheating, right?

    You’ve played this game long enough to know that nothing good comes from COMMs besides basic recruiting. You know it can also be used as a weap0n at times.

    Your ban is almost up. Be more careful with your words in the future. I’m sure it’s fun taunting people and throwing accusations to the wind, but it will get you nowhere and it’s a bad look…

  • Fast answers to @ZeroHecksGiven


    > How do you know your COMM ban is coming from the messages you posted on the 21st? What about the messages in July?

    This is the problem, since the support does not specify the exact reason for the sanction.

    However, based on private discussions with other players and my personal experience, there is not much doubt: the timing is right.

    Besides, as I said, I'm not a big fan of discussions in the Comm. I don't remember any other messages in the days or even weeks before. Maybe other players will be able to find traces of what I may have written?


    > You were insinuating that someone was cheating, right?

    I don't understand why I can't get a clear and concise answer on this bann. So, yes, I end up feeling like there's something weird...

    Do certain players have specific "powers" to circumvent the normal functioning of the system?


    > Be more careful with your words in the future

    The next time a guy on a scooter almost hits me on a sidewalk, instead of settling for a simple warning message on the Comm, I will go directly to the police station with the scooter's license plate. And I reserve the right to send a copy of the complaint to Niantic if this guy turns out to be a gamer.

    It is a shame that it has to come to this.


    ---------


    I am still looking for the option that would allow me to no longer be able to write in the COMM, while continuing to read it.

    If this option does not exist, please extend my sanction indefinitely

  • ZeroHecksGivenZeroHecksGiven ✭✭✭✭✭

    So you’re convinced this is about the scooter, are you the scooter police? This kinda Karen type BS is one of the reasons I’ve all but quit playing this game. People following me around, accusing me of trespassing in parks past certain hours (later corrected), etc. But some of y’all can’t help yourself and too worried about what other agents are doing. You think anyone wants to read messages from a grown adult telling other grown people what they should and shouldn’t be doing?!?


    You’re not going to receive any type of support here in the forums.

  • MoogModularMoogModular ✭✭✭✭✭

    lol, call the cops if they are trespassing - they are the ones with authority (or AHJ - authorities having jurisdiction) in the situation

    I used to be butthurt about it years ago but it's just water under the bridge. They are the people taking the risk and will get in trouble if the cops see them. I usually advocate for agents of both factions to be careful out there regardless.

  • Some news...


    At the end of the day on September 24, support informed me that my sanction had expired.

    In other words, this 30 day COMM ban has been extended to 33 days.

    The information message was banal, as if there had been no replay of the exchange, with no apology for the time extension. I am just invited, once again, to read the TOS and the Agent Protocol.


    I really feel like someone is making fun of me, and that I'm dealing with a bot that can only transmit predefined messages.

    Reassure me, isn’t that what support is?


    The best part is that at a professional level, I support several thousand users.

    We obviously don't have the same notion of what a support is.

    And privately, I am manager of a community dedicated to Niantic games. This experience doesn't make me want to invest more in Ingress. My patience is starting to wear thin.


    Brief...

    I responded by asking for the explanation requested for over a month, and a COMM ban of 99 years until it is given.

    I am still waiting...

  • I forgot !


    My messages reappeared in the COMM, for some reason.

    Here is a screenshot of what I published on August 21, the day before my ban:

    - 1st message, framed in yellow: I deplore the game latency which causes a portal to become neutral even though I was monitoring it and it had two shields. I would like Niantic to work on this point.

    - 2nd message, framed in orange: "The sidewalk for a scooter, please avoid".

    A reaction that I consider more than measured when I was practically hit on the sidewalk by a player on a scooter, who had his eye glued to his screen. This player would also do well to read Agent Protocol, especially chapters II and IV.


    Do you see a threat? harassment?


    The previous message dated August 16, I asked, with a smiley, if my current opponents had used B4s, the defense had seemed so long to me.

    The previous ones were published on July 7.


  • VenomousToadVenomousToad ✭✭✭✭✭

    If you say hello you could get banned. Niantic doesn't want anyone using comm anymore. Just avoid it altogether.

  • ZeroHecksGivenZeroHecksGiven ✭✭✭✭✭

    how long have you been playing Ingress? I’m curious where you got the idea support would ever actually provide any insight into what you’ve actually done to get you banned from COMMs. Thats not how they operate and as far as I understand, they’ve never operated any other way.

    Take your punishment, stay off COMMs and stop worrying about people riding their scooters.

  • AstuceMcLeodAstuceMcLeod ✭✭
    edited September 2023

    No, I want to understand why I was sanctioned. It's the minimum...


    What will it be next time? A ban from the game for a reason that will never be provided? Maybe because a player has extensive powers, contacts who have them, or because he managed to smoke out the support, as I have the damn impression? Or because the support didn't ban the right player/account ?

    And we should accept it, because that’s how it’s worked for years?? No, no and no !


    I even wonder if there aren't other players who have been excluded from the game, temporarily or permanently, for some non-existent reason, just because "that's the way it is"...


    As for staying away from COMM, I wish I could no longer write in it, but be able to read it.

    Post edited by AstuceMcLeod on
  • "As for staying away from COMM, I wish I could no longer write in it, but be able to read it."

    Wish granted: You now have the ability to not write in comm, unless you choose to.

  • AstuceMcLeodAstuceMcLeod ✭✭
    edited September 2023

    (double post)

  • ZeroHecksGivenZeroHecksGiven ✭✭✭✭✭

    Niantic owes you nothing. It’s not the government. YOU choose to play this game and YOU are subject to how Niantic wants to offer support.

    Do I like it? No. I’ve been on the bad side of their support a couple of times. But it is what it is. With them laying off people, I only have expect support to get worse honestly.

  • Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me!


    Who tf is banning for speech? Don't we have enough of this censorship already? @AstuceMcLeod I feel you. Sorry.

    These policies are pure poison, especially for projects like wayfarer, ingress, ... isn't it about creating and contributing to a VPS?

  • MoogModularMoogModular ✭✭✭✭✭

    Freedom of speech goes away when you're within the confinements of a private company.

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