HIGHLIGHTS
- Permanent ban is being removed from some Pokemon Go accounts
- Certain third-party apps were indulging in data collection from game
- Niantic says permanent bans to stay on accounts that used other cheats
Pokemon Go’s success might not be at its peak any more with many players moving away from the game due to some unpopular updates by the company but it is hard to deny that the mobile game still has a very large following. A while ago, the company started hardening its stance on the players who were trying to cheat their way through the game, and permanently banned those players. Now, it seems like company wants to unban some those users who may have been unfairly permanently banned.
Niantic has said in a post that due to certain updates to its infrastructure, the company will now be able to figure out and unban those users who were, unknowingly collecting data from the app, thanks to certain third-party apps. The company said that these apps had an effect similar to DDoS attacks on its servers.
“Some players may not have realized that some add-on map apps do more than just show you nearby Pokémon. Each end-user app can be used as a collection tool by the app creator, invisibly collecting and forwarding data to the app creator with or without the knowledge of the end user,” Niantic said in its post.
However, the company has also clarified that it is still vigilant about the cheats used for the game and accounts whose sole purpose was to scrape data are not being unbanned. Also, the accounts that used apps or websites to “remotely capture Pokémon, battle or deploy on Gyms, or harvest resources from PokéStops” are also not going to be unbanned by the company.
Niantic has said that its priority is to provide a fair, fun, and legitimate experience for all players and will continue to aggressively ban those players who indulge in the aforementioned activities.
Source: gadgets.ndtv.com