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Temerity members, cool your jets. We're all stressed over what's been happening. This thread is more use to the community if we keep it out of the rants section.

Ok Ice Man I'll tell viper.

Thank you everyone who helped bring this whole scenario to light. Your diligent efforts are very much appreciated.

Zetro.... I knew there was a reason that I love you. =D

Now... on a serious note. I left PC when Velious was coming out because I could already see the writing on the walls. SO many people. SO many things being sold. SO many asses. Now I have been on Al Kabor for... well... a while. Feels like home. Glad to see that our Old World has such junk yard dogs like those that are working to protect us. Thank you for the time and effort everyone. I am sure that there are some that wish to remain nameless, but to everyone involved in both the investigation and protection of Al Kabor... THANKS!

Now... back to the stroking of Zetro....

I want to add my thanks to all of you especially the short stuff for taking the time to post such a comprehensive post of the shenanigans.

What all of you did has epitomized what is truly special and unique about this server... yes we are a large family, full of smaller clans and now and then we butt heads. This situation has clearly shown beyond a shadow of a doubt that when push comes to shove, how much we love this community that has been built.

Like it or not, I don't think the influx of new players will end... but we can certainly weed out the chaffs.

We have a special server here... we all need to work together to safeguard it, watch out for each other and send a message that we will continue to be unique. The best way other the security measures mentioned above, is for each of us to stress the community rules that have been here from day one. It is easy to separate the vets of Al'Kabor from the newcomers, certain behaviors are red flags. Make it clear from the get go when you hear people begging to be PL, or to do quests for them to get them gear... or loan insane amount of plat, etc. There are also the rude behaviors, disrespect shown to others that can be called out on.

Nothing works better than peer pressure, and it is peer pressure that sets our "community rules."

While I never thought our tiny little server that has chugged along in relative obscurity til now would ever have had this issue, I can say that I have never been prouder of those who undertook the investigation to solve a mystery, protect members of the server both in their guild and out, and truly truly put the server first.

I salute you all and offer profound and humble gratitude on behalf of myself as a long time vet as well as for The Horde.

/salute

Adding my thanks for the extraordinary work than has gone into uncovering this.

Just out of curiosity, what are the chances of a successful prosecution? Does anyone know about the legal status of "property" that only has value in a game environment (but can be illicitly traded in a "real" economy)? Since this person has been positively identified, it would be tremendously satisfying if someone ended up making an example of him. I understand that no one can do more than speculate about legal consequences, but I'm curious as to what people think.

I am new to the community and do not know any of these people but I would like to give my thanks also to everyone who worked hard and are continuing to work hard to keep this community free of this kind of crap. I am no way a saint and I have done my fair share of stuff in games that would be frowned upon but that was a while back and I enjoy the concept of coming to a community that has minimal to no plat/account selling. And anyone working to maintain this community deserves our respect and admiration for all the hard work they have and will continue to put forth.

Circe.... I would think that if it something has a value in the "real world" economy, then it would be considered a commodity just as anything else would be. Determining the value of a certain something would be the challenge. But there are websites that would give a reference point for that. This is just my speculation, but I think that is how it works. If it is something that takes time to accumulate, and that time costs money, and the accumulated items can be sold for real world pesos... well... looks like it could be a real thing. There are plenty of people that sue for less tangible things in this world and are awarded $$$. Make sense? Any EQ nerd attorney out there??

Hello to all my old friends.

Let me reiterate the thanks expressed by others to Zetro for the comprehensive write up of what has been going on behind the scenes. As well as a big thanks to the entire investigative team. As a long-retired player, yet possessive of my toons nonetheless, it is gratifying to see you all are still looking out for each other. This has been some interesting reading. And even though I don't play anymore, I have known many of you that still do. As well as knowing some of the victims of this fraud. Gnat, I hope you were able to retrieve your lost gear. I know you spent countless hours working on your toon and it is pretty f-ed up to see someone come in to hijack it and strip it bare. Some people just have no integrity or respect, and it is a damn shame to see old friends fall victim to such deeds.

I do not know if the authorities would even take seriously the theft of online game data, let alone prosecute. But it appears that Zetro has tracked down the scum's address who started all this. It leaves me thinking a few things. A chartered bus. A sh!tload of Louisville Sluggers. A few dozen angry Al'Kaborians. Road trip. ...just a thought. After all, justice should be served one way or another.

Oh, and to Nik: Nice work on the board update!

I was actually talking to a friend from WoW who is a lawyer about this. Unfortunately, since the "stolen property" was recovered, and intact (stripped chars were recovered by SoE), that any civil cases wouldn't be worth much.

However, there is the case of criminal trespass for the people who own the servers that were hacked. If any of you haven't already, you should contact your host and get them involved since technically they own the servers (unless you have a dedicated server you sent in to them to host from).

So if I steal money from a bank, get caught, and have the money forcefully taken away from me and returned to the bank, then I can only be charged for trespassing into the vault?

It seems to me that a number of crimes have been committed: Internet fraud, criminal hacking, identity theft, possession and sale of stolen merchandise (intellectual property), probably more that I'm missing.

Have these been reported to law enforcement by those who have been directly affected? I would think local law enforcement would be the first stop for reporting and getting information of who the crimes should be reported to. Others are the FTC, State District Attorney's Office, and the FBI.

This might be a good place to start: http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/cybercrime/index.html

That many of the accounts have been recovered and restored does not wipe away the crime. If your home is burglarised and you later find your property at a swap meet and have the police recover it for you, or you buy it back, does not eliminate the crime.

Some resources here: http://www.lapdonline.org/search_result ... _view/1490

Well color me impressed.

Gladly accepted.

The intellectual property is SOE's, not the players'.

No, I meant only that any civil cases that those involved might want to bring wouldn't be worth much, it does not negate the criminal charges that could result. However, the burden of proof in a criminal matter is much higher, along with the fact that you have to get a law enforcement agency to pursue it and a prosecutor to actually bring the charges makes it much more difficult.

Now if there was a strong civil case those involved could sue the thief themselves and get a monetary judgment for damages, but since the property was returned it is not likely to amount to much.