The One-Strike Policy - Would it help?

[SpaghettiSquid]

The One-Strike Policy
A change for the better.

I acknowledge that this may come across as an attack on MCSG staff, but it is not meant to be one. It is a critique of the policy the administration has laid out in its rules, and I ask that staff put their ranks aside and read this with fresh eyes and an open mind. I find that suggesting change in this manner is much more effective and mature than in-game "protests", chat spams, and "standing up for ones rights", whatever that means.

"The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance." - Nathaniel Branden
​

My opinion on the two-strike policy-
- Once upon a time, a server called MindCrack started up. It had an array of mini-games including survival games. However the entire network was swamped with hackers for the first opening week. It took three weeks. Three weeks to rid the entire network of hackers. What used to be 5-10 hackers per game shrunk to 0-1. The reason? One strike, you're out. If a user really wanted to come back and play, they would need buy a new Minecraft account.
- When I see a hacker and I'm about to start recording, I often ask myself a question. "Is this worth my time?" I used to say yes, yes it is. But now, with the volume of hackers, it isn't. The fact that I could spend 2-5 minutes recording them, 5-10 minutes editing and rendering in Premiere, and another 10 minutes uploading/creating the post means I'm spending upwards of 25 minutes per hacker. A hacker, with his two strikes, isn't worth an hour of my time. It isn't worth an hour of anyone's time. I could make $10 at minimum wage for that. $10, or a hacker. Then the fact that people can buy 50 Minecraft accounts for $5.00? That's 50 hours, $50 of my time just to deal with one angry kid's $5.

About me (and my experience w/ hackers)-
I have been playing Minecraft since March 4th, 2011. Three years coming on four. In that time I've gained a sixth sense. Sure, I don't remember how to solve a molar equation for Chemistry class, but I can spot a hacker within seconds on Minecraft. In my 9 months moderating the RoxBot network, I banned 1,113 players. I collected evidence for every single one, and kept it on my hard drive in the event that the user disputed his/her ban. Our team was efficient, communicated freely, and while we had a much smaller user base than MCSG, we had developed a system for banning players that was infallible. The one things I've learned from moderating there, especially in such a small community with complete ban logs, is that players who are unbanned will continue to hack. Players, whether they are 8, 12, 15, 25, etc. aren't stupid. They know that hacking is wrong and a temporary ban isn't a deterrent. They will either wait for their ban to expire, and continue to hack, or never join that server again. Either way, a single perma-ban has proven to be the best method.

What I recommend MCSG do:
1. One strike policy. This will make reporting players (more) worth the communities time and will drastically reduce the number of hackers on the network. (Use MindCrack as an example) People know hacking isn't allowed. They know that it is wrong. They know that it ruins the experience for those around them. Yet they do it anyway. In my time on RoxBot, I have found that the majority of hackers do it to ruin the experience of others rather than get wins or improve their stats. With a two strike policy, it lets them ruin the experience for 2x more people.

2. Streamline the ban process. Open up a new moderating position, "forum mod", where these mods constantly take care of reports posted on the forums. Make the ban template simple, cut out any extras.

3. Reward players for reporting. I understand that the administration is against this idea, but please ask yourself "who is donating hours of their time to cleaning up the network?". In my time on Teamspeak (a lot of time) the majority of mods are [Off-Duty], [On-Phone], [AFK], playing a different game, in a call w/ their friends, [DND], or simply do not respond to pokes/messages. At the same time, I generally get responses to forum reports in less than 15 minutes.
Reward ideas: +50 in-game points, +75 in-game points, forum badges, or double-point boosters. If you have other ideas please let me know below!

Let me know your opinion(s) in the comments below, whether you agree or not, and any changes/additions you'd like to see to this thread. Reward suggestions are greatly appreciated, though they should be reasonable. Remember to vote on the poll, or share any concerns below. I'll do my best to answer them.
If any staff member has a problem with anything I have written above (or below) PLEASE contact me via forum conversation to have that section altered or expunged BEFORE deleting the thread entirely.​

Lastly, thank you for taking the time out of your day to read this. Whether it took you 5 minutes or half an hour, I truly appreciate it. Whether your opinion on MCSG's current two-strike policy was changed or if you already agreed with a one-strike method, I hope this has provided some insight on one of the major causes of the huge influx of hackers. If you have any questions, feel free to shoot me a message on the forums or at my personal email (ben(@)spaghettisquid.com). (Note that I am no longer a mod for RoxBot and will not be assisting those wanting help in applying.)

 

[NotCanziano]

I agree.

 

[Th1NgY | Will]

I agree 100% Sounds like a cool idea.

 

[Ceroria]

This thread is very well put together and you make a very organized and well proven cause, however a one-strike policy is not the way we operate here on MCGamer and it has been stated that is not the way we will operate. We believe in second chances. There are many an instance where a hacker has been caught, and in fact changed their ways to become a legitimate player.

However I have some rebuts.

They will either wait for their ban to expire, and continue to hack, or never join that server again.

If they never join that server again, and lose interest after a one week ban for hacking then it has the same effect as a permanent ban, and if they continue to hack, they will most likely be banned within a week of their unbanning. I see it happen every day.

I understand that the administration is against this idea, but please ask yourself "who is donating hours of their time to cleaning up the network?". In my time on Teamspeak (a lot of time) the majority of mods are [Off-Duty], [On-Phone], [AFK], playing a different game, in a call w/ their friends, [DND], or simply do not respond to pokes/messages.

This is utterly not true. Unless I am in a staff meeting, a group meeting, or handling another matter at the time, I will always respond to pokes. Also, if you see a staff member in a meeting room, a DND room, or something like that, don't poke them! The minority of our staff will be in those rooms (I'm on the teamspeak for multiple hours a day, I would know.) and you can easily find an available mod if you use common sense to look. Sometimes moderators are busy dealing with other reports when you poke them, so they might not respond immediately, and in other cases they might not respond, but be on the case. For example: If you poke a moderator saying "Hacker named Player1234 in server us43" then we have all the information to follow the player and determine if they are, in fact, breaking the rules and go ahead with it, sometimes without responding on accident because we are so focused on handling the player.

Open up a new moderating position, "forum mod", where these mods constantly take care of reports posted on the forums. Make the ban template simple, cut out any extras.

We have a large enough staff team that we have plenty of people every day who have time to check the report abuse section and handle those reports, we handle hundreds upon hundreds of them a day, and that is only through the power of the few moderators that are online at that time. Such a position would be unnecessary.

In your overall point that our network would benefit from a one-strike system, I do disagree. We have many incredibly influential members that have one hacking ban, or something of the like that may have come from a long time ago. Without this second chance, they would not be here helping out the network as much as they are today.

 

[Mr_Ant87]

Tbh I'm not quite sure whether it would work or not. The main problem would be if a player on the server had their account hacked and got banned with this system in place. If they had no proof to prove they weren't using their account when it was banned, then they wouldn't get a second chance on MCGamer, which would really suck if they were a regular player on the server .

Otherwise, it would be a pretty good system in place.

 

[Sean]

Great thread.

 

[Pixelatorx2]

What about this,

Instead of having this rule imposed all the time, why not during cleensweeps? Have a message broadcasted when you join - "Warning - This network is undergoing a cleansweep. During this time hackers will only have one chance before a permaban", or you don't even have to say that, just do it (You can mark this on the ban panel by putting a "cs" or something in their name to signify that you have been banned in cleansweep).

I think this would be a better idea, that way you know that during this cleansweep you are actually doing something worthwhile (I mean, most hackers just come back...) and that you are actually ridding the server of these people.

 

[Xystz]

you are a genius

 

[SpaghettiSquid]

First off, thank you all for your replies. Ceroria | XyZebrAbC, you make some really great points and while I agree that there are some mods online and helping on Teamspeak, I've seen a large portion in [DND] rooms. (No, I don't poke them. I just let the hacker go and mind my own business.) Yes, as of now the forum reports can get handled, but if a reward system were to be put in place I was worried about the influx of reports. I was not trying to reprimand the current staff team, as they do an amazing job at getting to reports.

At the same time, I generally get responses to forum reports in less than 15 minutes.

Tbh I'm not quite sure whether it would work or not. The main problem would be if a player on the server had their account hacked and got banned with this system in place. If they had no proof to prove they weren't using their account when it was banned, then they wouldn't get a second chance on MCGamer, which would really suck if they were a regular player on the server .

Otherwise, it would be a pretty good system in place.

Accounts getting hacked is actually quite rare. Yes, if their password is 'password123' or something along those lines, they did it to themselves. And if their account was hacked, they are never getting it back. I've read threads about it and the hacker will change security questions & often gets a hold of the victims email as well. (Therefore no password reset!) There are also websites where you can buy/rent hundreds of accounts for only a couple dollars, meaning there are so many hacked accounts in circulation (presumably from the large Mojang/Amazon Web Services SSL breach earlier in the year) that the gain from having a one-strike system would far outweigh the consequences for the few that do get their accounts hacked.

 

[PABZS]

I agree...

 

[PABZS]

but if the players was wrongly accused... gg

 

[MyrkrBrandr]

wow, a thread that is actually very well organized. I agree 100% with this!