Niantic has begun to permanently ban cheating Pokemon Go players using services to alter their location or level within the game.
If you’ve successfully managed to cheat your way through Pokemon Go – whether it be to alter your Pokemon, your level, or your location entirely – we’ve got some bad news for you. As of today, Niantic has officially begun permanently banning players who have crooked the books.
Niantec, citing their desire to “provide a fair, fun, and legitimate game experience for everyone” have begun to permanently deactivate the accounts of players who have been found to have cheated in the game.
Read: Here‘s how to find Pokemon in South Africa with Pokemon Go
For clarity, Niantic describes cheating as the process of users “falsifying their location, using emulators, modified or unofficial software and/or accessing Pokémon GO clients or backends in an unauthorized manner, including through the use of third party software.”
Niantic has further clarified that it will remain possible to appeal a terminated account through the game’s support page if you find yourself sitting on the wrong end of the law (or, in this case, the rules).
While it would be difficult for Niantic to prove a correlation between players who’ve made use of such ‘third party services’ – such as PokeVision, which tracks Pokemon in real time through Niantic’s servers – the announcement firmly places such utilities in the sin bin.
The game has come under repeated fire for its unreliable tracking system, which is one of the key reasons many players have resorted to crowd-sourcing maps online. Niantic recently debuted an improved tracking system in the game which is working to allay the frustrations of gamers and exasperated parents everywhere.
Read: How to download the Pokemon Go APK, install, and play on Android
What are your thoughts on Niantic’s move to permanently ban cheating Pokemon Go players? Is the company running the risk of over-policing the game, or is it on the right track? Be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Follow Bryan Smith on Twitter: @bryansmithSA
