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An issue that has been prevalent problem in both moderator applications and player bans is the matter of account accountability. It's become so much of a hassle that we're posting about it now.
Who is at the Keyboard?
Until I invent a computer that requires biometric input and information to confirm a user's identity
The rare issue is when the user playing on your account is not you, but someone else be they a sibling, friend, or neighbor. That's what I'm here to talk about today.
On Account Borrowing
Letting someone else use your account for whatever reason is a risky undertaking for you (the account holder) and no one else unfortunately. Because we associate individuals with their accounts, malicious behavior on your account will be seen as malicious behavior from you and only you. So if you let your friend play some MCSG on your account, and he does something to get your account banned, now you won't be able to play MCSG (because he/she got your account banned).
You can post a ban-dispute about it, but it is very difficult to prove a case of mistaken identity. We've all heard of, or perhaps even tried to convince someone of, the story about how, "my brother/sister did it"; next you'll be telling us about how your dog ate your homework. On your side, you most likely don't have any definite evidence to prove you weren't at the computer that your account was logged into. On the staff's side, they don't have many solid ways to prove who was. The only constant in cases like this is that someone who deserves to be banned owns an account, and that account is now banned.
The Senior Staff has already received a saddening number of ban disputes that use the above story. Most of them do not get unbanned, because it's difficult to physically prove otherwise.
The general rule? If it's your account, only you should use it.
On Alternate Accounts
Alternate accounts are fine, so long as they're being used properly. People can have multiple accounts for any number of reasons, and we don't have a problem with that. But having multiple accounts is not an excuse to cause trouble or evade punishment.
If Person A has Accounts A, B, and C, and Account A gets banned, Accounts B and C are still unbanned. Furthermore, Person A will not receive a punishment properly, as they are still able to access our servers (and cause potential problems). As described in our philosophy above, we ban accounts with the intention of banning certain people from accessing our servers. If we are trying to ban a certain person, we must then ban any and every account that they may have access to in order to prevent them from accessing our servers. Furthermore, the simple act of evading justice is a criminal act on its own, thus increasing the punishment for individuals who'd do such things.
If you are banned on our servers, and you use an alternate account to circumvent the ban, you (and any alternate account you may own) will be permanently banned without warning nor question. We have our ways of knowing, so don't even try it.
On Account Sharing
Now let's put the two together. If Person A and Person B share a single account (even if they have their own independent accounts), they are putting each other at risk. The shared account may be considered an alternate account owned by two people, and is thus at risk of being banned if either Person A or Person B is banned. Even if they are banned on their own independent accounts the shared account could still be seen as an alternate, and is thus likely to be banned should either player appear on our servers.
Conclusion
- Don't let anyone use your account except for you.
- Lend your account at your own risk and discretion.
- Alternate accounts are fine if used legitimately.
- Use of alternate accounts to cause trouble or circumvent bans will result in immediate permabanning.
- Don't share accounts, as it puts you all at risk.
- Be accountable with your accounts.
- Have fun!
