World of Warcraft cities hacked

If someone posted this I missed it somehow, so apologies in advance … and I am sure it will be all over the net shortly. But in case anyone was interested figured I would post since I hadn't seen it here yet:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-19869466

Had to admit I was laughing even though hacking is bad …

Hackers have massacred all the virtual characters in some of online adventure game World of Warcraft's major cities.

They appear to have created a character able to destroy those of other players and those controlled by the game.

Game creator Blizzard Activision has appealed for information, but added: "This exploit has already been hot-fixed, so it should not be repeatable."

More than 10 million subscribers play World of Warcraft (WoW), almost half are believed to be in China.

Numbers had dipped from a peak of 12 million in 2010 to 9.1 million at the beginning of 2012, but have swelled since the release at the end of September of an expansion called the Mists of Pandaria.

Writing in an online forum, Blizzard said it was taking the action "very seriously".

"Earlier today, certain realms were affected by an in-game exploit, resulting in the deaths of player characters and non-player characters in some of the major cities," wrote a representative going by the name of Nethaera, on Sunday.

Olivia Grace, contributing editor of website WoW Insider, said: "It was a significant hack.

"They discovered a method to roll a level-one [beginner] character, which ran to the major cities.

"We don't know exactly what they did, but somehow they were able to kill every single player's character in that city and every single computer controlled character - and they were doing this repeatedly."

Ms Grace said she believed the same hackers had attacked WoW before but not to this extent, with characters being destroyed again after "reincarnation" as is normal within the confines of the game.

Power. This is about nothing but power.
Maniacs.

So what's the message?

Hackers are really becoming a problem in online games.

*sigh*

Yes hackers are a problem but come on you have to admit that was funny. Imagine the look on the players faces as it happened.

Yes, I find this funny for reasons on multiple levels. I suppose if I MMO'ed that may be different though…

On another note I started getting those "It has been brought to our attention you are trying to sell your account." emails and I don't think I even have an account any more. Dropped WOW years ago. I will now have to call them to get my name cleared just in case it is a hacker. Then set all those emails to the trash folder again.

If they can hack the game how many steps it it to hacking accounts AGAIN……….I say shoot them myself.

Originally Posted by Thrasher
Yes, I find this funny for reasons on multiple levels. I suppose if I MMO'ed that may be different though…

Hacking "for the lulz" ?

Is laughter really becoming so important nowadays ? A new kind of Fame ? So important that people destroy other things just "for the lulz", meaning to make ohers laugh about the mess ?

Sounds to me like Anarchy going into a new level …

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
Hacking "for the lulz" ?

Is laughter really becoming so important nowadays ? A new kind of Fame ? So important that people destroy other things just "for the lulz", meaning to make ohers laugh about the mess ?

Sounds to me like Anarchy going into a new level …

It's an MMO run by a client server hacking is always going to happen. In the early days of wow I had a similar experience. I can look back and laugh because the industry thinks these games are the future.

My experience was the same a LV1 character bouncing around like a bunny somehow killed my LV 50 easily. Pisses you off. That's why I said imagine there faces when it happened.

I stopped playing WOW years ago though so I have no emotional attachment to it anymore.

Originally Posted by Couchpotato
I stopped playing WOW years ago though so I have no emotional attachment to it anymore.

You admit you had it once?
:shocked:

Originally Posted by joxer
You admit you had it once?
:shocked:

I bought into the hype tried the free trial then paid for a month service then quit playing. Shocking I know.

Originally Posted by Cm
On another note I started getting those "It has been brought to our attention you are trying to sell your account." emails and I don't think I even have an account any more. Dropped WOW years ago. I will now have to call them to get my name cleared just in case it is a hacker. Then set all those emails to the trash folder again.

These mails come from hackers. I've even seen mails about such things for games I've never owned. All such mails have some sort of link where they want you to log in, but none of them link to any official site. Just double check the next time you get such an email.

Anyway, I was online the day that happened, but I never saw any of it. Strange. I've only read about it.

Originally Posted by Couchpotato
I stopped playing WOW years ago though so I have no emotional attachment to it anymore.

For one of the same reasons, I found it funny based on how emotionally attached and addicted people get with WoW. Seeing their faces would have been classic. It's just a temporary annoyance for them. Still.

In general I find MMOs a big waste of time and money, and don't play them. Another reason I found it funny. Though DDO may be an exception.

I get reminded of this : http://www.rpgwatch.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16376

I never link from an email for anything. Just a heads up for new players not aware of that ploy and how fast it starts coming at you.

I was WoW player for years… I can imagine how annoying that would be if I still play WoW. Although, I suppose I could have had fun too if I were to be able to kill some of my own faction toons.

Funny that you mentioned the email Cm. I've been receiving those emails too - for both WoW and Runescape. I think I played Runescape for 10 mins and never went back again and I get an email saying someone is trying to sell my account after 18236813 years later (by this stage, I almost forgot I had account at all).

WoW one was really amazing. They've made an email that could look really convincing, linking an website called blizzard.com. They even copied Diablo's face on website, making it look quite genuine. I had a good laugh about it with my hubby.

Originally Posted by Thrasher
In general I find MMOs a big waste of time and money, and don't play them. Another reason I found it funny. Though DDO may be an exception.

Yet you don't find single-player games to be a waste of time and money? I guess it's all about the enjoyment each gamer gets from their chosen game. BTW, MMOs are probably the cheaper option these days, with all the great free-to-play games around.

As for this hack, I played for years, too, and I would have enjoyed it immensely if I saw something like this happen. I still remember the plague spreading bug fondly. This is an example of exactly what makes games like this fun. Then again, I probably never took the game as serious as some of the other players.

You need to make your own fun in these games. Hell, at one point I sold myself as a hireling to accompany newbies into dungeons, of course charging extra for using the good poisons on my daggers. Or I convinced newbs to buy me some reagents from the other side of town for some small amount of silver. Heh. Good times.

It's a sandbox that you share with thousands of other people. Don't play by rigid rules, that's not the point of the thing.

I have now started getting emails saying my DiabloIII account is trying to be sold. Funny cause I don't own DiabloIII and never had an account. lol I imagine if they let people have unlimited accounts we would still see hackers trying to get more for lack of a life.

Originally Posted by Cm
I have now started getting emails saying my DiabloIII account is trying to be sold. Funny cause I don't own DiabloIII and never had an account. lol I imagine if they let people have unlimited accounts we would still see hackers trying to get more for lack of a life.

I get email saying my Blizzard account might have been hacked. I never owned one.