Eve Online
Battlecruiser Brawl in the Proving Grounds!
Pit yourself against your fellow pilots and prove your worth in brutal 1v1 battlecruiser combat in the next Proving Ground event!
This event begins at 11:00 UTC on 10 September, and runs until 11:00 UTC on 12 September.
The ruleset is as follows:
- Core empire tech I battlecruisers (except the Cyclone!) and the Gnosis may enter
- Turret and Missile damage is increased by 25% in this arena.
- 100% bonus to the benefits of overheating tackle, propulsion, repair, resistance, and energy warfare modules, as well as turrets and missile launchers.
- Shield rechargers, boost amplifiers, power relays, and flux coils, core defense field purgers, sensor dampeners, and weapon disruptors cannot be fitted.
- Pilots receive 20m ISK for every match where they deal at least 7000 damage.
- Ships entering this arena may fit a maximum of one local repair module.
- Modules are restricted to meta level 5 and below.
- No pirate implants allowed.
Board your battlecruisers, load up your Proving Grounds Filaments, (available in Abyssal Deadspace caches, in Triglavian wrecks in Pochven, or on the in-game market), and dive headfirst into the depths of Abyssal Deadspace as you fight for glorification, climb the Proving Grounds leaderboards, and earn special rewards!
GM Week Returns!
It’s that time of year once again: get ready for another action-packed GM week, running from 5-9 September! Festivities include in-game events, contests, streams, prizes, and more; there’s something for every Capsuleer to enjoy, so jump in, meet the GMs who maintain the world of EVE and join the celebrations!
EVENTS
Whack-a-Bot – 5 September at 16:30 UTC
The always-popular Whack-a-Bot event, taking place in Yulai, lines up an array of ships and pilots identified as using CONCORD-prohibited automatic piloting technology in progressing size – teleporting them to a battlefield of hungry Capsuleers, rearing and ready to tear them apart! This event will also be streamed on the official CCP Twitch, so even if you can’t make it to Yulai, you’ll be free to sit back and enjoy the carnage!
GM Fleet with BjornBee – 8 September at 17:00 UTC
Watch out for a roaming fleet of GMs and ISDs, FC’d by the one and only BjornBee! Each fleet member will be carrying a variety of goodies, so enjoy fun fights and try to claim rewards from their wrecks – or if you can’t join in person, hop onto the stream and watch live!
VIDEO CONTESTS
Share your best EVE videos, whether they’re funny, cool, or just plain entertaining, for a chance at fun prizes! There will be two separate contests – one for videos 30 seconds or shorter and one for videos 1-3 minutes in length, and submissions will take place in dedicated threads on the EVE Forums.
ALL-WEEK ACTION
Each of these will be running for the entire duration of the GM week celebrations, so no matter where or when you play, there’s certain to be something fun for you to take part in!
Scavenger Hunt
Keep your eyes peeled and seek out jetcans dropped all over New Eden, filled with all sorts of goodies! Hints to their locations will be dropped both onstream and through in-game channels.
Armed Piñata Hunt
Similar to the scavenger hunt, but a bit more energized: follow hints and locate GMs hiding all over New Eden aboard ships full of loot! You’ll need to destroy their ship in order to claim your prize (unless you ask nicely, maybe?), but be prepared – as they’ll be shooting back as well!
Orbital Stash
Seek out easily-located containers across the cluster, named with an EVE-related riddle and accessible only by inputting the correct answer as a passcode! All answers will be in lower-case to avoid confusion.
Magic School Bus
Taking a cue from beloved ex-CSM member Mike Azariah, GMs will be traveling to each career agent system to hand out fully fitted tech 1 frigates to new players in need!
In-Game Activity
GMs will be actively present throughout the week throughout various help channels, as well as in person aboard impressive & aspirational ships across various starter, career agent, and Sisters of EVE Epic Arc systems, engaging with players and answering questions in chat – marked by their signature red text!
You may also encounter them in the Proving Grounds, fighting on even ground, and might see some surprise appearances in various EVE streamers’ locations as well as in their stream chats!
We can’t wait to share another bombastic and action-packed GM week with you all – See you in space!
Monthly Economic Report - July 2022
Economic Capsuleers!
The Monthly Economic Report for July 2022 is now available!
You can download all of the raw data used in this report here. Each image can be enlarged by clicking on it. As with the previous report, there is also a limited number of "Dark Mode" graphs available in the download too!
Announcing Alliance Tournament XVIII
Zealous Capsuleers,
Prepare to raise the banners high, dust off the theorycrafting spreadsheets, and blow the war horn. The time for the next Alliance Tournament will soon be upon us as we return for the 18th time!
Alliances will once again be sending up to ten of their most versed combatants to fight it out in the arena for glory and epic prizes. They’ll be broadcasted out to the rest of the cluster with their teams and the EVE community cheering on for their conquest! Experienced Casters and Commentators also will be joining us to help break down the tournament content for viewers and (hopefully) assist with who they would put their channel points on to win even more prizes!
Today's announcement will primarily highlight the key dates in the next few months to help everyone schedule around the Tournament a little better. They will be summarized in bullet point fashion at the end of this article as well. Also, as is tradition, we will outline a few of the changes and smaller details you will be expecting to see in comparison to previous tournaments.
GENERAL INFO
Signups will be opening on 9 August at 11:00 UTC, and we will publish a follow-up article with the full rules and signup instructions on that day. Until then, get your propaganda artists working on new Alliance Tournament ads, posters, and any other form of weird and wonderful forms of creation! Don’t forget to also give your Alliance Executors a poke so that they can make sure that they register your team!
Since last year, we have opened the Official EVE Online Discord and will be moving all tournament-related communications there by creating relevant categories on the server. This will more than likely evolve naturally, and we may open additional channels where required, but this should also offer extra avenues of interaction for everyone.
This year we are teaming up again with EVE_NT to put on the professional tournament broadcast that you have come to expect from the Alliance Tournament, along with, potentially, a few new features too! EVE_NT has just opened their recruitment section for talent as well, so if you think you have what it takes to be involved in the production, keep an eye out on Discord.
PRIZES
During last year's Alliance Tournament announcement, we stated the intentions of changing up the format to make the Tournaments more sustainable and we plan to honor that commitment. With that in mind, we are happy to share that this year’s prize ships are the Freki and the Mimir, and next year will be the Adrestia and Utu. These will be slight variants to the past prize ships so that we preserve the uniqueness of the originals, but, we will show you what these will look like closer to the main event. Consequently, this also means that this year's sponsor is the Minmatar Republic!
TOURNAMENT UPDATES AND CHANGES FROM ATXVII
The format of the Alliance Tournament we all know, and love is much the same; double elimination 10v10 team battles with ships having certain point values. The rules for the event are being updated to keep the tournament fresh, diverse, and fun to watch, with an emphasis on pilot skill and less on the flavor of pancake ship you would like to bring this time around.
When the Alliance Tournament returned last year, the tournament initially was set up to be 32 teams but expanded to 40 given the volume of interest. However, as the 7 Major tribes of the Minmatar Republic are all sponsoring this event, there will be a new Trials entry tournament, whereby each tribe will each be sponsoring entries of teams that earn their spot into the main tournament, by combat. Subsequently, this will mean that the Alliance Tournament this year will include another weekend of broadcast to accommodate.
As with past events, there will be several slots that will go to the highest bidders via silent auction. There will be a few slots reserved for those top teams from this past year’s Tournaments as well. Details of the individuals (and teams) that this will include, will feature in the next update.
Here are some of the changes you can look forward to this year:
The IGC thanks the Mordus Legion for their input in the last tournament! We will be adjusting their revised point values, while, simultaneously, making a few of the Minmatar vessels a little more favorable.
The IGC has decided to retain the ‘Mercenary’ rule in Tournaments going forward, capping off at a maximum of 10 potential mercenaries per team.
The hull limitation rule will be expanded further this year - in scenarios that feature a duplicate hull, the overall ship point value for that hull increases by 1 point.
A rolling Conquest ban will be in effect during our Best-of-Three (Bo3) and Best-of-Five (Bo5) matches. Simply put, in Round 1 if Team A wins, it cannot bring that same winning comp in Round 2, but if it moves to Round 3, the comp that was banned out for Team A becomes available again.
Penalties - Minor revision here to make it clear - repeat offenses in matches will result in increasing penalties incurred at the discretion of the referees.
Exhibition matches are likely to make a return! Lookout for more information on this as the Tournament develops!
Given the recent policy update, Tournaments are now included under CCP-led initiatives that will review individuals' account histories for Terms of Service violations. The roster for each team is now going to have a limit on the number of pilots able to fly in the Tournament. Whilst all pilots within an Alliance will be eligible to enter the Alliance Tournament, up until the Roster lock date, when it comes to that cut-off date, each team will be required to submit the names of up to 30 pilots (plus up to an additional 10 Mercs). Those pilots will each be checked that they are not in violation of the revised policies. Any individuals or teams suspected of trying to circumvent this policy will be subject to removal from the tournament and potentially additional CCP-supported initiatives.
If you are interested in enrolling your alliance, finding a team to fly with, or just generally chatting about the Alliance Tournament, please join us in the Eve Online Discord!
KEY DATES:
9 August – Signups open
23 August – Signups close
30 August – Roster (and Merc) lock / Thunderdome access
1/2 October - Trials Tournament Weekend 1
8/9 October - Trials Tournament Weekend 2
18 October - Flagship Lock (Schedule Release)
12/13 November – Alliance Tournament XVIII Weekend 1
19/20 November – Alliance Tournament XVIII Weekend 2
We will keep you apprised should anything change, but we look forward to seeing you in the arena!
Foundation Day Returns!
Once again the faithful masses of the Amarr empire are assembling to honor Amarr Foundation Day, which celebrates the foundation of the first Amarr church by Prophet Dano Gheinok.
The seven-day festivity takes place from 2-to-9 August, with pilots from across New Eden encouraged to make the pilgrimage and join in with the many events that make Foundation Day an unforgettable celebration. The deep faith and towering might of the Amarr empire must never be forgotten!
What can you expect to find at this year’s Foundation Day?
DAILY LOGIN REWARDS
Pilots that log in for five of the national holiday’s seven days will be able to claim a number of themed items and Foundation Day essentials. There are separate rewards for Alpha and Omega pilots – and if you’re an Omega you get both. Alpha pilots can get an Amarr Foundation Day Fireworks Crate, Amarr Foundation Day Expert System, Amarr Shuttle Sarum SKIN, 10,000 Skill Points and a Sigil Sarum SKIN if they log in on five distinct days. Omega pilots can claim all of those bonuses as well as 5,000 Skill Points, an Agency Support Crate, a Hardshell Dose 3, an Amarr Robe Crate, and 10,000 further Skill Points. Be sure not to miss a login opportunity!
DAILY CHALLENGES
Daily challenges will be available throughout the Foundation Day festivities, rewarding you with Skill Points if you visit the glorious Amarr titans on parade to honor them with fireworks. The parade sites. can be found at Ardishapur Prime, Kador Prime, Khanid Prime, Kor-Azor Prime, Sarum Prime, Tash-Murkon Prime. Throughout Foundation Day, pilots can travel at boosted warp speed across the Amarr Empire, making visiting each site easier than ever.
MINING BLITZ SITES
This year multiple Mining Blitz sites are open for Foundation Day, giving you a chance to collect resources for the Amarr Empire war reserves from Mining Expedition event sites. Doing so earn you Loyalty Points that can be traded for new SKINs that let you display your faith. You’ll find the sites in the following constellations:
- Kisana
- Nashar
- Maseend
- Hevaka
- Eugidi (Amarr occupancy systems only)Be sure to get to as many sites as possible, whether you tackle the Blitzes solo, with a Wingman, or even in a fleet. And remember to keep an eye out for NPCs keen to put a stop to your mining endeavours.
NEW SECURITY CORDON POST LANDMARKS
A number of new landmarks are being introduced during Foundation Day, giving you more to discover through New Eden. Each will take the form of a security cordon post, between Amarr Empire and Ammatar Mandate, and can be found at gate sites in the Jark, Nimambal, Khabi, Mahrokh, Yuhelia, Mehatoor, Choonka, and Ohide systems.
COMMUNITY EVENTS
The Foundation Day celebrations this year expand beyond official EVE Online events, with the Amarr community hosting their own parade, after party, history tour, a formal symposium, and an inspiring competition to get your creativity flowing (win ship hulls and ISK!). You can keep up with the community’s plans and get more detail over in the dedicated EVE Forums thread.
ABYSSAL PROVING GROUNDS
A special themed Abyssal Proving Grounds event will run as part of Foundation Day, taking place from 5-to-8 August. This Proving Grounds round will take the form of an Amarr frigate free-for-all open to Executioner, Tormentor and Punisher hulls. The arena will also play home to a large Tachyon Cloud that will mix up the action as it plays out. Keep an eye on EVE News for more details.
OMEGA BUNDLES
To help pilots get into the Foundation Day spirit, the New Eden store is also offering free SKINs with purchases of one month or 12 months of Omega from 2-to-9 August. Pick up a month of Omega, and you’ll get a stunning Oasis of Faith SKIN, letting you share your respect for the Amarr faith. Grab 12 months of Omega, and four SKINs perfect for Foundation Day are included for free. If you want to get yourself Foundation Day ready, get over to the New Eden Store before time runs out.
AMARR PROPHET PACK
A very special pack has been put together for the Amarr national holiday, and it’s so full of content it will give you value far beyond Foundation Day itself. As well as including a new pilot robe inspired by Amarr culture in a male and female fit, you’ll get 1 month of Omega, 500 PLEX, 250,000 Skill Points, and six SKINs that are each perfect for your presence Foundation Day’s festivities.
DON’T MISS OUT!
As one of the most packed events on the New Eden calendar, Foundation Day is one not to miss. Remember, everything runs between 2 and 9 August, apart from the Abyssal Proving Grounds clash (running 5-to-8 August).
For full details be sure to visit the official event landing page, and check EVE Online’s Twitter for the latest Foundation Day updates.
Community Beat for July 29
Battle of the Bricks Winners
We’re happy to announce the winners of the recent Battle of the Bricks building contest! The community submitted dozens of incredible entries and after much deliberation we arrived at the following victors:
First Place: Primae submitted by Pierre E.
Second Place: Claw submitted by Imiarr Timshae
Third Place: Rorqual submitted by Kaatra Andarin
Each of the winners will receive one year Omega and a complimentary ticket for Fanfest 2023 including charity dinner. From the winners, Pierre E's Primae was selected for construction during Battle of the Bricks. It was assembed by Cloud Imperium Games Community Manager Jake Bradley, and considering he had to make to with the bricks he had we think he did pretty well!
Thank you to everyone who submitted designs!
Battle of the Bricks Finale Livestream
Last week members of the CCP community team traveled to sunny Manchester to take part in the Battle of the Bricks charity build-off livestream with our counterparts from Star Citizen. During the 4 hour stream we built some cool spaceships (based off community submissions!), took part in some occasionally uncomfortable challenges thanks to the Wheel of Misfortune™ but most importantly, thanks to the generous donations from both EVE and Star Citizen communities we raised over US$20,000 for Extra Life which helps sick kids with life saving medical support and rehabilitation.
The fundraising campaign will remain open until the end of the year and there may be other streams either from CCP, Star Citizen or our respective communities to contribute further to the charity haul. You can even make a donation right now!
If you want to rewatch the whole stream you can find the recording here, or if you want the short version here’s the wrap up where we all drank an utterly disgusting delightful smoothie made from ingredients selected by Twitch chat which included marinated herring, Lump Fish caviar, pickled onions and mayonnaise. 😕 Warning: gross noises and people gagging.
(Play it back in 0.25x speed for a uniquely disturbing auditory experience!)
Player Meetups in August
EVE player meetups are getting back into full swing with a few happening throughout August. If one of these are taking place close to you and you can get along then good times are guaranteed! Some of these events will also feature attendance by CCP devs so come and say hi!
- 12-14 August - Finfest (more info)
- 13 August - EVE Glasgow (more info)
- 27 August - EVE London (more info)
The Discourse
With things heating up between the Empires in low security space and mysterious discoveries related to abandoned facilities, The Discourse have been producing some excellent reports which dive into the goings on and try to shed some light on the situation.
Amarr Foundation Day
Amarr Foundation Day is just around the corner! This annual event where spacecrusade enjoyers from all over New Eden commemorate the foundation of the first Amarrian church on what is known today as Amarr Prime.
The Amarrian RP community also organise several events to celebrate this occasion, including parades, parties and contests. Check out this thread on the EVE Online forums to see what's happening this year.
Vibing Vedmak PvP
Who doesn’t love a classic EVE PvP compilation? I think a great way to round ut this Community Beat is with this awesome video from Grunt Kado. The third battle which is a (kinda) 2v1 where Grunt dual boxes his own logi is just 😙👌
Summer of Streams continues!
EVE’s Summer of Streams is set to continue, with a wealth of unmissable content due across August, following on from a packed July filled with CCPTV broadcasts, dev blogs, and Q&As.
Summer of Streams gives you a chance to get closer to the development and evolution of EVE, welcoming you behind the scenes as the dev teams share what they’ve been up to, and where things are going. And in August they’ll be sharing more insights on Faction Warfare, Frontlines, the development of arcs, the narrative-driven design approach, and more.
You can find all the current and future dev blogs here on EVE News, while the streams take place over at CCP TV. For all the times, dates and latest updates, meanwhile, EVE’s official Twitter feed is the place to keep an eye on.
But what exactly is happening in August? Here’s the current schedule:
Enjoy your summer and learn plenty new about EVE Online, and we’ll see you on CCP TV!
EVE Player Data
This week 28th of July at 14:00 UTC, CCP Bjorn will be doing a CCP TV stream looking at what we can all learn from EVE Player Data, to follow the EVE Data & Analytics presentation from Fanfest 2022. That particular presentation highlighted the player data from the event attendees, showing their effect on EVE while exploring general gameplay statistics for their characters.
For those that that missed it, the full video recording can be found here:
To recap, here are a few highlights from that presentation, and some of the visualizations shared.
Most Played Characters
The visualization that perhaps sparked the most interest from Fanfest attendees was the race bar chart animation. It represents the cumulative active character logon minutes in thousands of hours between 2012 and Fanfest 2022, for each character belonging to a Fanfest attendee.The animation only shows the Top 20 characters at each time and sort order is updated every day.
Check out the video below to enjoy the exciting race between Fanfest‘s most played characters from 2012 to 2022.
This visualization was a special request from a CSM member, with each star representing a player Alliance in EVE. The orange stars represent players who attended Fanfest 2022 and the size of the Alliance stars represents the number of player members. The further right on the chart, the more alts a player member of the Alliance has on average. The further up in the chart, the more total logon time a player member has on average.
This is a great way to see the largest and most active Alliances in EVE.
Time in EVE: Age & Logon Time
A single dot in this graph represents a player character in EVE, with more than 100 hours of active game time from 2012 to May 2022 (Fanfest 2022).
The orange larger dots are characters owned by Fanfest attendees and the gray smaller dots are all other player characters. The further right you look,the older the character is, in terms of days since it was created. The further up in the chart you go, the more total logon hours (shown in thousands) the character has. It is interesting here to see that quite a few characters have maxed out of the character age axis, meaning they were created in the very first few days following EVE’s official launch.
In fact, five characters owned by FF22 attendees were created on the day EVE was launched, May 6th 2003! Here they are:
Next we have a similar graph as the scatter above, except we’re only including data from FF22 attendees, and the axis has also been flipped to show a different view. Each star shown in this chart represents a player at Fanfest – not just a character – and the size of each star represents the number of characters owned by that player.
By taking a few examples from this, we see the remarkable differences between EVE players. Some have been playing EVE for many years, while others are just starting out. Most players have been quite active in terms of hours, but the differences are still massive. And some choose to play only on a few or even a single character, while others have put together a small army.
These visualizations from Fanfest are the tip of the iceberg in terms of the data that lets us keep up with EVE players every day. You always manage to keep us on our toes and we love seeing the impact you have in the EVE universe. The nearly 20 year legacy you’ve left in New Eden is truly something to behold.
We look forward to seeing what you do in the future as we inch closer to the 20th birthday and the third decade of EVE Online. We’re excited to show you more like this in the future but if you want to see more cool EVE data in the meantime, check out the June Monthly Economic Report.
That’s all for now! We’ll see you on CCP TV this Thursday at 14:00 UTC for a chat with CCP Bjorn.
Fly Safe Capsuleers!
Team Security: 2021 in Review
It’s been a while since our last update on the efforts of the Security team in their battle against Real Money Trading (RMT), botting, account hacking, and fraud – so without further ado, let’s jump right into this comprehensive overview and update on EVE’s security!
Who is Team Security?
First, we’d like to cover who exactly is on the team, and what each member does. In the past year there have been both leavers and joiners, with the current team comprising:
- CCP Grimmi and CCP Stinger, two full time security analysts whose existence is dedicated to hunting down bot farms and credit card fraudsters.
- Senior GM Aisling and Senior GM Huginn, who focus on anti-RMT (ISK or Item selling/buying) and account security.
- A team of programmers who work on bot detection software tools while also sharing their time across other Customer Support projects.
Team Security members contribute to each other’s investigations, and we regularly update one another on different trends and discoveries. We also had a Team Sec Q&A panel during Fanfest where we talked a little bit more about what we do and answered some questions from attendees – which you can check out on YouTube.
Bans Issued by Team Security in 2021
During 2021, Team Security banned a total of 70,492 accounts. This is certainly a lot of bans – but it’s worth pointing out that throughout 2021 a significant number of accounts were created automatically (a violation of the EULA) and were proactively banned before they were able to log into the game. More details regarding the different ban types can be found below.
Automation Use (Botting)
There is no upper limit to the variety of software and modifications that might be developed and used for dubious purposes – necessitating a team that can flexibly identify, understand, and adapt to any new methods of automation as rapidly as possible. Our efforts on the anti-botting front involve a constant race to learn and improve our capabilities, allowing us to overcome whatever old or new challenges present themselves.
Last summer we decided to make some changes to our Security Team, and invested a lot in the learning and development of its members. New tools and programs had to be learned from scratch, presenting some challenges – but in the end the team has now become stronger in capabilities and more efficient than ever before.
As we operate with a lot of data, we’re constantly looking for ways to make it more usable and easier to obtain, verify, and interpret. Our continual aim is to ensure that every Capsuleer in New Eden can enjoy their beautiful home without bots being an issue.
“How can I help identify bots?”
The simplest and by far the most effective tool at your disposal in this fight are In-Game Bot reports. In 2021 alone, we received 137,183 reports via the in-game bot reporting tool against 41,651 separate users. We want to confirm that every single report is looked at, and this tool has proven to be extremely effective in investigating and taking down bots.
One problem with bot reporting is that the tool can sometimes be interpreted as a universal way to report something out-of-the-ordinary. Say overly foul language was used in the chat, or someone is posting the same link again and again, or perhaps some pilot has a wildly inappropriate name; in these cases, it’s best to create a Support Ticket – which is guaranteed to get attention from a Game Master.
The more details, the better! This applies to all reports – be they about RMT (buyers or sellers), suspicions of a hacked account or anything else. We always appreciate it when players include the basis for their suspicions, as this enables us to rapidly identify where to start looking. Be sure to include the character name you suspect of botting along with any other details you feel may be useful. In fact, a staggering number of bots and RMT dealers who would otherwise still be lurking in the shadows have been caught solely because of the help of our players!
Fighting in-game bots is a never-ending process simply because it’s not just our team that evolves constantly. The software used by botters gets updated frequently, often responding to an EVE Online update, and we always see it as a challenge to face. It is not so easy to catch up with all the newly discovered trends, but we do our best thanks to our brilliant programmers. All bots and all the macros are always leaving some traces behind, and eventually they’ll become known. Logs do show a lot.
Account Hacking
Hacked accounts are most likely to be associated with RMT activity. When a player’s account is hacked, their assets (ships, modules etc.) are quickly sold on the in-game market for ISK, which is then sold to ISK buyers (other players) or used to purchase items such as skill injectors, PLEX or expensive ships which are sold via third party websites. Some of the worst hacks involve accounts belonging to corporation CEOs or directors, who may see their corporations’ assets mercilessly stripped and sold off to fund RMT.
Victims of account hacking may find that their whole accounts or characters are being sold for real life currency. Even after this, it’s not uncommon for sellers who have completed the illicit sale of an account to then attempt to contact customer support themselves to claim “their” account was hacked, with the goal of having the hacked account restored to their control again. The unwary buyer is locked out of the hacked & sold account, and often has their other accounts suspended as well (as they are implicated in account hacking), while the hacked account seller can regain control, pocket the money their “customer” paid, and can attempt to sell the account all over again to a new victim.
With how complex hacking situations can become, we always do our absolute best to properly assess and see what really happened (which can take time), and we are obliged to act according to our rules. At the end of these investigations, characters or accounts might be lost forever for both sides; sellers could find themselves in a payment dispute, and buyers can be left with neither an account nor their money. Please, to avoid any danger of this nature, do not buy accounts.
Real Money Trading (RMT)
Despite whatever a seller may claim, it’s safe to presume that any ISK or in-game items purchased from third parties come from botters, credit card fraudsters, or from hacked accounts belonging to fellow players; exceptions to this rule of thumb are near-zero. Anyone who buys ISK or items on a third-party website encourages and further motivates those responsible to continue to expand their illicit operations in pursuit of ill-gained profit.
It is very important to understand that Real Money Trading (RMT) is never simply the private business of a shady Capsuleer looking for side cash; instead, almost without exception, it is conducted by organized groups who are willing not only to violate EVE’s EULA, but to make full use of illegal tools and techniques like hacking, payment fraud, identity theft, and more – knowing full well what they are doing.
Payment fraud
Payment fraud has been part of RMT operations for as long as EVE Online has existed. In these cases, miscreants use stolen credit cards to purchase PLEX and other assets before selling them at a discount to anyone who is either sufficiently ignorant about the rules regarding RMT or is knowingly seeking it out. It’s trivial to give discounts on stolen goods acquired at no personal cost, and sadly, much of the ISK offered by RMT operatives at "good" prices is sourced from this serious real-world crime. These bad actors are far from being Robin Hoods.
These actions also hurt the wallets of people without any connection to EVE Online, as stolen credit cards or financial information used to purchase PLEX & items to be sold on a third-party site that try to give the impression of legality might come from anywhere on the internet. RMT is fueled by the theft of hundreds and thousands of dollars from innocent people, whether they are connected to EVE or not.
Real Money Trading (RMT) involves this sort of activity alongside all other evils we seek out in the game, such as botting, account theft, exploits and more. Sooner or later, all such actions are discovered, and we will swiftly act according to our policies. Known RMT Sellers will be permanently banned with no recourse, while buyers lose their ill-obtained ISK and risk getting banned as well – so just say no.
“How can I protect my account?”
- Above all else, enable two-factor authentication! This is by far the most essential step you can take to ensure the safety of any account – from your EVE player accounts to your personal email.
- Do not share your account. While we do not treat shared accounts as hacked, as more people gain access to an account, the likelihood that it might be hacked or sold increases dramatically. If we establish that the account was first shared between multiple people validly before being compromised, we may be left with even fewer avenues through which we might help, if any.
Team Security has tools in its arsenal to repair hacked accounts, but there is a limit to what we can do. This is especially true if an account was hacked years ago but is only now being reported; if you consider the various ways an item might be transferred between players, then apply this to every item held by a hacked account, you can begin to understand just how gargantuan a task it can be to investigate assets lost to hacking.
Hackers tend to leave evidence or an identifiable signature when hack takes place, however, which adds an extra element to any investigation, allowing specialists in the Security team to study both known and new patterns whenever they emerge, we always jump on them headfirst to gain chances to learn and adjust our procedures.
Final Words: How can YOU help fight bots and RMT?
The answer is simple: never buy ISK or items from third parties, and don’t do business with those involved. Once discovered, anything you purchase through RMT will be removed from your account and you will be warned or banned; you will end up with neither the ISK or items you purchased, nor money you spent, while the seller walks away with their profits.
If you suspect botting, use the In-Game Bot Reporting tool as detailed earlier; if you suspect RMT, report it through a support ticket. Include as many details as possible: character names, character’s activities, reasons to think why you suspect them, and anything else you can think of.
The fewer people purchase illicit ISK and items from third parties, the less motivation bad actors are given to hack, steal, defraud, or otherwise harm EVE players, and the less incentive there is for botters involved in these offenses to continue to operate.
We wish you all a safe and successful rest of the year in 2022 – see you in space!
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Minmatar Liberation Day Returns!
Celebrate the freedom of the Seven Tribes of Matar during this year’s Liberation Day festivities from 7 – 19 July, with the return of the Liberation Games! Participate in the reenactments of battles from the Great Rebellion, follow a trail of historical events from Minmatar history, enjoy parade sites, get seasonal rewards, join a new Mining Blitz, and more!
THE LIBERATION GAMES
This year marks the 144th anniversary of the Great Rebellion, when the Minmatar people united as one to break free from more than 900 years of oppression and slavery under the Amarr, rising up to forge their own destiny among the stars of New Eden.
The Liberation Games are the centerpiece of Liberation Day festivities, celebrating the rebellion and the shared spirit of the Tribes as well as renewing a united dedication to continued efforts to free countless brothers and sisters still suffering in servitude. Declare allegiance to one the Seven Tribes of Matar for the Liberation Games by selecting them in the Agency.
- BRUTOR - A disciplined and strong-willed people who consider themselves the defenders of all Minmatar.
- SEBIESTOR - Emphasizing practical skills, the Sebiestor are known far and wide as engineers and inventors.
- VHEROKIOR - Mystics of this tribe are the guardians of the Voluval Ritual and travel immense distances.
- THUKKER - Nomadic and fiercely independent, the Thukker travel the stars in Great Caravans of starships.
- KRUSUAL - The only tribe that was not completely conquered by the Amarr, their pride is infamous among the Minmatar.
- NEFANTAR - A tribe split between those who remain loyal to the Amarr and those who returned to their homelands.
- STARKMANIR - Few in number and once thought lost forever, the Starkmanir are a symbol of survival for all.
Take part in the events and activities available during the celebrations to collect points and earn rewards, including SKINs and a special facial tattoo in the colors and style of your chosen Tribe. At the conclusion of the Liberation Games, the Tribe whose Capsuleers have earned the most points overall will gain control of a commemorative station in Pator, home system of the Minmatar, for the next year!
NEVER AGAIN ANOTHER LONG NIGHT
Seek out combat reenactments of battles from the days of the Great Rebellion across Minmatar space and the Great Wildlands, and demonstrate your defiance against autonomous drone recreations of the Amarr fleets that failed to extinguish the eternal flame of freedom in the hearts the Minmatar.
For those not interested in combat, have no fear: themed Data Sites and Mining Expeditions provide other options to enjoy the festivities and earn points & rewards!
DEFIANT GLORIFICATION
Dive into a high-speed Proving Ground event, going head-to-head in 1v1 combat aboard the Republic’s iconic Stabber, Rupture, and Bellicose cruisers.
The effects of overheating many module types, including turrets, are doubled in this arena, and a massive Tachyon cloud brings you up to blistering speeds as you battle your opponents – so load your guns and get ready to go all-out!
A LEGACY THAT WE BUILT
Journey across New Eden on a trail of major historical locations in Minmatar history, learning stories and events of the past while earning points for your Tribe in this repeatable route – and travel to a different Parade Site each day of the celebrations to launch fireworks and earn daily Skill Point rewards!
FREEDOM’S GIFTS
Log in for at least 7 days during the celebrations to claim a selection of themed daily login rewards, including fireworks, Liberation Games SKINs, boosters, Skill Points, and a Minmatar Expert System.
LIBERATION DAY SALES AND BUNDLES
Emblazon your ship with one of the most iconic symbols of the Great Rebellion. Chainbreaker Khumaak SKINs are returning to the NES until 19 July, with added availability on 12 new Minmatar ships, including the Rifter, Hurricane, Sabre.
Additionally, don’t miss out on the new Great Rebellion Packs available until the end of the event, bringing you stylish apparel, SKINs, Omega time, a Cerebral Accelerator, and Skill Points!
Festivities are already in full swing as the people of the Republic celebrate their hard-won freedom and renew a united and unbreakable spirit that ensures a day of darkness will never again fall on the Minmatar people.
See you in space!