Got Hacked Thread

Well here is my story...

I took a break from FFXI in about feb of this year. I decided to come back to the game after watching my wife play on her account. I guess it reignited the old passion I had for the game. This was in September. As I reactivated my account it kept telling me my password wasn't correct.... I figured maybe I had forgotten it. I check my char on FFXIAH only to find all my items were sold and my character was on Bahamut. I was pretty shocked.

I called SE shortly there-after asking about my account. They told me to confirm my Registration number, an old CC number on the account, and the name registered to the account. When I gave them this info the told me the CC info had been changed. Having the old CC helped me a ton though. After that I was told to send a notarized form with my ID and the signed contract that the sent me in an E-mail. I sent it that same day.

Roughly two weeks later and a number of phone calls the the support center I finally received an E-mail stating the account admins received my letter and would begin shortly on my account. I had felt like finally some positive headway was being made. Boy was I wrong.

I waited patiently for about 3 weeks to still not receive any Email or word about the status of my account. After that I called SE every day asking why it was taking so long to process my account and when it's going to be finished.... every day being the same answer "There's nothing we can do, it's in the account Admin's hands"

Finally after a month a half. At around the beginning of November I got the Email telling me my account had been set the "Banned? status" and asking which IP addresses I used while I wasn't hacked... I was pissed and happy at the same time. I finally got a response... but now it only delayed the recovery process even more. I called providing the info and started demanding to talk to supervisors any chance I could. I still got that same answer.

On the 3rd of this month.. roughly a month of the last Email I yet gain received another Email asking which server I was on before I got hacked... ARE YOU ******* SERIOUS SE? I had waited an entire month for one question? Epic fail on their part. Today hits the three month mark for my account being hacked into. I still call every day. I just wish they would actually do something.

If you guys have any Ideas to what I should do or who I would call please feel free. Any help is welcomed.

Email #1

compromised_accounts@us.playonline.com
to me

show details Oct 2

Dear Customer,

Per our discussion I am sending this form to you for additional verification regarding an account you feel has been compromised. Please fill out the information requested on the attached document to the best of your knowledge. Have a Notary Public sign and stamp the form, then mail the form to us via USPS, FedEx or other delivery service. We strongly recommend that you send this as certified mail so you will have a receipt of delivery. Once completed, please return the form to the address listed below.

Important: Please submit the original, notarized document only. Facsimiles / Copies and other electronic versions of the notarized document will not be accepted.

Once the form is received we will continue our investigation and contact you by email with further instructions or a request for additional detail if necessary. Please give us 2 business days after receipt to complete your form and notify you as we will have no status available before that time.

Send To:
PlayOnline Information Center
999 N Sepulveda Blvd 3rd Floor
El Segundo, CA 90245

Thank you

Note: Please do not reply to this email. For all questions or concerns relating to this matter please contact the PlayOnline Information Center by chat or phone.

Number 2

Compromised Accounts
to me

show details Oct 21

Dear Customer,

We appreciate your patience while we continue to investigate your compromised account claim. At this time, due to the information you have provided us, we are able to verify that you are the original registrant of the account in question. Currently, the account in question is set to a ?Banned? status. Due to this complication, we are required to do additional investigation to understand if the action taken on the account occurred while the account was not under your control and is due to circumstance outside of your control. Pending the results of our investigation, we will be able to provide you with a final status of the account. We apologize for the continued length of time of our investigation and would like to assure you that we are doing everything possible to resolve this situation for you as quick as possible.

Please contact us back with the following additional information as this will assist us greatly in the investigation of your account.
-ISP that you normally use when you had access to the account Last known login

This information may have been provided in the past; however we are requesting this information again to help with our additional investigations. Your confirmation number in regards to your verified Notary form is: 1*******

You will need to provide the PlayOnline ID that has been claimed as compromised when a call is made to us as this will assist us with entering that information to the account as soon as possible and assist with our investigation

Thank you

Note: Please do not reply to this email. For all questions or concerns relating to this matter please contact SQUARE ENIX Customer Support by chat or phone.

compromised_accounts@us.playonline.com
to me

show details Nov 11


This mail is sent to those players who have requested game data recovery for compromised account. If you have no recollection of requesting this support, we apologize for any inconvenience this message may have caused, and ask that you please discard.

Dear Customer,

We have received a request for a Game Data Recovery on the account but our records show we are missing some vital data. We ask that you please contact either the SQUARE ENIX Support Center at http://support.na.square-enix.com or the Game Master Staff via the PlayOnline Viewer. Once this has been completed, we will be able to proceed with your Game Data Recovery request.

Please do not reply to this email. For further assistance, please contact the SQUARE ENIX Support Center or the Game Master Staff via the PlayOnline Viewer.

We appreciate your continued use of PlayOnline Services.

SQUARE ENIX Support Center
WebSite: http://support.na.square-enix.com

--------------------------------
PlayOnline Game Master

I deleted the most recent one... go go SE..

:/ Awfully sorry, man.... It seems some cases are a little easier than others >_< I think it may be because of that gap between February and October, plus it looks like your account was perma-banned for good, which adds to the difficulty (from 2nd email). /comfort... well if anything, would it be more worth it to start over anew on your old server?

I actively report Hackers and RMTs to the GMs. For example, a player named Jukatis sent me a typical phony GM /t awhile back. I have spoken with and even met a real GM ingame before, so I knew immediately that this player was phishing, a quick /sea all also revealed him in jugner forest. (a real GM can't be picked up on /sea) I promptly replied back telling him that he didn't fool me, and that I'd be happy to report him to a REAL GM, which I did, needless to say, the *** disappeared from the face of Vana'diel within ten minutes of reporting him. He hasn't been back since.

Remember, these hacker *** are going to continue to pull this crap as long as they think they can profit off of it, the same with RMTs, so being intolerant towards that kind of behavior is a good thing.

Yeah it's taking a while... and it was the RMT who got me banned so not much I can do about that exactly... and no it's not worth starting over, have way too much gear and way too many level and hours spent in the game... just want it back. I hope I get chosen for ffxiv beta though... would be a nice change from all the drama.

Yeah, noticing that your account was compromised several month after is an issue when you want to apply for a GDR :/ That is prolly SE was unable to help you :[

Well it's still ongoing right now so all i can do is hope I guess.... if the can;t do anything about I'd rather them tell me now then in a few months from now is some lame E-mail.

Update today... seems like they are making some BS headway in my account. Finally after months of calling... here's the convo....

Please hold for the next available agent to assist you. To better assist you, please have the following information ready: PlayOnline ID, Full name on the account, Date of birth, PlayOnline registration code, First 4 and last 4 digits of the CC.
All agents are currently busy. Please stand by.
An agent will be with you in a moment. Thank you for your patience.
The next available Agent will be with you in a moment.
All agents are currently busy. Please stand by.
An agent will be with you in a moment. Thank you for your patience.
The next available Agent will be with you in a moment.
You have been connected to Agent Paul.
Agent Paul: Hello, Jamie, thank you for contacting SQUARE ENIX Customer Support. Just a few moments while I review your question, please.
Agent Paul: And what problem can I assist you with today?
Jamie Martinez: In the ticket responce thing
Jamie Martinez: explained most of it there
Agent Paul: What is your playonline ID
Jamie Martinez: ********
Agent Paul: Registered Name
Jamie Martinez: Jamie Martinez
Jamie Martinez: is that info not in the ticket number?
Jamie Martinez: thought that was the point of it
Agent Paul: I need to confirm it
Agent Paul: Date of birth
Jamie Martinez: ok
Jamie Martinez: **** ** ****
Agent Paul: Address
Jamie Martinez: there should be o regristration code but i was too lazy to type
Jamie Martinez: **************************
Jamie Martinez: i can give reg code
Jamie Martinez: 1 sec
Agent Paul: Phone
Agent Paul: Just provide what I ask please
Agent Paul: I will not need the registration code unless you can not the verify the other information
Jamie Martinez: **********
Agent Paul: Do you have the confirmation number
Jamie Martinez: for what?
Agent Paul: Confirmation associated with this account
Agent Paul: You will need that number in order for me to verify it
Jamie Martinez: ********
Jamie Martinez: thats the only number iwas ever given
Jamie Martinez: for the notary form
Jamie Martinez: which i sent in 3 months ago
Jamie Martinez: was received by PoL on october 10th
Agent Paul: One moment
Jamie Martinez: Take your time
Agent Paul: Well good news is
Agent Paul: Supervisor instructed me that this account will be unbanned
Agent Paul: Okay your accoutn has been unbanned
Agent Paul: Anything else?
Jamie Martinez: Umm yeah
Jamie Martinez: the account in question was hacked, leading to the ban
Jamie Martinez: they changed my password, cc info, everything
Jamie Martinez: i was in the army while this happened
Agent Paul: One moment
Jamie Martinez: i didnt even know it was banned until i put in the notary form and recieved na email a month later
Jamie Martinez: im gald its unbanned, the problem is I still dont have the password they made, nor how to change the cc info they put there
Agent Paul: So for now
Agent Paul: It will be submitted to go through the game data recovery
Agent Paul: So you just have to wait until it gets investigated
Agent Paul: And if they find evidence
Agent Paul: of a comprimise
Agent Paul: they will go ahead and roll it back
Agent Paul: Anything else?
Jamie Martinez: so theres no way to have access to my account now?
Jamie Martinez: just basically i have to wait some unknown ammount of time as i have been
Jamie Martinez: and i was informed my account would be unbanned if there was a sign of it being compromised
Jamie Martinez: so that contradicts itself what you said earlier
Agent Paul: Well I do not know that. What I know is what the supervisor instructed me
Agent Paul: And he instructed me to unban your account
Jamie Martinez: may i speak to your supervisor?
Agent Paul: And then submit it for teh game data recovery
Agent Paul: This answer come straight from the supervisor
Jamie Martinez: n offense to you at all
Jamie Martinez: this has been a long proccess im tring to cut short
Agent Paul: Yea unfortunately there is no short cuts for this one
Jamie Martinez: 3 months is a long cut
Agent Paul: Espically since this comes straight from the supervisor
Jamie Martinez: 99% of claims at the longest are rarely 2 months
Agent Paul: So I will do as he instructs resubmit you for teh game data recovery
Agent Paul: And you will be contacted if there is a problem or if the account is rolled back
Agent Paul: So you must wait until then
Jamie Martinez: so to reconfirm I have no access to my account as of this time?
Agent Paul: Yes
Agent Paul: the accoutn will remain jailed
Jamie Martinez: does your supervisor know the "general" time it takes for this next step to occur?
Jamie Martinez: or you perhaps
Agent Paul: Sorry no ETA
Agent Paul: Generally about 7 business days at this point BUT
Jamie Martinez: so another 3 months then eh?
Agent Paul: yours is a unique situation
Agent Paul: So no ETA
Jamie Martinez: since its me
Jamie Martinez: yep
Jamie Martinez: is there a way to contact the people who handle the rollback?
Agent Paul: No there is not
Jamie Martinez: or is it possible for you there to contact them?
Agent Paul: No
Jamie Martinez: to inform them of the situation
Agent Paul: So wait until you are emailed. Chat back if you have any other questions
Agent Paul: Thank you for visiting SQUARE ENIX Customer Support, Jamie! Take care and hope to see you online!
Thank you for using our SQUARE ENIX Support Center chat line. Take care and hope to see you online!
Your session has ended. You may now close this window.

Yeah he cut me off short at the end... I still had more questions but I guess he went on his lunch break. I emailed the complaint Dept at SE and they didn't have the means to help me apparently... just send me right back to the people that are spinning me in circles. Here's the E-mail.

Square Enix Customer Support
to me

show details 6:29 PM (2 minutes ago)

Thank you for contacting SQUARE ENIX Customer Support,

We apologize for in misunderstanding in this situation.

I do apologize for the trouble you are having getting ahold of them, but I need to let you know that department is the only one that can assist you with PlayOnline or FINAL FANTASY XI matters. Please understand, you will need to contact the proper department. I sincerely apologize. A direct link I can offer you is http://support.na.square-enix.com/contacttop.php?id=20&la=1, this will take you directly to the FINAL FANTASY XI support page.

If you have access to your account, and you were inquiring how to cancel, please follow the following instructions.

To cancel a Content ID yourself, use the following steps:
1) Start the PlayOnline Viewer, Log in and Go to Service and Support.
2) Click on Membership, click on the "Please select a category" menu and select Cancel Content ID.
3) Under Service Name, select the Content ID type that you would like to cancel and press "Next".
4) Follow the onscreen instructions to cancel your active Content IDs.

There is no need to reply to this e-mail. Only the SQUARE ENIX SUPPORT CENTER has the access and training for the account tools regarding Final Fantasy XI accounts. Please address all further questions there.

You could always try the "I've been a loyal customer for you guys for x years and I am very disappointed in your service. I am ready to stop associating myself with you and any of your affiliated services and I will be sure to inform friends about my disappointing experience with you" bit.

It has worked WONDERS for me with SE.

More like they will answer : Sure, see you on XIV.

People QQ'ing and going like "I will quit and tell all my friend to quit" = lol. That works when you are talking to a small company.

A company like SE ? Come on... They barely care about the whole non-JP playerbase, so a single NA individual having a rare issue with his account ? /care...

I've said everything in the book from "I'm thinking of stopping to associate myself with your products" to "OMG please help me /cry".. I gotta agree when you you say they don;t care. I believe it. Especially as a JP based company. I've never had these many issues with another company before... at least in the end I'm offered some kind of incentive.. here if I ask for a FFXIV beta code or something they just lol and hang up. I get nothing out of this except a character that already shoulda been mine, with less gear, and nothing else to show for it. I'm sure I'm not the first person in this situation to have a problem.

I'm in *** goddamn Afghanistan, and I got hacked.

I keep tabs on my account via the community website and FFXIAH.com. I don't use my own laptop to surf. There must have been a virus on the ffxiah.com site or SOMETHING. Anyway, I've been deployed for almost 6 months, and after all this long, my account comes up hacked. A week ago it was fine. Now it's not.

I had a Kirin's Osode and max STR for slots for my RNG, as you can see: http://www.ffxiah.com/player.php?id=693973

And gone. All gone.

I'm going on leave soon, and I need to know if I can fix this ***ASAP.

Thanks.

Oh, and as you can see, I haven't been online since June. They sent all my goodies to another account to sell through there.


I'm beyond pissed and there isn't ***I can do here. Is the roll-back process an easy one?

Lol if you read the above post the person has an almost similar situation... so I'd say no... expect it to take a while... sooner you start.. the sooner you get it back.

It really depends. If you have the information on the account (address, DOB, name, etc), access to a scanner or Fax Machine, and a copy of your photo ID it should be fairly easy in theory. Just need to call an SE rep via phone or POL.com's live chat and tell them what's up.

You'll get an email and hopefully they don't have their *** in a hole about the whole issue, like the did (and still do) for me. xD They'll email you an Adobe file to fill out, then ask for a photo ID. That's why ya need a scanner or fax, because snail mail with a copy of ID is meh. SE...just likes to make life difficult.

That's just HELP I AM TRAPPED IN 2006 PLEASE SEND A TIME MACHINE, dude. So HELP I AM TRAPPED IN 2006 PLEASE SEND A TIME MACHINE.


It's my *** account. MINE.

I worked hard. Now... I gotta work harder to get what I worked hard for BACK.

*** SE.

After doing some research I found it is possible to hack someone from their own machine.

It has to be compromised 2 ways in order for this to happen.
Well actually 3.

First a key logger must be installed on it.
Secondly, the terminal services must be turned on and an account added.
Third, any needed ports would have to be opened using a port triggering/fowarding feature.

Last, the hacker simply logs in accesses play online from the alternate account, opens the text file for the keylogger and logs in.

After that it's a simple thing to do to change the password and gain access.


I do tech support and we use this method for clients at work to help them but we're given alot of power over their machines.

I was able to duplicate the process minus the key logger on a separate machine.

So you are gonna want to disable terminal services if your using windows 2k or windows XP professional. If you don't have a security token get one. And of course keep your system up to date with virus definitions. And remember, no such thing as free warez.

Burrows, what web browser do you use? If you're using IE I recommend you upgrade to Firefox.

I'm deployed to Afghanistan... but at the MWR, I choose Firefox, of course.

I'm tech savvy, I just don't get how someone could have hacked my account without me accessing it AT ALL since late June.

Someone did manage to change my account password for my Gmail about a month ago.

Hmm....

If you use facebook, there may have been a recent hacking related to it. (See: http://www.bluegartrls.com/forum/showthread.php?t=86173)

Yeah, but I haven't used my laptop for internet use since before I deployed. There's no way in hell...

I'm pretty pissed about it.

Did you you log off and close all windows before leaving because even though you did that your account can still be logged in just by going to the previous page. Currently in Afghanistan also.

Words can't express how pissed I am

FIVE YEARS OF PLAYING
(not consistently, though)


Mother.




FUUUUCKKEEEEEERRR.