A new Fortnite IP ban wave is rolling out right now, along with recent actions against cheaters, Epic is addressing other rule breakers. A move against players who use the same account in multiple places. Why exactly are they choosing to ban these types of players?
On the surface, it could look like a random attack. However, it’s actually to combat something which has long been a problem with Fortnite, players buying and selling accounts. The latest move from Epic is another change aimed at cutting down on the practise. Although, it has got some parts of the Fortnite player base a bit worked up.
Between unbanning cheaters and banning those who move house, it didn’t look great. However, the initial scope of the Fortnite IP ban wave could have been overstated. What exactly will the ban wave look like and who is in danger?
Fortnite IP Ban Wave to Combat Account Selling
Source: Reddit
Fortnite has a lot of cosmetics, including a ton which are completely exclusive. The rarest Fortnite skins can’t ever come back, which has led players to the black market to try and unlock them. Buying or selling accounts with rare skins that you can’t get anymore. Epic has never been on board with this. It has always been against the rules, and getting an account banned isn’t an uncommon outcome from buying a Fortnite account. However, the Fortnite IP ban wave is taking things a bit further.
With a recent update, Epic will apparently be banning a lot of accounts which jump around their IP address. If an account is used in multiple IPs in quick succession, it’ll be flagged and could be banned. When players heard about this, the main worry was that this would hit those who play in multiple places, play while on a holiday, or just aren’t always in the same place. The Fortnite IP ban wave likely won’t implicate these players.
There’s a bit of a difference between clearly natural use of an account, even a semi-shared one, and an account jumping around the world all the time as it has been sold to a new owner. The new ban wave is aiming to combat selling Fortnite accounts. It probably won’t be hitting those who just move around. It only flags at first, with bans coming later if there’s more suspicion.
If you’re someone who has been building a valuable Fortnite account to the selling it, it might be a problem. However, for most players just using the game wherevers convenient, the Fortnite IP ban wave probably won’t men too many problems for you!