Xbox will ban repeat rule-breakers for up to a year as part of a new regime that mimics the driving licence points system.
Under the new policy, players will receive strikes based on actions that violate the console maker’s community guidelines. The set of rules covers a wide range of behaviours including illegal activity, bullying or harassment, hate speech, and spam.
In the UK, motorists who break the law receive penalty points or endorsements on their driving licence. Drivers who build up more than 12 points during a certain period can be disqualified for up to three years, with fewer points required for new drivers to get a ban.
How does Xbox ban accounts?
Xbox will dole out one-year online suspensions to players who reach the maximum threshold of eight strikes. This will effectively prevent those users from accessing social features such as messaging, parties and party chat, and multiplayer.
Elsewhere, suspensions will last between one day to 60 days for the first seven strikes.
More broadly, the severity of the violation will determine the amount of strikes an offender receives. For instance, profanity and cheating will both result in one strike, while being sexually inappropriate will add two strikes, and hate speech will incur three strikes.
However, Xbox warns that it will continue to permanently ban accounts deemed to be involved in illegal activity.
Xbox began implementing the new system on Tuesday, August 15. With its introduction, affected players will have their slates wiped, although previous enforcements will still need to be completed. Strikes will remain on a player’s record for six months.
Xbox users can keep track of their strikes here after logging in to their accounts. As usual, players will be able to appeal enforcements, which if successful will result in strikes being removed from their accounts.
How many Xbox accounts have been banned?
Xbox Live has garnered a negative reputation over the past decade as a toxic online platform. Owner Microsoft has tried to remedy the issue by purging offenders and implementing chat filters to combat harassment.
Last year, Microsoft began releasing Xbox Transparency Reports, detailing how it tackles inappropriate conduct on its gaming platform. During the last six months of 2022, Xbox revealed there were 10.19 million enforcements in total, ranging from account suspension to content removal. This was up 40 percent from the 7.31 million actions taken during the first half of last year.
On Tuesday, Xbox said that fewer than 1 percent of all players received a temporary suspension, and only a third of those received a second.
The platform claims that its new regime is designed to educate players and offer more clarity on enforcements.
