Remove the Ban API Feature

Buckingham Palace Suggestions
1

The Ban API was added to Roblox last year. What does it do you might ask? Well, let me explain it for you in case if you don’t know. If an account is banned from a game that has the API feature on it, that account would, duh, be banned. But, games with the API can also have the option to ban known alts. What would known alts be detected as? Well, it could be another account on the same device or the same network, and sometimes (unconfirmed, but maybe possible) an account that may have a similar username. (If you still dunno what the API is, you can google it) While this maybe a valid method to stop ban evaders. In some cases, it’s also causing some people to be banned unfairly, and what’s worse? The falsely banned player won’t know who got them banned and the ban is unappealable. It has been covered online that this Ban API can sometimes cause an account to get banned from the ENTIRE of Roblox unfairly. While it maybe possible to appeal a whole account, the same isn’t said about a single game. The only way to get unbanned would be for the account that triggered the multi account ban to be unbanned. In which, if it isn’t one of your accounts, will be near impossible. I’ve seen in the BP Discord server as well. People being banned from the ban API, and it may have not even been their doing. It also turns out that, just like I mentioned, getting struck by the ban API in this game is unlikely to be unsolved because LiveShield didn’t inflict it upon you. However, out of confusion, it would seem appealable as one of the grounds is in fact. “where the infraction was issued for content or behaviour that your account did not perform” not to mention the ban API message doesn’t tell you which account got you banned, for what reason, or how long for. Meaning it’s impossible to know if your ban is permanent or not. I too, was sadly caught in someone’s ban. It began on June 30, I had been playing BP since last July, as a normal player who would go on crime heists, take out cops and heroes etc. Sometimes being an MPS, RG, or even PM. One day, a June 30, I attend an RG course and pass! Nothing strange there… Only too come back a little later to find I had been banned for using an alt… Did I ever say I have an alt? No? Yeah, that’s because I don’t have one. I was caught in another person’s ban. At the same time, I did some digging and found out that not 1, but 2 other people had also just got banned for the same reason. (It might have been 3, can’t fully remember as it was a month ago, 2 at the minimum tho) Not knowing why they were banned, not knowing who did it, and not knowing for how long. You can see the point at this stage. The Ban API, while it may stop some trouble makers from coming back, it’s also increasing the amount of unfair bans occurring, without appeal.

I am suggesting that the Ban API Feature to be removed from BP as people are very slowly being falsely banned with no way to get back in (unless godly lucky) While this may cause real alts of trouble makers back in. These can always be caught and banned again at another time, but even from the very start, there is never any proof that one player is the alt of another. Nothing can be done about Ban API being a thing on Roblox, but something can be done about it being on certain games. At the end of the day, it will always be unfair on those falsely banned, even if they have put so much time, robux, and effort into the game. Eliminate the Ban API from the game, and allow falsely banned victims back in again

2

I don’t agree, the amount of people this effects that aren’t malicious is next to none and if they are falsely banned LS have a pretty good appeals process, I know this because i was falsely banned by mistake and it was fairly simple to regain access.

4

Many people who were falsely banned weren’t banned by liveshield. Not as simple as then, maybe think if you’ve been effected by it first before stating your agreement. If the API catches you in someone elses ban next, you might have another story to tell

5

Yeah I agree, they always ban players by mistake in the game, that’s why most of the experienced players are not online, because they didn’t do anything and they got banned, it frustrates us

6

oh ok i didnt know maybe i just got lucky but my comment was speaking from a past experience so others may have differed

7

should i agree? probably as i got banned falsely by it

but it genuinely has a 1/4 chance at banning people, so it does do something. the other third is either:

  1. false bans
  2. people left unbanned (so, ban api just not banning them)
  3. people getting banned for other peoples accounts

and yeah the appeal process takes forever, my appeal hasn’t been answered and it’s been about exactly a month (16 july created)

8

dunno what you’re talking bout but 90% of appeals handled by LS are denied, at least around couple months ago when they didn’t limit it to viewing staff only (now you can only see your own appeals)

9

I have exactly the same problem API Ban I played the game for 34 hours without any problems and suddenly it ended because of this API Ban and it really seemed quite strange to me because I never broke any rules

10

Imo, the alt detection does more good than harm, it’s actually tuned to be more certain than not about an alt account.

I understand how frustrating it can be to get caught in the crossfire when someone else on your network gets banned. It’s unfortunate, but there’s no way to be certain that person won’t try to ban evade by using your account, so appealing it would be a difficult process for both liveshield and yourself.

But you might want to read the docs about the ban api, your post is full of inaccuracies:

Inaccuracies

The Ban API only applies to individual games, not the entire Roblox platform, this only happens if an account is detected as an alt while the main/other account is platform banned and has been a feature for a long time (long before the ban api was implemented and is separate - issued by roblox).

unconfirmed, roblox likely uses the same method they use for platform bans, which would be hardware/device IDs and IP addresses, so check with your ISP if you got randomly banned or whoever else in your household is playing roblox, and consider turning off NAT or your VPN as this can trigger false detection.

The alternate account can be unbanned, this is an extract from Roblox: “If the originally-banned account is unbanned, we unban the original and any suspected alternate accounts. If the alternate account is unbanned, we only unban that alt but not the original account or other suspected alts.”

11

Well, the good that it does can always still be handled manually if evidence is discovered. More then harm you say? I can’t say your wrong, because Idk if you are or not. However, it is still causing harm. It’s even like one of the appeal grounds, “where the infraction was issued for content or behaviour that your account did not perform” Harmful to be falsely banned, even more harmful when you don’t know a reason, and then more harmful when you don’t know how long for.

It should prob still be removed, or at least turned down to only ban alts if it’s really needed (Devs can choose whether to ban alts or not) Otherwise, slowly, but surely. Innocent players will be picked off, one by one. If the API remains unchanged, before its known, LiveShield could find nothing but appeals related to the API.

12

Oops, forgot to mention. Not all of that is inaccurate. It is possible that a Roblox account can be banned for this reason. (Google it, it’s true. Account deletions with the same message)