"I would recommend chewing gum over authenticators."

[zagood]

http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=27744885827&sid=1

I can only imagine what awesome advice was in this thread before it was cleaned and locked.

No, I'm not trolling. I am serious.

I was sitting in my chair and biting into my authenticator while thinking about several RP related story arcs that I have planned. I swivvel around in my chair and presume to fall off it and shoot the authenticator into my mouth and down my throat.

I have drank some of that stuff that makes you vomit, but I'm apparently resistant to a whole bottle of it.

I am curious on what I should do.

 

[Arsinek]

lol weird.

 

[CVSiN]

http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=27744885827&sid=1

I can only imagine what awesome advice was in this thread before it was cleaned and locked.

rofl WTF..

 

[Scotteq]

I am of the opinion that MMOs should require a test to determine whether or not each individual is intelligent enough to be allowed to play.

Imagine:

Test Question (1) "Please hook up these two wires to your Testicles."




If they actually do it, then the individual is not fit to participate in the community.

If they try again, then the game company sends a referral ticket to MTV.

 

[Wyndru]

I'm not trolling.

People who type this usually are.

I'm calling shens, why would he be sinking his teeth into his authenticator anyhow?

 

[Absolution75]

People do really odd things when they are bored. . . my old roommate couldn't resist folding paper when she was sitting. Some people love to chew on things, such as fingernails . . . or blizzard's authenticators.



Even if he's a troll, its pretty funny.

 

[AstroManLuca]

I am of the opinion that MMOs should require a test to determine whether or not each individual is intelligent enough to be allowed to play.

There already is one, it's called "buying an MMORPG."

 

[Dorkenstein]

I hate to ask this because it makes me sound like an utter bumpkin, but ... what's this authenticator? Is it a physical thing or is it software?

 

[Scotteq]

I hate to ask this because it makes me sound like an utter bumpkin, but ... what's this authenticator? Is it a physical thing or is it software?

There is a real life market for in game goods: Gold, Crafting Materials, etc.. And as one of the means to satisfy that market, there are people/groups who will Hack/steal people's accounts to strip them of those in game goods. Gain access: Empty your bank, get into your guild's bank, sell all your posessions and gear, etc... Then sell it for real money.

You can buy an 'Authenticator' to use with your account - It's a little key~fob that continuously generates numbers according to some algorhythm - changing every minute. Different authenticators use different algorhythms and number series', so you can't use a different device because the number will be wrong. (There are also free apps you can install on your smartphone or iPod)

Anyways - You attach one of these to your account, and from there you will have to provide the correct authenticator number in order to log in. Major changes to your account require several correct authenticator numbers in a row before the change is actually made.

This is so people can't (easily) steal your stuff.





So the original post is roughly akin to "..I was chewing on my house key and swallowed it..."

 

[The Boston Dangler]

thanks for the explanation, scotteq. i assume blizzard turns a nice profit on the sale of these authenticators, instead of spending money to secure things on their end.

 

[Scotteq]

thanks for the explanation, scotteq. i assume blizzard turns a nice profit on the sale of these authenticators, instead of spending money to secure things on their end.

$6 for the keychain one.

If you have an iPhone/iPod or an Android phone, there are free applications.

 

[CVSiN]

thanks for the explanation, scotteq. i assume blizzard turns a nice profit on the sale of these authenticators, instead of spending money to secure things on their end.

Um 6 bucks for an RSA Authentication system is peanuts..
and Blizzard has already implemented plenty of security including the RSA authentication system as well as a new phone authentication system that doesn't require a token. This has cost them 100s of thousands to implement. Because Blizzard cant secure the home users environment and machine isn't their problem..
its the users problem. Give the users the tools to secure their accounts and if they use them good if not they are stupid not to.

Just to let you know how much these fobs cost for corporate use our RSA tokens here at my company are 100$ each..
so 6 bucks for the same system is a bargain.

The problem is users and thier systems getting password hacked or following links to hacked sites etc..
this is not a Blizzard issue.
this is a fucking stupid user issue..

in 8 years of playing since alpha Ive never had any of my 3 accounts hacked/keylogged even when Authenticators didn't exist.
because I know what not to freaking click on..

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Different authenticators use different algorhythms and number series[/i]

I'm not 100% certain, but more than likely all the authenticators use the same algorithm with different seeds. Probably some core number (the serial) + the current time.

 

[The Boston Dangler]

only $6 and/or free? color me shocked

 

[Trell]

$6 for the keychain one.

If you have an iPhone/iPod or an Android phone, there are free applications.

Be wary of the smartphone one. I had it on a phone that died and Blizzard requires a lot of information to remove it from your account...

 

[CVSiN]

Be wary of the smartphone one. I had it on a phone that died and Blizzard requires a lot of information to remove it from your account...

yes they do for your own protection.
same goes for losing a token.

they want faxes of your license etc..
so if you have any accounts you acquired from other sources.. kiss them goodbye if the name doesn't match.

 

[Dr. Acid Avatar]

This is sad because you would think someone with some common sense would do something logical like call a poison control center. Nope. Instead he used his brain and asked for advice during a potential crisis on a gaming forum. Going to just chalk this up as a guy fishing for trolls.

 

[Ross Ridge]

only $6 and/or free? color me shocked

I expect that Blizzard's plan to make a "nice profit" here is through reduced customer support costs as the result of there being fewer hacked accounts. The biggest cost of running an MMORPG is customer support, it's Blizzard's biggest department, and a hacked account incident isn't going to be solved by having some guy in India reply with a form letter.

 

[Soccerman06]

Blizzard has said they dont really make a profit from authenticators, mainly because of all the manpower and research it takes to investigate any theft or account issues.

 

[Ben90]

snip