The only thing worse than getting your WoW account hacked is getting your WoW account banned. At least if it is hacked you can get your account back though you could log in to find your main standing naked and poor in Orgrimmar.
Here are 12 steps you should take to keep your WoW account safely under your control:
1. Don’t give your Warcraft username/password to anyone.
Including WoW power-leveling services. This seems like common sense, but many have fallen victim to the allure of having a level 80 toon. If you want to level quickly, buy a legitimate WoW leveling guide or WoW class guide to teach you how. Giving your account information to a WoW leveling service just gives your account away.
2. Use a different username/password for WoW-related websites.
Does anyone remember the GuildPortal hack of 2007? Many users found their accounts stolen after hackers exploited the site and gained access to many usernames and passwords. Unfortunately for many users, they used the same username/password for WoW and GuildPortal. Guess which GuildPortal users got their accounts stolen?
3. Never buy Warcraft accounts.
Yeah, the allure of being a level 80 immediately is there, but you can use Zygor’s Guide and be there in less than seven days. You may get the account banned (especially if you bought the account from someone who plays on a different continent), or more likely stolen back along with whatever you paid for the account.
Remember where I pointed out you can use your ID (drivers license, passport, etc.) to get your account back? Well so can whoever sold you the account. And who are you going to complain to?
4. Don’t buy WoW gold ( http://www.mmocarts.com/ ).
Ooohh! A shiny!
Well, that shiny that costs a few hundred (thousand?) gold can be had for about $15 per 1000 Warcraft gold pieces. And Blizzard can notice continuous deposits into your account of 1000 or 2000 gold. Bye bye account! Gold is not terribly difficult to come by, and there are several WoW gold guides that can show you how to master the Auction House, great farming locations, and tips the best gatherers and professionals use
and all legit.
5. Never share your WoW account with a friend.
Even if your best friend since third grade wants to play on your account, do not share your information. Your best friend may be completely reliable, but if he goes home and plays your account on his own computer, you have no control over Windows updates, virus scans, malware checks, etc. His computer keystrokes could be hijacked, and with them your Warcraft account. This leads me to my next point …
6. Don’t log onto WoW on computers you can’t trust.
Your computer is the only computer you can trust. It’s your WoW account on the line.
7. Update your computer.
I really do not understand why this is a hard one for people. Turn on Windows Automatic Updates. Let your anti-virus program auto-update. Enable your firewall. Run malware scans. Some of these things used to be hard, but no longer.
Free programs include AVG for anti-virus, Zone Alarm for your firewall, and SpyBot for malware. Accept that people are trying to hack you and steal your account. You lock the door to your car and house, right? So do the same to your computer.
8. Stop using Internet Explorer.
Most Internet exploits are written to take advantage of IE, so using Firefox, Opera, Safari or Chrome makes you less susceptible to browser-based attacks. Firefox is becoming more and more of a target, though, so consider one of the other major browsers for your web surfing needs. At the very least, you should use Firefox’s NoScript extension to stop third-party scripts from running on websites.
9. Never use a WoW add-on that comes in an .exe file.
The .exe means it is an executable file instead of a file that works with the Warcraft interface. This means a program will be run upon installation of the add-on. Typically safe extensions end with a .lua, .tga, .txt, or .xml extension. Other extensions may exist, just watch out for .exe. You may need to open up the .zip file and browse through the add-ons files to find this type of file. A pain, but well worth it.
10. Don’t use WoW hacks you find online.
This one could get you banned, have your account stolen, or both. Many of these hacks (not in-game exploits) play on your greedy desires to get access to accounts, gold, items, whatever in an attempt to rule WoW. The people that publicize these hacks in many cases are not publicizing hacks at all, but rather getting you to infect your own computer through your own greed. They are smarter and more talented at stealing WoW accounts that you could ever be. They will happily own your dumb ass, and if you try and pull this crap off you deserve to have your account stolen or banned.
11. Don’t try to recover your WoW account via hacks.
First of all, your computer may already be compromised and you do not even know it. Looking around the Internet for more hacks is just an open invitation for hackers to further corrupt your machine. Second, Blizzard has mechanisms in place to recover your account including sending in a copy of your valid ID. Check your machine out, update it, run multiple virus scans and malware checks, possibly even completely reinstall your system. Then go through the process with the Warcraft customer service reps.
12. Use the Blizzard Authenticator for two-factor authentication.
Two-factor authentication is a techie term for using two different methods to validate your login. You still use your username and password, but this keychain fob displays a six-digit number each time you log in, and is linked to your WoW account via the Account Management screen on the Warcraft website.
Each time you log in you press the button on the key chain, type in the code where prompted, and you are in. Even if a keylogger is installed on your computer and your username and password have been stolen, the authenticator makes it significantly more difficult for hackers to steal your WoW account. And Blizzard sells it for cheap $6.50 for U.S. customers.
Have you had your WoW account banned or hacked? Tell us about it in the comments below.
