Valve Bans Over 10,000 CS:GO Bots and Boosters in Latest Banwave

Valve’s latest ban wave has affected over 10,000 CS:GO accounts belonging to boosters and botters. The studio already took strict measures earlier this month by issuing an update that locked Prime Status behind a paywall. According to community database Convars, the CS:GO ban rate was 52 times higher than average in the past. One of the reasons there was an influx of bots and boosters in the recent past was because of Prime Status account reselling which is highly profitable for boosters and botters. The recent changes paired with the bans should discourage the use of illegitimate accounts. 

How Are Boosted Accounts Affected by The Fans

Most of the recent bans targeted bots and boosters who resell accounts that achieve Prime Status. The bans will affect such resellers and Valve has already put a paywall for Prime Status on June 3rd, which should make it less likely for legitimate players to run into botters and boosters. The studio is not done yet and it is seeking assistance from the community to target even more boosters and botters. 

Players who got to Prime Rank 21 via boosting are being handed out severe punishments through in-game bans. With CS:GO going free-to-play in 2018, the influx of cheaters has raised concerns for fans and Valve is making changes to improve the state of the game. Pro players and content creators have raised concerns about the cheater problem numerous times and Valve continues to fight illegitimate players. 

How to Report Bot Accounts and Matches 

Valve is not done with the bans just yet and it wants to crack down on the problem. Valve Senior Software Engineer John McDonald commended on the Reddit thread asking them to send reports of botting players and bot lobbies. The developer laid out guidelines for the community to submit feedback. If you run into botters or boosters, here is what you should do: 

1. Create a new email with the subject ‘Bot Accounts’ 
2. Report the names of the player who are involved in boosting and detail your experience. 
3. Send the report to: csgoteamfeedabck@valvesoftware.com 

The recent changes to Prime Status should help with the number of boosters and botters in CS:GO lobbies. Account reselling is still rampant and the game has to address its cheater problem which many players and content creators are complaining about. However, Valve is taking steps in the right direction and their actions against illegitimate accounts should improve overall player experience. 

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