Rockstar Games just dropped the hammer on GTA Online players found using an account duplication exploit, banning them permanently.
Grand Theft Auto Online and its expansive open world are no stranger to players who are looking to exploit the game however they can, much to the disappointment of Rockstar Games and the vast majority of players who play by the rules.
This has forced Rockstar to occassionally crack down on cheaters and modders in an effort to maintain fair play. Most recently, Rockstar targeted players taking advantage of an account duplication exploit, resulting in permanent bans.
The said exploit allowed players to create exact copies of other players' accounts. As a result, many players gained access to high ranks and substantial in-game wealth with little effort. The issue was so prevalent that accounts with a Rank of 7984 became a common sight, signaling the widespread use of this exploit.
In response, Rockstar Games has issued permanent bans to those found guilty of exploiting this flaw on PS5 and Xbox Series S/X.
https://twitter.com/ClassiqueGTA/status/1768387665253040420
What's surprising about this latest ban wave is that cheating is rare in console games due to their closed ecosystem. This is in stark contrast to the PC version of GTA Online, which is much more susceptible to these kinds of exploits. Regardless of the platform, though, GTA Online has a clear suspension and ban policy: decisions are final and cannot be appealed.
Most recently, an incident occurred where hackers could delete players' profiles or crash games, forcing Rockstar to address the vulnerabilities through patches and updates.
Despite the current ban wave targeting exploiters, many remain skeptic about the effectiveness of such measures in the long term. Cheaters and modders have been a persistent part of the GTA Online ecosystem, and while the recent actions have made a significant impact, it's unlikely to eradicate the issue entirely.
Rockstar's updates to its suspension and ban policy aim to deter cheating by making the consequences clear: if you cheat, you'll get banned and so we urge all GTA Online players to stick to the game's rules. Engaging in modding or exploiting game mechanics can lead to a permanent account ban, loss of all in-game assets, and the necessity to purchase the game again under a different account to regain access to GTA Online.
