WoW Reddit is issuing a warning to players of the Blizzard MMORPG game that a new boosting, mounts, and raids scam could cost you millions in World of Warcraft gold, as fraudsters impersonate high-end guilds over Discord.
For WoW players wanting to complete the most challenging mythic raids in World of Warcraft, and obtain mounts like the Vengeance Dragonhawk and the Jailer mount, even if you are part of a guild capable of finishing these intensely difficult raids, organising to have enough, willing players all online at the same time can be huge obstacle.
World of Warcraft boosting services allow players to use in-game gold, which can be bought and sold using real money, to essentially hire a group of high-level players to complete the raids with them, and allow them to obtain the rare items and mounts. A recent case, however, highlights a complex scam whereby ostensible boosters impersonate accomplished WoW guilds in order to defraud players of millions of gold.
As outlined on the WoW Reddit, user WowExposer is a victim of this scam, and has issued a warning to other World of Warcraft players. They explain how they were eager to complete mythic raids but, despite being part of a guild capable of doing so, were unable to find or organise enough players at once.
They contacted a boosting service which presented itself as belonging to one of the highest-level guilds on their server. The service offered to complete the raids with WoWExposer in exchange for two million WoW gold, worth approximately $180 USD – though the exchange rate fluctuates often, and different outlets offer gold at different prices.
WoWExposer was then invited to join a Discord server for this supposed guild, which they claim had been specifically designed in order to make it appear legitimate. “They change what the Discord landing page’s welcome message says to match the guild they are impersonating,” the Redditor explains. “Once you’re in, there are channels where they have multiple in-game screenshots of the services they have allegedly ‘provided’ as well as ‘customer’ reviews. They then proceed to ‘verify’ that they are in fact the person who is talking to you in game and later verify that the payment was received via Discord and in-game chat; this is what makes it all seem legitimate.”
After arranging a time to complete the raids and transferring the gold, the supposed boosting service did not contact WoWExposer again. When they tried to reach them via Discord, they found they had been blocked and removed.
WoWExposer describes having encountered the same supposed scammer multiple times, advertising their boosting service on both the Horde server Tichondrius and Alliance server Sargeras. The Redditor shares images of a private conversation held between themselves and the alleged fraudster in which they admit to have defrauded WoWExposer and say that they have since traded the two million in gold on a third-party website, further claiming that the scam is helping them to earn between $600 and $800 USD per day.
WoWExposer says they want to help other players falling victim to the same scheme. “The intention behind this post is purely to raise awareness to other players so they don’t experience the same thing I did,” they explain. “This is by no means a post to complain that I got scammed – I took a risk and there were consequences and I’ve accepted that.”
WoWExposer suggests that players never trade or make boosting arrangements with level one players, or players who are not using their main account. If a player offering a service claims to be part of a guild, WoWExposer’s advice is to contact the leaders of that guild to verify that the player is indeed a member.
Lastly, says WoWExposer, “do not be fooled by a fancy looking Discord. Click on the members of the group, see when those accounts joined Discord and when they joined the specific server you are in. If the majority of them have the same or very similar dates, this should be a huge red flag.”
Official terms from World of Warcraft developer Blizzard state that individuals and guilds are allowed to offer boosting and raid-assistance services for in the RPG, but that these services can only be advertised and discussed in the open Trade conversation channel. Private discussions and offers regarding boosting services are prohibited. PCGamesN has contacted publisher Activision Blizzard for comment regarding this recent, alleged scam and will update this story with any further information.
If you’re a devout WoW player already, or otherwise considering heading into the MMORPG for the first time, check out our guide to the best WoW addons. You might also want to check the WoW Classic server list, or access some handy WoW console commands, to keep you ahead of the game.
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