In a rare intersection of justice and public humiliation, Epic Games has furthered its enforcement battles against Fortnite cheaters by suing two for damages and compelling them to publicly confess their wrongdoing on YouTube. One was a hacker conducting DDoS attacks on streamers, and the other a cheat seller and user. Both have now been permanently banned from playing the game and warned of legal repercussions should they continue their nefarious acts.
Public Apology as Punishment
Legal action was yet another weapon in the arsenal wielded by Epic Games against cheating in Fortnite; it was revealed on X on July 14. The official statement read thus:“We took legal action against two people who cheated and broke our rules: one sold and used cheats, and the other carried out cyber attacks on content creators who were livestreaming gameplay (aka: DDoS attacks). Both have been ordered to stop these activities and are banned from playing Fortnite.”Apart from the uncommon severity of punishment, this case is peculiar because of the added requirement of public apology; the two had to upload apology videos on YouTube, admitting their guilt and acknowledging that they had caused harm to the Fortnite community.
Who Are the Offenders?
One of the banned players, Zebsi, perpetrated several DDoS attacks against some of the livestreamers. The DDoS attacks overloaded the targets’ internet bandwidth capacity, thereby preventing the live broadcast of gameplay. It was Zebsi’s disruptive acts, despite a modest number of 2,000 followers, that brought him under serious legal scrutiny. An apology video followed soon after in which Zebsi showed remorse; however, due to the very brief written apology and a seemingly indifferent tone, most viewers were left disappointed.Another banned player, Mirrored, admitted to cheating in competitive matches as well as distributing those cheats to others. With only 200 followers on his YouTube channel, Mirrored posted a typed apology, accepting his lifetime ban and warning others not to distribute cheats. “I would like to apologize to the Fortnite community. I understand the consequences of my actions and will not be involved in cheating again.”
Setting Precedent
This is certainly not Epic’s first strike against cheaters, but one of its most public. The company might have even settled the lawsuit that concerns tournament cheaters, and even donated money from winnings worth $20,000 to charity. By adding courtroom consequences with public apology, Epic sends a clear message: cheating isn’t just unfair, it’s unacceptable.