WoW Forever: Blizzard can freeze trade and the auction house

Blizzard has described a new measure against real-money trading in WoW Forever, and players have already started running into it. An account suspected of selling or receiving bought gold can be put under what Blizzard calls a temporary economy hold. While it is on, the account has restricted use of trade, mail, guild banks and the auction house.

The point is to stop the gold moving while the case is looked at, rather than to punish. Blizzard says the hold by itself adds no permanent mark to an account: if the actions that triggered it turn out to be innocent, it comes off on its own, and if real-money trading is confirmed, the usual consequences follow. It also says that most players will never see one.

The honest part of the post is the admission that it can go wrong: there may be false positives while the system is tuned. That matters for anyone who takes gold from strangers for ordinary reasons, which is exactly the case Blizzard warned about when it put a warning in the trade window.

This sits on top of what has already been running on the beta, where Blizzard has closed more than 2100 accounts for buying. The difference is that a hold is reversible and lands while the account is still being judged, instead of after.

Blizzard adds one line about the future: if the system proves itself, it will be deployed to all versions of World of Warcraft, not only this one.