Several iPhone players reported that Pokémon GO had falsely banned them from their accounts. Users reported the issue on Reddit that without doing anything wrong, they received a ‘First-Strike’ ban for using unauthorized or third-party software which violates the app’s terms. The aforementioned ban lasts for 7 days and if the user is found to continue the use of an unauthorized app, the ban then turns into a suspension.
A similar situation was created last year when a large number of iPhone Pokémon GO accounts received bans despite following the app’s rules. Acknowledging the problem, Niantic’s investigation revealed that its systems’ operations had malfunctioned.
Several iPhone players are banned from their Pokémon GO, again
NintendoLife shared a Reddit user’s experience of the ban and his frustration in trying to revive his account. And to make the situation worse, the 7 days ‘First-Strike’ ban was issued again, after the revival of his account.
“I was given a [first] strike ban last week. I attempted to appeal it to no success. For some reason I feel like the people at Niantic support had no interest in helping me, or they were just a bunch of bots. This morning was supposed to be the end of my ban and I was pretty excited to start catching Pokémon again. My ban was lifted for about an hour or so, UNTIL I got to work and opened the app and saw that I had ANOTHER First Strike Ban.”
The ban also included the account of a popular Pokémon GO @whyldegamer. He was contacted by Niantic directly and said that the issue will be resolved soon.
The app has a three-strike disciplinary rule to prevent players from cheating by using software/apps to fake locations, and access Pokémon GO clients or backends. The First strike is a warning, the second strike leads to suspension and the third strike is termination.
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