Niantic plans to completely ban spoofing, thereby removing an option for cheaters to cheat in Pokémon GO.
Cheating in Pokémon GO is unfortunately something that many users do regularly. Spoofing is particularly popular and has become the “normal” way to play the game for some trainers.
In this type of cheating, trainers deceive the game into thinking they are in a different location, allowing them to catch regional Pokémon from other countries or quickly take over many gyms. Spoofing is also known as “GPS spoofing.” Niantic has a zero tolerance policy for these players, which is why they are working on a feature that will completely stop spoofing.
Niantic is working with trainers
Spoofers can spoil the gaming experience for many trainers by taking over gyms where they are not actually nearby. Trainers start the spoofing software and deceive Pokémon GO into thinking they are in Paris, while they are actually lying on their sofa in Wanne-Eickel. This gives them unfair advantages over other trainers who play the game “legally” and without additional software. Spoofers can travel much faster from point A to point B.
A few days ago, the third major ban wave of this year has already started, targeting cheaters of all kinds, including bot accounts and many spoofers. The developers have now announced that they are working hard to implement a feature against spoofing in the game. They are using general feedback from players and reports from trainers who report cheaters.
For you, this announcement means that you should continue to report cheaters if you have strong suspicions. Niantic carefully reviews the reports and listens to your concerns. You can report another player in the support section of Niantic. Here is the link to the support page on Nianticlabs.com.
Before making a report, make sure whether a player is really cheating. If someone is attacking a gym and cannot be easily found in the area around the gym, they might be in a car or behind a wall. If you are sure that this player must be cheating to perform certain actions in the game (for example, attacking two gyms within a few seconds, even though the player could not travel that fast), you should report them.
The community mostly welcomes the changes positively. On Reddit, the user Kemaneo writes, “If Niantic releases an update that at least reduces spoofing, it would be the best update ever released.”
Other players are already glad that Niantic addresses the problem so openly and is working on a solution. We are curious when the developers will have more news on this topic and can reveal more about the feature.
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