WARNING: Customer Support and Account Validation

[Tigersan-gilneas]

I am placing this warning in General Discussion forum because it will be seen by more players. As a public service. Regarding Customer Support procedures. And because this is not about what to do if you encounter a problem. It’s about Avoiding the problem in the first place for reasons that will become clear.

Last month I came home ready for a fun session of adventure in World of Warcraft. I opened up the Wow launcher. The screen appeared and I logged on. But a notice appeared on screen saying I needed to verify it was me (The real account holder) and to click on send verification code to my email. So I did so, and then went to my email. Unfortunately my email also decided to ask me to follow a procedure that required personal information. Now I had a problem. I have been playing Wow with that original email for years. I had forgotten what that information was. So I had no access to my ancient email. Hence I had no place for Blizz to email me a verification code.

Some thing like this had happened years ago so I went looking for Blizzard support. On the Blizz site Customer Support sends you to a topic selection list screen with canned suggestions. Which end up to not addressing your problem. I tried going in to some of the topics. Eventually submitting a ticket several times before I received a canned reply saying: “Your problem has been resolved” and “Need more information”. I then supplied more information that I could remember. Some I could not remember what it was, It has been years. No replies after that? (This communication were done via an different email I had to create).

This Customer support automated system is convoluted to the extreme. So I looked for customer support phone number. I found several but they were for corporate-business account solutions. Not for Player Customer Support. There is no “Live operator” Customer Support. No One To Talk With about your problem on a phone. I felt extremely frustrated at this point.

Well I got to work on accessing my old email, and after quite a bit of pain I actually was able to open it up again. Then finally was able to log-in to Wow have the access code sent to my original email. And get access to my Wow account again after a month worth of time being frustrated and exasperated at all turns.

Keep in mind that if you have this happen to you there is a real possibility you won’t be able access your Wow account which means that you won’t be able to play the game, or change your account personal information, or even unsubscribe, remember your still paying for a game you are locked out of.

So my advice is to keep your Wow account information up to date. Keep your email and whatever other security measures you have for your account active. And Write all the account access information you have down in a note book then keep that notebook secured with your important papers in a secured location in your home.

Important things like old emails that you used when you started playing Wow but have never used beyond that point. And the pass codes. Keep in mind that some email providers will close the email account if you don’t visit it periodically.

Update your account related telephone number. Secret questions answers. Account related Address. Credit card/number used when making payments. If you don’t remember what you placed in the account information just go into your Blizzard account and look at what you have written in. Then compare it to what the information should be now. Then make a list of your most recent characters and the servers they are on.

Because if there is any type of glitch that locks you out of your account you will need to provide security information you better have it. I have been playing for 20 years. Have had several different accounts.
And never gave it a second thought. Then about 10 years ago There was an account problem and I called the Blizzard live help line and as I mentioned had it fixed within 5 minutes. Now this happened and there was no live phone help. As mentioned. The system Blizz has now I could get no help from.

My point is record at home everything you can about your account so you will be ready if it happens to you. Also visit the Blizz Customer Support Forum so you get a good idea of the type of struggles you will face. What other people have gone through.

I hope this helps at least a few people avoid this happening to them.

[Mailborn-thrall (Mailborn)]

Quite frankly, this is the definition of a PEBCAK error. Problem Exists Between Chair and Keyboard.

Every account from every game acts like this. The problem is you simply forgot your access information, which has nothing to do with Blizzards CS.

Of course there is a risk that you can lose your account if you forget information pertinent to its security.

[Tigersan-gilneas]

Yes my point is that people should secure there access information so they don’t have to rely on memory alone.

And also a company provided Customer Support phone number with a living human being to speak with would of helped a ton!

[Sendryn-sentinels]

@Tigersan-gilneas

So I looked for customer support phone number.

1. Live Chat is only for specific things. Account verification is not one of them.
2. Next time post in the CS forums, because they can point you in the right direction.

[Onorlus-arthas (Onorlus)]

I think that is exactly the OP’s point. YOU have to make sure you keep everything current because if YOU make a mistake, there is no one at Blizz to talk to for help.

[Sendryn-sentinels]

@Onorlus-arthas

if YOU make a mistake, there is no one at Blizz to talk to for help.

Except this is incorrect. OP just failed at finding the correct path to fix the issues.

[Palatin-argent-dawn]

@Mailborn-thrall

Problem Exists Between Computer and Keyboard.

just a quicky correction: it’s “between chair and keyboard”. what is between the chair and the keyboard? the user.

[Mailborn-thrall (Mailborn)]

You are 100% correct. My brain works faster than my hands sometimes, gets confusing.

[Stabmcstabby-aegwynn]

Uh oh, Skynet is back again.

[Akston-area-52]

@Onorlus-arthas

I think that is exactly the OP’s point. YOU have to make sure you keep everything current because if YOU make a mistake, there is no one at Blizz to talk to for help.

Thats a good thing…right?

How easy do you want it for someone to call into Blizzard and steal your acct info?

[Tigersan-gilneas]

Blizzard years ago had live phone support for customers. And it was a lot of help. Whatever the problem you were having talking with a live human usually helped solve the problem and it was secure in the sense that the live operator could address your specific situation they already had all the personal information for your account for verification purposes.

[Catelan-aerie-peak (Catelan)]

Thank you for the public service message Tigersan, it’s indeed VERY important for all of us to use good habits to record and secure all our account information.

[Sendryn-sentinels]

@Tigersan-gilneas

Blizzard years ago had live phone support for customers. And it was a lot of help.

And abused by players. But they still weren’t solving account security over the phone.

[Liolang-daggerspine]

@Tigersan-gilneas

So my advice is to keep your Wow account information up to date.

One of my old email accounts got closed for some reason years ago.
Good god…trying to change EVERY online account that used that email was a flipping nightmare. MONTHS of trying to figure out all the websites that was using it and, yeah…how to update things if they insist on sending a confirmation TO that email to let you into your account, lol.

In some cases I had to just make a whole new account.
I love wow, but if it gets that annoying I’ll go play something else lol

[Audreeana-hydraxis]

@Mailborn-thrall

You are 100% correct. My brain works faster than my hands sometimes, gets confusing.

So you just had a PEBCAK error?

[Mailborn-thrall (Mailborn)]

You would be correct, I did indeed.

[Tigersan-gilneas]

@Sendryn-sentinels

But they still weren’t solving account security over the phone.

Yes they did resolve account problems on the telephone. I had a similar situation I think it was 10 years ago. And the Blizz Customer Phone Rep helped me fix it within 5 minutes and very polite. That was a great experience. That is why I am kinda shocked that Blizz does not have Live Phone Support anymore.

[Sendryn-sentinels]

Here’s what phone support was in the past and why it was removed:

@Vrakthris

The phone number, when we had it, was for Billing and Technical Support, not for In-Game Support. If you were calling to discuss game issues with our billing and tech reps, that is one of the major reasons why we moved away from having a number. Over 50% of the contacts that we were getting had nothing to do with Billing or Tech, many of them didn’t even have anything to do with CS. They focused on providing feedback/suggestions about the game itself, which CS has no involvement in.

@Vrakthris

Unfortunately, direct phone support is unavailable as we ended up with so many contacts, many calling about issues that our staff cannot help with, and filling up the phone lines where folks were on hold for an hour or more and everyone else found themselves trying to get through passed the busy signal.

[Carasia-azuresong]

Think of this way people.

If you have photographic memory. Then relax.
If you have an average memory. I suggest you go to your blizzard account and check to see if your information is up to date and still relevant.
If you have a problem remembering some things in your hectic busy life that is important to you. then by all means write the info down on paper and put it in a safe place.

People tend to ignore or procrastinate doing simple things like this, with, “that’s not going to happen to me” mentality until the day comes that they are locked out of their account.

[Akston-area-52]

I have ADHD.

Already forgot everything you posted.