Important Policy clarification concerning Piracy and Scam Links

[Tunnel King]

Good Day, Terrarians,

Recently there has been a spate of discussions in threads and on profiles involving how to obtain or use non-official (cracked/pirated) versions of Terraria (and on occasion, other games). We've also seen a number of people posting links for 'free games'. The purpose of this post is to attempt to clarify our forum policies on these topics and the consequences of violating them.

Piracy

First and foremost: We have no illusion that we are going to stop all piracy of the game, on any platform. We are not trying to make any moral judgment on those who choose to avail themselves of 'opportunities' available in other places, for whatever reasons you choose to convince yourself that it is OK to do so. However, we CAN address any information posted on our forum and take action on it.

Terraria Community Forums is the official destination for Re-Logic's games, it is provided by Re-Logic at their own cost, free of advertisements. It's just plain rude and disrespectful to them to post information regarding pirating their games on their own forum. The Staff will not permit this site to become a destination for people seeking to advertise or obtain non-legitimate versions of Terraria or any other game.

If you do pirate Terraria: PLEASE keep that information to yourself. Don't expect or ask for any technical help from anyone on this forum with those versions. Don't try to 'help' others with pirated versions.

What is allowed:

• General, abstract discussion of the pros and cons of piracy (games/software, music, videos, whatever). We remind you to keep the discussion civil and non-specific.

What is NOT allowed:

1. Posting links to websites that offer downloads of any non-official version of Terraria. This includes mentioning website names in a manner that clearly indicates how to locate them - example: 'just Google XYZ site to find it for free' will be considered the same as providing direct links to pirated/cracked versions.
2. Posting links to or embedding videos (YouTube etc.) that describe how to obtain pirated games, or that include links to sources for pirated games. You are responsible for checking the description and comments if you post a video - we will not accept 'I didn't know those links were there' as an excuse.
3. Describing in any way how to obtain a pirated version of Terraria (or any game), or asking how to obtain one.
4. Encouraging people to seek out pirated versions of the game, even if to play a legitimate PC mod or server that hasn't been updated to the current PC version. Wait for the mod or server to update instead.
5. Boasting or mentioning that you have pirated the game, even if you've done so in the past and now you have a 'legit' version. It doesn't make any difference, and we don't care, really.
6. Begging for free copies of the game, or explaining that you pirate only because you A) can't afford to buy it, or B) you claim to live in a location where it is not available to buy the game legitimately. There are occasional give-aways or contests where you can have a chance to receive a free copy, watch for them.

Consequences of Disallowed Activities

• Posting links, videos, or information that directly leads to obtaining a pirated version (basically, 1-3 above) is subject to removal of that information and immediate termination of your forum account. There is no excuse for doing this on our forum. This serves as your warning if you do that.
• Asking for information about obtaining pirated copies, boasting that you use them, or begging for free copies is subject to verbal warnings and/or warning points, at the discretion of the Staff. Repeated violations after an initial warning may be subject to termination of your account.

It is a fallacy that it is 'OK' to download a pirated version if you own a legitimate version. By doing so, you are patronizing and encouraging the pirate sites to continue their work. Again, if you choose to do this anyway, please keep silent about it on the forum.

Discussion of Pirating of Other Games/Software/Media

We do not want this site to be a hub or bulletin board for questionable/illegal activity. Please do not post links or descriptions of how to obtain other games, software, music or videos outside of legitimate means on this forum. Content related to this activity may be removed and warnings or account terminations may result, at the discretion of the staff.

Again: if you pirate/seek to pirate games/software/media - there are plenty of other sites on the Internet for that activity. Please keep it off of TCF.


Changes:
July 22 2023 - remove link to Mature Discussions section
June 14 2019 - update link and reference to Social Group discussion of piracy

 

[Tunnel King]

Scam and Malicious Links

Occasionally a member (new or old) will post on a thread or profile something like

There is a free Steam gift card giveaway at <link> I recommend this!
​

These links are almost always phishing scams. They entice people with the promise of gift cards or games if you will post their link on some number of sites (usually 3-5). In order to claim your 'prize', you must give the agent significant personal information (email addresses etc.) that they will then use as they wish. Sometimes these sites harbor malware and will trigger AV or malware protection software warnings.

We do not permit such links to be posted on TCF. We strongly encourage people to not post them, or to click on the links. Please report any suspicious links that you find to the staff - we thank those who have done so in the past. We do use our spam filtering resources to help catch such links before they become generally visible, but these agents will find new website names or domains on a regular basis.

• Any such posts we find will be deleted by the Staff as soon as they are discovered, whether in threads or on profiles.
• If these links are posted by a new member who seems to have made the account solely to post said links, that account may be terminated without notice.
• If these links are posted by a member who has visible activity on the forum, they will receive ONE notice via PM to remind them of this policy. Subsequent violations of this policy may result in significant warning points or account termination, at the discretion of the Staff.
• Use of a shortened link for such sites - including use of ad-sponsored sites like adf.ly - will be considered a deliberate attempt to evade our filter. The poster's account will subject to immediate termination, at the discretion of the Staff.
• The Staff reserves the right to report serious abuses of this policy to spam reporting services, in which the poster's account details may be provided to those services.

If you are unsure whether a link is appropriate and safe for the forum, please contact a Staff member for advice on how to proceed BEFORE you post it.