I know this has been discussed before ..but it's a perennial problem that deserves perennial attention, and in light of recent related events I thought it deserved a quick revisit.  Here are a few of my current thoughts on the subject:

I seem to recall that a while ago there was talk of some kind of automated system that looks for red flags, but I'm pretty sure this hasn't come to fruition, nor is it slated for development anytime soon. 

Certainly, Tom (and Yertle to some degree) have better resources than the rest of us (for instance, where it comes to checking IP addresses). The current "formal" mechanism for reporting suspected cheaters is to email Tom, but this doesn't seem to be the route taken by some.  On the other hand, for all I know Tom fields twenty private complaints for every single query that hits the forum boards, but I'm going to assume this isn't the case. (Say it isn't so, Tom.)

The last set of complaints (..hey, one was just posted here as I'm typing ) exposed some legit cheaters, as well as some false alarms, and there seemed to be consensus in the community about the legitimacy of each of the allegations, so it could be argued that the informal system is working just fine.

My concern is that there might be a lot of players who suspect cheating, but are either not comfortable posting, or are not aware of the "formal" process for exposing cheaters.  On another thread there was talk of a special forum for the task, but I was thinking that perhaps on the player stats part of the game view page (or somewhere else) there could be "Report Cheaters", or "Report Suspected Cheaters" button that brings up a page that outlines the policy and the process, and would give them options:

1. Fill out a form, hit send and it goes directly to Tom
2. Hit a button that takes them directly to a "Are These Cheaters?" thread.  This would give them the ability ask the community what their opinion is.

M, I agree with your concept.  We had been discussing this at the end of the general feature request thread: http://www.wargear.net/forum/showthread/1443/Enhancement_Requests

My preference is for #1 you've outlined above.  In order to give more use out of the form/feature I would suggest the following:

1) Form goes directly to Tom and/or any admin he delegates that function to. (Maybe a first filter so Tom can stay focused on other developments of the site). 

2) Form addresses more than just suspected cheaters, but can be used for any proprietary/confidential issue.  For example, suspected hazing, copyright infringement, etc. in addition to the cheating issue.  If the feature is going to be developed, it would make sense to make it flexible enough for any other confidential issues as well.

Thanks M - reposting my post on the other thread below:

I agree the public denouncements are getting out of hand... ideally I'd prefer emails but I recognise not everyone wants to make the effort.  I think a 'report cheating' link on the game view page with a text field to justify why you are making the accusation would probably make the system more accessible.

Once this is in place I suggest any threads denouncing cheaters should be deleted to prevent false accusations spreading and ensure privacy in the process.

tom wrote:

Thanks M - reposting my post on the other thread below:

I agree the public denouncements are getting out of hand... ideally I'd prefer emails but I recognise not everyone wants to make the effort.  I think a 'report cheating' link on the game view page with a text field to justify why you are making the accusation would probably make the system more accessible.

Once this is in place I suggest any threads denouncing cheaters should be deleted to prevent false accusations spreading and ensure privacy in the process.

 

+1 it has been fun going through history and looking for patterns in games between different accounts. I also think you have a great point and I know I can't resist being pulled into these discussions so handling them quietly until they are proven is a wise idea.