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Bethesda has resolved an issue with its customer support website that was revealing customers’ private information to each other.
In a bid to resolve complaints from players unhappy they had received the wrong bag in Fallout 76‘s Power Armor edition, Bethesda requested that players seeking a replacement should contact them via its online customer support site.
We are finalizing manufacturing plans for replacement canvas bags for the Fallout 76: Power Armor Edition. If you purchased the CE, please visit https://t.co/S5ClEZuQrx and submit a ticket by Jan. 31, 2019. We’ll arrange to send you a replacement as soon as the bags are ready.
— Bethesda Support (@BethesdaSupport) December 3, 2018
Shortly thereafter, reports came in that customers could access other customers’ tickets, including their personal information, whilst using Bethesda’s online support portal.
"I am receiving other people’s support tickets on my bethesda account," said one customer via twitter. "I have numerous people receipts for power armor set that includes their email & home address and the type of card used. This is not good, right?"
"I went on the support website today, to update a ticket of mine, and surprisingly (or not…) I ended up being able to see all sorts of tickets, with people putting their personnal informations [sic] in them, like receipt screenshots, names, addresses and so on," said another via Bethesda’s community forum.
@BethesdaSupport I am receiving other people's support tickets on my @bethesda account. I have numerous people receipts for power armor set that includes their email & home address and the type of card used. This is not good, right? #Fallout76 pic.twitter.com/KUpGCNfIF0
— Jessie Tracy (@JesscaTracy9) December 5, 2018
After taking customer support offline the issue has now been rectified, and Bethesda confirms that no passwords or full credit card information were compromised during the breach.
In a statement, Bethesda said: "We experienced an error with our customer support website that allowed some customers to view support tickets submitted by a limited number of other customers during a brief exposure window. Upon discovery, we immediately took down the website to fix the error.
"We are still investigating this incident and will provide additional updates as we learn more. During the incident, it appears that the user name, name, contact information, and proof of purchase information provided by a limited number of customers on their support ticket requests may have been viewable by other customers accessing the customer support website for a limited time, but no full credit card numbers or passwords were disclosed. We plan to notify customers who may have been impacted.
"Bethesda takes the privacy of our customers seriously, and we sincerely apologize for this situation."
— Bethesda Support (@BethesdaSupport) December 6, 2018
The leak comes just days after a US law firm began collecting evidence against Bethesda regarding its refund policy for Fallout 76. Initially, PC players unhappy with the technical issues or unable to play the game were able to claim refunds from developer/publisher Bethesda, but Reddit users later reported the company had clamped down on refund requests.
Thanks, Polygon.
