Massive popular augmented reality mobile game Pokémon GO keeps on breaking records, with 75 million estimated downloads on iOS and Android devices combined.
Gamers from all over the world have enjoyed the title, taking up the role of Pokémon trainers as they catch Pokémon, train them up, and battle with other players.
The intense desire to become the very best has pushed players to go through all means to advance in Pokémon GO. Some of the things that gamers have done include walking great distances, which is an even better idea now that it has been confirmed that region-locked Pokémon can be hatched from 5-kilometer eggs, and using accessory apps that provide various advantages to Pokémon trainers.
Players, however, should be aware of the risk involved when using these accessory apps, as some of them violate developer Niantic Labs' policy for Pokémon GO.
In the terms of service for the title, one of the lines is that users agree not to "attempt to access or search the Services or Content, or download Content from the Services through the use of any technology or means other than those provided by Niantic or other generally available third-party web browsers."
One method covered by this prohibition is GPS spoofing, which allows players to trick the system into thinking that they are located in another place in the world. Through such a trick, gamers are able to catch Pokémon in other countries without actually going there.
Other apps, including PokeDetector for Android, can send players notifications when rare Pokémon appear nearby. In addition, the app also charges players for premium functions such as choosing which Pokémon will trigger a notification, which is also prohibited by Niantic.
These apps are obviously cheating, and once Niantic gets around to sniffing out gamers who use this method, their accounts could get banned, and they would have to start from scratch again. A gamer discovered that Niantic can soft ban players for using methods such as GPS spoofing, which prevents gamers from catching Pokémon collecting items and battling gyms, but there is no saying when Niantic will increase the severity of these bans.
There are some other tools that aid players in their quest to catch Pokémon, with one of these tools being the previously reported PokeVision website. The online tool functions as a Pokémon tracker, using the Niantic API to display the locations of all the Pokémon near the player's location in real time.
PokeVision does not require players to log in using their Pokémon GO account, which means that their accounts are safe from being banned. However, under the game's terms of service, Niantic has the right to order such tools to shut down.
Players resorting to using these tools may have been Niantic's own fault, as server problems have continuously plagued the game along with glitches that make it harder to catch Pokémon. Still, it was never said that the path to becoming a true Pokémon master would be an easy one, and being able to get an unfair advantage against honest Pokémon trainers is not worth the risk of getting your account banned.
