Card Fraud Policy

2010-10-04

This is MindArk's Card Fraud Policy to handle financial fraud within and related to Entropia Universe.

Card Fraud

Card fraud is committed by fraudulently or unlawfully using cards or any other payment mechanism as a source to pay for PED exchange transactions. The purpose of card frauds are usually gaining monetary advantages or property and causing damage to another person, possibly the card holder or the payment receiver, by making unauthorized money transactions with cards or other payment mechanisms. A person involved might act intentionally or might just be indifferent to the consequences of their actions.

Fraudulent activities include, but are not limited to, the following actions:
  • Making PED deposits with false or stolen cards, false or stolen card numbers, or false identity. Such conduct constitutes both a criminal activity and a breach of the Entropia Universe Account Terms of Use (ToU).
  • Receiving PED that were generated from fraudulent card transactions or from actions involving any form of card fraud.
  • Unlawfully misusing the chargeback process and claiming refund for PED that have already been disposed and spent in Entropia Universe. This means that any of the follwoing claims will be considered card fraud if made after you have obtained PED with a card: a) you falsely claim that you did not authorize the deposit; or b) you falsely claim that you do not know what the charge is for; or c) you falsely claim that your card information was stolen; or d) any other false claim you make connected to the deposit made with your card.

Account Responsibility

As the registered holder of your Entropia Universe Account, you are solely responsible for all the activities made through that Account (ToU, Section 3.2). This means that if your Account is involved in card fraud you risk having your current Account and any future Accounts locked or terminated without further notice.

Card Fraud Involvement

All frauds and attempts to commit fraud will be reported to the authorities on our sole discretion. Any and all disclosure of personal information concerning the involved Accounts will be in compliance with our Privacy Policy.

An Account may be temporarily or permanently locked or banned if an Account holder is directly or indirectly involved in any card fraud related activities.

If you are informed that your Account is banned in conjunction with a card fraud investigation, please contact your planet support for further information. Note that your Account might be locked until the investigation is concluded and that you might be required to compensate MindArk, both financially and otherwise, for any and all damages incurred in connection with the investigation of your case.

Card Fraud Investigation and Possible Clearance

Each case of suspicious card fraud will be examined separately and a decision will be made on a case to case basis, depending on the result of our investigation.

MindArk reserves the right to require that you properly identify yourself as the rightful holder of the Entropia Universe Account in question and that you can prove lawful possession or ownership of the cards registered in your Account at any moment.

Depending on the outcome of the investigation your Account might be unlocked or permanently terminated. If the latter occurs you are not allowed to create any new Account in Entroipa Universe.

Recommendations to Avoid Card Fraud Involvement

To prevent being a victim of card fraud we strongly advise you to read carefully and follow the guidelines and recommendations presented in this list:

  • Do not jeopardize your Account by accepting PED or items that you know or suspect might originate from fraudulent transactions or by getting involved in card fraud directly or indirectly. If your Account is involved in any of the fraudulent activities mentioned above, you risk it being temporarily or permanently banned from Entropia Universe.
  • Do not register any other participant's card in your Account. If another participant asks you to register a card in your Account and then make a deposit for him or her, be aware that it might be a stolen card or card number that is given to you.
  • Do not accept holding PED for another participant, or transferring PED to another avatar. There is a risk that these are stolen PED, and that your Account will be used in a money laundry attempt.
  • Do not buy PED through any source not directly connected to Entropia Universe. Sources directly connected to Entropia Universe include in-game transactions and transactions through the dedicated planet web sites (Planet Roster site); the PED Card System integrated by MindArk is the only authorized way to exchange your real world funds to PED. If you are offered to purchase PED through any other source be aware that these transactions are not authorized and these PED usually originate from card frauds.
  • If you have difficulties making a deposit read the information provided on the planet websites or contact your planet support.
  • Verify your card. This can be done in conjunction with a PED transaction and can be very helpful if you would ever become involved in card fraud.