The Neopets Worst-Case Scenario Survival Guide by ChromeFox

• What to Do if You’ve Been Hacked
• How to Identify a Scammer
• What to Do if Your Account is Frozen
• What to Do if a Pet Transfer Fails

When you play Neopets, you need to expect the worst. For most users, at least one of these things will most likely happen at one time. Knowing what to do can mean the difference between frozen or unfrozen, losing nothing or losing everything, or pet or no pet. Always be prepared for the worst to happen.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU’VE BEEN HACKED

Hacking is defined on Neopets as anytime someone enters another person’s account in an attempt to steal from or alter it in any way. This can happen if you give your password to them (through neomail or a fake log-in page), they guess your password, they somehow get into your e-mail and use the Send Password feature, or they use a program to obtain your password. Contrary to what the Neopets Staff claims, hacking programs DO exist and CAN be used to enter accounts.

If you haven’t been logged out:

1. As soon as you find any items or neopoints strangely missing, change your password.

The Edit Account Info page can be found from the Help button on the sidebar. A faster way to get there is through the URL: http://www.neopets.com/userinfo.phtml

Type in your old password at the first space, and type a new one twice in the second spaces. Don’t think about what your new password should be — just type in the first word that comes to your head (you can change it later). What’s important right now is getting the hacker out of your account before he or she gets you out of it first.

2. When you’re sure that the hacker has been ousted, assess the damage, and look for clues about who hacked you.

If you caught the hacker in the act, it’s likely he or she didn’t get a chance to clean up their trail. Look at New Event notices for neofriend requests or acceptances, trading post notices, or anything like that. Check out your Shop History and even your guild, if it’s small. Often guild members will hack other guild members. If you suspect you were tricked and you remember where and with who it happened, that should make it easier. Also, if they abandoned your pet, searching for its name should lead you directly to the thief (or an innocent person who adopted it unknowingly…be sure to investigate the account info).

If you think you know who the culprit is, DO NOT neomail them. If they suspect their victim knows what happened, they may move what they stole to another account. Instead, e-mail abuse@neopets.com with your username, their username, and what was taken. Be precise and detailed about it, and be prepared to give sufficient proof of their guilt. Don’t expect to recover anything you lost — it most likely won’t happen.

If you have been logged out and your password won’t work, but your account isn’t frozen:

1. Use the “Send Password” feature.

Enter your username in the “Send Password” feature in the log-in page. With any luck, your password will be sent to your e-mail. If so, log in, and change your password immediately.

2. If this fails, e-mail abuse@neopets.com or a Staff member.

Include your username in it the e-mail. Recall what you’ve done in the past 48 hours. Do you suspect you were tricked? If so, mention that. If you are fairly certain you know who did it, include their username as well and any proof you have. They may research it further themselves.

If they find a hacked account, they will often freeze it, complicating things if they don’t bother to follow up and return it to you. If this happens, read “What to Do if Your Account is Frozen.”

Be Aware

• Never give out your password to anyone, even your best friend or someone who claims to be Staff.
• Check the URL for any log-in page. If it doesn’t say “http://www.neopets.com” at the beginning, press the “Back” button.
• Never change your e-mail address to anything but YOUR e-mail.

Program Hacking

Hacking by using a program doesn’t mean just magically getting someone’s password. It requires two things: for the hacker to have an adequate understanding of their victim and for their victim to have a fairly simple password. Often the hacker will pretend to be friendly in an effort to learn about someone’s interests and information. Then, they will enter words associated with that person into a program that combines the words with numbers, and if successful, they can hack them.

To prevent this, make your password nonsensical and with alternating caps and numbers, i.e. “j3N6ff90i1N”

HOW TO IDENTIFY A SCAMMER

1. Account under one month old.

Since scammers create multiple accounts to do their dirty work, many of their non-frozen accounts are very young.

2. No pet.

Most legitimate accounts will have at least one Neopet.

3. (Obviously) a scam in their shop, guild, trading post, lookup, etc.

4. Unusual names.

Most scammers have scores of accounts and don’t take much time in naming them. Also, some align names with their scams, i.e. “winquicknp”

5. No trophies or Battledome matches.

Most legitimate accounts have trophies, and many active accounts battle.

6. Poor spelling, punctuation, and grammar.

Often the people ignorant enough to type like six-year-olds are also ignorant enough to scam.

Please note that ANY account can be a scamming account; these are just common traits of them.

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR ACCOUNT IS FROZEN

Nowadays, accounts being frozen is the norm. It can happen to anyone — innocent or not. Everyone needs to be prepared for the possibility that they may be frozen at one point, whether they deserve it or not.

*** NOTE: This guide is only for those who don’t know why they were frozen or were frozen for mild violations like multiple accounts or misinterpreted language. If you have scammed, severely harassed, or used obvious inappropriate speech in the chats or through neomail, please start over and never make the same mistake again. ***

If you don’t know why you were frozen:

1. E-mail frozen@neopets.com and/or a Staff member and ask them why you were frozen.

As Staff members go, Felicity will generally give you a faster response than Iris. Be polite about it; a obnoxious, screaming demand will get you nowhere. Include your username in the mail. If you have “friends in high places” as in an a Staff member you are already on good terms with, talk to them.

If the Staff member investigates the account and finds that it was frozen wrongfully, they may simply unfreeze it there. If not, they should inform you of why it was frozen. Staff members will generally take a few days to a week or more to respond.

If you are 100% sure you are not guilty of the reason you were frozen:

1. Tell them of your innocence, and politely ask for proof.

The Staff is unlikely to buy the “My brother/sister was in my account” plea, but most of them realize that mistakes do happen. If you ask for proof, they may investigate the account further.

2. If one Staff member refuses to help you, try a different one.

Iris and Felicity are your best bets, but there are others who can help.

If you are guilty of a minor violation (accidentally using freebies on another account, minor language, etc.):

1. E-mail frozen@neopets.com, iris@support.neopets.com, or felicity@support.neopets.com, and tell the truth.

It will do you no good to lie to the Staff. Apologize for your actions, and swear that you will never do it again.

Iris will take a longer time to respond than Felicity, but Felicity often takes neopoints from accounts for punishment when she unfreezes. It is normally only about 40K, a small price to pay for this favor. Frozen@neopets.com is a wildcard.

2. If you are unfrozen, follow through with your promise.

Do not make the same mistake again. The second time around, your chances of being unfrozen again (especially by the same Staff member) dramatically decrease.

Note

If you are wrongfully frozen, never give up in your attempts to get unfrozen. The people whose accounts get unfrozen are those that are persistent. Keep cool, but keep trying.

It may help when you’re trying to get an account unfrozen to create a new one for entertainment and adopt a pet for the time being. In the event that you don’t get unfrozen, you can keep the account and start over.

WHAT TO DO IF A PET TRANSFER FAILS

Transferring a Neopet to another account always runs the risk that a third party will snatch up the pet at the pound. However, it is very possible to recover the pet from them if you know how to handle it.

1. Find who got the pet via the search.

Looking up the pet’s name should lead you directly to the person who unknowingly adopted it.

2. Neomail them immediately and politely ask for them to disown the pet.

Don’t act rude. Keep calm, and inform them that the pet was part of a transfer.

3. If they agree, plan through AIM or another instant messenger.

You will need to time it just right in order to avoid the same problem. Wait in the adoption center with the pet’s name typed in the search. Ask them to type “GO” or something when they’ve disowned it.

If they follow through, it’s customary to send them an item (a faerie, codestone, etc.) as a token of appreciation or buy something overpriced from their shop.

4. If they disagree, you will have to pass a bribe.

Offer a faerie or codestone to them, but stress that they’ll only get it after they disown. If they agree, go to Step 3. If they disagree and suggest something more but still reasonable, decide whether or not it’s worth it.

5. If the person who adopted doesn’t have parental consent, look for a way to contact them.

Their shop, user look-up, pet pages, etc. may have their AIM or e-mail address.

To Prevent Pet Transfer Failures…

• If you are transferring your pet to your new account, and you have a trusted friend, have them be on the receiving end. The other option is open two browser windows: one in Internet Explorer and one in Netscape, and log into the different accounts in each one.
• Plan the transfer at a time when fewer people are on, like late at night or early in the morning. During the day of a weekday holiday unique to your area also works.
• Make it obvious in the pet’s description not to adopt it.
• If you are giving the pet to a friend, negotiate times through AIM. Have them at the adoption center with the pet’s name in the search box when you disown. You will need to time it perfectly.
• Make sure the receiver has enough NP to adopt, especially if the pet has good stats. A pet with stats at all 40’s will cost about 9K.
• The faster the modem of the receiver, the better.
• If the pet’s species and color doesn’t matter to you, giving it a Moehog, Lenny, Buzz, or other “unpopular” morphing potion may make it less attractive for people looking for pets.

– ChromeFox