Battle.net update helper svc.
This is installed even though you tell the app that you do not wish battlenet to be ran at start up.
Are people actually happy with Blizzard adding this without asking consent ?
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In the terms you’ve read and agreed to that Blizzard may monitor your system for cheating soft/hardware. This is notable in the form of Warden but also BNET client and its Helper.
If you disagree, you may decline on the ToS and ask for a refund for any unused gametime. If this gametime has been bought in a bundle or whole block, you cannot ask for a refund for that.
You can still discuss with a GM refund ticket, but the legalese is quite well covered in here.
Edit:
I may add, a lot of game services employ similar unavoidable anti-cheat softwares to monitor the same things and have added such in their terms. Denial of these terms usually stops you from playing the whole game - if you’ve not started playing you’re usually entitled to a refund depending on the store or game provider.
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While you’re right, I am curious how this falls under GDPR guidelines.
I know blizzard tracks a lot of information about us, and you can access that information actually upon request, but it didn’t include anything about my system being monitored.
So are they monitoring it? Or not?
And if yes, where’s that data then?
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It’s mind boggling how people even have the time of day to care about these Non-issues.
Why not just do something more worthwhile with this extra energy?
You may review the short and simple privacy policy here:
There’s also a link within there for the actual legal privacy policy and how to request, object, what they collect etc.
It is quite detailed as a matter of factly.
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That’s completely irrelevant. A reasonable person (as specified in law) would expect that a company’s TOS is ONLY for when you’re running Blizzard games. If the software was monitoring what you were doing outside of those circumstances it would demonstrably be breaking European law.
Microsoft need to be transparent with what this service is doing, or face the further ire of EU lawmakers.
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They are quite transparant which is demonstrated by their terms you’ve read and agreed upon but not limited to this document:
If you have concerns about your data you can request your information here:
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Pretty sure Blizzard got the certificates sorted to be allowed to do this off Windows with Microsoft.
I think GDPR has nothing to do with anticheat software. GDPR states and defines and elaborates what is Personal Data and Sensitive Pesonal Data. As far as I know, anticheat software of Blizz isn’t collecting any of these.
Plus you can be sure that Blizz has more people in Legal dept. than in game design team, so that they are safe and come out on the top as much as possible.
You’re aware that under EU consumer protection laws, EULAs are as legally binding as a roll of toilet paper, right? Any clause which limits any consumer right beyond what the laws mark is void by default. We should have to inquire what GDPR says in this regard, tho.
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The EULA is TL DR but I’m sure it covers it in one of the smaller letter parts.
I don’t have that service running at start up. When Windows gave the prompt to allow it some time ago, i denied it as i don’t allow anything if i don’t know what it is doing.
Point being that if it’s running at start up on your system, you did give it permission or you’ve disabled windows UAC.
I turned it also. I made a post in tech forum stating how shabby it was. Now I am being barracked by the battlenet app to allow an update. I have issues logging today where it has asked for the authenticator because I refused the battlenet update.
I wholeheartedly agree. However, being from the UK means I have to wait for the impending regime change first. The government we have now is a total waste of space.
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Naivety at its finest. There is a lot of money to be had in collecting data these days. This is why all the major tech companies are jumping on that bandwagon.
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I won’t argue as this is not my strongest topic. Well, at the end of the day its whatever for me.
feels like that is true for every country and for every “government” that is ever in the seats raising their own salaries while waiting that the next government will solve the issues (spoiler, will never happen)
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Don’t care about bots hacks or cheaters, they get banned eventually.
Blizz needs to do something about real abusers, real harassers, real exploiters who ruin every random bg with premades.
Wow is P2W whether we have botters or not. The biggest incentive Blizz has for removing botters is that it will mean they can sell more gold.
Well, don’t mind me installing this camera in your bedroom, I swear it’s only good to observe whether there is light around, to ensure I’m not calling you while you sleep.
People caring about their privacy is helpful.
Even if it’s extremely selective, as we already share most of our lives with the service suppliers of our phones and computers, so typically Google and Microsoft these days.
There are many stories about surveillance and where it leads, of course it begins with just collecting data and figuring out profiles, obviously to help you with things like suggesting healthy habits and what have you, whether it’s Westworld or 1984.
The very first audit element is, whether it submits any data, or only uses analysis.
The second, does it connect it to an account, or is it entirely anonymous, even shedding the IP.
The third, what happens during data breeches. Will everyone have access to whichever programs I run, what kind of files do I have on my system by name, size, etc.
Again… I dono how you have the energy to simply “Care” about these things.
Just don’t let them worry your brain.
If it happens it happens.