Re:There's nothing wrong with this. (Score 1)

Verant were simply trying to prevent idiots and script kiddies from spoiling the game for legitimate players. Because of knee-jerk reactions from online-privacy zealots, the online game is going to be ruined for everyone.

Somehow, I think this was Verant's plan all along. Ever been to an EQ newsgroup or discussion board? The more vocal participants are unbeliveably shrill crybabies for whom Verant can do nothing right. Even the most minor tweak will bring about a storm of angry posts denouncing the company as the Great Satan.

Verant has been implored to "do something" about these various cheats by many people. For the most part, their official mouthpieces have remained silent on the matter. I think that the hard drive scanning thing was to prove a point: that short of imposing ridiculous and Draconian privacy invading measures, it's impossible to stop the sort of cheating people complain about. I sincerely doubt that any of the people who were behind the scanning decision sincerely believed it would be done for more than 48 hours. In other words, point proved.

Of course, I could be wrong. After all, Verant has performed breathtaking feats of blunder in the past. They can be incredibly arrogant jerks, and usually at the wrong times.