Epic Games introduced a voice reporting feature to Fortnite, allowing players to provide audio evidence when reporting potential violations of the game’s community rules. This new moderation tool aims to enable the company to address instances of bullying, harassment, discrimination, or other inappropriate behavior occurring through voice chat.
Fortnite’s widespread appeal has captivated gamers across different age groups on a global scale, enticing them to participate in the virtual world it offers. However, the surge in popularity also raises concerns about potential risks and undesirable incidents.
An alarming example underscores this issue: a 41-year-old individual from Florida allegedly exploited the game as a platform to connect with and exploit underage victims, shedding light on the darker aspects that can arise within the gaming community. As Fortnite continues to attract diverse players, it becomes crucial to address and mitigate the risks associated with such online platforms to ensure a safer and more secure gaming environment for all.
Individuals curious about the compatibility of the voice reporting feature with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act should be aware that Epic Games requires parental consent for players under 13 to access voice chat. However, players under 18 have the feature enabled at all times. If they wish to avoid being recorded, they can simply mute or turn off voice chat in settings.
In a comprehensive technical blog post, Epic Games has provided explicit clarification regarding the storage of voice recordings within their ecosystem. The company ensures users that these recordings are not retained on their servers but are exclusively housed on individual players’ devices. Notably, these audio files are transmitted to Epic’s backend system solely at the discretion of players when they actively choose to share them. Following this transmission, a dedicated moderation team, bolstered by sophisticated machine learning tools, undertakes the crucial task of meticulously analyzing the submitted audio clips. The blog post goes on to delve into the intricacies of tracking and identifying diverse speakers within these recordings, underscoring a commitment to user privacy by highlighting that all audio reports are handled with strict anonymity.