Jagex Intensifies Fight Against Old School RuneScape Bots Amid Community Backlash

The game developer announces new anti-cheat measures and faces criticism for previous tolerance of bot accounts.

Jagex announces a multi-pronged strategy to combat bots in Old School RuneScape, including an Anti-Cheating Team, technology enhancements, and legal actions.
Over 6.9 million accounts were banned in 2023, with an average of over 67,000 OSRS accounts facing bans each week in 2024.
Jagex faces criticism from the community, with many players expressing skepticism about the effectiveness of the new anti-cheat measures.
The company admits to challenges in removing banned accounts from leaderboards, acknowledging that some systems are not meeting player expectations.
Jagex's initial stance that bots are a tolerable part of the ecosystem if they're paying has sparked controversy and led to a reevaluation of their approach to combating bots.