NOTE: If you’re looking for info about account permabans, head over here. ID bans are a different thing!
What are ID bans?
ID bans are different—and more serious—than normal account permabans. An ID ban is a rare, drastic step we take against players who've consistently chosen not to play to win or to abide by our terms of service. When we determine a player should receive an ID ban, it's effectively a statement that we don't want that particular person to create, access, or use any account on a Riot platform or game for the duration of the ban.
An ID ban is also a message to players who play Riot's games publicly, via streaming or otherwise. Getting an ID ban means you aren't allowed to play the game publicly.
ID bans generally result after one of the following things happen:
- A player shows extreme aggression in chat and/or intentionally feeds across many permanently banned accounts.
- A player makes a verifiable threat of harm against other players or Rioters.
ID bans are extremely uncommon. To date, only a handful of players globally have ever received an ID ban.
What happens when a player receives an ID ban?
If an ID ban is issued, we'll email the player directly with a notification that explains the ban. If a player was ID banned for their behavior in-game, this email will include details about how they can apply to have their ID ban lifted in the future.
However, if a player received an ID ban because of a verifiable threat of harm against a player or Rioter, we won't consider lifting it and may even cut off our communication with the affected player entirely. Exceptions to this will only be made in unique circumstances and at our discretion.
Whenever an ID ban is active, we'll regularly search for Riot account activity on the part of the banned player. If any accounts are found, they will be immediately, manually banned. The behavior of the ID-banned player on these accounts is not taken into consideration—if you've been ID-banned it means we'll ban you on sight.
How can an ID banned player get their ID ban removed?
If a player receives an ID ban as a result of negative in-game behavior, it is possible, but far from guaranteed that the ban will be lifted in the future. Important Note: even if the ID ban is rescinded, previously-banned accounts will never be given back. A few things must happen first:
- The ID banned player needs to wait at least one year from the date of ID ban. This date is communicated to the affected player in the email they receive upon being ID banned.
- After a year has passed, the affected player should submit a player support request to ask for a re-evaluation of the ID ban. This request should include lists of any and all accounts the player has used while ID banned.
- We'll conduct a search for any associated Riot accounts and investigate the player's account activity (if there is any).
If these conditions are satisfied, we'll make a final call on whether to lift the ban or extend it.
If the conditions are not satisfied, the ID ban can be re-evaluated beginning one year from the date of the player’s previous request for evaluation.
When a player's ID ban is lifted, it means that we'll no longer manually ban their accounts on sight. However, because of the seriousness of the ID ban, we'll continue to pay close attention to in-game behavior. If a player lapses back into their old, negative behaviors, we'll conduct an investigation and contact the affected player. Depending on the outcome of the investigation, it's possible that we'll re-apply the ID-ban for at least another year.
One last thing: As a general rule, we won’t discuss the status of ID banned players with anyone except the affected players themselves.