Halifax blocks WOW subscriptions
Too much fraud, says UK bank.
The Halifax isn't giving Blizzard extra. News has emerged that the British bank is stopping automatic payments to the Californian game operator, on the grounds that World of Warcraft is at the centre of an unusually high incidence of credit card fraud.
The bank isn't blaming Blizzard, but says the frequent use of stolen credit cards to pay for WOW subscriptions and fees is enough to warrant caution. The block applies to Halifax subsidiary, the Bank of Scotland, as well.
Halifax and Bank of Scotland customers who are legitimate subscribers will need to contact their bank to authorise future payments.
"We have seen a significant number of fraudulent transactions through Blizzard's gaming sites. We have, therefore, blocked the majority of Visa/Mastercard transactions we receive from there in order to combat this," the bank told The Register.
"We do not believe the fraud is anything to do with Blizzard themselves, their sites or the integrity of their billing systems, rather it is site users utilising stolen credit card details to pay for subscriptions," the Halifax spokesman said.
"If a customer does want to subscribe to a game site operated by Blizzard, using a Halifax or Bank of Scotland credit card, we can arrange for the payments to be processed for them if they contact us."