Epic Games is adding a new voice reporting feature to fortnite to help catch players who break the company’s community rules.
If the feature is turned on (if you’re under 18, the feature is always on when using voice chat), the device you’re playing on will securely capture the last five minutes of audio continuously. according to Epic’s blog post. (Epic emphasizes that it does not store voice recordings on its servers unless you file a report.) The audio is removed after five minutes.
When you report a conversation, “voice chat audio captured in the last five minutes will be uploaded with the report and sent to Epic moderators for review,” Epic says. (The reports are anonymous.) The company then says it will automatically delete the clips after 14 days or “the duration of a penalty.” If you appeal, Epic can keep the clips for an additional 14 days so a decision can be made. And if Epic needs to retain a clip for legal reasons, “it will be retained for as long as legally necessary.”
If you’re over 18, you can turn off voice reporting where possible, which means the feature won’t be available in groups you make with friends who have also turned off voice reporting as “off where possible.” Epic says you can also choose to turn off voice chat entirely, but obviously that may not be ideal if you want to easily communicate with your friends or other people in the game.
Epic’s voice reporting feature follows similar tools offered by companies like Sony and Microsoft. On Thursday, Epic will also begin displaying age ratings for “all first-party and third-party playable content” within Fortnite— the company announced that feature in October.
