Right in time for the holiday season, Epic Games has started to combat illegal V-bucks purchases by removing all Fortnite skins, items, and V-bucks bought with the “Switch” method. As a result, multiple players have found their V-bucks—and even skins and items bought with the illegitimate currency—removed from their inventory.
The Switch method is when a player uses a credit card to buy V-bucks, but instantly charges back the purchase—the V-bucks remain in the account, while the money is never sent to Epic. This method was only available via the Nintendo Switch after Fortnite was added to the platform back in June 2018.
Although there are a handful of players who tried this method out for themselves, there were also third-party sellers who used this method to acquire their V-bucks. These various sellers are usually under heavy scrutiny, since people don’t know where they got the V-bucks to sell.
When people bought from these sellers, the V-bucks they were getting weren’t really legitimate, which meant that even if they were bought as a gift, those skins and items were also removed from those accounts. Some people are asking Epic to make exceptions for people who were gifted illegitimate skins and V-bucks, but it doesn’t look like any leeway will be given.
It just goes to show that people must be extra careful with where they buy their currency, especially with the holidays right around the corner. No one wants to buy a loved one some V-bucks, only for it to be claimed back by Epic a few days later.
