Hackers ‘Switch’ Their Nintendo Profile Pictures With NSFW Content
Nintendo’s Switch console is usually a haven of child-friendly atmosphere with plenty of light-hearted games and numerous restrictions in place to counter online negativity when it strikes. Unfortunately, it seems these limits aren’t able to protect against everything as one recent instance reportedly saw hackers find a way to set their Nintendo profile pictures with pornographic images.
Likely foreseeing this type of abuse ahead of time, Nintendo normally only allows custom Miis or a collection of pre-set images to become one’s profile image, but it looks as though hackers have employed their own “unsafe for work” means of customization through a homebrew tool. Seeing these triple-X trolls run wild in Nintendo’s online services, an alarmed parent voiced their concerns in a comprehensive post on Reddit. The user recalls their experience in Super Mario Odyssey‘s ‘‘Balloon World’ mode, discovering several in-game balloons plastered with an especially graphic profile image.
PSA: Parents, disable online on your children’s Nintendo Switch from NintendoSwitch
Even though Nintendo has a reputation of swinging the ban hammer to game pirates and online cheaters in the past, a homebrew profile picture is likely an unprecedented problem for them to have. Since avatars weren’t implemented with uploads in mind, users are unable to properly report these inappropriate images, clearing the way for lewd occurances to take place. If and when Nintendo is able to correct this exploit, it’s currently unknown if insta-bans would apply to these profile-tampering cases, but it’s not outside the realm of possibility, especially if parents are concerned.
What do you think? Are you alarmed to see hackers able to upload inappropriate Nintendo profile pictures, or are you not too worried because of Big N’s ban-happy hammer? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to follow Don’t Feed the Gamers on Twitter and Facebook to be informed of the latest gaming and entertainment news 24 hours a day! For more from the realm of Nintendo, check out these next few news stories:
Eric Hall2712 Posts
Phone-browsing Wikipedia in one hand and clutching his trusty controller in the other, the legendary Eric Hall spreads his wealth of knowledge as a writer for Don't Feed the Gamers. Be sure to catch his biweekly "Throwback Thursday" segment for a nostalgic look at trivia from the past.
