Riot to record Valorant voice chat to combat toxic behaviour
"We know collecting voice data is a concern for many of you..."
Riot has announced its plan to record Valorant voice chat in order to combat toxic behaviour.
In a post on its website, Riot said it's updating its privacy notice to allow it to record and evaluate voice comms when a report for disruptive behaviour is submitted in its competitive multiplayer shooter.
If a violation is detected, Riot vowed to take action and remove the data "when it is no longer needed for reviews".
Riot insisted it will not actively listen to players. "We'll only potentially listen to and review voice logs when disruptive voice behaviour is reported," Riot stressed.
Riot suggested that if players prefer not to have their voice chat captured, they should turn off voice chat. "Participating in voice on our platform means your voice logs are subject to recording and potential processing," Riot said.
Anticipating privacy concerns, Riot said it will keep data "for only as long as is necessary, and we'll protect it as if it were our own".
"We know collecting voice data is a concern for many of you, but be assured that we would never ship anything if we weren't comfortable having our own data treated the same way. And if you prefer to not have your voice chat captured, you may turn off voice chat."
Riot said it's implementing a new Terms of Service update with an updated global refund policy and adding language around its anti-cheat software for current and future Riot titles.
The plan is to begin testing Riot's new behaviour systems for voice chat with Valorant in North America before rolling out to other languages and regions. For now, Valorant will be the only Riot game using the new audio moderation tools.