Pokemon Go iPhone
People play "Pokemon GO" on the Pokequan GoBoat Adventure Cruise in the Occoquan River in the small town of Occoquan, Virginia, U.S. August 14, 2016. Reuters/Sait Serkan Gurbuz

Falsifying location or using third-party applications can get enterprising “ Pokémon Go” players a permanent ban, according to game-developer Niantic.

Niantic has recently updated “Pokemon Go” in a bid to weed out cheaters in the game. It pushed for some notable upgrades especially with the wave of third-party Pokémon-tracking apps after “Pokémon Go” took the world (of gamers) by storm.

The game-developer urged gamers to play fair, stressing out that any violation of the terms of use of the “Pokemon Go” app or of the Trainder Guidelines will earn penalty as severe as termination of account.

“Pokémon GO is meant to be played on a mobile device and get you outside to explore your world!” Niantic said in its website.

“Methods of cheating, unfortunately, are limited only by cheaters’ imaginations, but include at a minimum the following: using modified or unofficial software; playing with multiple accounts (one account per player, please); sharing accounts; using tools or techniques to alter or falsify your location; or selling/trading accounts.”

Players caught cheating will be issued a warning, suspended from the game or face termination of account for serious and repeated violations. Nevertheless, Niantic has given players a forum to appeal their penalties.

“Pokémon Go” third-party apps

So far, third-party apps that help “Pokémon Go” players trace the location of neargy Pokémons include “Poke Radar” and “Helper for Pokémon Go.” The “Pokémon Go” craze has even led others to outsource gamers for a fee.

Based on Sensor Tower’s Store Intelligence report, “Pokémon Go” has recorded over 15 million installs on App Store and Google Play since the game app’s US launch early in July. The report also revealed that iPhone users now spend more time on playing “Pokémon Go” than they do while browsing popular social media sites Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter or Instagram.