Fortnite now records voice chat for moderation in matches with kids

Epic Games added voice reporting to Fortnite on Thursday, a new moderation feature that lets players “submit audio evidence when reporting suspected violations” of the game’s community rules. Epic says that voice reporting will help the company “take action against players using voice chat to bully, harass, discriminate, or engage in other inappropriate behavior.”

In other words, if you encounter foul language in Fortnite’s built-in voice chat, Epic’s giving you a new tool to do something about it.

Fortnite’s new reporting feature will record in-game voice chat, storing that audio data on players’ systems (not Epic’s servers, the company says). Players can then report bad behavior to Epic, forwarding captured voice chat to the company’s moderators for review.

Voice reporting is, for what appears to be a vast majority of circumstances, effectively always on. In fact, it’s always on for voice chats in games that include players under the age of 18. For players who object to being potentially recorded, Epic offers an alternative: “If you’re under 18 and do not wish to have your voice chat audio captured, you can mute yourself or turn voice chat off entirely by selecting ‘Off’ in your voice chat settings.”

There is an option to turn voice reporting off, but it’s limited to games where all players are over 18 and in parties formed among friends where all players have voice reporting set to “Off When Possible.”

Epic says it’s only recording five minutes of voice chat audio at a time, and on a rolling basis. “This means only the immediate last five minutes of audio is reportable,” the company said. Epic also promises that voice reports are anonymous; players who have been reported for violating community rules won’t know who reported them. Players who have submitted reports won’t get notified of any action taken by Epic’s moderation team, but the company says it’s working on that feature for 2024.

There’s more info in Fortnite’s voice reporting FAQ, but the most important thing to know is this: Watch your language when playing Fortnite if you want to keep your account.