Fair Play on ChessKid.com

Fair Play on ChessKid.com: What you Need to Know

ChessKid takes playing fairly seriously & the rules are the same as on our parent site Chess.com. 

Parents, please talk to your child about sportsmanship and fair play!  Dishonest play ruins the experience for others.  We want to keep the play experience fun and honest and we truly care about the integrity of chess.  

Note: We have closed accounts in the past. We have closed accounts during live events. We take fair play seriously and we will take actions up to and including a permanent ban from ChessKid.com.

Please share this video about Fair Play on ChessKid from PoppaBear (IM Danny Rensch) and FunMasterMike (FM Mike Klein).

What are the rules?

• No chess programs or engines (e.g. Chessmaster, Fritz, Komodo, Houdini, Stockfish, Chessbase with any active UCI engine, etc.) can be used to analyze positions in ongoing games at any time.  
• In Live Chess ("Fast Chess" "Play vs Kid"), no outside assistance OF ANY KIND is permitted.
• In Daily Chess ("Slow Chess" turn-based games with several days per move), you may consult any resource which is not engine-based. This includes books, opening databases (including the chesskid.com Explorer) for [www.chesskid.com/openings|opening moves], and thematic games (though not their engine analyses). Tablebases are NOT allowed. You may not consult an engine, or another human, to provide an opinion on the opening database, tablebases, self-preparation or analysis that would relate to a particular game-in-progress on ChessKid.com. 
• Fixing game results by arranging games, playing with multiple accounts or losing intentionally is against the rules.
• Do not let anyone else play on your account! This is strictly against the rules! 

How do I report someone whom I do not believe to be playing by the Fair Play rules above?

• If you have reason to believe someone is not playing fairly, please submit a report using the form on this "Contact" link at the bottom of the Home page to report it. Be sure to include the username of the suspected player and a game link. Our Foul Play Detection Staff will conduct a thorough investigation, gathering statistics and reports on said user, keeping all findings confidential, and will take appropriate action against the reported user if/when a concrete assessment has been made. 
• Please do not discuss your suspicions in forums!
• Any of the above described public accusations / actions against a member may lead to your own account being restricted, regardless of what is found against the accused.

How does ChessKid.com detect foul play?

• Part of our analysis involves comparing human moves to computer moves and looking at the statistical significance of said moves. 
• To remain effective, other aspects of our detection methods are confidential.

How often does ChessKid.com catch Fair Play abusers?

• We work hard to keep ChessKid.com a safe and positive community for chess players around the world, and are sad whenever any account is closed. That said, the process of investigating the fair play of our members is a never ending one! 
• ChessKid.com employs nine full time salary employees dedicated to the research, prevention, and ultimately, the closure of accounts found to have accessed illegal assistance during their chess games. Our team is constantly going through the games of our top players, submitting those games into our "Fair Play Detection System," and evaluating clean play vs non-clean play. 
• ChessKid continues to close accounts on a daily basis for Fair Play violations.  

What happens to a player who is found to have violated the rules of Fair Play on ChessKid.com?

• We may suspend or close their accounts. Account closures may be permanent.
• If we happen to find violations of Fair Play in real-time, we may abort the game in progress and award their opponent with a win. 
• In many "first time abuser" cases, we offer a chance for admission and apology. If this is given, we will sometimes allow the re-opening of an account, with a reset of the ratings.

If I reported someone for Fair Play abuse why hasn't their account been closed?

• We appreciate you reporting your suspicions, but ultimately ChessKid.com will decide and bear all responsibilities of our members and their play on our site. If we have not closed their account then the evidence is not conclusive.

You closed the account of someone I know - I'm sure they were innocent of abuse!

• We understand that you are upset. Unfortunately, people do make mistakes - sometimes even really nice people. Again, we only close accounts when we are absolutely certain of our findings and have gathered enough statistics that we would stand by under public scrutiny and a court of law.
• No accounts are ever closed "on suspicion."

Can someone appeal if their account is closed?

• We are happy to listen to your appeal! Reply to your closure notice and our support team will work with you to file an appeal.
• However, we ask you to remember that ChessKid.com is a private company, it maintains the right to close the accounts of anyone we deem to have broken site rules, acted unfairly to other members or behaved in a way that hurt the site experience for other members.  
• Further, it should be clear by all logical, reasonable accounts (as well as by all smart business practices) that we would never have any reason to close the account of a user if we were not SURE, beyond all reasonable doubt, that they had broken rules. 

What does ChessKid.com think about Fair Play abuse?

• Using unfair advantages against someone who thinks you are playing fairly is a dishonest act.
• Our policies are clear & strict; they are also faithfully enforced.
• We feel we are extremely effective in identifying and dealing with all Fair Play abusers.