Destiny 2 Update Causes Players' Usernames to be Wiped Out

Following a recent update, many Destiny 2 players discovered their Bungie Names—their in-game usernames—had been unexpectedly changed. This widespread issue, which began around August 14th, resulted from a malfunction in Destiny 2's name moderation system.

Destiny 2 Players' Bungie Names Mysteriously Altered After Update

Bungie to Distribute Free Name Change Tokens

This week, a significant number of Destiny 2 players logged in to find their usernames replaced with "Guardian" followed by a random string of numbers. The Destiny 2 team acknowledged the problem on Twitter (X), stating: "We are tracking an issue where a high number of account names have been changed by our Bungie name moderation tool. We are actively investigating and expect to have more information tomorrow, including details on an additional name change token for all players."

Bungie's name moderation system typically flags and changes usernames violating their terms of service (offensive language, personal information, etc.). However, this incident affected countless players who hadn't violated any rules, some having used the same name since 2015. This caused widespread confusion and frustration within the community.

Bungie swiftly responded, confirming the issue and launching an investigation. Subsequent tweets provided updates, clarifying that a server-side fix had been implemented to prevent further accidental name changes. The team reiterated their plan to provide all players with a free name change token as compensation.

"We have identified the issue that was forcing a high number of Bungie name changes. We have applied a server-side change to prevent the issue from impacting accounts moving forward," the developers announced on Twitter (X). They added, "As noted yesterday, we are still planning to distribute name change tokens to all players at a later date to assist. As we have more information, we'll be sure to share it with you."

Bungie continues to address the situation. Affected players are advised to remain patient and await further communication regarding the distribution of the promised name change tokens.