# Be Wary About Public Dodo Codes



## DinoTown (Apr 4, 2020)

I know many people are already careful about this for this very reason but given I slipped up here and had it occur, I feel the need to share what happened so people can learn vicariously from my own mistake.

I've been trading with other users and sharing my dodo code publicly. My biggest problem with dodo codes is that I forget to apply to an entire open-gate session, rather than a single visitor, and that gates do not close themselves automatically when the visitor leaves, meaning I often have this dodo code left open for anyone to come. In general, people are nice on this forum and I trust 99.9% of you all. Or 100% if this person was just a guest on the forums.

Someone found the dodo code I posted publicly and came to visit while I was in my house (which is on the opposite side of the island to my airport). I instantly did not trust this person. They had the word [removed] in their name. I found them in my orchard and flower fields as I was trying to run across the island so I asked them what they were doing. They said they were just visiting. I ask how they found the dodo code, but they didn't answer. They asked me to give them something, to which I refused. They promised me real artwork, to which I refused again, then said they were generally 'sad' so deserved something. I said no. They hadn't done anything bad at this point so I asked them politely to leave rather than kick them. They didn't listen.

Then I realised that they had in fact done something - stolen my peaches. Peaches are not my native fruit, and I only have 1 peach tree so far, meaning I no longer had any peaches to plant for more trees for a few days. If they'd taken some apples (my native fruit), chances are I would not have cared. I am happy to share apples for free as they are in near enough unlimited supply for me, but I am very limited on peaches. They ate two, so still had one in their inventory. I don't know what they were trying to do but they managed to drop the third, so I ended the session quickly, and luckily they left without stealing any of my valuables.

Needless to say, I shan't be posting dodo codes publicly anymore - and let this serve as a message to anyone else who does this currently, because someone is clearly watching the trading post right now looking to visit and cause trouble on your islands.


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## DJStarstryker (Apr 4, 2020)

Definitely makes sense why I've seen some people on Reddit say they would PM their Dodo code to people instead of posting it publicly.

I'm sorry you had a bad experience.  At least you didn't have anything too bad happen and can take it as lessons learned for the future.


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## jiojiop (Apr 4, 2020)

Also, if someone does invade and seems untrustworthy, RESET IMMEDIATELY. Don't let them exit. Press the home button and close the game. All damage they've done will reset and they'll be kicked out.

btw I've got some peach trees you can grab fruit from!


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## maimero (Apr 4, 2020)

i learned this the hard way too, and feel like a real big dummy for it (＞︿＜) i was trading sanrio posters for nook tickets and posted the dodo publicly, and two randos came in. one stole the posters i layed out for someone else and another was speaking in broken english telling me that they wanted posters. i only dm dodos now...


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## Feraligator (Apr 4, 2020)

Are you saying they have an account here? You can give them a negative feedback rating on their profile which can deter others from trading with them.

Also, if you really need peaches you can come to mine to pick some up if you need, I have a couple!


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## Garrett (Apr 4, 2020)

Just a note, you can close the gates once people arrive, that way they can shop and trade in peace, but no one else can arrive.


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## moonbell (Apr 4, 2020)

Is there a way to make the trading area viewable to registered users only? Won't stop scammers completely but will make them put in a tiny bit of effort, at least.

Very very sorry that happened to you!


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## marea (Apr 4, 2020)

This happened to me, too! Thankfully the uninvited person was actually so nice and brought me fruit and flowers, but yes be carefull about sharing codes because you dont know the type of people who are gonna see them and intrude and like you said they arent necessarily forum members, but this forum gets lots of visitors, almost 500 or more sometimes.


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## 0orchid (Apr 4, 2020)

That really sucks. I generally trust people on this forum but I'm careful about dodo codes just in case, PMing or if I post publicly closing the gate immediately after people in threads visit. Also peaches are my native if you need more.


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## DinoTown (Apr 4, 2020)

JezDayy said:


> Are you saying they have an account here? You can give them a negative feedback rating on their profile which can deter others from trading with them.
> 
> Also, if you really need peaches you can come to mine to pick some up if you need, I have a couple!


If they do have an account, I have absolutely no idea who they are. They refused to answer me when I asked them this, so I'm unsure if they are a user here or just a guest scrolling the forums, but they definitely got my code from these forums since I never posted the code they came in on anywhere else.


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## Jhin (Apr 4, 2020)

Has happened to me as well, and since every time was a public code in a thread I have no way of finding their TBT accounts to leave bad feedback. It's worth the extra hassle of waiting in order to keep your items safe 

Generally, a good practice for me has been to ask for people to PM me to visit, and tell me their character and island names too so I can confirm who every visitor is. This has definitely discouraged any sort of wrongdoings or disrespect of any rules I set out for the visits/trades in question for every person.


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## chibibunnyx (Apr 4, 2020)

I'm worried about this too, it's really better to just pm dodo codes and only invite ppl in small groups. It's been chaos trying to get into or leave a public dodo code island, you'll be stuck just seeing messages of ppl needing to leave or are on their way. Most people are respectful but some take advantage of a full island and wander off. :c


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## Mairen (Apr 4, 2020)

Aw I'm really sorry this happened to you. It's awful when someone has to come along and ruin that level of trust we could otherwise have for everyone else. In the end, PMing dodo codes is probably the best thing to do. Peaches aren't my native fruit, but I do have a couple trees with them. You are welcome to them if you need any.


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## trashpedia (Apr 4, 2020)

Yeah this is why I'm kinda wary of trading with anyone online except for friends and why I don't post my codes anywhere besides DMs. I've also heard that people are a bit more ruder than usual as they will take shells, pluck or run over hybrid flowers, enter and leave without saying anything, etc.

If you want more peaches, feel free to DM me! They're my native fruit. ^-^


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## Krissi2197 (Apr 4, 2020)

I'm so sorry this happened :c That's why if I ever do trades, rather than letting them leave on their own, I just hit the - key on my controller and end the session from there. This closes the gates automatically.


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## Sanaki (Apr 4, 2020)

I started out doing public codes, but then I started PMing them. Sorry this happened to you.


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## Vintage Viola (Apr 4, 2020)

This is exactly why I don't post them publicly (except that one time lol), because I know I won't close my gates. Especially if I plan on trading with multiple people. So sorry this happened to you  at least nothing particularly valuable was taken.


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## Reginald Fairfield (Apr 4, 2020)

My private messages are full, but I fenced off my dock, so that'll do. 

Also you could have ended the session with the minus button. Do you need more fruit?


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## John Wick (Apr 4, 2020)

I am so sorry this happened to you.

I've had a terrible experience trading too, and got the wrong end of the stick.

Just have to get to know people a little better before trusting them, though the majority are very polite, others can be a total nightmare.


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## kentai (Apr 4, 2020)

That's rough, I have always been sketched out with codes posted in public in general, I always prefer PMing

I also have peaches if you need any!


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## Momo15 (Apr 4, 2020)

So sorry this happened to you! But as a person who was a vengeful teen to awful people back in New Leaf, my advice to you is this: A person can destroy 50% of your island from the time it takes to cross it. I understand that you wanted to be kind and let them leave instead of ending or resetting the session, but you should've just reset the moment he came in because getting out of your house may take ages. I always do that in the case that I get some random in my town.


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## Raz (Apr 4, 2020)

If you or anyone needs fruits, I have some stockpiled exactly for this reason.


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## Stil (Apr 4, 2020)

Rest in peach


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## Antonio (Apr 4, 2020)

If you press the - button while one person is there, you can automatically close the session. You don't have to go to home and end it there.


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## allainah (Apr 4, 2020)

Sorry this happened to you  also be weary of letting a lot of people in at once, i opened my gates for people to come and sell turnips and a user (who wont be named, but im pretty sure i know who it was) was asking me if they could catalog my items on the floor, i told them no, later after the group left i saw a dinosaur fossil was missing, and i have sooo many items on my ground so it's impossible to tell if they took any of those but wouldn't be surprised if they did. I had about 4 people on my island so i couldn't prove it was them, therefore no negative feedback given :/ some people are sneaky!


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## neeeeenz (Apr 30, 2020)

I'm so sad to hear about this. Am very new to ACNH and loved the idea of just publicly posting a Dodo code, but after reading this thread, am going to be more careful and shift to PMing only.

	Post automatically merged: Apr 30, 2020

I'm so sad to hear about this. Am very new to ACNH and loved the idea of just publicly posting a Dodo code, but after reading this thread, am going to be more careful and shift to PMing only.


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## Noel_in_Sunrise (Apr 30, 2020)

Aw, that was really uncool of that person.

I was super nervous to trade with people for this reason. I just joined the forum and did not know what people were like, but the person who came to my town was super nice. I had to ask them how to invite them over and took a minute to figure out how to say hi back to them (forgot it was through the app not the in game phone). So embarrassing, but they were patient about it. 

I did not know that we could rate profiles. I will have to go give them five stars then.


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## Islandernewcomer64 (Apr 30, 2020)

I'm sorry that happened to you. I was just wondering how do you send and receive DMs and PMs anyway? I'm new here.


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## biksoka (Apr 30, 2020)

Also if you used turnip.exchange to set up a queue remember to set it to private so that only the people who got the link through here can use it since there's no real way to track and leave feedback on people on turnip.exchange it's a little bit of a free for all. Had someone swipe star fragments from my beach when I opened up for a DIY recipe publically there :/


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## RisingSun (Apr 30, 2020)

I don't generally mind opening publicly, but that is because I don't leave anything of value to me when I do open for people to take.  With the ban on axes and shovels, they can't permanently destroy anything, and if they take blooms or fruit, I know they will grow back.  I have seen one user take the precaution with her money trees of building fencing around them so they couldn't be shaken.  I have a fenced in area that I store my turnips in, and close it when I have strangers over.

I am sorry this happened to you, though.  If you, or anyone else, needs anything, please let me know.  I will be happy to help out if I can.

Edited to add....I do have walls around my orchard....maybe I should see about installing some gates as well.


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## samsquared (Apr 30, 2020)

This story truly made me sad. It's the worst when people don't just play for fun & aren't considerate of others! It's important to have that respect for others who are generous enough to open their town for you, especially when trading. Peaches are my native- I don't mind you coming to pick up a bunch! I have all the fruits I think, so if you haven't taken anyone up on it yet, you can run rampant in my orchard for self-care lol.


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## DragonLatios (Apr 30, 2020)

Well I Hope it not happen to me. I Try to Let in those i Trusted or one at a time on my island till i get to know them. Pm Codes to a small group at a time and then close the gate after the last member is in can help stop any raiding.


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## Pyoopi (Apr 30, 2020)

Tbh, I always get nervous for those who post their dodo code publicly. It just seems chaotic.

Also a warning in general, sharing dodo codes even in PMs doesn't guarantee safety. When scouring the Nooks Cranny forum, I saw something that people would share the dodo code with others even though the seller gave it to one person. 

I think the fencing in is the best scenario though a bit time consuming or make force quitting second nature to you.


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## RisingSun (Apr 30, 2020)

Pyoopi said:


> I think the fencing in is the best scenario though a bit time consuming. . .



It really isn't as time consuming as it sounds.  I have a small area that encloses about 30 spaces enclosed for my "turnip garden" and I keep the extra fence piece right there to pick up and pop into the opening when someone comes.  Took me about 5 minutes to create once I had the pieces and decided how big to make it.  It took me about 10 minutes to wall my orchard once I had the trees there (I have 3 of each tree in my orchard), and wouldn't take much to create a gate for that (I just need to figure out what I would do with one of the garden lights I have sitting outside the wall).  If you are going to enclose everything, yes, it would be time consuming, but you only really need to do it with things that are dropped on the ground that you care about.  I have everything placed, and no one can mess with those, not even me when the gates are open.

The thing that could be problematic is remembering to close your fences when you open your airport gates, because once they are open, you can't do it after the fact.


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## Antonio (Apr 30, 2020)

Islandernewcomer64 said:


> I'm sorry that happened to you. I was just wondering how do you send and receive DMs and PMs anyway? I'm new here.


Click a name and find the "Start Conversation" button.


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## Monkeyd99 (Apr 30, 2020)

I apologize you had to experience this,  peaches are my native fruit and id be more than happy to give you a bunch of them if you'd like to plant/sell, no charge at all. I know ive had that happen in NL for me where I fell asleep and left my gates open and someone took some of. my stuff and I was very upset (I was only 16 around then so)


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## alpacac (Apr 30, 2020)

So sorry this happened to you ): I know other people have already offered but I do have a full orchard and happy for you to come over and pick some fruit if you want!!


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## shinobirain (Apr 30, 2020)

It's really sad to hear that happening to a fellow bell tree forum user... In general, I have found refuge in the forum from the massive r/acturnip and various other turnip related discords. I originally came to the forums as some kind of turnip bearing baron ready to sell but I ended up staying for the community and other trades. I really enjoy the forums and I'm just starting to get into commenting on the regular chat threads since I have most of the things that I already want (so far lol) in ac:nh.


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## swifterly (Apr 30, 2020)

I can't prove it but I'm p sure someone stole my customization kits the one time I posted a public code. Wasn't on here, I just posted it on Twitter (lol) cuz i had a meteor shower and wanted to try opening my town for fun and to be nice. I forgot to pick up my crafting items that I left on the ground by my workbench bc I just didn't think of it, after a bit one of the visitors brought it to my attention like 'Should these be out here?' and I ran over, picked up the stuff, put in storage.

Next day I'm scouring my storage for the 31 customization kits I should have had but they were nowhere to be seen.

So I understand why so many people do pm only. My only problem is that I'm quite shy and can find it difficult to work up the courage to ask for code  But I've been a little less nervous on this forum, people seem mostly quite nice


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## BalloonFight (Apr 30, 2020)

Sorry to hear this happened to you! This is part of the reason why I mostly only use TBT, and PM people Dodo codes for trades or when having my island open. Luckily I feel they have limited the power of randoms destroying your town for the better. No longer do you have to worry about people coming into your town, you afk for a couple of minutes, and they have trampled 30 blue roses, or gold roses of yours. 

I stopped using twitter recently for AC due to all of the morons trying to scam on there. Endless newly registered accounts of people trying to pull one for virtual currency. Also a good thing that you can just close the game if someone steals from you, to reset all things done.


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## stitchmaker (Apr 30, 2020)

The visitor was eating fruit to dig up your tree.  Too bad they wasted them because regular visitors can't dig up trees.  Only best friends can dig up trees and fruit.  Sorry about your fruit.


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## Sharla Smith (May 1, 2020)

stitchmaker said:


> The visitor was eating fruit to dig up your tree.  Too bad they wasted them because regular visitors can't dig up trees.  Only best friends can dig up trees and fruit.  Sorry about your fruit.


Thank goodness for that, tbh.

i’m sorry to hear this, OP. I always keep extra non native fruits in storage, just in case. If you need peaches I have plenty C:


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## Trevorjs97 (May 1, 2020)

DinoTown said:


> I know many people are already careful about this for this very reason but given I slipped up here and had it occur, I feel the need to share what happened so people can learn vicariously from my own mistake.
> 
> I've been trading with other users and sharing my dodo code publicly. My biggest problem with dodo codes is that I forget to apply to an entire open-gate session, rather than a single visitor, and that gates do not close themselves automatically when the visitor leaves, meaning I often have this dodo code left open for anyone to come. In general, people are nice on this forum and I trust 99.9% of you all. Or 100% if this person was just a guest on the forums.
> 
> ...


That is truly terrible, I can't  believe someone  would steal that from you. If you need any other fruit I have a whole orchard and you can dig up the peach trees


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## xara (May 1, 2020)

thats rough, im sorry that happened. that’s why i always pm dodo codes rather than post them publicly as you can never be too careful


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