Going on virtual quests filled with violence, death, and treasure-taking exercises a player’s spirit of adventure. But don’t try stealing his World of Warcraft account — by golly, there are laws against that sort of thing!

Four years ago in Finland Hannu Ahola bought a World of Warcraft account from a teenaged acquaintance. He spent many hours developing a strong character. He did such a good job that the acquaintance decided to log in and hijack the account.

Hannu appealed to the highest authority in meatspace — the acquaintance’s mom — but didn’t get the account back. So he hired an attorney and a year-and-a-half later received 4000 Euros in an out-of-court settlement. Which he’s presumably already spending to play World of Warcraft.

[Thanks to David Klaus for the story.]