23K users avoid slap on the wrist and receive a stern talking-to instead.

It was widely reported yesterday that 23,000 Xbox Live users were banned for 24 hours for using an account recovery glitch to gain entry into the Call of Duty 4 Multiplayer Beta without an invite.  Xbox Live's Major Nelson set the record straight, however, that not only was no one banned, but no one was going to be, at least not on such a major scale.

"…sharing accounts isn’t just a violation of the terms, which could get you banned, it’s actually not a good thing to do in general.  People can get details about you or content from you, or try to take action against you when you do something like that.  It is your responsibility to keep your account information safe.  Regarding the COD4 beta, the best advice I can give in a situation like this is try and be patient.  We know you all want to play, and we think that’s great, but if you break the rules, you can be banned. "

In less diplomatic terms: Cut the shit or we will ban you, or worse, make sure the only Beta you'll ever get into again is for Vampire Rain 2.