Claude AI users are risking permanent bans with this viral credit maxxing script

Earlier this week, developer Elvis Sun posted a short snippet of code on X along with a simple pitch: run this in the background so you never bump into Claude’s 5‑hour usage window, and “thank me later.” The post took off, pulling in hundreds of thousands of views as power users compared schedules and swapped ideas on how to keep Claude humming from early morning to well past midnight.

The basic idea is not complicated. Instead of waiting for your normal work session to start the 5‑hour block, the script keeps poking Claude on a schedule, so your reset window lines up with when you actually sit down to work. One user described using cron to trigger headless Claude, Codex and Gemini CLI calls at 7 AM, noon, 5 PM and 10 PM so every block feels “fresh” when they return to the keyboard.

That is where the fun stops. A post on r/ClaudeAI titled “this credit maxxing script is going viral on X” quickly turned into a warning thread, with a mod pinning a comment that calls it “a fantastic way to get your account banned” and reminds people this is exactly the sort of abuse that leads to harsher limits for everyone. Dozens of replies also seem to share the same concern: you are not getting more credits, you are gaming the timing, and doing it with automation looks a lot like spam from the platform’s point of view.

Some users dug into Anthropic’s own rulebook to back that up. The Consumer Terms prohibit using scripts or automated tools with consumer plans, and explicitly bar attempts to bypass systems or protective measures, which is exactly what resetting usage windows on a timer is trying to do.

The acceptable‑use policy also warns against abusing or disrupting services, including spamming requests or dodging rate limits, language that would give Anthropic plenty of room to act if it decides this behavior crosses the line.

The thread still has its share of jokes. Someone posted a fake C++ “UltraSecure Disk Eradicator” that pretends to delete your entire drive, another quipped that this is “a trap set by Claude,” and at least one commenter shrugged it off and suggested people just make new accounts if they get banned.

Others pointed out a lower‑risk version of the same trick. You can essentially try to send a tiny, one‑word message before lunch or before bed to nudge your window manually, without leaving an obvious automation footprint.

Users have already watched Anthropic tighten weekly and session caps after heavy usage and even revoke access in other high‑profile TOS cases. If the company decides this script qualifies as abuse, the people bragging today about “credit maxxing” could end up being the example everyone else learns from tomorrow.