Call of Duty follows Battlefield 6’s footsteps — announces roll out of new anti-cheat protections utilizing TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot in preparation for Black Ops 7

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The upcoming unveil of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is almost here, prompting Activision and the development team behind Call of Duty to intensify their efforts in strengthening anti-cheat measures prior to the game’s release this autumn.

The anti-cheat team for Call of Duty, known as Team RICOCHET, has shared that they’ll be introducing a new level of cheat detection at the hardware level, starting with the release of Black Ops 6 Season 5 on August 7.

On the official Call of Duty blog, the anti-cheat team expressed gratitude to players for their stance against cheating in Call of Duty games and for their ongoing input regarding RICOCHET. They emphasized that they are attentive, even when feedback may be challenging.

The upcoming measures against cheating in games are designed to bolster the game’s safety, focusing on PC users who employ native Windows PC functionalities such as Trusted Platform Module version 2.0 (TPM 2.0) and Secure Boot for potential security breaches.

Hardware level cheat mitigation

In past TEAM RICOCHET updates, it’s been noted by Call of Duty’s development team that a larger number of PC gamers are using cheats compared to console users exploiting unfair game mechanics. This imbalance has led to Activision giving console players the option to disable cross-play with PC to minimize encounters with cheaters.

As an analyst, I’m excited to share that we’re enhancing our anti-cheat measures for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 with the upcoming update. This evolution includes the introduction of hardware-level cheat detection, leveraging the Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0 and Secure Boot on Windows PCs. Starting from Season 5, we’ll initiate the implementation of these new security protocols, giving us an opportunity to test them extensively in a real-world scenario before the launch of Black Ops 7. This proactive step underscores our commitment to maintaining a fair and enjoyable gaming experience for our players.

In simpler terms, TPM 2.0 (Trusted Platform Module) and Secure Boot are protective mechanisms embedded within Windows. These features carry out safety inspections during system startup to confirm that the computer’s booting sequence hasn’t been altered and that trustworthy software is the only thing allowed to run as Windows initializes.

Team RICOCHET assures that the process does not grant Activision or the development team the ability to retrieve login credentials or confidential data stored on your computer. Instead, TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot are initiated prior to Windows loading, ensuring that security assessments only determine whether your system meets or fails these checks.

Once it’s confirmed that your gaming computer boots up securely, this information is then shared with Call of Duty servers upon connecting for multiplayer games.

Before granting access to the Call of Duty game, the servers perform a thorough verification to confirm the system’s reliability. If your system doesn’t pass these verifications, you will be unable to play Call of Duty until Microsoft (assuming it’s a Windows system) has confirmed that everything is secure and safe.

At the beginning of the game, security measures are immediately activated. Activision assures players that this won’t impact the game’s performance. It is important to note that TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot will work alongside, rather than replacing, the existing kernel-level driver monitors powered by RICOCHET anti-cheat. As stated by Team RICOCHET, these systems are designed to complement each other, not duplicate their functions.

In simpler terms, it’s not just Call of Duty that is implementing TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot as security measures against cheating in gaming. Electronic Arts (EA), for instance, has also announced plans to use similar anti-cheat strategies for their upcoming game, Battlefield 6.

In a similar vein to Call of Duty, Battlefield’s team uses an internally created anti-cheat system named Javelin. Both anti-cheat systems function at a low level in the operating system. Initially designed for Battlefield 2042, Javelin has been upgraded prior to the October release of Battlefield 6.

As we gear up for the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, it’s important to note that, unlike its predecessor where TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot were newly integrated with Season 5, these security features will be a mandatory requirement for gameplay in Black Ops 7. This means I’ll need to make sure these features are enabled on my end before diving into the action.

Call of Duty TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot system requirements

To ensure a smooth gaming experience for Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, it’s important to make sure your gaming setup is in top shape. Your computer should be running either Windows 10 Version 22H2 or any subsequent version, or any edition of Windows 11. Additionally, your system needs to have TPM Version 2.0 enabled.

8th Generation Intel Processors (equipped with Intel PTT) or more recent ones, along with any AMD Ryzen 2000 series or newer CPUs are the supported options for our system. If your computer is running Windows 11, it’s probably already equipped with TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot. However, to make sure you’re all set for playing Black Ops 7 and Battlefield 6, we’ve provided a simple guide on how to activate Secure Boot.

Cheat mitigation efforts and targeting cheat distributors

Over the past few months, Activision has intensified its efforts against providers of cheats for their games, particularly those creating hacks for Call of Duty. This includes sending legal notices demanding them to stop operations. Consequently, these cheat developers have had to close shop as a result.

Following the last update, RICOCHET has focused on identifying and taking action against an extra 22 entities involved in distributing cheating software that interferes with games.

Activision has warned that they will take legal action against cheat distributors who ignore their cease-and-desist demands, by shutting them down if necessary.

According to Team RICOCHET, on their Call of Duty blog, there isn’t an easy solution to prevent cheating; instead, this is a problem that the whole gaming industry needs to tackle together.

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2025-08-07 00:40