Activision drops the ban hammer on more than 65,000 Call of Duty cheaters

Activision drops the ban hammer on more than 65,000 Call of Duty cheaters

What you need to know

  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 was recently added to Xbox Game Pass, the first from the franchise to be available via the subscription service.
  • The launch led to an influx of new cheaters who took advantage of PC access via the Microsoft Store to bypass previous bans.
  • New detection efforts and anti-cheat mediations were enacted just before the weekend, including a ban sweep that affected 65,000 cheaters and boosters in Modern Warfare 3’s Ranked multiplayer and Warzone’s Ranked battle-royale modes.

As a long-time Call of Duty player who has fought my fair share of cheaters over the years, I am thrilled to see Activision taking decisive action against the scourge that has plagued our gaming community. The recent ban sweep by TeamRICOCHET, which removed approximately 65,000 cheaters and boosters from Ranked lobbies in Warzone and Modern Warfare 3, is a testament to their commitment to maintaining fairness in the Call of Duty franchise.


In case you’ve been playing Call of Duty: Warzone or Modern Warfare 3 lately, it’s possible that you might be pondering whether your first-person shooting abilities have weakened or if perhaps some other factor is causing your gaming experience to be noticeably poorer.

It appears that the issue is with the former, since Activision’s TeamRICOCHET anti-cheat system has recently conducted a ban wave, eliminating around 65,000 cheaters and booster accounts from Ranked matches in the two competitive play modes.

🛡️ #MW3 #Warzone #TeamRICOCHET The RICOCHET team against cheating just cleaned the leaderboards for Ranked Play in both Call of Duty: Warzone and #MWIII. They’ve banned accounts found to be using cheats or boosting.#TeamRICOCHET has stepped up their efforts against cheat vendors, leading to over 65,000 account bans…August 2, 2024 (paraphrased version)

2023’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has been added to both the Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass libraries, enabling a surge of novice gamers to immerse themselves in the action-packed multiplayer modes. However, a glitch occurred for those playing on PC Game Pass, as their in-game player icon displayed an Xbox logo instead of the usual PC symbol. This was due to users logging into the game with their Xbox account on PC, causing confusion and discontent among the Call of Duty community who prefer separate console and PC gameplay experiences.

As a researcher studying online gaming, I must admit that the recent influx of cheats in games like Warzone and Modern Warfare 3 has certainly fueled my apprehensions. However, I’m glad to report that Activision’s development teams have taken proactive steps to address this issue. They’ve introduced new icons in the Microsoft Store edition of the game to help distinguish between Xbox and PC players more clearly. These small yet significant changes are just the beginning, as they pave the way for larger-scale mitigation efforts that will be implemented across both Warzone and Modern Warfare 3.

Activision drops the ban hammer on more than 65,000 Call of Duty cheaters

TeamRICOCHET, a squad established by Activision for upholding fair play in the Call of Duty series, often deploys different strategies to combat cheating. In previous instances, creative approaches such as hiding their position (cloaking), interfering with weapon functions (gun jamming), and even the popular SPLAT mechanism that snips parachute cords of suspected cheaters have been employed. These tactics serve to ensnare and reveal cheaters, providing valuable intelligence to the enforcement team.

Recently, Activision announced that approximately 65,000 players were banned due to cheating or unauthorized game enhancement (boosting). The primary focus of these cheaters seemed to be on the ranked playlists for Call of Duty: Warzone and Modern Warfare 3 (MW3), which aligns with previous findings by Team RICOCHET that most cheating takes place at the top of Ranked leaderboards. Post-ban wave, Activision has reset the Season 5 leaderboards for both Call of Duty: Warzone and MW3’s ranked playlists to ensure a fair playing field.

The unexpected summer debut of Modern Warfare 3 on Xbox Game Pass was a secret that wasn’t well-guarded, as many assumed Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 would be the inaugural Call of Duty game to premiere on this subscription service in the fall. However, it’s still Black Ops 6 that will be the first Call of Duty title to launch on Game Pass on its release day.

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2024-08-05 10:39