Activision Tackles Call of Duty Cheating with New Anti-Cheat Measures and Crossplay Options
Activision has responded to widespread player concerns regarding cheating in Call of Duty's Black Ops 6 and Warzone, announcing significant updates to its anti-cheat strategy and offering console players in Ranked Play the option to disable crossplay with PC players.
The surge in cheating reports, particularly since the introduction of Ranked Play in Season 1 of Black Ops 6 and Warzone, has sparked considerable outrage within the community. Activision previously acknowledged shortcomings in its initial Ricochet Anti-Cheat implementation, admitting it fell short of expectations, especially in Ranked Play.
A recent blog post details Activision's 2025 anti-cheat roadmap, highlighting over 136,000 account bans issued for Ranked Play violations since its launch. Season 2 will introduce enhanced client-side and server-side detection systems, along with a major kernel-level driver update. Further advancements, including a novel player authentication system designed to identify and target cheaters, are promised for Season 3 and beyond. Specific details on this new system are being withheld to prevent cheat developers from exploiting the technology.
A key immediate change for Season 2 is the introduction of crossplay disabling for console players participating in Ranked Play. This feature addresses the widely held belief that a significant portion of cheating originates on PC, mirroring the existing crossplay disabling option already available in standard Multiplayer for console players.
Activision emphasizes ongoing monitoring and the possibility of further adjustments to maintain game integrity, promising additional information closer to the feature's launch.
While Activision's anti-cheat efforts are frequently met with skepticism, the company has invested heavily in its Ricochet anti-cheat technology and actively pursues legal action against cheat developers, boasting several recent high-profile victories. Previous statements emphasized a goal of banning cheaters within an hour of their first match, supported by updated kernel-level drivers and machine learning systems designed to quickly detect and analyze suspicious gameplay patterns. Activision acknowledges the sophisticated nature of cheat developers, describing them as organized, profit-driven groups actively seeking vulnerabilities within the game. However, the company maintains that these developers inevitably leave traces, providing valuable clues for detection and removal.
