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's Team Ricochet, responsible for the game's anti-cheat technology, previously acknowledged shortcomings in its initial Season 1 implementation, stating that their anti-cheat measures did not meet expectations, especially within Ranked Play.
A recent blog post details Activision's 2025 anti-cheat roadmap, revealing over 136,000 Ranked Play account bans since the mode's launch. Season 2 will introduce enhanced client-side and server-side detection systems, alongside a major kernel-level driver update. Further advancements are promised for Season 3 and beyond, including a novel player authentication system designed to identify and target cheaters more effectively. Specific details on this new system are being withheld to prevent cheat developers from exploiting it.
A key immediate change for Season 2 is the introduction of console crossplay disabling in Ranked Play for Black Ops 6 and Warzone. This addresses the widely held belief that a significant portion of cheating originates from PC players, mirroring the existing crossplay disabling option already utilized by many console players in standard Multiplayer modes.
Activision acknowledges the skepticism surrounding anti-cheat updates and emphasizes its ongoing commitment to maintaining game integrity. While cheating is a prevalent issue across the gaming industry, it has become a significant concern for Activision since the rise in popularity of the free-to-play Warzone in 2020. The company has invested heavily in anti-cheat technology and legal action against cheat developers, achieving notable successes recently. [link to article about high-profile successes]
Prior to the release of Black Ops 6, Activision aimed for a one-hour ban timeframe for detected cheaters. The game launched with an updated Ricochet kernel-level driver (also implemented in Warzone), featuring improved machine learning systems for faster detection and gameplay analysis to counter aimbots. Activision highlights the sophisticated and organized nature of cheat developers, emphasizing their continuous efforts to identify and remove these malicious actors from the game. [link to article about Activision's statement on cheat developers]
