In Short:
- Ahead of Season 2, Activision and Treyarch shared that 136,000 accounts had been banned for cheating
- This figure has risen significantly from the 19,000 accounts banned when ranked play first started
- While there were strict conditions to enter ranked play at first, they seemed to have had little effect on deterring cheaters
- Activision and Treyarch plan to keep refining their systems to maintain a fun and balanced experience for players
In preparation for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, Activision and Treyarch released an update through the Call of Duty Blog. In addition to revealing the new feature that lets console players turn off crossplay, they also shared the latest progress on their RICHOCHET anti-cheat program.
Since the launch of ranked play in Black Ops 6, over 136,000 accounts have been banned for cheating, a sharp rise from the 19,000 bans reported back in November.
Treyarch implemented a rule in November that players must secure 50 wins in standard multiplayer matches before being allowed to access ranked play, primarily to stop private lobby boosting. However, even with these restrictions, cheaters continue to find ways into the game.
The Battle Against Cheaters Continues
The blog post mainly outlines enhanced detection methods, such as tracking aim-botting behavior and using hardware identifiers. Furthermore, when a cheater is banned, the system will flag accounts that have been connected with them, helping to identify potential accomplices.
Ahead of Season 02’s launch, we’re here to discuss what the various dev teams and studios are doing right now to address what matters to our players today:
• Cheating and bans
• Ability to disable cross-play on consoles in Ranked
• Server issues
• Quality of life updates
•… https://t.co/O6traEfwwG— Treyarch (@Treyarch) January 17, 2025
The blog also clarifies that the team will not implement IP-based bans, as these often affect innocent players within a large network. For instance, an entire university might be penalized due to the actions of one individual, which is something the developers aim to avoid.
Treyarch plans to roll out new kernel updates and enhanced detection methods. A new system to distinguish legitimate players from cheaters is expected to be introduced in Season 3.
While specific details are being kept confidential to prevent exploitation by cheaters, it remains to be seen whether these changes will effectively curb cheating or merely delay it.
