Activision’s new ban wave leaves Call of Duty cheaters complaining online

Activision just banned thousands of Call of Duty players

Last week, Activision rolled out a massive wave of permanent bans across Call of Duty games. These bans, known as “permabans,” are irreversible and block users from creating new accounts.

It hit hard, targeting players using well-known cheat providers like ArtificialAiming. While Activision isn’t saying exactly how many players were affected, past ban waves have reached hundreds of thousands.

If you’ve been cheating in Call of Duty lately, chances are good you’re not playing anymore.

Cheaters are venting frustrations across online forums

It didn’t take long for banned players to flood forums with complaints. Users admitted defeat in private cheat provider spaces, sharing stories of losing years-old accounts and expensive cosmetics.

Some players vowed to quit the game entirely. Others reluctantly acknowledged that they accepted the risk by cheating. Reading their lamenting posts online, it’s clear that the latest bans left a bitter mark on the cheating community.

Artificial Aiming cheat users were primarily banned targets

Artificial Aiming is no small name in the world of video game cheats. Operating for nearly 20 years, this provider specializes in Call of Duty hacks, including cheats for Black Ops 6. However, its users just faced the brunt of Activision’s latest crackdown.

Their forums exploded as players confirmed bans. While the provider isn’t defeated yet, this wave proved that their tools are no longer as undetectable as promised.

Activision confirmed targeting multiple cheat providers

In a statement, Activision confirmed its latest enforcement campaign didn’t just target one cheat supplier. While ArtificialAiming users were heavily hit, other vendors also felt the impact.

Tools were disabled, accounts banned, and operations disrupted across several known cheat providers. Activision’s message was blunt: they’re coming after anyone who undermines fair play in their games.

Activision’s Ricochet system is now disrupting cheaters

Introduced in 2021, Activision’s Ricochet anti-cheat system has become central to the company’s efforts. Ricochet runs at the kernel level on users’ machines and gives Activision deep visibility into potential cheats running alongside Call of Duty.

This latest ban wave shows Ricochet is working. Once seen as just another failed attempt to stop hackers, it’s now hitting cheat providers where it hurts: their paying customers.

Cheaters once boasted that “cheaters won”

In 2021, ArtificialAiming’s staff declared that cheaters had essentially won the arms race. After all, game companies were spending millions trying to stop them, with only partial success.

But this recent ban wave might signal a turning point. While cheats haven’t disappeared, widespread bans and broken tools suggest the landscape is shifting back in Activision’s favor, at least for now.

Cheating software is a surprisingly lucrative industry

Think cheating is a small-time hustle? Think again. One primary PUBG Mobile cheat developer admitted to earning at least $77 million from cheat sales.

ArtificialAiming, though smaller, has been in business for nearly two decades, profiting from thousands of Call of Duty players. Bans aren’t just frustrating; they’re expensive for companies that make cheats and the players who buy them.

Cheaters spent years building up their banned accounts

What makes this ban wave sting even more? Many players lost accounts they’d been building for years. One cheater confessed to losing a four-year-old account, stacked with premium skins and mastery camos.

For some, this meant losing real money spent on in-game cosmetics, not to mention hours of gameplay. The bans hit wallets and egos alike, judging by the bitter tone in forums.

Permabans now prevent cheaters from returning easily

A “permaban” isn’t just a time-out; it’s forever. Players hit by this ban wave can’t simply create a new account and jump back into Call of Duty.

Activision’s systems now block new accounts linked to banned users, making it more challenging than ever to return after being caught cheating. This punishment feels like a total lockout for many players, leaving them with little choice but to move on.

Activision is expanding its focus beyond cheaters

Interestingly, Activision isn’t only targeting players. In its latest statement, the publisher warned that cheat makers and distributors are also on its radar. Disabling cheat software and disrupting vendor operations are now key goals.

Activision wants to tackle the cheating ecosystem, from casual players downloading hacks to the companies profiting from selling them.

This ban wave shows Activision’s aggressive strategy

Unlike the sporadic bans of the past, this new wave feels coordinated and relentless. Activision has sent a clear message: they’re serious about eliminating cheaters, not just penalizing them occasionally.

Cheaters once operated with impunity, knowing they’d likely be ignored. Activision is enforcing bans regularly and directly disabling cheat systems, indicating a more proactive, aggressive stance against unfair play.

Kernel-level anti-cheat is becoming the industry standard

Activision’s Ricochet system isn’t the only kernel-level anti-cheat tool on the market. Riot Games introduced Vanguard back in 2020 for games like Valorant.

These systems operate at the core of your operating system, detecting software running alongside games in real time. The success of Ricochet suggests that more companies will continue adopting similar, deep-level detection systems to combat increasingly sophisticated cheats.

Bans targeting multiple cheat vendors create chaos

Activision ensured that cheaters couldn’t switch services by simultaneously going after several cheat providers. Disabling tools from multiple vendors forced many players to stop cheating altogether.

Instead of patching one leak at a time, Activision effectively attacked several points in the cheat supply chain simultaneously, increasing the damage to the cheating economy.

Anti-cheat technologies continue to evolve fast

As cheats become more sophisticated, anti-cheat systems must evolve even faster. Kernel-level software like Ricochet allows companies like Activision to monitor game integrity in real time, reducing cheat longevity.

Expect future updates to Ricochet as Activision analyzes data from this ban wave, refining detection patterns and security protocols to stay ahead in the ongoing battle.

Cheating developers have sometimes faced legal action

Beyond bans and broken tools, cheat developers also risk legal consequences. Game publishers like Activision have previously sued cheat makers, forcing them to pay back millions in damages.

While ArtificialAiming hasn’t yet faced lawsuits, the possibility looms. If caught in legal crosshairs, cheat providers could face devastating financial penalties on top of operational disruption.

Want to see how cheats can lead to even bigger risks? Check out how a Steam game demo got caught spreading malware.

Activision’s war on cheaters is far from over

If you think this ban wave ends the story, think again. Activision has shown it’s escalating the battle against cheaters, and more ban waves are inevitable.

Cheat developers will strike back with updated tools, but Ricochet’s success this round gives Activision a clear upper hand. One thing’s certain: cheating in Call of Duty got riskier than ever.

Find out in our roundup of the best handheld gaming devices released in 2025 and see which one deserves a spot in your setup.

What do you think about players getting banned from Call of Duty? Is this a good move from Activision? Please share your thoughts and drop a comment.

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This slideshow was made with AI assistance and human editing.