Bans & Shadowbans
Introduction
Call of Duty issues two different types of account restrictions:
account ban
"shadow" ban
In this guide, we will cover both types of bans and how to mitigate them. To check the status of your account, use the appeals page on Activision's website.
Anti-cheat Vendor
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III utilizes Ricochet Anti-Cheat.
Account Bans
An account ban is typically a permanent ban on the account. These can, in rare cases, be temporary. Account bans only happen for a few different reasons:
Detection from cheat software (third-party, previously used, or cross-contamination/cross-)
Flagged hardware or software identifiers (operating system traces, etc.)
Manually banned via reports from players
Shadow-Bans
A "shadow-ban" is an account restriction that impacts the account's ability to matchmake and utilize online services. The account can still be logged into but cannot join games or servers and play online.
When checking your account status, you will see:
Your account is in a limited machmaking state due to a potential violation.
Shadow-bans are temporary and automatically lift in about one week. Shadow-bans can occur for a few different reasons:
Flagged hardware or software identifiers (operating system traces, etc.)
Player reports (typically 10+ reports will shadow ban an account)
Playstyle (stats-heavy matches such as high )
Multiple shadow-bans will lead to a soft-HWID ban. This means, if you receive multiple shadow-bans on any given PC, it will be flagged and future accounts will be shadow-banned. Read more about mitigating bans here: Bypassing Bans
Why was I banned?
Bans happen. When using cheat software, it is not a question of "if" but rather "when" you can expect an account ban. While it is true that in some games, you can go years without a ban, modern competitive multiplayer games are cracking down on cheating.
Detections
While we work hard to prevent our products from being detected by anti-cheat software, this does not mean our software is completely safe to use—nor is any cheating software, for that matter.
How do we determine a detection?
Our software receives basic from your game client. Additionally, we rely on user-submitted reports for bans in our community. These reports give us more insight into what caused the ban.
When many reports occur within a specific period, we cross-examine this data with our internal data to determine if a detection is present.
What happens if there is a detection?
Whenever a detection occurs, we pause any active license keys in use. We disable license key activations. Internally, we update the software and test with our teams. During this testing period, we determine the detection vector(s) and then work to mitigate them. Once this testing phase has been completed, we will resume all license keys & compensate for any lost time during this process.
Flagged Hardware
Read more about flagged hardware, also known as HWID bans: Flagged Hardware
Player Reports
The most common way users receive account restrictions is via player reports. Call of Duty relies heavily on player reports and, in our experience, almost exclusively suspends accounts for reports.
Remember, as few as ten (10) reports can instantly shadow-ban an account. Certain features will lead to player reports, like using the unlock-all feature to equip an unreleased Call of Duty operator skin on a new, level 1 account. Playing suspiciously, such as tracking players through buildings and objects while being spectated.
How can I avoid bans?
Some users have been with us for years and have a strong understanding of cheating "legitimately." These users refer to themselves as "closet cheaters." Closet cheating is by far the best route to take when considering cheating over a long period.
Rather than using cheats to eliminate all players in a match or completely take over a server - use them sparingly, lightly, and subtly.
Avoid being reported, avoid playing blatantly, and avoid .
Read more about mitigating bans: Bypassing Bans
Bans do not always mean a detection.
Bans result almost always from playstyle, previous detections, flagged components, etc. Modern cheating has many variables to consider when receiving a ban. The only way to determine a detection-based ban is via player-submitted reports for bans.
If you have been permanently banned, please submit a report using the #create-a-ticket channel on our community Discord server.
How to Bypass bans?
For information on bypassing game bans (not shadow-bans), please see Testing if you are Banned
Otherwise, we suggest purchasing a new account and using our hardware anonymizer (spoofer).
Purchase Accounts
Instead of manually creating a new account, which is time-consuming and prone to human error (creating a new account without a flag is challenging), purchasing an account is affordable and convenient. In most cases, accounts are sold for less than $5 USD.
Buy an Account
Use a Hardware Anonymizer/Spoofer
A hardware anonymizer will clean trace files left behind by the anti-cheat software after a ban occurs. It will also fully anonymize (spoof) your PC's components, making it invisible to the anti-cheat. Our spoofer does all of this for you in a single click.
Use a VPN
Not fully required, but a recommended extra layer of protection - a VPN.
Alternatively, you can create a new account and verify using a service such as TextVerified.
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