Season 3 of Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 and Warzone is loaded with new content across all modes, and the big update also comes bundled with additional anti-cheat protections. Activision’s latest Ricochet anti-cheat blog reveals an additional crackdown on unapproved third-party hardware and new verification requirements for new accounts on PC.
Last season, Call of Duty’s Ricochet anti-cheat detections received upgrades designed to target unapproved third-party hardware, such as the Cronus Zen and XIM Matrix devices that could be used to alter player inputs and offer an unfair advantage. Season 3’s update continues the fight against those third-party detections with an evolved detection system.
“Our detections focus on how inputs behave during gameplay, not just which device is plugged in. This allows us to identify patterns that fall outside expected human play, even as device setups change,” the publisher explained. “With Season 3, we are expanding our detection systems that target these tools.”
Additionally, Call of Duty will now require Microsoft two-factor authentication for new Activision accounts used by free-to-play PC players.
Activision said this extra layer of protection is designed to help keep accounts safe by requiring a second step to verify a player’s identity when logging in or instances “when Ricochet detects suspicious activity.”
This new system is starting with free-to-play accounts, but Activision did warn that the two-factor authentication requirement would expand to existing accounts over the coming weeks.
“Raising the barrier to entry makes it harder for banned cheaters to create new accounts and return,” the publisher said. “It also cuts down the pool of accounts used for cheating and helps reduce account fraud.”
Lastly, Season 3 adds updated in-game warnings to PC players who do not meet Call of Duty’s TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot requirements. Activision said players who do not meet these requirements will eventually be faced with limited access to playlists.
For those who are looking to play Black Ops 7 or Warzone on PC, we have a full guide on how to enable Secure Boot to avoid running into any issues.
Season 3 of Black Ops 7 and Warzone includes a brand-new battle pass, more maps, and new events. The Season 3 battle pass introduces over a hundred new cosmetics and items to Call of Duty, including the new Javelin operator, two new guns, additional weapon blueprints, CoD Points, and more.