A judge ruled that the creators of Call of Duty cheat service EngineOwning must pay Activision $3 million in damages to Activision.
Cheating is a prevalent issue within the CoD community, and some cheaters have even gone to extraordinary lengths to bypass CoD’s anti-cheat system. CDL pros started to abandon Modern Warfare 2’s new Ranked Play mode because of hackers, and Warzone also has a troubled history with cheating.
In October 2022, Activision claimed “high-profile” streamers used Warzone cheats in a lawsuit against EngineOwning, a well-known cheat provider. The Warzone developers originally sued the cheat sellers in January 2022, claiming their cheats caused “millions of dollars” in damages.
After a lengthy battle, Activision is finally set to receive some reparations, as a judge ruled that two EngineOwning creators fork over $3 million in damages to the developers.
Activision awarded $3 million in damages in EngineOwning suit
Activision introduced its anti-cheat system, RICOCHET, in October 2021, and just under a year later, they announced RICOCHET banned 500,000 Call of Duty accounts.
The powerful anti-cheat has helped alleviate some cheating concerns, but EngineOwning still found a way around the system.
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To provide more context, EngineOwning sold cheats for Warzone, several mainline CoD titles, Battlefield, and even Halo Infinite.
Call of Duty insider CharlieINTEL reported, “A judge has ruled that two individuals who created Call of Duty cheats for EngineOwning is liable for $3 million in damages to Activision.”
A judge has ruled that two individuals who created Call of Duty cheats for EngineOwning is liable for $3 million in damages to Activision. (via Axios) pic.twitter.com/hWfIun2JcS
— CharlieIntel (@charlieINTEL) February 22, 2023
The judge ruled that the pair of cheat makers cease developing software to “exploit or enable members of the public to cheat, manipulate, gain unfair advantages.”
Those terms extend to the Call of Duty series and other Activision Blizzard games, including Overwatch 2.
No streamers were mentioned by name in the suit or ruling from the judge.