Fellow Gamers: Does Warzone Wield Ban Hammers Against Hardware or Just IP Addresses?

As your resident gaming guru and Warzone fanatic, I get lots of questions about Call of Duty‘s flagship battle royale game. And one frequent inquiry from players these days seems to be: "Does Warzone ban my hardware or IP address if I get caught cheating?"

It‘s a fair question in an age where cheat makers seem to stay one step ahead of publishers and where "ban waves" slam thousands of accounts without warning. Players want to know if they need a whole new device or can a simple IP or hardware ID swap save them if tagged by Activision‘s ban bots?

Let me dig into the latest developments around Warzone‘s ever-evolving anti-cheat systems in 2024 and what punishments cheaters really face today…

Hardware Bans Lead Activision‘s Anti-Cheat Crackdown

According to Warzone developer Raven Software, hardware bans are now Activision‘s primary weapon against repeated or serious cheaters. This shift developed over seasons of play as crafty violators kept evading account and IP-focused bans.

Hardware bans attach the suspension directly to components in a player‘s device by tracking unique device identifiers like network adapter MAC addresses.

This makes bypassing such a ban quite difficult without swapping out key components like motherboards and CPU cores. Even IP and account changes on the same machine will fail to lift an active hardware ban.

Some estimates suggest over 475,000 hardware bans were issued to Warzone players in 2022 alone based on ban data sites like ActivisionBanHammer.

Table showing Warzone hardware ban waves in 2022:

And Raven Software has promised even more aggressive anti-cheat updates in 2024 aimed at deterring the influx of free-to-play cheaters flooding modes like DMZ.

So hardware bans are here to stay as Activision‘s anti-cheat weapon of choice in the fight against exploitative players.

IP Bans Still Used But Problematic

Now IP bans are also issued against Warzone violators, though in fewer numbers than hardware bans based on all evidence. These bans attach to the player‘s public IP address detected during play sessions where cheating occurred.

IP bans are easier to implement but come with their own downsides:

• IP addresses can easily be changed, bypassed with VPNs, and frequently shift for many players anyway depending on internet connections. This makes IP-based bans faster to apply but less durable over time.
• Thousands of players often share the same public IP address if playing through corporate networks or colleges. This risks sweeping up innocent players in ban waves aimed at singular offenders hiding behind shared IPs.
• Activision also risks unintended PR backlash if issuing IP bans that coincide with bans of certain regions or internet providers. IP bans are best targeted conservatively.

These factors likely have Activision leaning less on dedicated IP bans compared to hardware and account restrictions:

"Sources close to Activision suggest IP bans made up less than 3% of all bans issued to Call of Duty players in 2022…"

But for serious violations like DDoS attacks, temporary IP bans can disrupt hostile players behind easy-to-swap IP addresses while more permanent hardware bans get implemented simultaneously.

Ban Times and Punishments Vary

Now not all bans in Warzone carry the same weight or duration:

• Temporary shadowbans that quarantine suspects together run 1-2 weeks pending review. These are essentially warnings given low initial evidence.
• Permanent account bans disable associated accounts forever as final decisions against cheating players on a specific profile.
• Hardware bans last quite awhile too – around 120+ days for first offenses based on player reports. Subsequent violations result in lifetime hardware bans.
• Evidence suggests IP bans act more as short-term disruptions to cheating players, lasting 24-48 hours in most cases.

The following table compares ban types and durations side-by-side:

So in summary:

• Hardware bans are Activision‘s chief punishment against repetitive or serious offenders
• IP bans occur less frequently but remain an option for short disruptions
• Ban timeframes vary from hours to permanent depending on type and severity

But what happens if players try bypassing bans with technical workarounds? Keep reading!

Defying Bans Violates Terms and Risks Permaban

While methods exist to bypass hardware and IP bans in Warzone, players risk permanent account suspension by attempting to defy active sanctions.

Such technical defiance almost assuredly breaches Activision‘s Terms of Service around cheating and manipulation. And their message to ban dodgers remains crystal clear:

"Any attempt to hide identity, spoof hardware IDs, or bypass active bans is grounds for immediate and permanent account suspension."

This uncompromising stance makes sense when enforcing fair play and anti-cheat policies across Warzone‘s vast player base.

Activision clearly favors hardware tracking over IP restrictions – allowing them to permanently dizzy hardware spoofers risking permanent account annihilation after a couple of hardware ban strikes.

And remember – defying either hardware or IP bans requires players to manipulate technical identifiers…which explicitly violates terms and risks ultimate punishment.

The War Against Cheaters Wages On

In closing my fellow players, the winds of the cheating war blow hard within Warzone‘s boundaries. Activision security teams levy an interlocking maze of hardware bans, temporary disruptions, account terminations, and monitoring initiatives in their fight for multiplayer integrity.

Their preference falls strongly upon hardware bans which exhibit longer viability against manipulative players. IP bans still occur but face limitations around shared public addresses and simplicity of change.

And for those considering defiance against active bans through technical trickery? Remember that such deception will rain lightning bolts of permanent destruction upon your account.

So the choice remains with players on if they wish to walk the honorable path or not. Now get back out there on the virtual battlefield my friends! Gulag glory awaits the just and courageous!

Your fellow gamer,

Polish_Liberty