Call of Duty Now Notifies Players Directly When Shadowbanned

CoD: Black Ops 6 Jack
Last Updated Time: 2025-09-12 17:28

Shadowban Notification Updates
Understanding Shadowbans
Enhanced Security Features
Future Outlook: Black Ops 7

Activision has rolled out a significant update to its shadowban system in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Warzone. With the recent Season 5 Reloaded update, players who are placed in a limited matchmaking pool—commonly referred to as being shadowbanned—will now receive a clear in-game notification alerting them of their status.

What's new? Previously, players had no way of knowing if their account was under review or if someone in their party was shadowbanned. This often led to confusion and frustration due to longer matchmaking times and unbalanced lobbies. Now, both the affected player and everyone in their party will receive a notification about the potential matchmaking impact.

Understanding Shadowbans in Call of Duty

It's important to distinguish a shadowban from a full account ban. Being placed in a limited matchmaking pool doesn't automatically mean you've been caught cheating. Instead, it indicates your account has been flagged—often based on player reports or suspicious activity—and is now under investigation.

During this investigation period, you'll only be matched with other players who are also being monitored. If the investigation confirms cheating, a permanent ban will follow. If no cheating is detected, your account will be returned to normal matchmaking.

Enhanced Security Features

This notification improvement is part of Activision's broader effort to combat cheating and create a fairer gaming environment. The studio has also implemented new PC security features like Secure Boot and Trusted Platform Module 2.0 (TPM 2.0) in both Black Ops 6 and Warzone.

These technologies help prevent cheating by ensuring that only authorized software and hardware are used while playing, adding an extra layer of protection against malicious modifications.

Looking Ahead to Black Ops 7

These security enhancements will play a significant role in the upcoming Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, set to launch in just two months. Fans can expect more reveals at the COD Next event on September 30, where Activision will showcase multiplayer, Zombies, and the new integration with Warzone.

These changes demonstrate Activision's commitment to listening to player feedback and taking stronger action against cheating—all while keeping the community better informed about account status.