CDL player caught in recent MW3 ban wave, but not for cheating

The battle against hackers in Call of Duty continues on, and that includes players who use unlock tools to get camos and other items in Modern Warfare 3.

Activision banned over 58,000 accounts in MW3 and Warzone on April 9, according to a statement from the company, and it appears that some pro Call of Duty League talent was caught in the crossfire.

Seattle Surge player Abuzah said on April 10 that he had gotten banned on the account he uses to play CDL matches, which sounds quite problematic. But according to him, it likely has to do with using an unlock tool to get camos.

“I just wanted to have some camo,” Abuzah said on X/Twitter. “I do nothing wrong, I didn’t download something.”

Unlocking camos without earning them the old-fashioned way often requires giving account access to someone with the unlock tool, and whether it was for the account recovery or the detected usage of the tool on the account, Abuzah could be facing punishment from the league.

“Be wary of bold claims made by cheaters trying to sell subscriptions to their wares,” Activision said in a statement. “Team RICOCHET has been launching a series of targeted cheat vendor enforcements, resulting in over 58,000 detected accounts banned yesterday. More ban waves are expected.”

Fellow pro Clayster chimed in, claiming that he knows someone who got banned for camos and only had to pay a fine to gain access again, but Abuzah’s situation is currently up in the air.

Hackers in MW3 and Warzone have been having their way with cheats like wall-hacks, aimbots, and more throughout battle royale and ranked playlists. While using a tool to get camos is not quite the same thing, it’s still against the rules, so this kind of automatic ban should come as no surprise.

Seattle plays its first match of the CDL’s Major Three this Sunday vs. Carolina Royal Ravens, and it remains to be seen if Abuzah will be playing with the squad.