Activision is taking legal action against the creator of a well-known Call of Duty hack. The company says the GameHook and Lergware hacks are so toxic that some fans have quit playing the PC version of Black Ops 6 altogether. Both programs allow users to kick other players from games and potentially crash multiplayer servers, while GameHook also lets players use a cheat that ensures all of their shots hit an opponent.
Creating a cheat like this violates the terms of service, but typically would only result in a ban. However, Activision says the creators monetized the hack and have generated a significant amount of money by selling it to other players. “Activision is informed and believes, and on that basis alleges, that Defendants have received significant revenue from their activities, to the detriment of Activision and its player community,” according to suit (transcribed by IGN.)
Activision says Ryan Rothholz, who goes by the online tag Lerggy, originally created Lergware. The company issued a cease-and-desist letter in 2023, but Activision says the creator only changed his tag and gave the source code to other hackers. Activision also named two others, Collin Gyetvai and Jordan Newcombe Boothey, as working as resellers of the hack.
The game company is seeking both monetary compensation and punitive action against those named in the suit, a sum Activision claims could add up to millions of dollars.
Cheating in Call of Duty is nothing new. The community has long had a reputation for being toxic in numerous ways, and Activision has previously taken steps, albeit ineffectively, to combat this. Call of Duty: Warzone would shadowban players reported for cheating, and before that, Call of Duty: Vanguard made it so cheaters couldn’t see other players. The solutions have only served as a stop-gap, however, and the overall prevalence of cheating remains a problem for the online community.