While Valorant is still in closed beta, Riot has already handed out some ban waves. And one of the reasons is because of a new form of cheating known as smurf boosting.
What exactly is smurf boosting and how does it work? It’s a pretty serious offense that can land you with an account suspension.
Detection
As anyone who has played VALORANT knows, Riot Games is serious about cheating detection in the new shooter. They created one of the most invasive anti-cheat platforms in FPS history to ensure that the game is fair to everyone who plays. They’ve already banned countless players during the closed beta for various software-driven cheats, and they’re not stopping until every last Valorant player is playing fair.
That includes tackling the issue of smurfing. Smurfing is where people create multiple accounts to get advantages over other players, such as free XP or cosmetics. Riot has a lot of experience dealing with smurfing in other games, and they’re determined to keep it from happening in Valorant as well. The company recently issued a ban wave that targeted AFK abusers, and they’re continuing to work on solutions for the future that should improve competitive integrity in the game.
The underlying issue with smurfing is that there are many ways for people to fake their identity. They can use a different computer to play, for example, or they can sign in from a public wifi connection. These kinds of things can lead to a ban from the game, so it’s important for Riot to have systems in place to prevent them.
These systems include dedicated trackers for AFK behavior, and they also have a team of players who oversee reports based on in-game behavior. They’re looking at everything from toxicity to in-game harassment to smurfing and account sharing to make sure that the game is fair for all players.
If you are accused of a violation, you’ll receive a warning or a chat restriction. If that doesn’t stop you, you’ll be banned from the game for a set amount of time. The length of the suspension depends on the offense, but it could be as short as a few days or as long as 31+ days.
It’s also important to remember that Valorant is a free-to-play game. You should never share your account credentials with other people. This is a common cause of account suspensions in the game, and it can result in a permanent ban from Riot. If you do lose your account, it’s easy to recover with the help of the Support team if you can prove that you are the owner of the account.
Repetition
When writing or speaking, repetition is a favored tool to emphasize and add catchiness to the words you are using. It is also used by orators to add a sense of power to the speech you are giving.
When it comes to gaming, repetition can also be an important element. In some cases, repeated actions or wording can lead to account restrictions or even bans. This is especially true for online games where players compete against each other for honor and glory. Riot Games is a big proponent of keeping Valorant a fair and enjoyable place to play for its entire player base, so it uses a number of different preventative measures to keep cheaters in check.
Getting caught with hacking software is one of the most serious offenses that you can commit in Valorant and will likely lead to a permanent ban from playing the game. Riot has made it clear that they are going to crack down on cheaters and hackers using Private Valorant Hacks in the closed beta. Phillip Koskinas, a designer on the anti-cheat pipelines for Valorant tweeted that 1,600 accounts “just went missing” after the recent ban wave.
Another common offense that can lead to a Valorant ban is RMT (real money transactions) in the form of purchasing in-game items. This can include VP, boosts, accounts, and cosmetics. A ban for this crime will not just result in a loss of virtual currency, but you’ll also be banned from making any purchases in the future.
A third offense that can lead to a Valorant account ban is a chargeback from a third-party seller you used for in-game purchases. This can include things like buying VP from a seller that claims to be able to unlock a player’s account but then doesn’t deliver the goods.
Riot has a dedicated team working on solving issues with smurfing and the overall integrity of Valorant’s competitive environment. During the closed beta, they’ve already slapped 8,873 cheaters with a ban hammer. This includes those who are running hacking software and those who are simply smurfing to get an advantage.
Smurfing
The term “smurfing” is a colloquial name for the money laundering techniques that criminals use to disguise their illegally obtained funds. Criminals use a combination of complex transactions and bookkeeping tricks to conceal the origins of their funds. The first step, called placement, involves depositing illegally sourced cash into the financial system in small amounts to avoid detection. The second step, called layering, involves moving funds through a series of transactions to distance them from the source and make them appear less suspicious. Finally, the integration stage tries to legitimize the funds by investing them in legitimate businesses or assets.
Smurfing is a big problem in online gaming because it unfairly disadvantages players with more skills. For example, a high-ranked player who creates a low-ranked account to boost their friends to higher ranks is breaking Riot’s terms of service and can be banned.
Fortunately, Valorant has safeguards to detect and ban cheaters. Riot’s anti-cheating algorithm, Vanguard, compares the behavior of a player to the behavior of other players to determine whether an account is being used for boosting or other unfair behaviors. The company also encourages players to report suspected smurfs to help them clean up their communities.
In addition to smurfing, some players try to circumvent the game’s security measures by sharing their accounts with friends or family members. This practice is against the terms of service and can result in a permanent HWID ban. It is also important to set up two-factor authentication for your Riot account to prevent unauthorized access.
Smurfing is a big issue in the esports industry because it can damage an organization’s reputation and lead to heavy fines from AML regulators. This is why it’s important for organizations to familiarise themselves with the inner workings of smurfing and understand how to spot suspicious activity.
Ownership Verification
The VALORANT Protocol’s anti-cheat software might have been responsible for melted PCs, but it’s also been kicking cheaters out of the tactical shooter. Riot Games just pushed out another ban wave that aims to get rid of players who use bots and other cheating software in ranked matches.
Riot’s senior anti-cheat analyst Matt Paoletti confirmed that the latest ban wave would target players who queue with hackers in order to boost their MMR or elo rank without earning it. The developer team calls this practice “bussing” in the game, and it can lead to false punishments that can range from a chat or 3-day player report ban all the way up to a Valorant account restriction.
Boosting and smurfing are the most common forms of account sharing that can result in Valorant bans. However, you can also get banned for having more than one RIOT account or using your account to spectate or assist other players in a match. Riot is working on additional solutions that should help tackle smurfing and boosting in the near future, but players will likely find ways to bypass these improvements.
It’s also important to note that if you buy an account from a third-party seller, then use it to Smurf or play with friends, you may be banned from the game if your account gets hacked. This is because you can’t verify your identity when buying an account and the seller has no obligation to refund your money if they discover that you purchased it illegally.
While you won’t get banned for using stretched res in Valorant, it’s worth keeping in mind that everything that goes into the chat window is recorded. So, if you’re rude or toxic in-game and decide to write something that could potentially get you banned in League of Legends, the VALORANT Protocol will keep an eye on it. And, of course, if you disconnect intentionally during a competitive match, you’ll lose 4-12 RR points and might be subject to a permanent ban. If you want to make sure that doesn’t happen, always log out of the game before ending your session.