Modern Warfare 3: What is Shadow ban

Shadowban is when you are prevented from making normal matches and are placed in a lobby with other players who have been shahdowbanned. This happens because Activision suspects you of cheating or other players have repeatedly reported you cheating. Thus, you will be in a lobby of other potential hackers, it will take longer to find the game, and your ping will be significantly worse than usual.

• Minor Violation:  The player did not cause “measurable” harm to another player or the “gaming community as a whole.”
• Temporary Suspension:  The duration may vary from “48 hours to two weeks or longer” depending on the severity of the violation.
• Permanent Suspensions:  These are “permanent and final” and can apply to all Call of Duty games.
• Most Serious Violation:  The player “caused harm to other players or organized large groups of players to commit additional violations.”

Restricted matchmaking status will  depend on the offense of which the player is suspected . As of January 2024, the CoD policy provides for four active classes of offenses and suspensions:

Limited matchmaking is  the same as a shadow ban in Warzone , where any player suspected of being a “potential violation” of the policy will be placed into a “restricted matchmaking state.” This will separate the player suspected of cheating from the rest of the player base.

When shadowbanning in Warzone, the initial indicator is  an increased ping, reaching 200, and a long wait when trying to find the lobby. When you log into the game, it will be slow and there may be more hackers than a regular lobby.

Many players are of the opinion that, like Skill-Based Matchmaking (SBMM), the anti-cheat system is flawed or suffers from technical glitches. Players receive bans even when there is no cheating, misconduct or use of third party software. Compounding the problem, after an unjustified ban, players are left with only one recourse: report the problem to  Activision support  and wait for the developers to review the complaint. During the entire waiting period, access to the servers becomes completely unavailable.

To check if Shadowbanning has been applied to you in MW3 and Warzone, you should visit the ban appeal section on the Activision Support website.

From there, you can log into your Activision account to see your account details.

1. Go to  the Ban Appeal section on the Activision Support website
2. Sign in to your Activision account
3. Check your account status
   • If it says no ban detected, then you are not banned from Shadowbanning
   • If you are blocked from Shadowbanned, it will indicate that the account is under review or the search for partners is limited
   • If you are blocked in a multiplayer game, it will show “Permanently blocked”

Can you appeal Shadowbans?

No, you cannot appeal a Shadowban in MW3 or Warzone , but you can appeal a permanent Call of Duty account ban.

This is especially frustrating for players who haven’t cheated but are limited in their matchmaking by Shadowban. Unfortunately, the only option is to wait for the ban to be lifted.

Typically, during the appeal process, you will need to provide details about the account, explain the situation, and request a review of the ban. Activision’s Security and Enforcement team typically reviews shadowbans as quickly as possible after an appeal has been filed.