Riot has taken action against 296K accounts involved in rank manipulation across League of Legends and VALORANT. The company revealed the figure in a new update about Vanguard and its systems for detecting boosting. Since late last year, Riot says it has actioned 296,416 accounts connected to competitive rank manipulation.
Riot expands its anti-boosting systems
On September 17, Riot Games published a detailed update about its new Vanguard Anti-Boost technology. The system is designed to detect players who attempt to manipulate competitive rankings instead of earning their progress normally.
The update focuses not only on traditional cheaters, but also on boosting, account sharing, purchased accounts and smurfing. According to Riot, 296,416 accounts have been actioned for rank manipulation across League of Legends and VALORANT since late last year.
It is important to clarify that Riot’s wording does not mean every one of these accounts received a permanent ban. Depending on the circumstances, penalties can include temporary suspensions, rank reversions, removal of rewards and permanent bans for certain accounts.
What can lead to a penalty?
Riot identifies several behaviors that can result in punishment. These include giving an account to a boosting service, paying boosters to help increase a player’s rank, buying or borrowing low-ranked accounts, deliberately losing games to lower an account’s rating and using accounts that do not actually belong to the player.
Another behavior targeted by the company is queue boosting, sometimes described as “hitchhiking.” This happens when a player benefits from another person using a smurf or otherwise manipulating matchmaking to create an unfair competitive advantage.
Riot can also take action against the main account of a player who repeatedly engages in boosting activities.
Smurfing is not always a violation
Riot makes an important distinction between legitimate alternate accounts and accounts used for competitive manipulation.
Simply having multiple accounts is allowed. A player may create an alternate account to learn a different role, experiment with another character or pursue another legitimate reason.
However, using an alternate account to gain an unfair competitive advantage, evade penalties or boost another player can result in sanctions.
Riot is particularly targeting purchased and shared accounts, which the company says are an important part of the infrastructure supporting boosting services.
Rank and rewards can be removed
The consequences of rank manipulation can go beyond simply suspending an account.
When Riot detects boosting, it can remove the ranked progress that was obtained through the manipulation. This may also affect rewards associated with that progress.
Penalties can escalate depending on the player’s behavior and history. Some accounts may receive temporary suspensions, while purchased or otherwise illegitimate smurf accounts can receive permanent bans.
This means the crackdown affects not only professional boosters, but also players who pay for boosting services or participate in manipulated matches.
Riot plans to keep expanding detection
Riot says its Anti-Boost technology will continue to become more effective as the company expands its detection systems.
The goal is to make boosting and the sale of smurf accounts more difficult and less attractive as businesses. Riot also wants competitive progress to remain connected to a player’s actual performance.
The company stresses that legitimate alternate accounts remain acceptable. The problem begins when those accounts are used to manipulate rankings, bypass restrictions or provide an unfair competitive advantage.
With 296,416 accounts already actioned, Riot’s latest announcement shows how large the company’s campaign against rank manipulation has become. Riot says the figure is not the end of the process, and its detection systems will continue to be expanded.
