Saving some cash on a used Ryzen 7 5800X3D apparently came with an unexpected cost for one unlucky Redditor, who claims the processor arrived with a permanent hardware-level ban from Valorant. Worse still, the buyer claims the rest of their components are now also on the blacklist, with no way to get back into Riot’s good books.
In a post to PC enthusiast German subreddit r/PCBaumeister, user After-Cartoonist-196 explains they purchased a 5800X3D from an unspecific classifieds site (Craigslist, Gumtree, and so on). The processor seemed free from issues, but launching Valorant proved problematic with an immediate, unexpected kick from the game.
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Asking Riot Games about the issue, the developer told the Redditor that their CPU ID/serial number was on its blacklist, with a ‘VAN 152’ ban in effect from August 12. The chip arrived on September 21. Valorant uses Vanguard anti-cheat, a kernel-level security measure that requires the use of TPM (Trusted Platform Module) 2.0, which the software uses to check hardware identifiers against the company’s online database.
To make matters worse for After-Cartoonist-196, Riot Games’ ban apparently also applies to other components in the system, including its motherboard, hard drive, and more. The developer is resolutely against lifting such bans, so the only option to play Valorant moving forward would be to build an entirely new PC, free from any potentially contaminated parts.
Purchasing used processors comes with inherent risks, such as visibly bent pins or stability problems that are otherwise unknowable until the CPU is up and running. While we haven’t seen any evidence of this Redditor’s plight beyond their word, it’s worth being aware of hardware bans. If you primarily play esports games like Valorant, saving a few bucks is perhaps not worth the risk.
For more processor chatter, check out our picks of the best CPUs on the market. I recommend checking out our 9800X3D vs. 5800X3D versus piece too, to see how these chips stack up against each other in a mid-range system.
