Inside Riot’s War on Cheaters

Inside Riot's Anti-Cheat Intel Team: How LoL and Valorant Stay Clean

Cheaters can ruin any online experience, especially in competitive games where rank progression and fair play matter most. Whether you're grinding in Valorant or climbing the ladder in League of Legends, nothing’s more frustrating than losing to someone using unfair tools. Riot Games knows this all too well—and they've taken a surprisingly bold approach to stop it.

A recent report has revealed just how far Riot is willing to go to keep its games fair: the company has a dedicated anti-cheat intel team that infiltrates online communities, pretending to be cheat developers or buyers. Their mission? To gather information, slow down the spread of hacks, and keep cheaters on edge.

Riot’s Vanguard Against Cheaters

At the core of Riot's strategy is Vanguard, their powerful kernel-level anti-cheat system used in Valorant. It runs deep in your system, which allows Riot to detect and block cheat software at its source. According to Phillip Koskinas, Riot’s head of anti-cheat, thousands of cheaters are banned from Valorant every day.

Still, software alone isn’t always enough. That’s where Riot's undercover team steps in—a group that could be lurking in any Discord or Telegram group discussing new exploits. They pose as cheaters, offering up believable insights (even sharing real anti-cheat methods) to earn trust. Then they wait. Once a cheat is released and gains traction, Riot swoops in and bans users in bulk, wiping out entire communities in one strike.

This strategy helps Riot both prevent immediate cheating and slow the development of new exploits.

What About Elo Boosting?

To this day, hiring a Valorant or LoL Elo Booster remains the only safe alternative to cheating. It’s a practical and effective way to secure ranked rewards or reach a skill tier that more accurately reflects their true gameplay level. Rather than grinding through low-rank brackets filled with trolls, AFKs, or inconsistent teammates, boosting allows players to skip the chaos and enjoy matches that feel more balanced and competitive.

Modern boosting services have evolved significantly. Many now use VPNs to match regional IPs, emulate natural play patterns, and even take intentional pauses to reduce detection risk. Since Riot’s anti-cheat tools rely heavily on automated flagging and mass reporting, professional boosters often fly under the radar. In fact, players who were mistakenly banned for boosting have successfully appealed their suspensions simply by pointing out the lack of hard proof.

Ultimately, boosting offers a smoother path for dedicated players who are tired of the lower-rank grind and just want to play at their actual skill level. While Riot continues to discourage it, many still see it as a legitimate way to boost their gaming experience—especially in ranked modes where consistency and team coordination matter most.

Cheating Isn't Always Slammed

Interestingly, Riot doesn’t always ban cheaters the moment they’re detected. Sometimes, the company intentionally lets a cheat exist for a while to observe how it spreads or evolves. This gives Riot insight into how cheat developers work and allows them to plan bigger takedowns. “If we hit every player every time, they will just change cheats until they find the one that isn’t detected”

By playing the long game, Riot can collect more data and eliminate larger groups of offenders all at once—striking when it’s most effective.

Transparency Over Surveillance

Given the level of system access Riot requires—especially with Vanguard—transparency has become a core part of its anti-cheat strategy. Riot believes that players deserve to know what’s being monitored and how. Koskinas emphasized that while Riot gathers a lot of data, its use is strictly tied to maintaining game integrity.

Whether you're queuing up in Valorant or climbing through LoL's ranked tiers, it’s reassuring to know there’s a proactive team working behind the scenes to keep cheaters at bay.

Stay Sharp, Stay Legit

So, the next time someone offers a cheat in a forum, there’s a real chance they could be an undercover Riot agent. If you're thinking about trying a shady method to boost your rank—in League of Legends or Valorant—remember that someone might be watching, not with a banhammer just yet, but with a clipboard.

Fair play isn’t just a slogan—it’s a strategy. And Riot’s taking it seriously.

 

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