Riot Games’ latest Vanguard update has turned one of Valorant’s most expensive cheating tools into a high-profile liability, and the reaction has gone well beyond the usual anti-cheat cheers. The move targets hardware-based DMA PCIe devices that can cost thousands of dollars and are designed to stay hidden from traditional detection methods.
That shift has also sparked a fresh legal argument around whether disabling such hardware crosses a line, even when the gear is built for cheating. Some players see Riot’s action as a necessary step to protect competitive play, while others are asking whether permanently affecting connected devices goes too far.
Hardware cheats are now in Riot’s crosshairs
The devices at the center of the issue are not cheap software hacks. One example, Heino 2.0, is described as selling for around $5,900 and belongs to a class of DMA MITM PCIe cards.
These tools are used to inspect data moving into a system running Valorant and then enable cheats such as wallhacks, macros, pixel hacks, and trigger bots. Riot’s latest Vanguard update is said to use IOMMU-based restrictions to detect and block these DMA cards.
That approach cuts off the path cheat firmware needs to read and write game memory. In practice, that means the device stops being useful for the kind of real-time manipulation these tools were built to perform.
Riot’s public message added fuel to the fire
Riot did not keep the news quiet. On X, the company posted, “Congrats to the owners of a brand-new $6k paperweight,” alongside an image of multiple PCIe spoofing devices lying on the floor.
The message made the anti-cheat victory sound blunt and deliberate. It also gave the community a clear signal that Riot is not only blocking accounts or detecting software cheats, but actively targeting the hardware layer as well.
Why the legal debate escalated so quickly
The strongest pushback has focused on whether damaging or disabling hardware, even cheating hardware, could be considered illegal. Some users have argued that once a device is rendered unusable, the issue is no longer just about fair play but about property and liability.
ogisdaDMA, an anti-cheat reporter on X, said the impact may go further than a simple block inside the game. According to that explanation, DMA firmware can become completely unusable after the trigger is activated, even after Vanguard is removed.
The same account also said some SATA and NVMe devices may be permanently affected once IOMMU blocking is active. It was also stated that the only recovery path is a full operating system reinstall, while more advanced boards such as H2 or Heino 2.0 are affected too.
Different views on whether Riot crossed a legal line
Not everyone agrees that the move is unlawful. Software engineer Daax responded by citing congress.gov and argued that Riot’s action may be legal.
Daax’s point is that DMA devices do not actually stop a computer from working. Instead, they only stop functioning on systems that apply the blocking measure, which makes the case different from physically destroying hardware.
That distinction is now at the center of the argument. For supporters, Riot is only preventing a cheating device from operating on protected systems, while critics see a stronger possibility of legal challenge.
Part of a wider anti-cheat push
This is not Riot’s first move against hardware cheating in Valorant. In early December 2025, the company was said to be working with MSI, Asus, ASRock, and others to close firmware gaps that could help DMA devices bypass pre-boot protection.
That earlier effort showed how the anti-cheat fight has moved beyond software detection alone. Riot is now going after physical devices that are more expensive, harder to spot, and more difficult to stop with older methods.
For Riot, the message is straightforward: competitive integrity comes first. For cheat makers, the pressure is clearly rising, and the search for a new workaround is unlikely to stop any time soon.
Source: www.notebookcheck.net