Valve VAC bans a million CS2 accounts in one day

Valve has just handed out almost a million VAC bans in a major clampdown on Counter-Strike 2 bots and case farming. Project lead Ido Magal has confirmed the sheer size of the ban wave in response to players noticing a spike in the number of accounts being hit. The developer states that its focus was on “farming bot accounts,” and thanks players for assisting in its ongoing investigation with reports of any suspicious activity.

The Counter-Strike 2 community is always keeping a close eye on the number of VAC bans that roll out in a single day. No-one who’s legitimately playing the multiplayer game likes to deal with cheaters ruining their experience, but often just as frustrating are accounts that sit in lobbies either AFK or with their character played by a bot. These are frequently used in order to farm for CS2 cases, which drop periodically while playing, given the huge potential returns that can be made on the most expensive CS2 skins.

Responding to a Reddit thread from user ‘Positive-Carpenter53,’ who noticed what appeared to be the start of a “very big VAC wave incoming,” Magal confirms just how large the numbers are. “Yesterday we banned 960,000 farming bot accounts,” he writes. “This was the result of a bunch of investigation that benefited from user reports. Thank you.” He asks that players continue to submit any suspicious accounts to the CSGO feedback email, titling them ‘Farming Bot Report.’

VAC (Valve Anti-Cheat) bans are a severe punishment. Valve stresses that they are “permanent, non-negotiable, and cannot be removed by Steam support.” There have been instances of manual reversals, such as in January this year, when the developer confirmed “an issue that led to a small number of users erroneously receiving a VAC ban.” Among those impacted, and then freed, was a designer for its recently embraced Alpine map.

Anyone hit with a VAC ban is unable to play any other VAC-secured multiplayer games, including CS Source, Half-Life 2 Deathmatch, TF2, and Day of Defeat. It also prevents you from sending items to other accounts, and from uploading or voting on Steam Workshop content for the any of the affected games. It does not stop you from buying or playing new single-player games or engaging in local, LAN-based multiplayer.

“VAC bans cannot be appealed,” Valve reminds players. It’s good to see a clampdown on these farming accounts, which can be hugely disruptive if they end up in your matches. Valve is also facing an ongoing lawsuit from New York Attorney General Letitia James, with the accusation that its CS2 cases “promote illegal gambling.” Valve has stated that it believes this is not the case, but notes, “Ultimately, a court will decide whose position is correct.”