Just as PC gaming reached unprecedented levels of accessibility, a fresh wave of component shortages and skyrocketing RAM prices has turned building a computer into a risk.

The secondhand market offers a tempting alternative, but it comes with hidden risks that extend far beyond normal wear and tear.

Buying used hardware can now get you a ban you never earned and companies won’t have pity on you. This is what happened to a VALORANT player who was punished for using a pre-owned processor

This Player Bought a Second-Hand Ryzen 7 Processor That Ended Up Getting Him a Ban

Can a piece of hardware give you a ban? Yes, if you’re a VALORANT player though, in this case, it wasn’t really his fault.

Seeking to bypass steep retail prices, a German gamer turned to the online secondhand market, securing a used AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D processor at a discount. The transaction initially seemed like a good deal. The CPU arrived, installed smoothly, and performed without a hitch during routine testing.

That streak of luck ended the moment the player launched VALORANT, Riot Games’ popular tactical shooter. Upon entering the game, the player was immediately kicked from the match and locked out entirely.

AMD
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Riot Games Gives Player Bad News

The player reached out to Riot Games support and the company responded that the CPU Ryzen 7 5800X3D processor’s serial number had been blacklisted because it was previously operated by a banned cheater.

Riot’s security architecture enforces strict hardware-level bans to deter repeat offenses. Because the blacklisted CPU was tied to the previous owner’s infractions, Riot’s system automatically flagged the processor the moment it booted up on a new network and banned the player

Worse still, the security protocol flagged the rest of the newly assembled system’s components by association, effectively rendering their entire computer unusable for the game despite the other parts being innocent.

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