A Reddit user reported being unable to play Valorant after installing a second-hand AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D processor. The game's anti-cheat system, Riot Vanguard, identified the CPU as being associated with a hardware-level ban.
According to the user, Riot Games support confirmed the hardware was banned on August 12 due to cheating by the previous owner. The current owner purchased the processor on September 21.
The ban is linked to the processor via the fTPM module, which is integrated into the AMD Secure Processor. Riot Vanguard uses the TPM Endorsement Key to identify specific hardware components, including the CPU, motherboard, and storage drives.
Hardware ID (HWID) bans are designed to restrict access regardless of the user account. Reinstalling Windows or the game does not bypass the VAN 152 error. Riot Games notes that such bans on AMD platforms may require a processor replacement.
The current owner of the processor must wait for the hardware ban to expire, which typically lasts approximately 4 months. The CPU remains fully functional for all other applications, as the restriction is enforced solely within the Riot Games ecosystem.
