The DMZ duplication glitch has led Infinity Ward to begin enforcement action against Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 players. The announcement came through the official Call of Duty Updates account on X on October 26, 2026. It says item duplication glitches and intentional exploit abuse break the Terms of Service. The post did not list any penalties.
Below, you can read what the announcement says, which penalties the Security and Enforcement Policy allows, how the exploit affects DMZ, and what remains unconfirmed.
DMZ Duplication Glitch
Infinity Ward is taking enforcement action against Modern Warfare 4 players who used the DMZ duplication glitch. The studio says item duplication glitches and intentional exploit abuse violate the Terms of Service. It has started enforcement against accounts found exploiting these issues.
The post did not say how many players are affected. It also did not explain how the glitch worked or which penalties players will receive.
Call of Duty ties the action to its Security and Enforcement Policy. The policy covers Call of Duty releases from Modern Warfare (2019) onward. Activision says its security team researches and validates detection methods before it acts against suspected offenders.
Modern Warfare 4 launched on October 23, 2026, for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC and Nintendo Switch 2. The announcement arrived 3 days later. DMZ is an extraction mode that first debuted in Modern Warfare II.
Possible Penalties for DMZ Exploits
The announcement named no specific punishments. The Call of Duty Security and Enforcement Policy lists the penalties that can apply to an account or its hardware:
- Stats and inventory corrections, including a full inventory reset or a temporary ban from the inventory system
- Temporary and permanent bans
- Limited matchmaking
- Ranked Play restrictions
- Ricochet Anti-Cheat in-game mitigations
- Hardware bans
- Revocation of Call of Duty Points and in-game items
The policy says the security team applies these penalties at its sole discretion. Additional penalties may follow depending on the severity and frequency of the violation. It also notes that stat and inventory corrections look like the most fitting action for duplication, since they would remove duplicated items.
The policy also makes account holders responsible for violations, no matter who used the account. Sanctions link to Activision accounts and apply across all devices associated with them.
How Item Duplication Affects DMZ
Item duplication lets players get extra weapons or supplies without earning them through normal gameplay. This can undermine the equipment economy in DMZ.
In Modern Warfare 4, DMZ places 20 squads of up to 3 players on a large map called the exclusion zone. Squads scavenge for loot and complete objectives before they try to exfiltrate. A new hub called the Forward Operating Base (FOB) lets players set up loadouts, craft items, and visit vendors before each deployment.
Earlier Patches and Fixes
Infinity Ward’s October 24 and 25 patch notes confirmed that it closed various DMZ exploits. The studio did not name every glitch. It also did not say whether those fixes targeted item duplication.
Since launch, Infinity Ward has released several updates. They address stability problems, inventory-related bugs, mission progression issues, and other exploits.
The news comes during a wider community debate about DMZ. Some players want a PvE option. Others have used the PvP side of DMZ to grief players at Exfil sites and during Story Missions.
