Call of Duty: Black Ops 7‘s beta is set to begin on October 2 for Early Access players (October 5 for everyone else), and on PC, Activision is requiring TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot to run it, a step the publisher says is part of beefing up Ricochet anti‑cheat ahead of the game’s November 14 launch.
The official blog post states: “On PC, the Black Ops 7 Beta will require TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot.” It adds, “We’re building toward the most advanced and robust anti‑cheat protections players will find in gaming, starting with the Beta on October 2 for Early Access and October 5 for all players.”
Secure Boot is a UEFI firmware feature that blocks unauthorized software from running during startup, so only signed, verified code can load. Publishers like EA and Activision have used Secure Boot as part of anti‑cheat systems before, for example, Battlefield 6 required it during its betas, and that history has left some players frustrated.
The blog also says Activision is taking legal and technical action against cheat creators: “We’re striking cheat makers and sellers from every angle: in‑game detections that stop them cold, and legal action that dismantles their operations,” and promises further improvements, including systems that detect external hardware. It finishes with: “The launch of Black Ops 7 marks the beginning of a new phase for Ricochet Anti‑Cheat. We enter it armed with stronger systems and an unwavering commitment to game protection and cheat prevention.“.
That approach will be a hard stop for some players. Older PCs without UEFI or Secure Boot support will be unable to run games that require these features, and some people object to kernel-level anti-cheats that grant broad system access. These conflicts can also cause real technical problems: in August the Javelin anti‑cheat in the Battlefield beta clashed with Riot’s Valorant anti‑cheat, producing headaches for a subset of players.
Activision’s timing is tight: beta starts Oct 2 for Early Access, Oct 5 for everyone, and Black Ops 7 ships on November 14. If you’re planning to join the beta on PC, check your system’s TPM and Secure Boot settings now so you don’t get blocked when the servers go live. 😬
