The newly released PlayStation 4 and PS5 ports of Call of Duty: Black Ops and Black Ops 2 have quickly run into major cheating problems. Within days of launch, players reported hacked lobbies, instant max-rank unlocks, stat manipulation, and a "negative XP" exploit that could reset player progress and even prevent access to multiplayer.

In response, Treyarch and Activision temporarily disabled some multiplayer playlists while they investigated the issue and began rolling out server-side fixes. The first update targeted the XP exploit and restored some affected accounts, but players are still waiting for a complete solution.

The situation has frustrated fans, especially because the ports were marketed as a way to revisit classic Black Ops multiplayer. Many players feel stronger anti-cheat protections should have been in place from launch, while others have criticised the ports for offering few modern improvements despite their premium price.