Activision has filed a lawsuit against the creator of Call of Duty hacking software Lergware and GameHook.
As seen by IGN, the lawsuit was filed in the Central District of California against Ryan Rothholz.
The firm alleges that Rothholz developed and released Lergware between 2021 and 2022, and sold it to players on his website.
It also alleged that Rothholz updated the software to be compatible with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone in 2023.
As a result, Activision sent a cease and desist letter, which the company claims Rothholz posted on a Discord server and “openly mocked” the publisher.
“The update resulted in online player ‘attacks’ becoming increasingly frequent, causing some users to post warning messages online,” Activision said.
The company also accused Rothholz as creating GameHook, and alleged he recruited others including Collin ‘Cid’ Gyetvai and Jordan ‘Bossnight55′ Newcombe Boothey to resell the software for $50 a game or $375 for lifetime access.
“Activision is informed and believes, and on the basis alleges, that the defendants have received significant revenue from their activities, to the detriment of Activision and its player community,” the lawsuit read.
The firm said it had given those named the opportunity to respond to its demands of removing the software, but alleges that “each has ignored Activision’s outreach necessitating this lawsuit.”
Activision sent further cease and desist letters in March 2025. Online storefronts for Lergware and GameHook were shut down as a result, but Activision alleged that the defendants’ did not confirm if they’d stop creating or selling the software.
The publisher alleges that Rothholz, Gyetvai, and Boothey are continuing to distribute or sell the hack through private channels and servers.
As IGN reports, Activision is seeking “monetary damages, injunctive and other equitable relief, and punitive damages”.
“Activision works very hard to ensure that CoD games offer consistently compelling player experiences so that customers will remain engaged in CoD games, continue to play them for sustained periods of time, and be excited about future releases,” the company said.
“If players perceive that a game is unfair or that the multiplayer experience is not working properly, including because others are cheating or disrupting and/or hacking multiplayer servers, players may grow more frustrated with the CoD games, become less interested in playing and supporting them and may even stop playing entirely.”
It concluded: “Cheating and hacking therefore not only harms (and could even destroy) CoD player communities, but also impacts Activision’s ability to offer the fast paced, stable, high-quality online gameplay millions of fans have come to expect from Activision and the CoD games.”
Last May, Activision was awarded $14.4 million in damages and $292,912 in legal fees against cheats manufacturer EngineOwning.

Fandom is selling the website and video outlet Giant Bomb to two of its long-time staff, Jeff Bakalar and Jeff Grubb.
Financial terms were not shared as part of the announcement.
The news represents a shift from earlier this month, when Fandom said the site was undergoing a ‘strategic reset’ following a disagreement on new content guidelines that led to staff exiting the brand. This generated a heated response on social media platform BlueSky.
Now, Grubb and Bakalar have full ownership of the brand, including its operations. The site is financially supported by users.
“Giant Bomb is now owned by the people who make Giant Bomb, and it would not have been possible without the speedy efforts of Fandom and our mutual agreement on what’s best for fans and creators,” said Bakalar and Grubb in a joint statement.
“The future of Giant Bomb is now in the hands of our supporting community, who have always had our backs no matter what. We’ll have a lot more to say about what this looks like soon, but for now, everyone can trust that all the support we receive goes directly to this team.”
GameSpot owners Fandom said the move was a “strategic decision” to transition the brand “back to its independent roots”. “We’re confident Giant Bomb is in good hands and its legacy will live on with Jeff and Jeff,” the company said in a statement.
Giant Bomb first launched in 2008, founded by former GameSpot staff following the dismissal of editor Jeff Gerstmann.

The Consumer Technology Association (CTA) has updated a January 2025 report estimating the cost of importing tech goods to the US could rise anywhere between 24% to 69.4%, with the latter figure expected for video game consoles if the Trump administration’s tariffs progress as planned.
As spotted by Tom’s Hardware, the report, written by the Trade Partnership Worldwide, suggests video game consoles – of which 87% are imported from China, which is facing tariffs of 145% – will be hardest hit of all tech goods if the paused tariffs do proceed at their current rates.
And if the tariffs do go ahead, estimates suggest the financial fallout from the video game console market alone would slice $10.4 billion annually from the entire US economy.
Analysts believe that would send the price of consoles in the US rocketing by – not to – around $428, see imports slump 71%, and trigger consumer spending cuts by as much as 73% – that’s around $12 billion.
Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders were delayed in the US due to the evolving situation of US President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs on imported goods. The console’s launch date of June 5, however, has not changed.
Even before the furor with tariffs, GamesIndustry.biz spoke to analysts about why Switch 2 prices are so high and how inflation and other factors may have resulted in this decision.
Earlier today, Nintendo released its financial results for the full year, reporting a decline in net sales and profits as it prepares for the release of the Switch 2 next month. As part of its results, the firm revealed its sales forecast for the upcoming console, stating it expects hardware sales of 15 million units with software sales expected to be 45 million.
So far, 2.2 million people have applied for pre-orders of the Switch 2 in Japan.