Respawn’s Anti-Cheat team has banned 905 Apex Legends accounts for abusing a Rookie rank exploit in Ranked, most of them on PlayStation. The exploit let players enter Ranked matches as Rookie IV regardless of their real rank, skipping entry costs while still earning RP that counted toward their actual score. The team’s update, published November 4, 2026, outlines how the abuse worked and the punishments handed out.
What Was the Apex Legends Ranked Rookie Rank Exploit?
According to the Anti-Cheat team, some players, primarily on PlayStation 5, could enter Ranked matches as Rookie IV no matter what rank they actually held. The team identified the root cause and deployed a fix to stop further abuse.
The Unfair Advantages Players Gained
The exploit created several unintended benefits:
- No Ranked entry cost
- Rookie-tier kill bonuses
- Matchmaking Rating (MMR) recorded as 0
- RP earned in these matches still added to the player’s actual Ranked score
Respawn said this gave affected players an unfair edge and directly undermined the integrity of Ranked progression.
905 Accounts Banned: Ban Lengths Explained
Enforcement was tied to how much RP each account gained through the exploit:
- 731 accounts were banned for 120 days for illegitimately amassing up to 4,999 RP
- 107 accounts were banned for 240 days for amassing 5,000 to 9,999 RP
- 67 accounts were banned for 365 days for amassing 10,000+ RP
In total, 15,112,554 RP was deducted.
Enforcement Breakdown by Platform
The update lists the following bans per platform:
- PC: 12
- PlayStation: 848
- Xbox: 44
- Nintendo Switch 2: 2
PlayStation accounts make up the large majority of the bans, which is consistent with the exploit’s reported focus on PS5.
Players Who Hit the Exploit by Accident
Respawn stressed that some players may have run into the issue unintentionally. Through its investigation, the team says it could tell apart accidental interactions from deliberate abuse, and accounts in the first group were not actioned.
What Respawn Says Happens Next
Respawn says exploits that undermine matchmaking, bypass Ranked entry requirements, or grant illegitimate progression will be investigated and punished. The team plans to keep monitoring Ranked for similar activity and to address any vulnerabilities that could compromise competitive integrity.
Source: Respawn’s “An Update from the Anti-Cheat Team” post on the Apex Legends Steam feed, November 4, 2026.