Fortnite sues cheater for $175,000 and issues lifetime ban

Epic Games has announced a lawsuit against a Fortnite player who cheated during a tournament, which has been ruled in its favour.

As a result, the player — which Epic Games has not named — is required to pay a $175,000 (~£127,251) fine and has also received a lifetime ban from the free-to-play battle royale title.

In December 2024, Epic Games first revealed it had filed a lawsuit against a cheater caught using hardware and software to gain an unfair advantage during competitive tournaments.

On June 25th, the developer and publisher of Fortnite revealed the judge had ruled in its favour, requiring the cheater to pay the fine. Epic Games says the fine will be donated to charity.

The action taken against the cheater has generated praise from the community, pleased that Epic Games is taking strong action against cheaters using illegal exploits to negatively impact its products.

Epic Games is no stranger to taking legal action to combat cheating in Fortnite. Former professional player RepulseGod admitted to sharing their account with another player to qualify for the 2023 Fortnite Championship Series Global Finals. The player received a permanent ban and their prize money was donated to charity.

Activision is also taking a similar stance to cheaters and cheat providers. In March 2025, Call of Duty’s publisher revealed its actions had resulted in over 20 cheat providers closing its doors in addition to issuing over 220,000 bans since the launch of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 in October 2024.

Preventing all cheaters from loading into online matches is an impossible task. However, Epic Games’s stance demonstrates that there is no place for cheating in esports.