Call Of Duty: WW2 Pulled From Microsoft Store Just Days After Joining Game Pass

In a shocking turn of events, Call Of Duty: WW2 was pulled from the Microsoft Store just days after joining Game Pass. The game, which is included in the popular subscription service for PC subscribers, was added to the platform on June 30, allowing users to access it through the Microsoft Store.

However, mere days later, the game had to be taken offline amid reports of players getting hacked and trolled with pop-up messages on their PC. The situation sparked widespread outrage among gamers, who were left feeling vulnerable and concerned for their personal data.

The Call Of Duty update account quietly posted on the evening of July 4 that the game would be brought offline while an investigation was conducted into the reports of an issue. While Activision has not confirmed what the "issue" was exactly, it is clear from reports at the time that it had something to do with a hacking vulnerability that allowed outside actors to remotely take control of players' PCs while they were playing the Game Pass-included Microsoft Store version of the game.

Reports emerged on July 3 that the game contained an unpatched RCE exploit, which allowed hackers to gain unauthorized access to players' systems. The hackers were using Notepad pop-ups to inform players that they had been hacked, as well as displaying gay pornography and threatening messages. The situation was likened to a "mass hacking" incident, with gamers taking to social media to share their experiences and warn others not to play the game.

One Twitter user, Wrioh75753, shared a video of a black pop-up that included the text "Mark E Mayer just RCE'd your ass", while another user, smelly, broke down an explanation on X, blaming the game's use of peer-to-peer matchmaking for exacerbating any underlying security issues.

However, it's worth noting that Xbox users are not affected by the issue. It is also unclear how many players were affected before the game was brought offline, nor what the vulnerability was. The concern lies in the fact that the attacker could have deployed information stealer malware or ransomware, which would have had serious consequences for players' personal data.

In an attempt to understand why Steam users are not affected by the issue, it has been revealed that the game publisher took down only the Microsoft Store and Game Pass version of Call Of Duty: WW2 because they were different versions of the game than listed on Steam. According to two sources with knowledge of the situation, this was due to an old flaw that had been patched in other versions of the game.

The publisher has yet to comment on the issues.