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VALORANT error

VAN 9002 in VALORANT: Exploit Protection is switched off

Riot VanguardVALORANT

The message

VAN9002: This build of Vanguard requires Control Flow Guard (CFG) to be enabled in system exploit protection settings.

What it means

Windows Exploit Protection has been turned off or changed, and Vanguard needs Control Flow Guard and its siblings running.

What to try first

Open Exploit protection in Windows, set every system setting to Use default, remove any Riot entries under Program settings, then restart.

Is it you or Riot? If a lot of players got the same code at once, it's likely the servers. Check Riot's service status page for VALORANT before you start reinstalling things.

Seeing it in League instead? VAN 9002 is a Vanguard code, so League can throw it too. The League version is here: VAN 9002 in League of Legends.

Who ends up with 9002

The popup names Control Flow Guard, one of the protections in Windows' Exploit protection panel. Riot's explanation is broader: Exploit Protection as a whole has been disabled, and Vanguard won't run without it. So Riot has you reset seven system-wide settings, CFG among them, instead of flipping CFG alone.

Two tabs to fix

Riot's fix has two halves, and both matter. On the System settings tab, every protection goes back to Use default. Riot asks you not to restart until you've done the second half, which is the Program settings tab. Any entry there for Riot Games, Riot Vanguard or a Riot game gets removed, because a custom rule for VALORANT can override the system defaults you just restored. Then restart once.

Riot's VALORANT support site has its own listing for VAN 9002, and it forwards to the same Vanguard article League players get. The fix is identical in both games.

Riot's fix, in Riot's order

  1. Put Exploit Protection back to default

    Search Windows for Exploit protection. On System settings, set Control flow guard (CFG), DEP, both ASLR options, High-entropy ASLR, SEHOP and heap integrity validation to Use default. Then on Program settings, remove every entry for Riot Games, Riot Vanguard or a Riot game. Restart.

Other wordings of the same error

  • VAN 9002 VALORANT
  • VALORANT VAN9002
  • VAN9002
  • Control Flow Guard (CFG) VALORANT

Source: Riot Games Player Support, Error VAN 9002, updated February 3, 2026. Riot's steps are paraphrased here, not copied; checked October 8, 2026.