MW4 Locked Down Camo: Free Unlock Steps (Email Verify) + Every Other Free Camo

Last checked October 30, 2026 (MW4 launch +7 days) against Activision's official email verification support article and the MW4 Season 1 announcement (October 28). Season 1 starts November 6. Event camos below are announced, not live yet.

Quick answer (TLDR): Locked Down is a free universal weapon camo in Modern Warfare 4. You get it by verifying the email on your Activision account at callofduty.com/verify-email: log in, select Send Verification Email, then click the link in your inbox. It shows up the next time you start the game. If MW4 was open while you verified, restart it. If you verified your email in the past, you don't need to do anything. Activision says the camo will be "automatically granted by Season 1" (November 6). It works on MW4 weapons only, in MW4 and Warzone. Beyond Locked Down, every Military, Special, Gold, Platinum, Mastery and Pyroclast camo is free too. You just have to earn it. 33 launch weapons each have 8 Military + 3 Special camos. Season 1 adds more free event camos: the Wager Match Event at launch on November 6, then Weapon Camo Events later in the season.

How do you get the Locked Down camo in MW4?

It costs nothing and takes a couple of minutes for most players. These are Activision's official steps, in order:

• Go to callofduty.com/verify-email on a phone or PC.
• Log in to your Activision account. Use the account that's linked to the platform you play MW4 on.
• Check the email address it shows you. Activision warns you to confirm you can still open that inbox before going further.
• Select "Send Verification Email".
• Open the email and click the verification link. If it isn't there, check spam. Still nothing? Go back to the page and select Resend Link.
• Launch MW4. The camo is granted at your next login. If the game was already running, close it fully and restart.

You'll find it with your other universal camos in the weapon's Appearance menu. It's a black base with a green keyhole-and-shield pattern, which fits the account-security theme.

There's one catch in the fine print. Activision's 2FA support page says verifying your email automatically enrolls the account in email two-factor authentication, and that enrollment can't be turned off. You can still add an authenticator app and make it your main method. In practice it means an extra emailed code when you log in to your Activision account. Make sure the inbox on file is one you'll keep.

Why isn't my Locked Down camo showing up?

If you verified and nothing showed up, check these three things:

• The game was open when you verified. Activision's fix is a full restart. Close MW4 completely, including COD HQ, and relaunch it.
• You verified your email years ago. You won't get a new verification email and you don't need one. The support page says: "If you've previously verified your email, you do not need to verify again. Your reward will be automatically granted by Season 1." So if you're already verified, it may already be on your account. Check first. If it isn't, it should arrive by Season 1 (November 6) at the latest.
• You're looking at the wrong gun. The camo is restricted to MW4 weapons. Activision's wording is precise:

"The Locked Down Weapon Camo can be used on Modern Warfare 4 weapons only across Modern Warfare 4 and Warzone modes." (Activision Support, Email Verification Incentive)

That means no Locked Down on a Black Ops 7 or MW3 gun you brought into Warzone. If you verified, restarted, checked an MW4 weapon and it still isn't there, Activision tells you to contact support. If other camos aren't tracking, that's a different problem with its own fixes in our MW4 camo challenges not tracking guide.

What other camos can you get for free in MW4?

All of the main camo grind is free. You don't need COD Points for any of it, only time. Here's everything we can confirm from Infinity Ward's official Progression and Prestige blog and the Season 1 announcement:

Free camo / set	How you get it	Time cost
Locked Down	Verify your Activision email	~2 minutes
Military camos (8 per weapon)	Level the weapon. The Han 86 unlocks them at Levels 10, 18, 25, 34, 42, 50, 57 and 65	Low
Special camos (3 per weapon)	Weapon-specific combat challenges (Mounted, Point Blank, Longshot and so on)	Medium
Gold	15 eliminations in one Multiplayer match, or 100 in one DMZ match	Medium
Platinum	A class-specific challenge, unlocked once every weapon in the class has Gold	High
Harmonic Break	A class-specific challenge, unlocked once all 33 weapons have Platinum	Very high
Divergence	Complete Harmonic Break on all 33 weapons	Very high
MP Mastery camos	Mercurial Drift (10 kills in a match, 250 times), Polyatomic Reforged (3 kills without taking damage, 300 times), Orion Reforged (5 kills without dying, 500 times)	Extreme
DMZ Mastery camos	Chiral, Ripple Tide, Helio	Extreme
Warzone Mastery camos	Parallax, Damascus Reforged, Empyros (Warzone integration starts in Season 1)	Extreme
Pyroclast set (4)	Weapon Prestige: Pyroclast, Pyroclast Terminus, Pyroclast Scatter, Pyroclast Cascade	High, per gun
Season 1 event camos	Wager Match Event (Season 1 launch, November 6), then Weapon Camo Events later in the season	Event-limited

Three things make this ladder shorter than it looks:

• It's one shared grind. Infinity Ward: "Modern Warfare 4 features a single Weapon Camo grind that is shared across all modes." Finish a Special camo in DMZ and it unlocks in Multiplayer too. Our shared camo track explainer covers how that works.
• Challenge counts change by mode. DMZ asks for more kills because AI enemies count there. Read the card for the mode you're in. Our camo challenges explained guide decodes every label, and the MW4 Gold camo guide has the per-weapon max levels.
• Pyroclast is optional. Weapon Prestige relocks the gun's attachments (Apex and blueprint attachments excepted), so it's a separate track. Our Weapon Prestige and Pyroclast guide covers when it's worth it.

Which MW4 camos are free and which cost money?

This is where most "free camo" lists get it wrong. Some camos come with a purchase or a bundle, and every one of these needs a qualifying purchase first:

• Moonlit Pearl + Gilded Ruin: the Gilded Pearl Camo Pack pre-order bonus. Moonlit Pearl was instant. Gilded Ruin gave access to a challenge you then grind. Both came with a paid pre-order of the game. See our Gilded Pearl camo pack guide.
• BlackCell universal camos: Season 1 BlackCell (a paid upgrade, included with the Vault Edition) adds a Mastery Camo Track and exclusive universal camos earned through BlackCell Camos. Activision hasn't named them yet. It says "You'll find out in the coming days!" Full breakdown in our Season 1 Battle Pass guide.
• Store bundles: any camo sold in a bundle.
• Monster Energy promo: you need to buy cans. The announced rewards are Operator skins, blueprints, a decal, one unrevealed bonus item and 2XP tokens. No camo is confirmed (our Monster Energy guide).

Two sources people expect camos from don't give any. The campaign pays out 16 rewards (8 Operators, 2XP tokens and three cosmetics) but no camo (full list). Beta rewards were only earnable during the August to September beta, and you can't earn them now (what carried over).

What free event camos are coming in Season 1?

Season 1 goes live at midnight ET on November 6 (9 PM PT on November 5). The Wager Match Event starts with it, and Activision lists more events for in-season and mid-season. None of them need a purchase:

• Wager Match Event (MP, DMZ, Warzone): Trophies are the event currency. You earn them in the new Gauntlet 1v1 Gunfight playlist plus DMZ and Warzone challenges. Activision lists the rewards as "an Operator Skin, Blueprint, Weapon Camo, and multiple weapon Apex Attachments", including the Hyeon Auto and Kastov 545 Apex conversions. The top three winners get extra rewards. Activision also notes that "No money or items of real-world value are available by participating."
• Weapon Camo Events (in-season): in Activision's words, "Play matches to earn XP and acquire Weapon Camos." Activision lists them under its in-season and mid-season events. Names and dates haven't been announced yet.
• Joint Fire Event (in-season): an XP boost that grows with your squad size. Its listed rewards are blueprints, charms, 2XP tokens and a DMZ Survival Kit, not a camo. It still speeds up every camo grind above.

Event camos are usually limited-time. If you miss the event window, the camo is gone unless it comes back later. The new Season 1 guns (Cronen Osprey, CSG-35) start at Level 1 with their own camo tracks. Our Season 1 weapons guide has their level counts.

What's the fastest way to earn the free camos?

The free ladder is long. Gold unlocks per weapon once its 8 Military and 3 Special camos are done. Platinum needs Gold on every gun in the class, and Harmonic Break needs Platinum on all 33 weapons. Here's the order that wastes the least time:

• Claim Locked Down now. It's two minutes for a camo you'd otherwise forget about.
• Level guns on Shipment 24/7. Military camos come from weapon level alone, and the remastered Shipment arrived October 27. Our Shipment XP farm guide covers the decoy-grenade trick.
• Stack Special camos in the same match. Equip a suppressor for Silencer kills and play small maps for Point Blank. The challenges progress at the same time.
• Do Gold in your best mode. 15 kills in one Multiplayer match is easier than 100 in DMZ for most players. Every gun in a class needs Gold before Platinum opens.
• Think about holding a few 2XP tokens for Season 1. Activision says Joint Fire's squad XP boost increases for larger squads. It hasn't said how that combines with tokens, so don't count on a specific multiplier.

Players on r/modernwarfare4 this week say the later challenges are where the grind gets painful. One October 30 thread singled out the completion calling cards. Platinum on snipers and marksman rifles needs prone kills, launchers need kills without taking damage, and one commenter in that thread called needing a Free-for-All nuke for 100% Multiplayer completion unfair. Ranked by effort, the Mastery tier (250 to 500 repeats per camo) is the worst of it. MW4 launched with no Open Matchmaking playlists, so every one of those repeats happens in skill-matched lobbies. That's where easier lobbies help, and it's the part we do for you.

Want the MW4 camos without grinding them in sweaty lobbies? Lock in your setup before Season 1 drops on November 6:

• MW4 Bot Lobbies: easy lobbies to farm Gold, Platinum and Mastery challenges without SBMM working against you
• MW4 Mastery Camo Unlock: Mercurial Drift, Polyatomic Reforged and Orion Reforged on the guns you actually use
• MW4 Weapon Leveling: max weapon levels for every Military camo and attachment, including the new Season 1 guns
• MW4 Account Leveling: max rank and Prestige done before the season starts
• MW4 Gilded Ruin Camo: finish the pre-order Gilded Ruin challenge

Browse every service on the Modern Warfare 4 hub, or read how MW4 bot lobbies work first.

FAQ

Is the Locked Down camo free in MW4? Yes. You only need to verify the email on your Activision account at callofduty.com/verify-email. You don't need COD Points, a purchase or a specific edition.

I already verified my email. How do I get Locked Down? You don't need to do anything. Activision says previously verified accounts will have the reward "automatically granted by Season 1". It may already be on your account, and it should arrive by November 6, 2026 at the latest.

Can I use Locked Down in Warzone? Yes, but only on Modern Warfare 4 weapons. Activision says it works "on Modern Warfare 4 weapons only across Modern Warfare 4 and Warzone modes", so older Black Ops 7 or MW3 guns in Warzone can't use it.

Why didn't I get the Locked Down camo after verifying? If the game was running while you verified, Activision says you need to restart it. Fully close and relaunch MW4. If it's still missing after a restart, contact Activision Support.

Does verifying my email turn on two-factor authentication? Yes. Activision automatically enrolls verified accounts in email 2FA, and you can't disable it. You can still set an authenticator app as your main method.

Are there other free camos in MW4 right now? Yes, all of the earnable ladder. That's 8 Military and 3 Special camos per weapon, then Gold, Platinum, Harmonic Break, Divergence, the Multiplayer and DMZ Mastery camos and the four Pyroclast Weapon Prestige camos. Warzone Mastery camos (Parallax, Damascus Reforged, Empyros) start with Season 1 on November 6, alongside the free Wager Match Event. Weapon Camo Events follow later in the season.