When installing Battlefield Hardline, it may appear as if the install script for Punkbuster anti cheat is stalled, however this is not the case. Punkbuster anti cheat is waiting for the system user to approve its installation, however it is minimized and does not show as a window in the taskbar.

thank you to u/Vit0T on reddit for the fix.

check if you have Punkbuster service setup running
minimize every window (except for Punkbuster if its there) until you see your desktop
winkey+tab OR alt+tab to find Punkbuster anti cheats setup window (if its running)
accept the agreement and finish the installation

if you dont see it when you go to desktop, try clicking on steam in your taskbar and then clicking it again to minimize it.

Credit to u/Ak0s20 on reddit for creating the thread & u/Vit0T on reddit for answering the question