Latest news with #SteamGuard
Time of India
15-05-2025
- Time of India
"NOT a breach of Steam systems" - Steam dismisses reports of data leak as fake
Image via Valve. A few days ago, an alleged data breach pointed many fingers towards Steam. However, this highly popular PC gaming platform has debunked all the possibilities of date leaks. According to the initial reports, over 89 million Steam accounts were compromised. But after Steam's assurance, it doesn't seem to be a concern anymore. Despite the abundance of Epic Games Store, GOG, Xbox Store for Windows, and many others, Steam remains the most popular PC gaming platform. Besides being popular, this platform is hugely secure as well. That is why the initial claims of a potential data leak comes out to be false. Steam debunks any possibility of a potential data breach The data breach report is actually false. | Image via Valve. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like AI guru Andrew Ng recommends: Read These 5 Books And Turn Your Life Around in 2025 Blinkist: Andrew Ng's Reading List Undo It all started when a well-known surgical threat intelligence company named Underdark AI shared about a potential threat regarding a data breach on Steam. The company posted on LinkedIn that a hacker named Machine1337 claimed on a popular dark web forum that he has breached datasets of over 89 million user accounts of Steam. These details consist of SMS message logs, user records, phone numbers, and one-time access codes, among other things. He even went on to sell those data for $5,000. The hacker also provided a Telegram contact for purchasing those datasets, a link of sample data hosted on Gofile. The dark web post also contained the internal vendor data as well, citing graver security concerns. However, there is nothing to worry about this report as Steam has dismissed any possibility of a potential data leak stating , 'this was NOT a breach of Steam systems.' The company clarified that previous text messages containing two-factor authentication codes were the source of the leak. Nevertheless, the codes were restricted to the phone numbers that requested them and were only valid for 15 minutes at a time. Since none of the phone numbers in the leak were linked to personal information or Steam account information, they cannot be used to try to compromise Steam's systems. Steam also stated that there is no need for changing passwords or phone numbers due to this report. However, the company has advised to keep a closer look at any account security messages and recommends its users to regularly check Steam account security from here. Players are also advised to sign up for the Steam Mobile Authenticator as it includes a 2-factor-authentication named Steam Guard which prevents potential data breaches. Read More: Why is Schedule 1 removed from Steam in Australia Get IPL 2025 match schedules , squads , points table , and live scores for CSK , MI , RCB , KKR , SRH , LSG , DC , GT , PBKS , and RR . Check the latest IPL Orange Cap and Purple Cap standings.
Engadget
14-05-2025
- Engadget
Now's a good time to check in on your Steam account security
Steam has allegedly suffered a data breach in the past week. Details are scant and difficult to confirm, but a known hacker has claimed to be selling a database of more than 89 million user records for the gaming platform with one-time access codes obtained from a third-party vendor used by Steam. If accurate, that would include information about more than two-thirds of Steam's audience. The original LinkedIn post identifying a breach suggested that the leaked information came from cloud communication company Twilio. However, a Steam rep said the platform doesn't use Twilio, so if there has been a breach, it may be through a different vendor providing SMS codes for access. While we're genuinely not sure what's happening at this stage, the whole kerfuffle is a timely reminder to check in on your online security practices. In the case of Steam, Valve has a mobile authentication program called Steam Guard that can help keep your account secure. It's also a good practice to make sure you're regularly changing your pass codes, especially when it's possible that some component of Steam Guard was at the root of this week's security drama. A password manager can streamline that process. Since phone numbers appear to have been compromised, be extra alert to possible phishing attempts via text. If you buy something through a link in this article, we may earn commission.
Tom's Guide
14-05-2025
- Tom's Guide
89 million Steam accounts at risk from hackers — enable this security feature to protect your account now
If you're like me and have been buying the best PC games on Steam digitally for the past 20 years, you might want to change your password, as a hacker is currently selling millions of account details on the dark web. A hacker, who goes by the handles Machine1337 and EnergyWeapon user online, recently made a post on a dark web forum in an attempt to sell over 89 million Steam user records. All of this leaked data, including one-time access codes, can be had for the low price of just $5, examining the leaked files, which there are 3,000 records, BleepingComputer found historic SMS messages with one-time passcodes and phone numbers for accounts on the digital distribution platform. In a post on X, independent games journalist Mellow_Online1 provided further details explaining that it's likely that Steam itself didn't suffer a data breach and instead, an external service used by Valve for the platform was targeted. Here's everything you need to know about these stolen account details, along with some steps you can take to protect your own Steam account from hackers. With over 120 million monthly active users, Steam is the world's largest digital distribution platform for PC games, and given that it has been selling them for 20 years now, chances are that most PC gamers have a fairly large game library associated with their accounts. By analyzing the samples of the stolen data, Mellow_Online 1 believes that the one-time access codes come from Twilio and that an admin account may have been compromised or that the service's API keys are being abused. However, when BleepingComputer reached out to Twilio, a company spokesperson explained that it is investigating the situation, though so far, it has found no evidence that its services were breached. Another possible explanation for the leak is that these one-time codes could come from a mobile carrier. However, at this time, BleepingComputer has not been able to determine if this is the case or which provider might have been hacked. This leak, and all of this Steam account data being sold on the dark web, is concerning. Especially given that some of the data is relatively new, with leaked one-time passcodes dating back to March of this year. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. If you're worried about your Steam account being hacked and losing access to the games you've purchased on the platform, the first and most important thing you should do is to enable Steam Guard. For those unfamiliar with this security feature, it works just like two-factor authentication (2FA) on other sites to help prevent unauthorized access to your account. Setting it up is relatively easy, too and once that's done, it acts as an extra layer of security for your Steam account. To set up Steam Guard, you first need to verify your email address by going to Settings and then Verify Email Address. Following the prompts within Steam will lead to a confirmation email being sent to your inbox. Once you've verified your email, you will need to restart Steam twice, after which time, Steam Guard will automatically enable itself. If it doesn't, though, you can manually enable it by going to Steam, Settings, Account and then clicking on Manage Steam Guard Account Security. Within this menu, you will want to toggle on the option to 'Protect my account with Steam Guard' and then click next. It's worth noting that if you already have Steam Guard enabled, your account is likely safe. If not, you're going to want to reset your password. Given how much you've likely spent on Steam games over the years, you're going to want to pick a strong and complex password to protect your account. You can also use one of the best password managers to do this for you if you have trouble coming up with passwords on your own. To keep your gaming PC and other accounts safe from hackers, you should also consider using one of the best antivirus software suites if you aren't doing so already. As a big Steam user, I'll keep a close eye on this story and update this piece if there's any news regarding these account details being sold on the dark web.
