Valve Confirms: No Steam User Data Breach

Valve has firmly denied recent reports suggesting that its Steam platform experienced a "major" data hack, emphasizing that there was "NOT a breach" of Steam systems.

Although some users were alarmed by reports claiming that over 89 million user records were compromised, Steam's thorough investigation revealed that the leak involved only "older text messages." These messages contained one-time code SMSs but did not include any personal data.

In an official statement on Steam, Valve clarified that after analyzing the leak sample, it confirmed that customer data remained secure. The statement detailed, "The leak consisted of older text messages that included one-time codes that were only valid for 15-minute time frames and the phone numbers they were sent to. The leaked data did not associate the phone numbers with a Steam account, password information, payment information, or other personal data."

Valve further reassured users, stating, "Old text messages cannot be used to breach the security of your Steam account, and whenever a code is used to change your Steam email or password using SMS, you will receive a confirmation via email and/or Steam secure messages."

The increasing frequency of data breaches, coupled with the fact that over 89 million users have Steam accounts, understandably heightened concerns about potential security threats. A notable precedent in the gaming industry was the 2011 breach of PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable networks, which resulted in a nearly month-long outage and compromised 77 million accounts.

Moreover, risks extend beyond customer data. Last October, Pokémon developer Game Freak suffered a significant hack that exposed data about its current and former staff, as well as details about its development pipeline. In 2023, Sony confirmed that data from nearly 7,000 of its current and former employees was compromised in two separate breaches. Additionally, in December 2023, hackers accessed confidential data at Marvel's Spider-Man developer, Insomniac.