Steams says it wasn’t hacked and your account is safe

Giovanni Colantonio / Digital Trends

Yesterday, news broke that more than 89 million Steam accounts had been put up for sale on the dark web, prompting users to rush to change their passwords. Steam says that’s false and that you don’t need to worry about your account. Although there was a leak, it wasn’t one that would compromise the security of your PC game library.

Steam says that although a leak did take place, it was not a breach of the Steam systems. “We’re still digging into the source of the leak, which is compounded by the fact that any SMS messages are unencrypted in transit, and routed through multiple providers on the way to your phone,” the announcement reads.

“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. 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.”

Chris Hagan / Digital Trends

This confirmation means that, at worst, you might get spam text messages from the leak of your phone number. Since the security codes only last for 15 minutes, they were outdated and useless almost immediately. Valve says there is no need to change your password at this time, but suggests users treat any uninvited account security messages as suspicious.

While this hack might have been a false alarm, it’s a reminder that cybersecurity is an ever-changing field. Always choose a strong, secure password or use a password manager. For many gamers, their Steam library represents hundreds or thousands of hours of playtime. That’s not something you want to put at risk.

Patrick Hearn writes about smart home technology like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, smart light bulbs, and more. If it’s a…

Astro Bot wasn’t 2024’s only great platformer. Try these 5 underrated gems

While all eyes have deservingly been on Astro Bot and its spectacular platforming thrills in 2024, it’s easy to forget that a lot of lesser-known platformers have been quietly killing it this year. From completely unexpected sequels to 30-year-old games that you’ve probably never heard of to top-tier VR adventures and nostalgic journeys that nearly live up to the games that inspired them, it’s been a heck of a year for one of gaming’s most popular genres.

As we reflect on the best games of 2024 throughout this month, we wanted to take a moment to highlight some lesser known platformers that didn’t get a spotlight this year. These five games may not have gotten the same attention as Astro Bot, but they’re proof that it’s not just gaming’s biggest companies that are keeping a classic genre alive.

Nikoderiko: The Magical World

Leaker says Valve is working on a Steam Controller 2

Valve is working on a follow-up to its Steam Controller, its Steam Machine accessory first introduced almost a decade ago, according to a prominent leaker.

Brad “SadlyItsBradley” Lynch wrote on X that Valve’s second Steam Controller is known internally as “Ibex” and is in mass production.

Black Ops 6 just can’t compete with these 2 RPGs on Steam

Despite Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 on its way to being one of the biggest Call of Duty launches of all time, two role-playing games are giving it a run for its money.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard, the latest RPG from BioWare and the first Dragon Age game in over a decade, is currently selling better on Steam than Black Ops 6 just a day after release. According to the Steam top sellers list, The Veilguard is just barely outranking Black Ops 6’s single-player campaign as the top seller on the platform, followed by MMO Throne and Liberty and Monster Hunter Wilds, an open beta for which launched on Friday.

Report