KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training Blog

Game Phishing Scams Steal Steam Accounts

Written by Stu Sjouwerman | Aug 20, 2019 8:56:43 PM

A phishing scam is stealing Steam accounts by promising free games to victims if they log in to a website with their Steam credentials, according to a recent post by BleepingComputer.

The scammers begin by messaging users on Steam with a link they can use to supposedly get a free game. When someone follows this link, they’ll be redirected to a site that asks them to click a button to roll for a random game. If the user clicks this button, the site will inform them that they’ve won a popular game, and they’ll be prompted to log in to steam in order to receive the key.

Clicking the login button will trigger a popup that accurately imitates Steam’s single sign-on page. When the user tries to sign in, the phishing site will immediately take their credentials and use them to log in to the real Steam site. If the victim has two-factor authentication enabled, the phishing site will present them with another popup asking for the 2FA code they’ve just received. Entering this code will validate the phishing site’s attempt to log in to the victim’s Steam account.

As soon as an account is hacked, the attackers change its password, email address, and phone number. They then send messages to all of the victim’s friends with the phishing link and a promo code to get free games of their own. This entire process is automated and occurs before the victim realizes they’ve been duped.

This scam is more complex and sophisticated than many other phishing schemes, and it shows why users still need to be wary, no matter how secure they think they are. As more people adopt two-factor authentication for their accounts, we can expect to see a corresponding rise in the number of phishing sites that can defeat it. New-school security awareness training can give your employees the knowledge they need to keep up with evolving phishing trends. BleepingComputer has the story: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/steam-accounts-being-stolen-through-elaborate-free-game-scam/