In a startling report by Steam, the online digital distribution platform admitted that about 77,000 accounts get hacked every month.
As a precaution, Valve, the developer of Steam, has implemented a new security measure to protect its users, VG247 reported.
According to the company, hackers illegally access the accounts of users to steal the items they have acquired. The hackers then immediately sell or trade these before the victims are able to detect and report that their accounts have been illegally accessed.
To deter hackers, Valve implemented a two-step authorization procedure. Through this process, users will only be able to open their accounts using their computers and a mobile device. This also extends the time needed to trade items by two to three days. With a longer duration, hackers will not be able to trade away stolen items immediately after acquiring them.
In addition, as long as hackers are not able to access their potential victims' smartphone or mobile device, the two-step authentication will prevent them from hacking certain accounts.
However, Valve admitted that even though it has introduced a new security procedure, not all account holders use it, which is why hacking on Steam still continues.
"At this time, most people have not protected their account with this increased level of security," Valve said in a blog post. "Many don't believe that they are actually a worthwhile target for a hacker who's out to make money."
"Some felt they were smart enough about security to not need two-factor authorization," the company added. "And other users knew they needed it, but couldn't use it due to reasons beyond their control, like not having access to a mobile phone."
Before implementing the two-step process, Valve replaced the items of users that were stolen by hackers. However, this method affected the economy of the platform by lowering the value of the items, according to Gamespot.
"Duplicating the stolen item devalues all the other equivalent items in the economy," Valve noted. "This might be fairly minor for common items, but for rare items this had the potential to significantly increase the number in existence."
The company also considered taking down the trading feature of Steam. Although this will greatly reduce the number of hacking incidents, it would also affect the interaction of gamers regarding the games that they play.
So for now, Valve stressed that the only way for users to protect their accounts is to adopt the two-step authorization procedure.
