Steam Wallet has seen increasing reports of scammers contacting their potential victims over the phone and coercing them to purchase Steam Wallet Gift Cards to cover payment for taxes, bail, debts, or delivery of money won in sweepstakes. The scammers often pose as agents of official agencies, such as the I.R.S., to convince their victims to comply.
Potential victims are urged to purchase Steam Wallet Gift Cards at a retail shop in their area. Once the codes have been purchased and activated through the retailer, scammers ask the victims to scratch the codes and read them over the phone.
Please be aware that Steam Wallet Gift Cards can only be activated on Steam. The associated value can only be used to purchase products such as video games, in-game items, software, and hardware. If someone contacts you to pay them in Steam Wallet Gift Cards, you are most likely targeted in a scam set up by cybercriminals.
Never give out a Steam Wallet Gift Card to a person you do not know.
Steps to take
If you have been a victim of a scam and purchased Steam Wallet Gift Cards that have not been given to the scammer yet, please take these cards back to the customer service desk of the retailer where you purchased them. They can scan the cards to see if they are eligible for a refund. Steam Wallet Gift Cards that have been activated but not redeemed yet are normally refundable at retail.
If you already have given the codes to the scammer, please keep the Steam Wallet Gift Cards and the receipt and report the incident to your local police department.