Why do you need our phone numbers?

[Sarreck]

It's pretty creepy of the Steam team to demand our phone number when purchasing a game. I buy basically everything online from games, to groceries, to bills, to vacations, etc. And only the creepy creeps running Steam need my phone number. Don't give me some b.s. about needing it to verify, literally every other thing I've ever purchased online outside of Steam has not needed it. Next you'll be asking for stool samples. These are the same kinds of people you find peeking in people's windows at night. Sniffers.

[Carlos100]

Steam is slightly different to an ordinary online store
Your account holds typically a lot of money tied up in it.
Having extra security to make sure its you is a plus side

[Sarreck]

I have thousands of dollars tied up on my car, my house, and my credit cards, the credit cards I pay off monthly to avoid interest. I have maybe 500 bucks in games here. No one else asks for phone numbers. The phone number is not extra security. It's so Steam can contact unsolicited and so they have something else to sell to 3rd parties. Steam is hardly the only org that sells your browsing history and email address, but they are the only one I know of that sells your phone number.

[Carlos100]

Originally posted by Sarreck:

I have thousands of dollars tied up on my car, my house, and my credit cards, the credit cards I pay off monthly to avoid interest. I have maybe 500 bucks in games here. No one else asks for phone numbers. The phone number is not extra security. It's so Steam can contact unsolicited and so they have something else to sell to 3rd parties. Steam is hardly the only org that sells your browsing history and email address, but they are the only one I know of that sells your phone number.

Ive had steam for 15 years.............they never contact through phone or send unsolicited calls etc.
The only time its used is verify codes
Oh and can you provide links to show me where they sell your phone number

[Sarreck]

How do you think all of the scammers who call you with fake warranty offers, or other scams get your phone number? From companies that demand you give it to them. I didn't ask the question because I didn't already know the answer. It's rhetorical and I did it to bring awareness to the creepiness. I promise you it is not necessary for security, otherwise everyone would ask for it. Credit card companies are far more worried about someone stealing your info because it costs THEM money. Steam has nothing to lose if someone steals your account. They don't insure any purchase. They do it because parties pay for the phone numbers. Maybe Steam hasn't contacted you, but I know you've got spam and scam calls in the last 15 years.

[Boblin the Goblin]

Originally posted by Sarreck:

I have thousands of dollars tied up on my car, my house, and my credit cards, the credit cards I pay off monthly to avoid interest. I have maybe 500 bucks in games here. No one else asks for phone numbers. The phone number is not extra security. It's so Steam can contact unsolicited and so they have something else to sell to 3rd parties. Steam is hardly the only org that sells your browsing history and email address, but they are the only one I know of that sells your phone number.

Nothing you said Steam does actually happens.

[Carlos100]

Originally posted by Sarreck:

How do you think all of the scammers who call you with fake warranty offers, or other scams get your phone number? From companies that demand you give it to them. I didn't ask the question because I didn't already know the answer. It's rhetorical and I did it to bring awareness to the creepiness. I promise you it is not necessary for security, otherwise everyone would ask for it. Credit card companies are far more worried about someone stealing your info because it costs THEM money. Steam has nothing to lose if someone steals your account. They don't insure any purchase. They do it because parties pay for the phone numbers. Maybe Steam hasn't contacted you, but I know you've got spam and scam calls in the last 15 years.

You are just paranoid
Ive actually had the same number i use for steam for 30 years and dont get no spam

[Sarreck]

Nothing you said Steam does actually happens. [/quote]

According to whom? Steam? There is not security benefit to needing your phone number. That leaves only the nefarious reasons left for asking for it.

[Sarreck]

[/quote]
You are just paranoid
Ive actually had the same number i use for steam for 30 years and dont get no spam [/quote]

You've never got any call trying to sell you a warranty or any other call from obvious scammers in foreign countries? I get them weekly.

[Carlos100]

Originally posted by Sarreck:

You are just paranoid
Ive actually had the same number i use for steam for 30 years and dont get no spam [/quote]

You've never got any call trying to sell you a warranty or any other call from obvious scammers in foreign countries? I get them weekly. [/quote]
Thats because other places have given out your info or you have added your number to some website at some time in your life

My landline which is not connected to steam gets spam though ...which again is because landlines are more searchable and get probed by random dialling

[Wolf Knight]

Originally posted by Sarreck:

Nothing you said Steam does actually happens.

According to whom? Steam? There is not security benefit to needing your phone number. That leaves only the nefarious reasons left for asking for it.

how paranoid are you? if you feel steam is going to sell your information, then stop using them, its that simple. you are not forced to use steam, you are not forced to buy from steam. you can buy activation keys if you want and then you dont have to give steam any of your information that you havent already given them.

I havent gotten any calls related to gaming. i get calls about car warrenty, credit card debt, etc, never got anything that would relate to steam nor gaming. I have used this number not just on steam but other gaming services, and still NOTHING.

if you want to know how they got your number, thats easy. start up a bot, have it do the dialing

1-111-111-1111
1-111-111-1112
1-111-111-1113 etc. they dont need your number, they just spam numbers and email addresses. they dont care if the person they are contacting answers or has a steam account, they just let the computer do all the work and spam multiple numbers till they get someone to take the bait.

[Sarreck]

Carlos, you may be right that some other org gave out my phone number. I can't prove who gave it out, but you can't prove Steam didn't. I can prove Steam demanded it. I can also prove that no other organization I purchase from online has asked for it. So, we'll never know how the numbers are sold, but we all know that Steam asks for it and they don't have any actual defensible reason to ask for it.

[Sarreck]

Wolf Night. You're right I don't have to use Steam. They also don't have to demand personal information they don't need. The E.U. succeeded in getting at least some privacy protection for their citizens but only after awareness and complaints were made for years. This is just a small effort to bring awareness to this disgusting practice that Steam is doing in the hopes that they stop. Unfortunately, I don't live in the E.U.

[Crashed]

Originally posted by Wolf Knight:

Originally posted by Sarreck:

According to whom? Steam? There is not security benefit to needing your phone number. That leaves only the nefarious reasons left for asking for it.

how paranoid are you? if you feel steam is going to sell your information, then stop using them, its that simple. you are not forced to use steam, you are not forced to buy from steam. you can buy activation keys if you want and then you dont have to give steam any of your information that you havent already given them.

I havent gotten any calls related to gaming. i get calls about car warrenty, credit card debt, etc, never got anything that would relate to steam nor gaming. I have used this number not just on steam but other gaming services, and still NOTHING.

if you want to know how they got your number, thats easy. start up a bot, have it do the dialing

1-111-111-1111
1-111-111-1112
1-111-111-1113 etc. they dont need your number, they just spam numbers and email addresses. they dont care if the person they are contacting answers or has a steam account, they just let the computer do all the work and spam multiple numbers till they get someone to take the bait.

Car warranty scams actually call numbers skimmed from vehicle registration databases. I once actually had warranty scams for a 1998 Honda Civic, and that was in around 2016-2018 before I sold it for $400 after buying a new car, at which point the scams increased both by phone and mail.

I would presume however that Valve treats phone numbers and addresses as strictly confidential and only releases them in the case of a court order.

[Mr. Warhead]

https://www.reddit.com/r/Steam/comments/fm3h4c/why_does_steam_require_my_phone_number_to_buy_a/

[Sarreck]

Mr Warhead, I appreciate the link but there isn't an answer there. Apparently it may have used to be optional, but it is mandatory now. I bought a game an hour ago, and am downloading it still. As of 1 hour ago, it is a required field.