hardware survey 01-Oct-23_13:05:01.95

[lx]

so i see this has been around for many years, but here i have to object again.
Steam offers a hardware survey, collecting MAC address and storage devices' serial numbers.
this can not tell, which person sent the survey, but can identify the hardware, in a very direct way.
this is the same as collecting your home address and money card number.
this can easily be connected to a person. therefore Valve is collecting classified data, in a clandestine manner.

i will not submit my "results"(thats what the button says), you have to mine it, behind my back.

[C²C^Guyver |NZB|]

So your last thread about this subject was locked and you think making another will have a different outcome?

[lx]

no ...this is not what happened... its kinda obvious, from the text

[C²C^Guyver |NZB|]

Ursprungligen skrivet av lx:

no ...this is not what happened

https://steamcommunity.com/discussions/forum/10/3004424478073993485/

It's exactly what happened.

[lx]

thank you, for digging this out

[Kargor]

Ursprungligen skrivet av lx:

so i see this has been around for many years, but here i have to object again.
Steam offers a hardware survey, collecting MAC address and storage devices' serial numbers.
this can not tell, which person sent the survey, but can identify the hardware, in a very direct way.
this is the same as collecting your home address and money card number.

Ok, so here's my MAC address: 34:97:f6:25:b2:5c (rather, "one of". It's the one of the ethernet interface on my PC that runs games, so it should be the one that Steam sees. Obviously, there are many more MAC addresses in my network -- if you want to know some more, tell me).

Now, what's my home address and money card number?

I'm not sure where to find a storage serial number; if you need that as well, tell me how to find it and I'll post it too....

[Azure Fang]

Once again:
MAC addresses are transmitted as part of normal IP networking and communication. They are effectively public information.

As to the serial number, if you accepted the servey you gave Valve explicit permission to gather this information. That said, the serial number is neither sensitive or identifiable. The literal worst somebody could do with a storage device serial number is request an RMA, and they'd have to then convince you, personally, to return the drive.

[Caduryn]

Ursprungligen skrivet av lx:

.
this is the same as collecting your home address and money card number.

wow.... this is by far the most stupid thing i read in years....

[BJWyler]

I just want to know how to get the survey. I've never had the opportunity AFAIK. Gotta bump up the number of Windows 10 users, ya know.

[Ogami]

Ursprungligen skrivet av BJWyler:

I just want to know how to get the survey. I've never had the opportunity afaik.

Its purely random. I got the survey 2 times in 11 years on Steam. Its really just a handful of users each month.

[lsdninja]

Ursprungligen skrivet av BJWyler:

I just want to know how to get the survey. I've never had the opportunity afaik.

It’s random as far as I know, but you’re competing with something like 120 million other Steam users for the privilege.

[lsdninja]

Ursprungligen skrivet av Ogami:

Its purely random. I got the survey 2 times in 11 years on Steam. Its really just a handful of users each month.

I forget what the exact number was, it’s way, way back in this thread, but you don’t need terribly many relative to the whole for a reasonable amount of accuracy.

[Ogami]

Ursprungligen skrivet av lsdninja:

I forget what the exact number was, it’s way, way back in this thread, but you don’t need terribly many relative to the whole for a reasonable amount of accuracy.

Oh i know, statistical average and so on. Really just need a few hundred each month and with 120mil active accounts its rare that someone gets selected for it.

[Azure Fang]

Ursprungligen skrivet av BJWyler:

I just want to know how to get the survey. I've never had the opportunity AFAIK. Gotta bump up the number of Windows 10 users, ya know.

You used to be able to force some of the Valve game-tied hardware surveys, and they count on the aggregate. You can try the following commands in Windows Run menu (WIN+R) one by one until the survey pops (if it pops at all):

• steam://takesurvey/1/
  
• steam://takesurvey/2/
  
• steam://takesurvey/3/
  
• steam://takesurvey/4/

[xBCxRangers]

Most will not take this bogus survey. There are likely 3 million conservatively still on Win 7 and 8, and none of Mr Newells fake surveys, will change it.

[AmsterdamHeavy]

Ursprungligen skrivet av xBCxRangers:

Most will not take this bogus survey. There are likely 3 million conservatively still on Win 7 and 8, and none of Mr Newells fake surveys, will change it.

You have 0 proof to support that statement. Meanwhile, Valve has all of this data and not even from the the hardware survey which you try so hard to malign as if statistical analysis and sample sizes arent a thing.

Now yell about "leasing","Unity" and every other non-sequitur youve spewed for the last 5 months.