Steam cards :: Steam Discussions

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thesorceress1 Jun 17, 2022 @ 7:53am

Steam cards

Hi everyone,just a quick question,has the steam community finding it hard to acquire steam cards in shops here in uk,i have contacted retailers and they keep giving me the run about,i rely on these cards because i don't trust steam with bank details.thanks

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Showing 1-13 of 13 comments

Cathulhu Jun 17, 2022 @ 8:12am

You don't give Steam your bank details, that's what the payment processors are for, like PayPal etc.

J4MESOX4D Jun 17, 2022 @ 8:14am

There's still a few retailers that provide them https://help.steampowered.com/en/faqs/view/5BB2-E986-A733-CF0E

nullable Jun 17, 2022 @ 8:15am

Personally I find gift cards to be way less safe and useful that my own credit cards.

If you're afraid of providing bank details, that's what a credit card is good for. And in general credit cards have much better consumer protections than debit/bank cards or gift cards.

I mean if retailers aren't carrying Steam giftcards it does limit your options. And you can either adapt or go without.

thesorceress1 Jun 17, 2022 @ 9:48am

Originally posted by Snakub Plissken:
Personally I find gift cards to be way less safe and useful that my own credit cards.

If you're afraid of providing bank details, that's what a credit card is good for. And in general credit cards have much better consumer protections than debit/bank cards or gift cards.

I mean if retailers aren't carrying Steam giftcards it does limit your options. And you can either adapt or go without.

Maybe some people don't want the debt of credit cards,how are the steam gift cards not safe?

thesorceress1 Jun 17, 2022 @ 9:51am

Originally posted by J4MESOX4D:
There's still a few retailers that provide them https://help.steampowered.com/en/faqs/view/5BB2-E986-A733-CF0E

all retailers are out,here in Scotland,i know where to get them,i just asked other people are having problems acquiring them

nullable Jun 17, 2022 @ 9:58am

Originally posted by thesorceress1:
Maybe some people don't want the debt of credit cards,how are the steam gift cards not safe?

Sure. Credit cards do seem to be a problem for some. For me they're a utility and a convenience, not a problem or a burden. It is quite possible to use CC's regularly and not be in debt or get sucked into debt. It's not a default feature of credit cards. But I'm aware my usage and habits with money don't project onto everyone. It's just an option.

As for gift cards, they can get lost, stolen or damaged. And sometimes people seem to have issues with them being activated properly. And Valve can't resolve it if wasn't, and stores seem resistant to address it. It's hard for them to know if you've used it and are trying to scam them. Issues with gift cards are fairly frequent topic you see. Issues I don't have using a CC or debit card. And users tend to get upset because everyone is trying to pass the responsibility.

No matter how you slice it consumer protections for gift cards are nil, consumer protections for your bank are OK, and protections for credit cards tend to be pretty good.

Last edited by nullable; Jun 17, 2022 @ 10:06am

crunchyfrog Jun 17, 2022 @ 10:23am

Originally posted by thesorceress1:
Originally posted by J4MESOX4D:
There's still a few retailers that provide them https://help.steampowered.com/en/faqs/view/5BB2-E986-A733-CF0E
all retailers are out,here in Scotland,i know where to get them,i just asked other people are having problems acquiring them

You have it so confused.

When you make any payment online not just here on Steam, they DO NOT store your data in a fashion that they can read. It's encrypted.

So your lack of trust is totally misplaced.

In fact, you wanting to use cards over the counter is MORE exploitable.

As for cards you have nothing to worry about anyway. In it's history there has yet to be any hack Valve have had that have revealed any usable data. There were a couple of scares where they advised people to be careful but no actual thing that you are worrying about.

I've used Steam from here in Britain for 12 years. I have over 1400 purchases on here and ZERO issues ever.

If you're still paranoid then you could even try doing what I do as a safegaurd too.

I have a bank account with a UK bank that is a straightforward current account. I have my benefits paid into it. I pay my bills and all that guff with it.

But I have ANOTHER current account with them too. I use that as a buffer. Anything I buy online, I bung the money from the first account into this second account as I need it.

Then should anything go awry, they can't steal anything as there's no money in it.

THe only chance they get to do this is if I happen to get hacked or phsihes exactly the same time as I transfer money and have yet to spend it. Which is slim to nothing.

Also do note if you use credit cards, then you have EVEN MORE protection. The Consumer Credit Act means that if you get phsihed or whatever, you simply claim it back as fraud.

Last edited by crunchyfrog; Jun 17, 2022 @ 10:25am

lolschrauber Jun 17, 2022 @ 12:24pm

Originally posted by thesorceress1:
Originally posted by Snakub Plissken:
Personally I find gift cards to be way less safe and useful that my own credit cards.

If you're afraid of providing bank details, that's what a credit card is good for. And in general credit cards have much better consumer protections than debit/bank cards or gift cards.

I mean if retailers aren't carrying Steam giftcards it does limit your options. And you can either adapt or go without.
Maybe some people don't want the debt of credit cards,how are the steam gift cards not safe?

You can go in debt without Credit cards. You can also not go in debt with Credit cards. It's about managing your money. If you can't Do that, then you really shouldn't get one.

thesorceress1 Jun 20, 2022 @ 9:00am

Originally posted by crunchyfrog:
Originally posted by thesorceress1:
all retailers are out,here in Scotland,i know where to get them,i just asked other people are having problems acquiring them
You have it so confused.

When you make any payment online not just here on Steam, they DO NOT store your data in a fashion that they can read. It's encrypted.

So your lack of trust is totally misplaced.

In fact, you wanting to use cards over the counter is MORE exploitable.

As for cards you have nothing to worry about anyway. In it's history there has yet to be any hack Valve have had that have revealed any usable data. There were a couple of scares where they advised people to be careful but no actual thing that you are worrying about.

I've used Steam from here in Britain for 12 years. I have over 1400 purchases on here and ZERO issues ever.

If you're still paranoid then you could even try doing what I do as a safegaurd too.

I have a bank account with a UK bank that is a straightforward current account. I have my benefits paid into it. I pay my bills and all that guff with it.

But I have ANOTHER current account with them too. I use that as a buffer. Anything I buy online, I bung the money from the first account into this second account as I need it.

Then should anything go awry, they can't steal anything as there's no money in it.

THe only chance they get to do this is if I happen to get hacked or phsihes exactly the same time as I transfer money and have yet to spend it. Which is slim to nothing.

Also do note if you use credit cards, then you have EVEN MORE protection. The Consumer Credit Act means that if you get phsihed or whatever, you simply claim it back as fraud.