Proper Identification Methods for Steam

[Nachtmahr]

Hey, so it would be great to see Steam implementing the usually usual identification methods used on other platforms, e.g. ID card verification.

Many of Steam's offerings are region-locked here in Germany, because our laws require such verification, and it is frustrating to miss many good games or hidden gems because of the lack of authentication. I do not know whether it was an official statement, but I think I have read that Steam is not willing to implement such features for whatever reasons.

This could also be a good approach to counter throwaway and trolling accounts. Some sort of account binding that restricts the creation of many accounts with the same payment providers or addresses.

Thanks in advance!

[Tito Shivan]

'ID verification' is a very document and country dependent process. I know this is specifically about the situation in Germany, but at the end of the day it's a business decision. And so far both Steam and the devs (who didn't submit their games for calification in Germany) seem to be ok with eating the bullet and losing those sales.

[Nx Machina]

Blame the developers who ignored:

Announced on 1st March 2024:

https://store.steampowered.com/news/group/4145017/view/4183351393029705362

Follow up on 14th October 2024.

https://steamcommunity.com/groups/steamworks/announcements/detail/4678768276768588864

[76561199676067268]

If it's optional and helps you with your local law stuff - Sure.
Mandatory for everyone - Hell no.

[MonkehMaster]

no thanks, not giving id for games.

[76561199540158642]

i resist even sign up with my email for things, most of the shady services on google want your email or google log in which just isn't worth it when they want to say "free" but charge you to use it.

[Nachtmahr]

I don't have a problem with it personally, especially when you create an email for the platform and keep your financial mails separated, maybe because we are used to it due to the laws. Separate registration processes for us would be good without annoying the other countries, but this would probably cost Steam too much time, money, and nerves. If Steam would at least let us activate keys, but no, they have changed this as well

[nullable]

Originally posted by Nachtmahr:

I don't have a problem with it personally, especially when you create an email for the platform and keep your financial mails separated, maybe because we are used to it due to the laws. Separate registration processes for us would be good without annoying the other countries, but this would probably cost Steam too much time, money, and nerves. If Steam would at least let us activate keys, but no, they have changed this as well

You don't see a problem with it because you don't have to do any work to make it happen. Casually dropping a couple of sentences is several orders of magnitude less work than actually implementing systems that collect data, store data, validate and verify data, all while meeting German laws.

Of course Valve isn't going to let you activate keys for products German users are restricted from buying, that would almost certainly put Valve in violation of German laws. Maybe you imagine it's completely different and not covered. Maybe you want to explain how the laws work to Valve's lawyers... I'm sure they'd love that.

[76561199411407759]

please just because your country has awful laws doesnt mean we need them too

[Gwarsbane]

Originally posted by Nachtmahr:

Hey, so it would be great to see Steam implementing the usually usual identification methods used on other platforms, e.g. ID card verification.

Many of Steam's offerings are region-locked here in Germany, because our laws require such verification, and it is frustrating to miss many good games or hidden gems because of the lack of authentication. I do not know whether it was an official statement, but I think I have read that Steam is not willing to implement such features for whatever reasons.

This could also be a good approach to counter throwaway and trolling accounts. Some sort of account binding that restricts the creation of many accounts with the same payment providers or addresses.

Thanks in advance!

Would be even better if people bothered to use the search feature and READ the 100+ other threads on a topic that people posted already. Just search Germany and see how many times this topic has been brought up just in the last year alone.

Short version, no government in their right mind would ever give a gaming company access to their government database to verify someones ID. I could send someone elses ID and they would have no idea if its legit or not. I could go to any one of a number of fake ID sites and have one made up. You can get hundreds of IDs for literally pennies on the dollar

If its mandatory, you have just killed Steam and every other online store. If its optional, then no one will bother to use it other than those who don't know its optional.

I would NEVER give my ID to Valve. I don't trust sending it over the internet, I don't trust sending a photocopy of it via the mail. I would also never go out of my way just to verify my ID to do something on Steam.

The biggest problem with your suggestion is that it would have to be mandatory for it to actually do anything, specially in Germany. Valve needs to know who is sitting at the keyboard at the time of purchase, which would require submitting the info each time. It would never be a one and done thing.

My guess the reason why there isn't one like that for Germany is because Valve figures it would cost more to set it up and maintain it then they would get for profits. They are after all a company that likes to make money. They also more then likely don't like the idea of collecting and storing that kind of personal information.


Just look what happened in the US when a few states told a certain online porn company, they had to collect peoples IDs for them to be verified to enter the site... the company just blocked those states from being able to access them. People can still get around those blocks, but the point was, they didn't want to deal with the costs or the problems that come along with doing all that. And if even one kid got in, they would have major problems and could be sued for millions or even close down by the government.

[Leonardo Da Pinchi]

Originally posted by Nachtmahr:

Hey, so it would be great to see Steam implementing the usually usual identification methods used on other platforms, e.g. ID card verification.

Many of Steam's offerings are region-locked here in Germany, because our laws require such verification, and it is frustrating to miss many good games or hidden gems because of the lack of authentication. I do not know whether it was an official statement, but I think I have read that Steam is not willing to implement such features for whatever reasons.

This could also be a good approach to counter throwaway and trolling accounts. Some sort of account binding that restricts the creation of many accounts with the same payment providers or addresses.

Thanks in advance!

While it seems like it would be a good way to allow 18+ games in regions that require this sort of identification, it also raises privacy law issues with many other nations most likely.

SK implemented a sort of "digital social security" for users to use online, where if a website/service had over X users, could demand this code to grant access to cut out bots, etc.

It...did not fare well.