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Steam user forum got hacked? And taken down by Valve quickly

T

The Dutch Slayer

Member
UPDATE #1:
:O:O
logandecker Logan Decker
Steam forums got hacked and messed with. Gabe Newell is advising Steam forum users to change their passwords.
Click to expand...

He is the Editor-in-Chief of PC Gamer Magazin


Sorry if old:

http://lambdageneration.com/posts/s...s-hacked-then-quickly-taken-offline-by-valve/
[edit] also reported by now gamer
http://www.nowgamer.com/news/1121839/valve_takes_steam_user_forums_offline_after_hack.html

WHaaaa?
Steam-Powered User Forums Hacked, Then Quickly Taken Offline By Valve
November 7th, 2011 · By Vic · In: General News, Media, News, Valve News 1

Breaking news, breaking news.

Apparently, the official Steam User Forums, or “SPUF”, as it is affectionately known, was hacked a few hours ago. Here, see for yourself. It was then swiftly taken down by Valve to prevent further damage or intrusion, and it is still offline. It would appear that members of the infamous gaming cheats forum Fkn0wned, or, at the very least, people affiliated with the forum, were responsible for the hack.

The information comes from a thread on Reddit. However, it seems that Fkn0wned originally denied responsibility for the hack, through these words on their main forum:

“In lights of someone crediting us for the recent breaches of steam forums, the board is offline. Fkn0wned is not responsible.”

The Fkn0wned forum has since been brought back online, and this statement can no longer be found there. Whether or not Fkn0wned really is responsible remains to be seen. We don’t know if the hackers gained access to users’ personal information, but it’s safe to say that Steam itself is completely safe and sound. And that is, unfortunately, all we know for now. We’ll keep you posted, but in the mean time, keep an eye on the Reddit thread in question.
Click to expand...
http://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/m32us/official_steam_forums_hacked_the_forums_were
 
O

Omikaru

Member
I'm glad the Steam forums and Steam accounts aren't linked. It was probably just an exploit in vBulletin that caused this.

And having experience with that forum software in the past, I know that hackers can't just get your password from it, since it's encrypted on the server, so even if you're using the same login credentials on Steam as you are the Steam forums, you should be safe.
 
N

NBtoaster

Member
sonikokaruto said:
Are these forums tied to steam accounts?

Cuz if not, the 99% are safe ;)
Click to expand...

They are not but a large number of people probably use the same passwords for each. Though the damage should be lessened by steam guard.
 
C

Card Boy

Banned
I find it hard to care. Not the worst forum, but its whine whine whine and Valve fanboyism all the time from the posters.
 
S

Silex

Member
MRORANGE said:
this is why the EA method of tying your origin account with your forum account is a stupid idea.
Click to expand...

Well, it's a little different. IIRC, EA uses their own custom system for the forums while steam forums use vBulletin.
 
D

Drkirby

Corporate Apologist
Well, at least they kept the information separate from accounts. And Steam guard will stop the bulk of the problems. Except for the people who use the same password for their email addresses on file, and have easily cracked passwords.

That is assuming they are even able to get the database of users. Looking at just what is changed, they may of just modified a few files relating to the message board.
 
R

Rebel Leader

THE POWER OF BUTTERSCOTCH BOTTOMS
I dont remember my PW for the forums, only went on there when I had steam problems.

Will change Steam PW, just in case I used a similar PW.
 
S

Stumpokapow

listen to the mad man
Omikaru said:
And having experience with that forum software in the past, I know that hackers can't just get your password from it, since it's encrypted on the server, so even if you're using the same login credentials on Steam as you are the Steam forums, you should be safe.
Click to expand...

LOL "hackers can't just get your password from it, since it's encrypted". Man, that ain't how encryption works :p
 
D

Digishine

Banned
Well thats what u get when they use vbulletin there's almost not a month to pass or they need to release a security patch..
 
H

HotHamWater

Member
Down because of spam, apparently, with some people getting emails sent to them with the same spam.

The Steam forums are currently offline.
"The Steam Forums are temporarily offline for maintenance," a message on Steampowered reads. "Your patience is appreciated."
Valve is yet to comment on the situation, but some users have reported what looks like a breach that occurred last night.
Eurogamer was contacted by one Steam user who said a group changed the text on the forum and spammed some users' email addresses.
Images, below, show the forum redesigned slightly to contain a message from FknOwned.com, a website that offers video game hacks.
And emails from Steampowered.com were sent to some users containing the following:
"Ever wanted to dominate the servers you play on with guaranteed results, but you were too afraid to cheat because of ban risks? Visit [removed domain] It's safe, secure and undetected.
"Along with hacks, we've also got some general discussion sections, hacking tutorials and tools, porn, free giveaways and much more. This site has been conditioned to meet all your needs in terms of resources so be sure to take a look and tell us what you think.
"Thanks again, the fkn0wned team."
At this stage there is no evidence to suggest that users' details have been compromised, or that Steam accounts have been breached.
The problem may only relate to the vBulletin forum software Valve uses for Steampowered. However, there may be an issue if gamers use the same username and password combination for the Steam forum as they do for Steam itself.
Eurogamer has contacted Valve for comment.
Click to expand...

Eurogamer.
 
A

amdnv

Member
jigglywiggly said:
Are my Credit Card details safe? Let's start the hysteria.
Click to expand...
The forum is completely separate from Steam itself. You have a separate user name, a separate e-mail address and a separate PW.

Also, I think that a hacked message board does not mean the hackers have access to the user passwords. Afaik, board administrators can't look up user passwords?
 
D

Derrick01

Banned
Just yesterday I was complaining to myself about having to find my other password for that place and why couldn't I just use my normal steam one.

Won't be doing that again!
 
G

Gattsu25

Banned
Using a separate log in for the forum was such a great idea. I've never signed up so, despite using steam as my primary gaming platform, I am unaffected.

Feels good to say that, after a hack.
 
B

balladofwindfishes

Member
By the look of the Eurogamer article, they probably got a lucky hook trying to phish a mod.

I'm not sure how many privacy related things they could acquire from a mod account. Emails maybe, but this seems pretty juvenile as far as hacks go.

here's the name of the Valve account they hacked
Screenshot-2011-11-07_09.50.51.png


the name changes have nothing to do with the hack though, and it's steam so it's unrelated. But it looks like they managed to get that guy's SUF account
 
S

Stumpokapow

listen to the mad man
balladofwindfishes said:
I'm not sure how many privacy related things they could acquire from a mod account. Emails maybe, but this seems pretty juvenile as far as hacks go.
Click to expand...

Well the only evidence of the hack we have so far is something that could be done from a mod account, so I'd say you might be right.
 
H

Hylian7

Member
The forums and Steam itself are separate logins, so if you aren't using the same password in both places, you'll be fine.
 
A

AbsoluteZero

Banned
Huh. I don't remember my password and my steam forums account is using a e-mail address I no longer have access to.

I did change my steam client password a few months back when the PSN stuff went down.
 
T

The Technomancer

card-carrying scientician
Whelp looks like I was one of the victims. Statement arrived this month with almost $200 extra from Steam. I've filed a support ticket, we'll see what happens.
 
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