Valve kills its retail gift card program due to scammers
Summary
Valve is ending the production of its physical Steam gift cards because scammers have been abusing them. Although physical cards can still be used and sold while supplies last, new cards will no longer be made after 2026.Key Facts
- Valve started selling physical Steam gift cards in 2012 at retail stores.
- Scammers trick people into buying gift cards and sharing the security PIN, then resell these details on unofficial websites.
- Valve tried limiting redemptions and added warnings to cards, but scammers adapted and kept causing problems.
- Because of this ongoing fraud, Valve decided to stop making new physical gift cards for store sale.
- Existing gift cards can still be used and sold in stores until they run out, expected by the end of 2026.
- Physical gift cards had a strong market, with $80 million redeemed in just 11 days at the end of 2023.
- Physical gift cards are expensive for Valve to manage due to printing, shipping, and handling scam-related issues.
- Customers can still buy digital gift cards directly from Steam or use prepaid debit cards linked to an address for adding funds.
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