URGENT: Don't buy anything on Steam right now

[Swatter]

We will see

[Crossroads]

Saw this steam response...seem pretty casual about it.

Steam is back up and running without any known issues. As a result of a configuration change earlier today, a caching issue allowed some users to randomly see pages generated for other users for a period of less than an hour. This issue has since been resolved. We believe no unauthorized actions were allowed on accounts beyond the viewing of cached page information and no additional action is required by users.

Just woke up to read this thread. Seems the caching issues been resolved and having checked my PayPal nothing suspicious there either. But yeah, you would expect a more serious statement on their behalf. As it is this seems to be just a separate statement, and at Steampowered there's no mention of this at all on their News page.

Not a very reassuring approach...

[Huw the Poo]

OK, now I can say it: Typical Valve arrogance!

HA!

[Grim.Reaper]

Even if customers couldn't initiate a transaction on some one's account, they still had access to see other peoples information....that is still pretty serious and they have seemed to ignore that.

Will be interesting to see where it goes......maybe 10 free games to all customers:)

[FarAway Sooner]

Any security breach is a big one and needs to be taken seriously, especially given that security is an even bigger issue for Valve (a purely digital distribution channel) than for a firm like Target.  My bet is that their A Team for Corporate Communications and crisis control isn't all at the helm just yet, although a lot more of them are working today than planned to be.  The tech/security folks all got nasty pages/phone calls on Christmas Day, but the Communications types probably won't be back until Monday.

If the issue was limited to seeing the last few digits of a random users' CC, that's not as worrisome to me.  Info like that is valuable on the black market, but typically when it's downloaded from a hacked payments file, rather than manually transcribed by entry-level Nigerian hacker-sweatshop employees looking at clients' individual log-on pages.

Of course, my gift functionality isn't working this morning so I have no idea what presents I might have received from friends yesterday while I was busy with family...   

[JasonPratt]

The 10 cheapest games you don't already own on Steam for free!  >:D

[davidshq]

Guess I missed all the excited as well.

Semantics around the whole thing are interesting. BusinessDictionary defines "security breach" as

"An act from outside an organization that bypasses or contravenes security policies, practices, or procedures."

It then notes that

"A similar internal act is called security violation."

I suppose one could still argue over whether a "security violation" has to be intentional. If we assume that it does not, then this would be a "security violation." If we assume that it does require intentionality it would be neither a "security breach" nor a "security violation" - which leaves one digging for another term, which escapes me at the moment.

All that said, I think that fuller disclosure is almost always better in these situations. When you don't take time to break down what actually happened it leaves folks wondering...Panzerde offered a much better response. :)

[Grim.Reaper]

Steams side of the story....

http://www.pcgamer.com/valve-apologizes-for-steams-troubled-christmas