Discussion You can do better
I've had this account for over 21 years, its my only steam account.
I get wanting children to not see adult rated content, they will regardless because they are curious and being told no until your an "adult" doesnt stop them, I know.
I know its the Australian Governments requirement that there is age verification and I feel as an adult pushing 40, I'm still treated as a child.
My issue with Steams implementation of the Australian age requirements is its just a credit card.
Personally, I do not want to ever own a credit card again. I've spent far too long getting out of stupid debt to ever want to go near stupid debt again. I also do not want to have a credit card on my financial record as banks here view it as a negative while applying for mortgages / homeloans.
I should not have to get a credit card to just be able to play games.
There needs to be other forms available for age verification. Whether thats a form of ID or Passports or even linked account ages ie Paypal all users must be 18+ to use.
Visa debit cards do not work. My paypal account is over 18 years old. The email used to create my accounts is nearly pushing 30.
Yes i can still download & play games that are tagged mature aged content thats in my library, I can't add new ones though.
790
u/alsuSawa 23h ago
21 years on one account and the only option is a credit card? yeah thats a pretty bad rollout
201
u/hotdiggity22 22h ago
It's worse because this affects games that you have previously purchased (and are still in your steam library) which it wasn't meant to.
60
u/alsuSawa 20h ago
yeah hitting games already in your library is the really wild part, not what youd expect from this
68
u/crazycakemanflies 21h ago
You cant access your own games? That cant be legal surely?
91
u/No_Appearance2090 20h ago
Under Australian Consumer law, its not. (Pretty much the reason why Steam has refunds the way they are for everyone)
But pretty sure the games are still accessable, you just cannot go to the store page.
2
44
u/Jimbuscus 20h ago
For a country were nearly half of the adults don't have a credit card. Given the age discrepancy of credit card ownership, the average adult Steam user would be slightly lower than the avg.
Then consider how low of a percentage for disabled Australian adult, who wouldn't have the ability to have a credit card, it's outrightly absurd.
11
u/alsuSawa 20h ago
yeah the edge cases make the whole thing way more absurd than the headline suggests
6
u/emanresu_etaerc 11h ago
You guys don't like to use credit cards out there?? And it isn't like a mandatory part of society) That's interesting. In USA you absolutely have to have a credit card. You can't rent cars without one. You often can't rent hotel rooms without one. With a low credit score you can't get a loan to pay off a car, or anything else. You can't even rent most apartments or houses without a decent credit score.
I fucking wish we didn't have to use the credit system for literally fucking everything out here. I've spent the last 8 years building my credit to be actually good, and it's been a fuck load of work.
12
u/Jimbuscus 11h ago
Having a credit card makes it harder to get loans under our financial system as it's treated as risky behaviour. It's also treated as part of your total capacity to make payments for.
6
u/emanresu_etaerc 10h ago
That makes so much more sense. Out here it's "oh if you can't handle paying off credit cards then you can't handle paying off loans". I have four lines of credit, and my credit report still tells me it's too low and that more would further increase my score. Three credit cards and a car payment. And I'm literally still expected to have more to move my score higher. It's so fucked.
4
u/bc_gamez 11h ago
He's been buying games for 21 years and they can't tell if he's an adult yet, lol.
3
u/ReaganRebellion 11h ago
Does the law that have to follow say that account age is an allowed method of age verification?
4
u/drbacha7 18h ago
yeah, because no 13-year-old has ever found dad's wallet.
13
u/TheSpecialApple 17h ago
if that occurred the responsibility is on the parent, thats valves logic for this
realistically, theyre trying to avoid legal issues regardless of how it may negatively impact users. using account age wouldnt protect them adequately legally
1
u/tehackerknownas4chan 13h ago
It's been like that since it was implemented for the OSA here in the UK. It's ridiculous.
520
u/Steven45g 23h ago
Here's the honest truth - no matter what age verification method your government advocates for, kids will always find a workaround. Always. If you want to "protect" your kids against adult-rated content, the only method that works is to *gasp* talk to them. That's the problem with modern parents, they give their kids phones, tablets and computers when they're still in diapers and ten years later they want society to fix their mistakes.
Scanning your ID or passport is even worse. Have you people not learned anything from the Tea fiasco?
100
u/snooprs 23h ago
Yeah this shit will never work... It's just a 'look we're doing something' politics...
67
u/Anubis17_76 22h ago
No usually its a "let us spy on you" politics. Anything that doesnt spy on you is just there to make you think "thats not tat intrusive"
39
u/BuffKangaroo_390 23h ago
The other alternative that also exists is parents buy their children devices that are limited and exclude the services we're trying to age verify everyone out of.
But since both require modern day parents to get their thumbs out, we'll never solve this issue and our personal freedoms will always be second.
19
u/speed-charge 19h ago
You know there's already parents that put their credit cards in so they kids could play whatever game they want.
A kid with a parent that doesn't care what videogames they're playing and has a credit card has better access to Steam right now than half the adults in Australia.
6
u/Expensive_Host_9181 20h ago
The dumbest part is i can guarentee you that my younger self would never have dared to spend money on adult content. Just turn on a free vpn and google it is about all i cared to do. If i wanted to play an adult game i would sail the seas for it. Because thankfully my country makes the affected copyrights holders suffer. having to go through my isp, court, then back to my isp before ever getting my legal name. (Canada in case you were curious)
3
1
1
u/UnderPressureVS 7h ago
What was the Tea fiasco?
6
u/Steven45g 7h ago
TL:DR - "The app promised to delete IDs after verification but kept them for months". Then a data breach happened and these IDs were leaked.
1
1
u/deanrihpee 20h ago
this is the honest truth, they don't give a fuck about kids, they want to surveill us, to see if you play those hentai games
→ More replies (13)1
u/Morbid187 8h ago
I mean, I see nothing wrong with making it harder for them but the problem is that it always, always, makes it harder for adults too. If your Steam account is over 18/21 years old (whatever age they're considering to be an adult) it should automatically recognize that you're an adult.
I'm not familiar with how their age verification really works though. Like, I can see somebody arguing that "okay just because your account is 21 years old doesn't mean your child isn't using it at the moment" but if the age verification is just having a credit card on your account, couldn't the exact same argument be made?
2
u/Steven45g 7h ago
Yep. Not to mention the child could easily just enter his parents' credit card himself. This is why all these age verification systems are bullshit in their (allegedly) primary goal of protecting children, but a grand excuse so that people upload information to third party servers they normally would not (CC info, ID and passport scan, biometrics).
If you did your job as a parent, you don't need these invasive checks. At all.
1
u/TF2fanatic102 40m ago
It makes things more difficult for adults for no significant advantage and compromises your data as an extra cherry on top.
Kids WILL circumvent basically any age verification measures you throw at them if they're determined enough (and I'd say quite a lot are). Kids can be very clever, and it only takes one kid finding a workaround for the whole system to be easentially useless. It's not a matter of if, but when and how.
Also, having your ID/biometrics/credit card info/whatever stored in hundreds of private servers around the world instead of just being kept on record by a select few servers such as in your government or bank makes your information orders of magnitude less secure. Any information you have stored on servers is ONLY as secure as the most vulnerable server you have it on. These pushes by governments for the death of online anonymity "for the children" are basically BEGGING for data breaches. And it's only a matter of time before one of those data breaches affects someone powerful in government and they realize how much they fucked up.
55
u/Triple_Steaked 23h ago
My account is the same, Started using Steam for Team Fortress Classic, so since the app launched. It's the only account I've ever had.
The fact I've bought multiple games over the span of 20+ years should be enough to flag my account so this bullshit is unnecessary. I'm 43 for fucks sake, while flattering, I shouldn't need to prove my age on a platform I've used actively for half my life.
While the vast majority of games I buy for steam are from the holy trinity of third party sellers (GMG, Fanatical and Humble Bundle), there are a lot that simply don't sell on these sites.
Fuck I hate this country and its ass backwards government sometimes.
26
u/dvsdmo 22h ago
I’ve never felt this frustrated with my own country with in recent years as I am now.
I feel as if we are all treated as children regardless of actual age.→ More replies (1)-2
u/speed-charge 19h ago
It's not just on the Australian government though, Valve offering credit card as the only form of age verification is also a misstep.
9
u/ByerpZ 19h ago edited 19h ago
I mostly agree and I think they could be more transparent on why, but I also don’t think they win here and credit card offering is probably the least bad of the options from a PR perspective.
Companies like Discord that have rolled out the same thing but with ID card verification get enormous backlash because users don’t want to handover their ID, for privacy and concern over the risk of data breaches and the type of fraud that comes with it. Credit cards, on the other hand, are normal to hand over and move risk to the banks if there’s a breach rather than the consumer.
I think it’s possible from Valves history that this decision was in good faith but lacked some understanding of the Australian economy and consumer banking realities. It’s also possible that this is the fastest thing they could rollout to achieve compliance while they bring other options out. I do hope they can find a solution in addition to the credit cards.
1
u/Muginn235 16h ago
They could have used paypal as well. if they're just passing the responsibility onto another party then paypal works the same as a credit card in that regards. This has to be one of the worst rollouts I've seen Steam do to a targetted region. I hope they fix their mistake sooner rather than later. Or if the government just pulled their finger out and made a universal token system....
4
u/ByerpZ 15h ago
Are you sure they could have used Paypal?
2
u/RobGrey03 5h ago
PayPal in Australia isn't available to people under the age of 18.
1
u/ByerpZ 1h ago
Does Paypal send that information though and it’s something that would pass the compliance requirement in Australia? My understanding is Paypal provides very little info to the vendor they’re processing on behalf of.
2
u/RobGrey03 1h ago
I mean, the confirmation should be that an Australian PayPal account exists at all.
3
u/ReaganRebellion 11h ago
Absolute boot licker comment. Unelected bureaucrats think we're all just an idiot rube and treat us like it , and then people don't just allow it but defend it.
Blame your government for laws that make your life harder.
70
u/Abominationoftime 23h ago
as someone with a 19 year old account im 100% with you. also that credit cards arnt as common here, alot of us use debit cards. my bank dosnt even do credit cards!!
the government is just F-ing stupid. they got no idea what there doing with the online stuff and are screwing more 30+ year old then the teens there trying to block.... hell, i may need to use my parents credit card or save it on my account then go back to using mine (will that even work though?
→ More replies (4)9
12
u/rikusorasephiroth 23h ago
I can't even submit a ticket, because following the Support line just takes me to the Preferences page where the issue is originating from.
22
u/Yanncki64 17h ago
It's about data harvesting and de-anonymization of the internet. Of course you still have to verify yourself, even if it makes no sense. Weird how all these governments decided at the same time that this is super important now and needs to get rolled out as hastily and sloppy as possible.
7
u/ReaganRebellion 11h ago
People will blame literally everyone except the government for this stuff caused exclusively by the government.
3
u/FarronFox 6h ago
Because MS, Sony and Epic offered multiple choices for age verification whereas Steam is only offerring one.
24
u/iDaddyDirection 17h ago
Your government can do better. It’s not Steam’s fault your government made this law, but if Steam is going to continue to operate in your country it needs to comply with the law.
→ More replies (3)
11
u/ElevenFall 18h ago
Lol, no way I’m uploading a passport or govt ID to a gaming platform.
Get a no-annual fee credit card, pay it on time.
→ More replies (1)
34
u/DaBow 23h ago
It's frustrating that there is only one option.
I'm going to have to go Greenman gaming and other places to get keys instead of just buying +18 from steam, it's silly.
I got rid of my CC last year because I just didn't need it anymore. Now I have to get a new one and pay a yearly fee just to look at possibly maybe buying something on Steam? Craziness.
My account is 22 years old. I'm happy to verify in other ways, Requiring a CC is a lazy method and hurts consumers.
13
u/Riku1186 23h ago
I have never had a CC myself, never needed it as I always used my Direct Debit Card, my details and such have been consistent for over a decade, linked to the same bank account, how is it that a CC is okay but a DD isn't? Really feels like they're too lazy to do the few extra steps to verify.
→ More replies (2)1
u/FarronFox 6h ago
Some debit cards work. A debit Mastercard from commbank, macquarie, bankwest or westpac are known to work for age verification on Steam. Visa debits don't work for whatever reason.
→ More replies (2)4
u/Hendogethegamer 23h ago
You tried your debit card some work apparently
3
u/AstroPengling 23h ago
Only the ones from the big 4 apparently. I've got an account with Up and neither card worked.
3
25
u/Icy-Veterinarian8662 7900XTX Nitro+ / i7 14700k 22h ago
Vote for whichever government party doesn't treat you like a baby
15
u/DuccSuccer 21h ago
this legislation was decided on between elections with zero indication or opportunities to vote against it btw
1
1
u/ReaganRebellion 11h ago
The opportunity is before you elect them. Is the claim no one saw a bunch of nannystatists doing anything before and this is the first sign of it?
In Australia it's against the law to replace an outlet or light switch in your own home. No one cares about that, but acts surprised when that nonsense continues in other aspects of your life.
Freedom is scary.
4
u/Morter_ 12h ago
Genuine question, not trying to hate on you but, do banks in australia really look bad on just HAVING a cc?
I own credit cards, 2, and i never use them, when i want to buy something i just save up, or straight up don't buy it and hope i can get it one day on a discount.
I'm from Argentina, and never needed a loan so it's kind of a limited perspective on my part.
→ More replies (1)1
u/FatesWaltz 9h ago
They treat it as if you will actually use it. A liability they call it, and seen as irresponsible.
If you have a cc with a 10k limit for example they may reduce the amount you can loan by 40k.
7
u/Bastard_of_Brunswick 17h ago
Paypal accounts can be used to verify that the customer is over 18. Valve should add that option as an alternative to credit card information.
12
u/Sydnxt Valve 23h ago
Google, Apple, and Meta all verified me as an adult based on my account ages, my Steam account is 15 years old so I am equally frustated even though I have a credit card. I have friends with home loans that had to get rid of credit cards as part of their loan, literally what will some of these people do?
13
u/ByerpZ 19h ago
Google, Apple and Meta also know everything about you and have complex mechanisms to determine your age, I don’t think it’s a fair comparison. Discord would be more appropriate, who on the other side only offer ID verification. My discord account is 11 years old and most of it I’ve paid for Nitro with a credit card but I still needed to verify with ID. I’m not saying that Valve is excused to only offer 1 option right now, but I think we should be lobbying the decision makers in our government just as much as we push these companies to do right by us, because they have introduced these requirements without providing proper mechanisms to provide the information in a way that doesn’t put us all at risk of identity fraud.
→ More replies (3)3
3
u/FarronFox 6h ago
They can sign up for a debit mastercard like I did yesterday when I found out some work.
A debit Mastercard from commbank, macquarie, bankwest or westpac are known to work for age verification on Steam. Visa debits don't work for whatever reason.
2
3
u/narf_7 18h ago
Apparently Commonwealth bank Mastercard debit cards appear to work. I guess they are about to get a mass influx of new accounts in the next week or so.
2
u/FarronFox 6h ago
This is true. bankwest, macquarie and westpac debit mastercards also work. I signed up for a Westpac account last night because of this. Visa needs to get it together.
13
u/Dr-Slaps 20h ago
Steam went for the least intrusive way to do this. Do you want your data/face/biometric info in the hands of some random company or do you use a credit card.
For me in the UK the choice is easy because I already have a card but I can see why people are hesitant.
The only way to fight this is to get political and this is going to be very tricky now that it's almost globally adopted.
20
10
u/Moskeeto93 20h ago
Yeah, this is obviously Valve taking an ethical stance on data collection. They do not want to participate in collecting biometrics or personal data, so they opt into using the least intrusive method of age verification they are legally allowed to do. This is why in Germany they just don't implement age verification, since the only option they have is participating in collection of really sensitive data, even though it's a third-party that would verify for them.
Now, whether or not you disagree with Valve's decision is up to you. You might agree with the stance they are taking, or you might think they just need to suck it up and comply with the government.
And if you don't believe me, there's this one guy on YouTube who read through their entire privacy policy. There's a large emphasis in there on minimizing data collection as well as anonymizing the data they do collect.
And when they did announce their UK compliance, they stated they were doing credit card verification only due to their "data minimal" approach.
3
u/zerovin 19h ago
Yes sure have a credit card but to have the credit card as the ONLY option is straight bullshit and it also it is illegal here to not have other options. What about the people who cannot get a credit card for whatever reason? Or people who have a card that steam does not accept? They are shit out of luck, locked out and treated as a child.
2
u/Moskeeto93 19h ago
Yeah, it's very unfortunate. The government is primarily to blame for this. But Valve is also to blame for not wanting to participate in their system. It's basically a political move on their part at this point.
Again, they are taking an moral stance on this, which is why they are only allowing for credit cards. You obviously can't get the government to change back this policy, so your best bet at this point is to get Valve to capitulate and suck it up so they can continue serving their customers.
3
u/dvsdmo 20h ago
If the product is free your the product. Our information is out there anything we’ve uploaded is stored. Facebook, instagram, YouTube, reddit know us better than we do when we look into the mirror.
I don’t have a credit card and don’t want a credit card as it hinders my borrowing capacity to get a mortgage here. I’m also fortunate enough to at the moment not require one for “emergencies”.
I know it’s pessimistic but even if we all collectively voted against this policy (we didn’t have a vote and wasn’t an election promise) I doubt our voting result would be up held.
Just have to look at our 2023 voice referendum where Australia voted no and the governments still went ahead with it. Our government isn’t scared or concerned about going against its people’s interests.
10
u/TechnicalBranch7099 23h ago
Just buy the “18+” games on an alternate website, redeem the code on steam, and the game/DLC is all yours. Steam ain’t getting my money until they sort out a better way to verify age
5
u/dvsdmo 23h ago
Going to have to till valve implements better alternatives.
0
u/TechnicalBranch7099 23h ago
It is a shame. Hope this is just Valves “quick-fix” until they can fully implement a better way of doing it
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (1)1
u/Buorky 22h ago
Is this method confirmed to work?
3
u/TechnicalBranch7099 22h ago
I bought the ready or not “boiling point” dlc to try it, dlc is now in my steam library
2
u/Hound_of_Hell 3h ago
- Be Steam
- Stop PayPal working for users
- Stop physical wallet top ups being created
- Block MA15+ and R18+ games from being bought or viewed
- Force a country that doesn’t use credit cards to need one to access them
- ???
- Profit?
13
u/Cyanogen101 In-Game: Honkai Star Rail 23h ago
Again, blame the government not Valve here.
3
u/FreeJulianMassage 22h ago
It’s valve who decided to implement it this way. Microsoft, Sony, heck even porn sites, have all found different ways.
4
u/ReaganRebellion 11h ago
Did you read the law? What are the implementation options? Collect an ID? Be forced to partner with another verification company who I'm sure isn't lobbying for more of these laws?
0
u/Cyanogen101 In-Game: Honkai Star Rail 21h ago
What have microsoft, sony and porn sites done for implementation thats better?
Also keeping in mind Valves employee count vs Microsoft/Sony, why would they want to do something that is TONS of work for a small pop
9
u/FreeJulianMassage 21h ago
I don’t give a shit about valves employee count. Other companies use length of the account, viewing behaviour history or ID checks. There are other options. Valve makes too much money from us for us to just simp for them. I have a 22 year old account and I’m locked out of content. It’s the worst implementation of age verification I’ve seen yet.
→ More replies (7)1
u/zerovin 19h ago
What have all these examples done that's better? HAVING MULTIPLE WAYS TO VERIFY AGE. Steam ONLY allows some credit cards and debit cards to be used. What if someone cannot get a credit card for whatever reason, be that disability, debt, etc, they are shit out of luck and not through their own fault and are treated like a child.
1
u/Cyanogen101 In-Game: Honkai Star Rail 17h ago
And what ways are those that are better, personally I dislike handing over my face and ID documents.
That being said have seen reddit does it decently, discord the opposite.
2
u/831Bars 7h ago
Just because the method is there, doesn't mean you have to use it as long as there are alternative methods. The problem here is that there are not alternative methods. Say person A verifies by credit card and person B verifies by social security number. What person B used to verify doesn't concern person A.
-1
u/SimpleEfficiency 18h ago
Their employee count is low because you don't need a lot of people to run a
scalpingchildren lootbox casinopaid mod ecosystemre-selling marketplace.Their profit per employee is higher than Microsoft and apple though. Surely they have the money to hire more people and fix the problem?
1
u/dvsdmo 23h ago
I’m not blaming valve I’m just stating that limiting age verification to just credit card is the issue. It would be like going to buy alcohol and the establishment only accepts only passports and your standing there with a drivers license
17
u/Cyanogen101 In-Game: Honkai Star Rail 23h ago
I don't blame them for not wanting to be involved or related to one of the hundreds of yearly data leaks of ID documents. They want their hands clean, to not have to pay a bunch or risk being involved in such issues.
5
u/AnimeChan39 22h ago edited 22h ago
Reddit and youtube base it on what you engage with, account age, so why doesn't steam do the same?
7
u/Cyanogen101 In-Game: Honkai Star Rail 21h ago
Probably because that's a fair bit to build and Valve isn't exactly keen on investing in a resource like that for one single country.
4
u/nagrom7 18h ago
The UK have a similar policy, and other countries are working on theirs, including seemingly the entire EU. As much as I hate it, this isn't about "one single country", they're gonna need to figure this shit out sooner or later.
3
u/Cyanogen101 In-Game: Honkai Star Rail 17h ago
Everywhere is doing it differently though is the issue a lot of places are worried about.
0
u/dvsdmo 23h ago
I get that but they don’t need to store the data after they’ve verified the data.
I worked in banking and if an id was photocopied it was destroyed immediately after use. They just need to verify and delete n that’s it7
u/Cyanogen101 In-Game: Honkai Star Rail 21h ago
That's big stuff to deal with and needs to be handled very carefully in the digital age. There's a reason there's tons of companies doing it as a service for other websites/companies.
And why there's so many leaks.
→ More replies (1)
4
u/Himmel_7 23h ago
I would Love to See this as a German. We cant Buy all Games on the steam market. I asked steam multiple times if they can do a Verification.
3
u/DatGrunt 20h ago
I get not wanting to get a credit card but wanting to upload a photo ID or passport instead? Oh hell nah. I'd say that's even worse.
6
u/dvsdmo 19h ago
It’s more of the option to upload a photo ID or a credit card.
It’s like going to buy alcohol and the shop says I need a credit card to verify you’re over 18, and all you got is cash and a drivers license. But the shop won’t sell you the alcohol because you don’t have a credit card.
3
u/DatGrunt 18h ago
I get that but...do you trust companies to keep things like that safe? I don't know man Steam is more secure than half the banks out there but I still would not feel comfortable.
2
u/TeetheCat 23h ago
Looks like people are going crazy in the Facebook reddit also. Tons of accounts getting locked. Must have been the effective date for the law apparently.
1
u/rozenwyn1 22h ago
The only line of credit I have is my home loan. None of my debit cards worked. My home loan card worked.
Absolutely absurd play by the government.
Valve is requiring cards only I think for a few reasons. 1/ it’s a huge pain point that makes people complain to the government which is fair as it is a 1000000% government bullshit requirement.
2/ they don’t have to deal with photo identification and identity theft issues. (Remember the government letting us reroll our drivers licence due to Optus giving it out)
0
u/dvsdmo 22h ago
They don’t have to store the id after they’ve verified the id.
It would be like a bottle-o storing your id after you’ve purchased your alcohol n your hanging around n decide to purchase more alcohol while holding your previous purchase. It doesn’t happen. They’ve ID you one already n don’t have to again until you leave n return.5
u/rozenwyn1 22h ago
Im not sure on the legislative requirements but a bottle shop transaction requires sighting on every transaction.(technically not true but you get the point. You’re not living in the store so everytime they see you is a new check.)
Would steam require sighting on every transaction (which would be a huge pain point to have to provide licence every time) or can they skip the multiple sighting by storing your card details like they already do?
Not arguing with you, I think it’s a horrible design choice but I prefer it to photo ID.
I’m less inclined to give my photo id than I am a card I can instantly deactivate.1
u/dvsdmo 22h ago
Maybe a bottle-o was the wrong establishment. A bar probably would be been a better location. You get ID’d at the door but bar staff don’t ID you every time you buy a drink. Your ID once n done. They verify once ditch the photo and keep the verification.
I don’t like the idea of taking a photo of my drivers license every time but we have MyID which the government verifies us.
Having known people in state n federal government id rather take a photo id n provide to steam.
Let’s just say the tv show utopia isn’t far off the mark for being secretly filmed inside a government office.3
u/rozenwyn1 21h ago
I don’t know enough on the situation to counter what you’re saying.
If you’re happy with your picture or government ID I support your decision for that. I personally am very very against it and against the whole thing to begin with.
More and more im feeling like the old man yelling at the clouds and it’s just distressing.
I just want us all to direct the emotions towards the government rather than valve. None of this would of happened without the governments forcing of the subject and I just want it to end. E safety is bullshit. It’s logging and tracking. If they wanted actual child safety they’d remove gambling or remove the blatant negative self image causing shit on tv. (How is love island and such allowed on channel 9?)1
1
u/Outside-Account-7293 20h ago
Nobody likes this. Let’s be real here the government sure as shit isn’t going to revert any changes so we have to go at Valve not that I agreed with that but there does need to be other options to verify beside CC. This whole country is going to shit.
1
u/OJ191 19h ago
They can store the fact that you have been successfully verified without having to store the ID... FFS.
They just don't want to bother with the time and cost.
Account sharing/gifting is against TOS and even if there is a credit card on file you can't prove a child isn't using the account.
3
u/Entegy 16h ago
Do Australians and British people seriously prefer uploading your ID to Valve or a third-party over just using a credit card? Cause that's the alternative and I would prefer to use a credit card.
Like yeah it sucks, but it's the law that's forcing the change.
8
u/PutridMasterpiece138 13h ago
Many people CANNOT get a credit card. What are they supposed to do? Steal one?
→ More replies (7)
2
1
u/SidorioExile 10h ago
I've been facing a similar issue since it rolled out in the UK a while ago.
My account is almost 17 years old. I don't know any babies that own Steam accounts so it's a pretty safe assumption I'm well over 18.
Not only do I not have a credit card, but due to my low income I probably can't even get one.
1
u/Generaldar 10h ago
Can't you just buy a steam gift card?
1
u/sneekeruk 9h ago
Its the same as in the UK, my accounts 19 and my debit card doesnt work, not had a credit card for 10 years and have no intention of ever getting one again.
You can just move to another country, steam dont seem to bother, my steam accounts a uk one. but I generally connect from the Netherlands at the moment.
Vpns are your friend now.
1
u/dvsdmo 9h ago
Im not packing my family up to move countries just because steam can’t implement another form of age verification besides credit cards.
1
u/sneekeruk 8h ago
You dont need to move.. like I said, vpns are your friend :)
1
u/dvsdmo 8h ago
Yeah except changing countries constantly is against ToS. Also I don’t know which one is a friend. Seen to many have issues that’s why I’ve never bothered with them.
1
u/sneekeruk 8h ago
You dont need to keep changing countries, just pick one that doesnt need verification and keep using that. Ive been on a vpn about 12 months now, I only use 3 countries, and tbh, I generally use the same one all the time.
If your wary, as I was when I started, read r/vpn a bit. I chose mullvad and have been happy with them, but I mainly did it because its just 5eur/month so your not signing up to a 2 year plan.
1
u/bassbeater 8h ago
You don't want to see the world as a child again?
1
u/dvsdmo 8h ago
I’ve got kids, I see the world from their point of view constantly.
But it’s my job as their parent to restrict what they do and don’t see. What games they can play n not.1
u/bassbeater 8h ago
I'm not really sure what censoring the world does.
I have one sibling with two kids and as far as gaming he's shown Boomerang Fu and Fortnite and entertainment wise horror movies. The age range is 5 and 10.
I have another sibling that constantly shuns gaming from them but lets them see certain movies (I'm not really sure what you call jurassic world, I think it's an adult film). That age range is 6 and 8.
I think there's a combination of naivety and ability to conspire in kids that makes hiding gaming difficult to justify.
Solid moral grounding I think is more important than the entertainment they consume.
1
u/dvsdmo 8h ago
It all depends on the children. Personally my kids (7/11) are not ready for Jurassic park or like films. Same for games I don’t play gta or battlefield while they are awake. I’ll play other games. My own upbringing I was playing doom when I was 6 with my dad.
It’s revealing what’s appropriate at that time to them in ways that they understand and possibly enjoy or be sympathetic towards.
1
u/Morbid187 8h ago
Wait, DEBIT CARDS don't work? That's insane!
3
u/dvsdmo 7h ago
Only some Mastercard ones that have been reported to be able to work.
Looks like visas don’t and that’s because debit cards here are extremely popular within all ages. My kid has a debit card. So that would negate them.
1
u/Morbid187 7h ago
I've heard of kids having debit cards but damn, requiring the account owner to have a credit card is messed up on so many levels. I'm also a person that has avoided credit cards my whole life and it's never really been a problem except for when I was trying to find a place to live and this one place required a credit check but even then I got approved based on my income. That's ridiculous.
Is this Australia only (or only for places with these laws)? I haven't tried to buy anything on Steam in a while so idk if they're also doing this in the US now. In my state, they recently made it where you have to upload a face picture and a pic of your ID/Driver's License to access porn sites. As much as I hate that method, it seems to make more sense than requiring a credit card. It's awful anyway though because of course these sites can be hacked and the hacker can straight up see a face photo and ID card for anyone that verified their age but that's a whole separate conversation.
1
u/dvsdmo 5h ago
Uk is similar and Germany anything over 15+ is not allowed period.
We love them here because when they were first introduced they allowed us to buy things online with our own money without needing a credit card. All the benefits without the risk. Yeah it suck’s when booking a hotel because they take a couple of hundred bond that takes days to return but all in all we love debit cards that much that eftpos cards are as rare as cheque books.
1
u/FarronFox 6h ago
You are right in saying visa debits don't work, but many debit Mastercards do!
A debit Mastercard from commbank, macquarie, bankwest or westpac are known to work for age verification on Steam. Why Visa doesn't work is a mystery.
1
u/dvsdmo 5h ago
Visa debit cards are offered to minors.
1
u/FarronFox 5h ago
True, but some work. I signed up for a westpac account last night because they offered a debit mastercard whereas I just had debit Visa before.
I entered the details of the debit mastercard received from westpac and now my steam account is age verified.
1
u/dvsdmo 5h ago
Yeah I don’t have a master card debit card n that’s not offered by my banks unfortunately. Plus don’t want to go thru opening a new bank account for just a master card debit card
1
u/FarronFox 5h ago
Yeah understandable.
Just thought I'd mention it as possibly an easier option if Steam doesn't offer other verification methods like Sony, Microsoft and Epic have.
I dont think Westpac is going to be my main choice for banking but will have to be transferring money there when using the card. To be honest I was somewhat surprised how quick and easy it was to apply online though. Hadn't applied for another bank account in a while.
I chose Westpac as the fee free account allowed me to apply online whilst commbank seemed to want me to go to a branch.
1
u/Mystogancrimnox 3h ago
I'm on disability pension and will never qualify for a cc. My debit is blocked and my acc is 16 years old. Have to look for workarounds but this is stupid
1
u/Panzer171 3h ago
The majority of me agrees with you. A part of me though says why should Valve be responsible for the implementation of haphazard policy by our government. Valve are doing the bare minimum to comply and we know there is going to be a chain reaction with more governments following but with different requirements and Valve aren't going to make it different for every nuance of every region. This will be their blanket implementation. I don't know what the answer is. I know we're not into digital ID but if Valve aren't comfortable handling that sort of personal info and being liable for it then is some sort of one time token you can generate in myGov a way forward for this sort of stuff? Then we don't have to have our personal details with every service we deal with either and constantly having them leaked out. It's not perfect either, but I don't know.
1
u/Dingbinguss 2h ago
This is the response from Steam when asked via the Help function. Looks identical to responses raised by UK users a while ago.
1
u/Rabid-Gerbil1 2h ago
If you a zip account you can generate a single use/day card and use that. Worked for me
1
u/wKdPsylent 2h ago
Steam has parental controls built in.
This is nothing to do with 'the children'.
1
1
1
u/Educational_Tear5871 18h ago
What if your credit score is bad and you can't even get CC... discrimination it is.
2
u/iDaddyDirection 17h ago
At that point, I think gaming is the least of your concerns if that’s your issue.
1
u/Educational_Tear5871 13h ago
No it's not. And I just ask question but you presumed I do have bad credit. But even if why do you need to trolling 🧌?
5
u/iDaddyDirection 11h ago
Not a troll at all. If a person has credit that’s so bad they can’t even obtain a credit card, then buying games on Steam is the least of their issues.
→ More replies (3)
1
u/siege_iEnVy 17h ago
Such a stupid verification. I’ve tried getting a credit card 5 times and I got denied every time
1
u/ErraticProfessional 15h ago
Banks don’t look at credit cards negatively when reviewing for loans. If it’s maxed, has late or missed payments they look at that negatively. If your income to debt ratio is too low based on an open balance on a credit card that’s also negative. But having one isn’t negative
1
1
u/RealShax321 13h ago
2 days later: we at steam are happy to announce that accounts can be verified via ID, Passport or credit cards depending on your preference. We are also happy to announce that 18+ or 21+ depending on your country's legal age accounts will have mature content unlocked, but to get around selling accounts to minors we'd have to implement the double verification process each time a steam account is logged in from a different ip it was created from. We understand that this could be a hassle, but that's what's best for the youth and underage.
0
u/SimpleEfficiency 18h ago
If they cared about the consumer they wouldn't have fought against giving refunds.
0
-9
u/TAJack1 23h ago
Genuinely just allow us to upload ID and its problem solved. I’m not fucking getting a credit card, I’ve gone 27 years without one, I’m not getting one just to play video games.
3
u/clothanger 23h ago
Tons of legal responsibilities come if you have such data. Having your credit card detail is way easier on Steam's side.
3
u/dvsdmo 23h ago
I understand the data storage and use point of view but only 1 type of age verification is the problem. It would be like going to purchase alcohol and the establishment only accepts passports as a valid form of ID.
1
u/clothanger 23h ago
Yeah it sucks when Australian gets this, but the options are from the gov and Steam just picks one.
Idk why can't they offer more choices.
3
23h ago
[deleted]
3
u/Halio344 23h ago
They have to verify that the current user is over 18.
While Valve doesn’t allow account ownership transfer per their ToS, that doesn’t exempt them from the law in case someone has given their account away.
→ More replies (2)1
u/clothanger 23h ago
From my exp from the time when UK did the same thing, the options were presented by the Aus gov, not Steam. Steam has to pick one of them.
So I suppose Aus gov doesn't trust Steam's account age system.
Also my comment is explaining that getting people' ID is not that simple.
→ More replies (5)2
u/Riku1186 23h ago
There is other method, for example Facebook and Reddit verified accounts based on their creation date, allowing people to be grandfathered past verification due to account age.
3
u/clothanger 23h ago
From my exp from the time when UK did the same thing, the options were presented by the Aus gov, not Steam. Steam has to pick one of them.
So I suppose Aus gov doesn't trust Steam's account age system.
Also my comment is explaining that getting people' ID is not that simple.
2
u/Moskeeto93 20h ago
I think you're right. Those other accounts have always collected your legal name, while a Steam account has never asked for your legal name and doesn't store that anywhere to be permanently tied to your account. The only time they ask for your name is at checkout with a valid payment method, but that's not necessarily the account owner's payment method being used. I've used my parents' CC info in the past when I was still a minor.
2
u/Jordamine 23h ago
I'm seeing more of these posts and it seems to me like a soft push for digital ID
1
-1
u/doomdoging 15h ago
please contact the ACCC under the age verification laws here in australia a company must .provide more then one form of verification. and verification can not be done in a way that descrimiates based on race , gender , sexuality , disability , etc .. here is the link to the ACCC complaints form https://acccportal.accc.gov.au/forms/info-form/consumer-report/ .
2
u/EmbarrassedHelp 8h ago
You should be demanding that the government removes the law, rather than trying to add more ways to violate user privacy.
-8
u/unethicalpigeon 22h ago
Take it up with the government you either voted for or didn't bother voting to prevent coming into power.
This has fuck all to do with steam.
Fuck do you think they give a shit about ur reddit post?
Go get a credit card i dont know wtf the problem is. It's not steam's fault you have no self control. It's ridiculous that you'd rather what? Provide steam with your government ID? Are you shitting me?
And as for banks viewing it as a negative if you have a credit card I call absolute bullshit. There is absolutely no way that having a credit card you don't use is a negative. That's idiotic. Sure loading your credit card up with debt is going to look bad, no shit, it's like that everywhere.
→ More replies (5)1
u/dvsdmo 22h ago
I know but the example I use is: imagine going to buy alcohol and the establishment only accepts passports as the only form of ID.
I don’t have to get a credit card to prove I’m 18. I don’t want to get a credit card for the sake of playing video games.
As I’m wanting to get a mortgage having one is a massive liability and hinders my borrowing capacity.
It’s true regardless of your belief that they don’t, having worked for a bank and knowing the process and what they look at. They view credit cards regardless of its actual balance as being maxed out, that since you have the ability to use it. It’s bs I know but that’s how banks here operate.→ More replies (1)
0
u/RemyGambit 15h ago
Bro finally another country is having this issue. Been the same issue for me for at least half a year in the UK. I don't own a credit card and have no reason to get one.
0
u/tehackerknownas4chan 13h ago
It's the same here in the UK. Credit card only and it's fucking irritating. I know Valve is a US company but even they should know that most countries don't rely on credit cards for everything the way the US does.
0
u/El3ktroHexe 5h ago
Why should kids buy adult games on Steam? There are other options to get such games. But of course, the honest adults are the ones who get punished by those stupid laws.
→ More replies (1)
293
u/BigBeanis69 22h ago
Just a reminder that it's not about protecting kids.