Valve reminds you to be careful of scam sites when buying your Steam Deck

If it seems too good to be true then most likely it is.

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What you need to know

Now the Steam Deck has been generally available for a while you’d have hoped that scalping and shady reselling would be a thing of the past but that’s (sadly) not the case.

It’s obviously still enough of an issue that Valve, makers of theSteam Deck, has felt the need to put out a PSA about it and remind everyone of the only official places you can get your hands on one right now.

Hello, and happy new year! A quick note that the only official ways to purchase Steam Deck are directly from Steam (in the US, CA, EU, and UK), or from Komodo (JP, KR, TW, and HK). Steam Decks sold via any other websites or retailers are unofficial - please be careful. pic.twitter.com/hawVka9MLPJanuary 10, 2023

This issue has been brought to light byGamingonLinuxin recent weeks after popular accessory maker, JSAUX, partnered with a store that, simply put, you should not be buying a Steam Deck from (we’re not giving them any unnecessary publicity by naming them).

Reselling items isn’t illegal in a lot of locations, but it doesn’t mean it’s not worth being wary of. If you’re buying a Steam Deck then you really ought to make sure you’re getting it from the right place. Especially if you want it to turn up and not have any problems with it.

Windows Central’s take: You can never be too careful when spending your money

It seems to be a recurring theme in modern life. If there’s a hot new product there will be people out there looking to make a quick buck at your expense. Whether it’s graphics cards, the Steam Deck, or that Prime drink if it’s in high demand then someone will be trying to rip folks off somewhere.

This shouldn’t be an issue anymore. When the Steam Deck was still being sent out only to those who reserved, you would have expected tactics like this, and indeed, eBay alone was a great example of scalping at its worst.

It sucks that it’s still enough of an issue that Valve has to publicly address it. Unfortunately, it falls on us, the consumers, to take responsibility for where we spend our money. If it isn’t an official store, simply don’t click that buy link. There is no other answer.

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If it looks too good to be true, it probably is. The same applies even to Steam accounts. There are places that will sell you a Steam account, for example, and this is something you definitely shouldn’t do. Andneverdeal with anyone that isn’t Valve or one of its approved sellers and provide any of your personal information or anything relating to your Steam account. And while I’m at it, you should always make sure you have Steam Guard 2FA enabled.

Take care out there. The Internet is the wild west.

Richard Devine is a Managing Editor at Windows Central with over a decade of experience. A former Project Manager and long-term tech addict, he joined Mobile Nations in 2011 and has been found on Android Central and iMore as well as Windows Central. Currently, you’ll find him steering the site’s coverage of all manner of PC hardware and reviews. Find him on Mastodon atmstdn.social/@richdevine