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I own a legit Steam version of Don't Starve Together, and I want to play with my friends. However, they play a pirated version, because they cannot afford (or don't want to pay) the price of $15 (they said it costs that much) per 2 copies. I want to play with them, but neither do I want to gift them a $7.5 copy each, nor play a pirated version.

I plan to visit some trading web-site and buy a bunch of Don't Starve Together keys that cost just a few cents and send to my friends. However, I have read that I will risk:

  1. Getting nothing and just wasting my money (I have chargebacks for that)
  2. Getting banned on Steam (this is something I really don't want, for obvious reasons).

Is it actually possible to lose my account if I buy games in such a way?

I tried to google for it, but I didn't see any valid source, or any official answer from Steam about that: only "u gonna get banned" or "you will get scammed 100% stolen keys" with no backup.

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  • Are you including such websites as Humble Bundle, who are selling games extremely cheaply (and giving them away)? I'm not denouncing HB, just trying to broaden/narrow the question.
    – PlanetAlexanderProjects
    Jun 3, 2017 at 12:12
  • @PlanetAlexander No, I was talking about unauthorized sellers who sell Steam keys.
    – R.I.P.30.12.21Baskakov_Dmitriy
    Jun 3, 2017 at 12:37
  • Who's an unauthorized seller? Why are they unauthorized?
    – Frank
    Jun 3, 2017 at 16:12
  • @Frank Any web-site that you can find by googling for "buy Steam keys", I don't want to advertise here. Or any user who sells you a Steam key (or gift) for money.
    – R.I.P.30.12.21Baskakov_Dmitriy
    Jun 3, 2017 at 21:20
  • So, basically, you want yo know the consequences of buying a key from anyone not Steam.
    – Frank
    Jun 3, 2017 at 21:52

2 Answers 2

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You can definitely get stiffed (receiving nothing for your money), or also get your account suspended or banned. Steam has a page in their knowledge base about this includes:

Piracy or Hacking

This includes using an unauthorized ("hacked") Steam client to access Steam, attempting to register fake CD Keys or attempting to register a CD Key which has been published on the internet.

Payment Fraud

Any fraudulent credit card use, credit card chargebacks, or Paypal chargebacks (regardless of when the transaction occurred).

Redeeming Fraudulent Gifts

Never accept a gift from an unknown user. Any accounts tied to a redeemed gift from a fraudulent source may be suspended.

In short, yes you can get in trouble with Steam for doing this -- in my opinion it's worth the $15 to buy them a 2-pack rather than risk the possible account issues. Your thoughts may differ, but it's definitely a risky action to use an unknown/unofficial source for game keys.

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-4

The only risks you face are getting ripped off by the seller(not receiving a valid key) or the game being revoked eventually. This however has only happened to my knowledge, with keys that turn out to be stolen, or bought with stolen credit cards. ex.(http://steamcommunity.com/app/4920/discussions/0/846947320630475371/)

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  • 1
    So, do you claim that I do not risk to get banned on Steam? If yes, please, back your question up with some more official info.
    – R.I.P.30.12.21Baskakov_Dmitriy
    Jun 3, 2017 at 10:27
  • 1 you're buying keys which you give directly to your friends so your account is in no danger. 2 while you can theoretically be banned there are 0 documented cases of value banning people for buying keys, they have only ever removed games with stolen keys such far cry 4.
    – Slamerz
    Jun 3, 2017 at 10:29
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    I know of a couple people who have had accounts banned for using stolen keys. They tried to play the ignorance card, but the simple fact of the matter is that if you use a stolen key, you didn't buy it from Steam or an authorized Steam resaler (like Humble Bundle, etc.)
    – Tim S.
    Jun 3, 2017 at 23:11
  • Steam doesn't ban that easily. If they knew the keys were stolen the ban is justified, though. There's a difference between getting ripped off and actually stealing keys.
    – dly
    Jun 6, 2017 at 8:55
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    "Getting ripped off" means you had to buy them through unauthorized channels, meaning you already violated your Steam ToS. I've heard of quite a few people getting banned for that alone.
    – Tim S.
    Jun 7, 2017 at 19:02

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