How to keep your gaming accounts safe following all-digital future

As an all-digital future looms overhead for console gamers, users are advised to take the right precautions to ensure their gaming accounts remain safe and uncompromised.

Following Sony’s announcement last week that it would be discontinuing physical discs for PlayStation games starting in January 2028, users have become increasingly concerned at the all-digital future that awaits the next generation of game consoles.

When your entire game library becomes digital, it becomes a lot easier to lose access to these purchases should your account become compromised.

Some users have lost access to their gaming accounts spanning decades, losing thousands spent on digital games as well as other digital items that were stored in the cloud.

To avoid this happening to you, we’d recommend following a few simple steps to ensure that your Xbox, Steam, or PlayStation accounts remain safe from unauthorised parties.

1. Set up Two-Factor Authentication

One of the most important security measures you can take today is setting up Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) on your account.

Whenever you sign into an account using your email and password, Two-Factor Authentication adds a step which requires you to input a code sent either to your phone, an app, or your email address.

It means that if a hacker has access to your email and password, they won’t be able to access your account without this unique code.

• To set up Two-Factor Authentication on PS5 or PS4, head to the official PlayStation website and enable it on the 2FA webpage. You’ll be required to enter your details, and then receive a code to confirm.
• To set up Two-Factor Authentication on Xbox Series X/S or Xbox One, you need to sign into your Microsoft account and head to Security. Following this, select Manage how I sign in to prove who you are. Under Additional security and Two-step verification, choose Turn on or Turn off, then follow the instructions on-screen.
• To set up Two-Factor Authentication on Steam, download the Steam app and link up your mobile number with your Steam account. After this, use the app on your phone to scan a QR code on the website or Steam client, and follow the instructions from there. After this, you’ll be required to scan the QR code every time you want to sign in.

2. Keep passwords and other confidential information private

Be sure to keep all confidential information, such as passwords, payment information, and digital codes you’ve redeemed, private, as these details could be used by hackers to try to access your account.

Even sharing something as simple as a transaction ID could be dangerous, as hackers have used this in the past to message support and gain access to another person’s account.

3. Sign out of any shared devices

Signing into your account in places like internet cafés, shared consoles, or libraries may pose a security threat for various reasons.

For starters, forgetting to log out of these devices may lead to the next person using it to have access to your account if they were to sign in.

However, even if you remember to log out, devices not controlled by you or people you trust could lead to confidential information being stolen without your consent or knowledge.

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4. Use unique passwords for your account

Remember to use a unique password for your account that isn’t shared with any other accounts you use.

If you use the same password across multiple sites, it only takes one website to suffer a data breach, which could lead to the password being stolen by hackers. These individuals will then use this information to attempt access to other accounts, including your gaming accounts.

5. Avoid clicking on suspicious website links

As we’ve seen with popular scams such as this one for Grand Theft Auto VI, you may occasionally receive emails from unverified sources claiming to offer you a free game or another reward directly linked to your gaming activity.

These scams may claim to offer you a free game or early access to an anticipated upcoming game, and may ask for payment or your account details.

As with all internet scams, be sure to verify the sender of the email is legitimate, and don’t be afraid to reach out to a representative of the company if you think the scam may not be legitimate. And if you can’t verify this, don’t click on any links.