Hello everyone.

 

This issue is about an iniquity of Steam Tech Support (Valve corporation). Many customers of the popular DRM platform "Steam" (http://steampowered.com) has been permanently banned with all their stuff included, without any refund. Steam support refuses to provide us any information on this issue.
In detail, what this issue is all about. Steam customers are able to trade in-game item(s) with each other, but truly is, it is unsafe to themselves. As a customers we spend a real money in this service to buy games and digital in-game items. Many of us spend A LOT of money for this, but in fact, sooner or later we could be restricted to this services. We will not be able to purchase anything, or trade items, all we can do with our account(s) is play offline games that were purchased on our accounts before the ban. So, all our in-game digital stuff that we bought earlier will be meaningless, or just will be taken by Steam tech support. Like mine stuff, was gone.
Why did this happen? That's the main issue we want to tell you about.
Some of the fraudsters, used a stolen credit cards to buy things from steam digital store, and then they sell that (stolen) stuff to other users for a lower price, or they exchange it for a stuff that were not been stolen. Or doing exact same exchange but from a stolen account. So, when the real owner of a stolen account/credit card will provide evidence to the support, that he is the real owner of account/credit card, Steam support will give his account back to him, and all his stuff that he owned, will be returned back to him. But support also will ban our account without any investigation on this issue, just like, - we kept his (just like one-two of them either, doesn't matter) stolen item(s), which means, we are the hijackers of his account, and we will be punished, and will take responsibility for that.
As a result, real owner has his item, or money on his credit card. Hijacker has our legal stuff, which we gave to him, for his stolen ones. And he probably will be not even spotted. And we have the blocked account, with no items... without our items that we bought earlier from the digital store either. All money that we have spend on all of this, just gone. All because a scammer that made us a good offer to trade with him.

All is tech support can reply to this, is
"Our records show that you received a number of items/gifts that were stolen from hijacked Steam accounts. Please refrain from accepting stolen items/gifts or the account may be permanently disabled. Valve reserves the right to refer the matter to the appropriate authorities if such activity continues."
No offense, but Steam does not provide us any tool to figure it out. Which stuff was stolen, which wasn't. It is not possible for that moment. So how could we be responsible for things, that we just can not to know.
Do you even realize how unfair we feel. We talk about real money that we've invested in Steam. Seems like they are just scamming us without any mention of any rule in Steam Subscriber Agreement (can be found at http://store.steampowered.com/subscriber_agreement) that we had violated. We use that Steam Trading System because Valve allowed community to use this system. How could their own service be illegal? I do not know which rule in SSA (Steam Subscriber Agreement) we have violated. SSA does not include a such paragraph. We just accept a request of trade from random strangers on gaming servers, while in game, like all of Steam users do. How should we know, which trade shall we accept, and which not?

So in this case, no matter when exactly, but now we have our accounts restricted/banned. All we have to do now, is a open a ticket (at support.steampowered.com) on this issue. You just have to wait for 3 days - 2 weeks (usually) for a reply. While your accounts stay restricted/banned with little to no explanations. So after a week of waiting, you will finally receive exactly the same copypasted quote (most of them can be found in example #2). Support staff always dodges simple questions, you will get nothing, except a disappointment. Truthfully, we have enough. Just take a research on this issue, you don't even realize how many customers had already been banned without any damn reason. We don't donate money here, most of us have read a Subscriber Agreement (i have read SSA twice, and i followed every rules) there is nothing about "you will get a sudden ban, with no money refund", we'd rather refrain from signing that agreement, if there was such a rule. Most of us (banned users) have invested a lot of time and money in their accounts to gain a good in-game stuff, this also brings us a lot of excitement and fun. And we do not want to lose that because tech support, which have no idea about those incidents, put to us all responsibility for scammers actions.
Please, sign that petition and feel free to share your opinion. I hope Valve employees will see this petition and take some action on this issue. We just want to justice on scammers actions. And i also hope that all of the honest customers of Steam community will take their accounts back.

 

 

 

Example #1.
That is my own story, actually. I have been blocked TWICE. First time, Nov 14, 2012, i received an alert that my account was restricted for fraudulent activity. It took me a whole month, to take my account back. They just ignored my questions, replied me with a simple "we can't help you". But then some guy form the support staff told me, that's because of some stolen "items/gifts", it took me another 20 days to explain him that i don't have any idea which items were stolen exactly. Probably these "items" goes away from person to another at game-trades. But it wasn't my happy day, so when the real owner probably take control on his account back. Their records show's them, that i got a item(s) at that moment. And took me for a scammer, because of item(s), which were received from account which was hijacked. And finally, thanks god, after a month, i got a full access to my account back, but the weird thing is – non of those in-game item(s) were taken from me. I thought they should take them back to the real owner, but no. I still have no idea what item(s) of those in mine backpack were received from hijacked account, and there is no chances to figure it out.
So now, 2 days ago (13 feb 2012) i received an alert about restricted account for fraudulent activity. I really tried to be careful, since i had received my first ban, and i have tried to trade items only with a people which gain good reputation from the community. Matter of fact, all mine items in my inventory were gone to nowhere. They took everything (tf2 70 items, dota2 450 items) from me. Trade history are good, so my account wasn't hacked. They took everything without of any explanations. I had alot of stuff that i bought earlier, ~150 key's (2.5$ each) most of those key's i have trade or have opened a lot of treasure chests. So logically, i paid for most of these digital items, items that i received by treasure chest unboxing, belongs to me, isn't?. Why would they just took everything without explanations. I contact the support, but no one haven't reply yet, it's about two day's for this moment.
I really want to take my account and items back. I investing a lot of time and money to this. Can't just let it go.

Example #2.
Here's the one of the correspondence with Steam support which i've found on the internet. I'm guessing that is explains a lot of support actions.
http://pastebin.com/s34hqu6k (taken from a steam user "MoneyHypeMike")

 

 

- We really ask to rethink your "Support Policy", which includes giving a permanent ban to people, which do not deserve it, without even of investigation on their issues. Many of people just trading a game copy to another region, and then receive a permanent restrict to their own accounts, many just trading with a random person, like it suppose to be, but finally turn as scammer just because he has a item(s) which were stolen from a hijacked accounts. How can we even expect a such things? We just do not know! We have read SSA, and document do not included a such things. So logically, all your bans that you're giving to everyone for no reason like it is a christmas day, are invalid. Scammer that been scammed some people for real money, will receive a punishment as their trading privileges will be suspend for 2 weeks, isn't? Why would you want to permanently suspend all our accounts for no reason than? And we also ask, please, cancel your mandatory waiting for a week for your reply, and dodging from our questions. Thank you.

- We also ask, dear Steam Support, please, will you remove the restrictions off the account, that were restricted for no particular reason? Like accepting a trades with a stolen item(s) from a scammers, or trading game copy's with other region/country. Or briefly, i got to say... please, will you remove restrictions, as punishment for using a official Steam Trading System? Thank you.

Best regards.