Steam Game Update Reportedly Distributed Malware And Stole Money From Cancer Victim

Valve has previously implemented security measures on Steam to protect players from malware and bad actors. However, it appears another instance of malware being distributed via a Steam game update has occurred, and it may have had dire consequences for at least one player.

According to G Data, the 2D side-scrolling game BlockBlasters had an update on August 30 that included malware that can steal personal information from any PC that the game is running on. More insidiously, this malware can empty crypto wallet data, and it reportedly did so to streamer rastalandTV, who is currently battling stage 4 cancer and was hosting a charity livestream.

RastalandTV shared his story on X about losing $32,000 in creator fees after being coaxed to download the infected game on Steam. He posted a video from his stream where he noticed what happened as a cautionary tale.

Several users on X have offered to send rastlandTV funds to replace what was lost. But he’s just one victim, and it’s unclear how many other users were infected by BlockBlasters. The game is no longer listed on Steam, which appears to indicate that Valve is now aware of the issue. Third-party tracking site SteamDB has labeled the game as “suspicious.”

Earlier this year, Valve removed a game called PirateFi for also being filled with malware and issued a warning to every player that downloaded it. PirateFi players may have dodged a bullet when the game wouldn’t run. BlockBlasters players may not be as lucky, and it may mean that Steam users will have to be more wary unless Valve has a way of preventing this from happening.