FBI investigates Steam games containing malware, with Valve encouraging victims to assist

After a series of malware-infected Steam games surfaced in the past several years, the FBI has taken notice. On its website, it lists a series of affected titles and asks victims to submit a form with more information. Valve has also verified that the message is legitimate and suggests that gamers to assist with the investigation.

Steam games that posed a threat

FBI’s Seattle Division identified eight offenders debuting on the marketplace between May 2024 and January 2026. Most were lesser-known indie games, but nevertheless attracted enough interest to be damaging. BlockBlasters, Chemia, DashFPS, and PirateFi are among the projects that harmed players.

On the Steam subreddit, a poster shared an email from Valve concerning the investigation. Referring specifically to the now-removed DashFPS, it confirmed “cooperation with law enforcement.” The company asks that anyone who downloaded the game contact the FBI. Several gamers found the communication suspicious, since scammers often impersonate the government agency.

Often, like in the case of BlockBlasters, a game launches without incident and establishes trust with players. Then developers may later release an update containing malware or a virus. With a hidden batch script, BlockBlasters targeted cryptocurrency wallets. Its goal was to steal credentials stored on PCs to gain access. The case gained attention when a streamer lost over $30,000 during a live broadcast.

The sandbox favorite People Playground showed that even community workshops can be infiltrated by a rogue mod with a virus. In the best-case scenario, players only lose save data. Alternatively, they could see their OS obliterated or bank accounts drained.

Is Valve at fault when malware spreads?

Valve has generally been quick to delist Steam games that disguise malware following complaints. Still, it has faced criticism for failing to vet nefarious titles before they appear in the store. Adding to the problem, it's relatively inexpensive to publish a game on the marketplace. The company’s moderation teams have struggled to keep up with a growing surge of new submissions.

The FBI may request an interview after an individual submits a form or email. It’s unclear whether law enforcement outside the United States is conducting similar inquiries.