Stewie2k had account hacked, skins stolen before Astralis match

During the high-pressure environment of Team Liquid’s 2019 StarLadder Berlin Major playoff showdown against Astralis, professional gamer Jake “Stewie2k” Yip encountered a devastating digital security incident. His Steam account was compromised at the worst possible moment, creating significant professional disruption.

This security breach occurred at one of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s most prestigious annual competitions, where Stewie2k discovered he was completely locked out of his Steam profile. The account takeover prevented any access or visibility into what transactions were occurring while he remained excluded from his own digital property.

“Absolutely no clue how this security violation occurred,” Stewie2k expressed through social media channels.

He immediately contacted CS:GO’s official support channels via Twitter, seeking assistance for the compromised account he could no longer control. Fortunately, Steam’s customer service team acted promptly. Despite regaining access, Stewie2k soon identified the financial damage.

“Grateful for the rapid account restoration. The attacker successfully transferred skins valued in the thousands without triggering trade restrictions, and the method remains unclear,” Stewie2k stated. “Credit to the hacker’s technical expertise in these specialized attacks. They achieved their objective.”

The gaming community on Reddit platforms quickly mobilized to analyze potential attack vectors that enabled both account compromise and asset extraction.

One prominent theory suggested SIM card swapping as the primary attack method, a technique previously used against other prominent esports competitors and streaming personalities. This approach would indicate vulnerabilities within mobile carrier security protocols rather than platform-specific weaknesses. However, community investigators questioned how this single method could facilitate such rapid skin transfers without security interventions.

“Stewie confirmed using the Authenticator application. If attackers attempt removal, it should automatically trigger trading restrictions immediately. Likely Steam’s systems experienced technical failures,” another community member analyzed.

“I experienced identical security breaches on both my Steam profiles during phone upgrades with identical numbers. Uncertain if circumvention is possible by deactivating the Authenticator while maintaining active sessions, though I frequently neglect this step. This scenario shouldn’t be feasible here, since it would require sophisticated social engineering targeting Stewie directly, which presents substantial difficulty,” a Reddit participant hypothesized.

For competitive gamers and casual players alike, implementing robust security protocols is essential. Begin with hardware authentication keys as secondary factors beyond mobile authenticators. These physical devices prevent remote SIM swap attacks by requiring physical possession for account changes.

Establish separate email accounts exclusively for gaming platforms, ensuring compromised personal emails don’t provide attack vectors. Regularly review authorized devices and active sessions through Steam’s security settings, immediately revoking unfamiliar entries.

Enable Steam Guard’s maximum security settings, which impose 15-day trade and market restrictions after password changes or new device authorizations. This critical delay provides recovery time before irreversible asset transfers occur.

Monitor your account’s API key permissions, as third-party services sometimes retain excessive access rights. Consider using Steam’s family view features to restrict certain transaction types if you maintain high-value inventories.

While losing valuable cosmetic items creates obvious financial consequences, even for professional competitors, the Berlin Major tournament naturally demanded primary focus once account control was restored. Team Liquid ultimately fell in their quarterfinal match against Astralis, compounding the day’s challenges for Stewie2k.

The incident underscores systemic vulnerabilities within gaming platform security models that affect players at all levels. Professional organizations now increasingly invest in cybersecurity training and dedicated support for their competitive rosters.

Platform developers have responded with enhanced security options, including more restrictive trade confirmation requirements and improved suspicious activity detection systems.

This case study demonstrates why every serious gamer should implement our comprehensive security protection strategies to prevent similar devastating losses.

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