The Account Recovery Experience :: Suggestions / Ideas

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Fira 30 Jun @ 4:53am

The Account Recovery Experience

Hey,
Ran Windows/Browser updates, traded cards away, and got account flagged stolen.
I wont detail this hell, but theres few points i learned the hard way that ought to be fixed, and might save others headaches.

1. If you get logged out while talking to Support, they probably reset your password
Of course you cant know since you cant login to support site. Just trust or something.

2. The mail with new password is easily missable
It has same bland name as some other Steam mails. eg Gmail will tack it onto them.

3. Dont let website bait you into removing Authenticator
I went to re-reset it myself. Not gonna detail this mess but ultimately it went "Reset Password > Verification > Validate removing Authenticator?"
Save yourself the next two and dont.

4. Mobile App cant sign out when used as Authenticator
Which is good, but apparently it cant tell if you removed it externally. Ended up having to nuke the app data.

5. Ensure App is up to date when using Authenticator
App claimed SMS codes to reenable Authenticator were invalid until i updated it. Dont ask me...

So yea, doubt any will be fixed but if you read, i hope itll save you some future headaches...

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Showing 1-10 of 10 comments

Crazy Tiger 30 Jun @ 4:55am

What is there to be fixed exactly?

Fira 30 Jun @ 5:00am

Originally posted by Crazy Tiger:
What is there to be fixed exactly?

1 -> Critical messages like that should be sent in the notification otherwise they're useless
2 -> Critical Support actions should stand out and not be on the same level and label as "signed in with a new browser"
3 -> I can't tell you the exact flow but that just shouldn't happen at all
4 -> Mobile App should know if it's been unlinked or at least tell you about this possibility
5 -> The message shouldn't be that the SMS code isn't valid when it is

Crazy Tiger 30 Jun @ 5:03am

Originally posted by Fira:
Originally posted by Crazy Tiger:
What is there to be fixed exactly?

1 -> Critical messages like that should be sent in the notification otherwise they're useless
2 -> Critical Support actions should stand out and not be on the same level and label as "signed in with a new browser"
3 -> I can't tell you the exact flow but that just shouldn't happen at all
4 -> Mobile App should know if it's been unlinked or at least tell you about this possibility
5 -> The message shouldn't be that the SMS code isn't valid when it is

1. So you say. Account recovery is done while not logged in, so how do you get logged out?
2. Disagree, such mails in my opinion should NOT stand out, makes them vulnerable.
3. So you say, never experienced that myself.
4. sure, I can agree on that
5. If you didn't update the app, how is that anyones responsibility beside yours?

I asked it because I see quite some PEBCAK, which is fixed on the users end.

Fira 30 Jun @ 5:11am

I had acc access initially, Support reset it due to it being flagged, as I said
5 would be PEBKAC if at least the error wasn't blatantly wrong, and the app bothered to tell you about pending updates at all. Besides most of it is web based too so it's not like they can't push out notices for known bugs or breaking backend changes...
I'm not commenting on 2

Crazy Tiger 30 Jun @ 5:47am

Valve never has been a communicative company, you're asking a lot for them to notify things.

󠀡󠀡 30 Jun @ 6:19am

There's no need to fix anything. Because nothing's broken.

Fira 30 Jun @ 6:25am

Well i'm just saying, if they broke the backend and old app doesn't work, you'd expect a check to prevent people from using it at all >_> Or at the very least, the thing to say "Unknown Error" and not "SMS code is not valid"

But anyway yea to be clear ultimately i did screw up by not seeing the mail and it would be PEBKAC in that sense, but there's a bit more of context. You acc is flagged as stolen. You open a support case. Suddenly you're logged out, which pops up on all devices.

What would you do?
Look through the half dozen steam mails and notice "Recent changes to your account" has a password in it randomly?
Or try to login and reset your password so you can read the Support's message to know what's going on?

I picked the second. Ultimately the important part is that both are choices you can realistically expect people to make. This isn't a puzzle game, this is the real world, you don't design things the same.

But either way, I don't count on Valve seeing that post, that was exactly the point of it, to point out to be extra careful of stupid, overlookable things such as mails & updates in this sort of situation

Fira 30 Jun @ 6:29am

Originally posted by 󠀡󠀡:
There's no need to fix anything. Because nothing's broken.

Quick list of not-broken things:
* Account getting flagged when doing trades on the same computer / IP
* Support sending you mails you can't read
* Mobile App bricking itself if you remove the authenticator without any instructions to fix it
* Mobile App telling you that verification codes are invalid when they are not

Last edited by Fira; 30 Jun @ 6:30am

󠀡󠀡 30 Jun @ 6:37am

Originally posted by Fira:
* Support sending you mails you can't read

That appears to be a personal shortcoming rather than an actual issue ...

Fira 30 Jun @ 6:39am

Originally posted by 󠀡󠀡:
Originally posted by Fira:
* Support sending you mails you can't read
That appears to be a personal shortcoming rather than an actual issue ...

I can't read Steam Support messages without access to the account, no.

#10

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Date Posted: 30 Jun @ 4:53am

Posts: 10

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