Hey! Thanks for viewing this guide.

I think we can both agree on one thing, from a trading standpoint:

Scammers are annoying.

In this guide I'll be giving you tips and info on how to prevent yourself from being scammed, plus examples of very common scams.

IF YOU ARE SCAMMED BY SOMEONE, PLEASE REMEMBER TO GET THEIR STEAM INFO, INVENTORY HISTORY, CHAT LOGS, AND ANY OTHER INFORMATION, AND SET UP A REPORT ON steamrep.com !

HOW TO GET SOMEONE'S STEAM ID:

First make sure you have URL's on in your Steam Settings.
(Steam > Settings > Interface > Check "Display Steam URL address bar when available")


Then, go to the profile of the person you're negotiating with. Usually, it will display a steamID64 (if you don't know what that is, here is what mine is: https://steamhost.cn/steamcommunity_com/profiles/76561198059560324). Copy this to your clipboard, even if it's a custom profile link.

Then go to Steam ID Finder[www.steamidfinder.com] and enter their profile URL. Then copy all of their Steam IDs. You will need this for your SteamRep Report.

I won't go into the details of filing a report since SteamRep already has information on how to do that on their site.

Before I get into talking about what kinds of scams exist, always remember:

Anyone trying to get you to give them your item without them giving you something as well is scamming you. This includes people who say they want to "check" your item or have it reviewed by "Steam Admins"

Just use your head. Scamming is about trying to catch you off-guard.

WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR WHEN DEALING WITH A POTENTIAL SCAMMER:

• Little to no hours in CS:GO (Or doesn't own CS:GO)
  
• Uses broken English, often repeats words such as man, mate, bro
  
• Has rep from other scammers or fake profiles on their profiles
  
• Has a low Steam Level
  
• Has rep from the same people on many pages
  
• Constantly insists on you giving your item to them before they trade theirs
  
• Offers items worth double-triple+ your item
  
• Does not know what your item is (Asks "trading knife?" or "Are you trading your item?")
  
• Has a private profile
  
• Keeps inventory private
  
• Claims to be a trading account while another account is their "item storage" account
  
• Gives many reasons as to why they are a trustable source (Some high-level traders have this on their profile too, so don't always take this as a reason to call someone a scammer alone)
  
• Impersonates a big Streamer, Trader, Youtuber
  
• Talks about how they were scammed on their profile or in chat
  
• Offers you currency on sites such as OPSkins or a Steam Wallet Code
  
• Adds you the moment you put up a trade or bump a trade
  
• Uses trade offer links for different accounts that are similar to the account they're using
  
• Sends you "item screenshots" from fishy websites ( metjm.com is a reliable website, however. Do not confuse that with any other fake image-sharing site!)

IF YOU EVER HAVE ANY DOUBTS ABOUT A PERSON YOU ARE TRADING WITH (Whether it be impersonation, a flat-out scammer, etc) ALWAYS REMEMBER TO CHECK THEM ON steamrep.com

There may be more than I have listed up there, currently I'm unsure. Just remember: The more red flags you have, the more likely it is that person is a scammer!

Remember:

• Always check what items are being sent before a trade goes through.
  
• Always try to use Steam Offers.
  
• Always choose a trusted middleman from SteamRep or any other validated source.
  
• Always check the middleman's Steam profile before trading to him. He might be a fake.
  
• Never sell your item for PayPal money, Steam currency, or any form of online currency.
  
• NEVER click on any links that are sent to you in steam that are not affiliated with Steam or Trading. If you are curious about the site, just search it on Google.
  
• NEVER GIVE AWAY YOUR ITEMS FOR FREE.

To gain a better idea of what you will be dealing with when you meet a scammer, here are some examples of the most common scam types.

Never fall for these!


This one is very simplistic in nature. The scammer asks the victim to trade them their item so that they can check it to make sure it's the "real thing." In some cases, they will say that a Steam Admin or Community Admin will need to see it in order to verify that it isn't a dupe.


A middleman is someone who takes both parties' items and exchanges them between each other.

Often times a scammer will ask you to select a middleman to carry out a trade. When you tell them who you are choosing to be the middleman, he has a friend set up their account to look just like the actual middleman's, and then attempts to steal your items via Steam Group Chat.

ALWAYS choose your middleman carefully and keep in constant contact during the trade! This is the easiest way to prevent a middleman scam.


Trade offers are a wonderful way to send trades to people if they happen to be away or offline. They're also wonderful for scamming people.

One common type of scam involving trade offers is the False Link Scam. Someone is offering you a Minimal Wear StatTrak AK-47 Redline for your Field Tested Gut Knife Slaughter. They send you a trade link to another profile that looks identical to the one they're currently using, and in that profile's inventory is a Battle-Scarred StatTrak AK-47 Redline.

The easiest way to avoid this scam is to Check the items you are being offered/choosing in the trade! Always be sure to inspect their wear and what they look like in-game to make sure you are receiving what your trading partner says he's giving you.


This one involves sites such as OPSkins. Basically your trading partner says that he has a certain number of credits on a site like OPSkins and will spend a certain amount of credits on there for any skins of your choosing in exchange for your knife. He sends screenshots of his credits and him purchasing the item, and once you trade your items over, he's magically off of your friends list.

NEVER trade your skins in exchange for any credits, wallet codes, or PayPal money. If you are trading for PayPal money, make sure the person you are trading with is reputable on SteamRep and in the community.


Some scammers like to impersonate the accounts of Traders, streamers, and YouTubers (And also apparently CSGOKickBack bots, as I recently learned from someone who attempted this scam on me). They claim on their profile that their accounts are the "trading accounts" of the real peoples' accounts, which they say are the "vault accounts."

If you get added by someone who is claiming to use a trading account, ask them to quickly send a friend invite from their "vault" account. If it truly is their real account, they should have nothing to hide, should they?


Phishing links are links to websites that resemble Steam or use a fake Steam Login screen. People who use these typically set up bots that send a copy-pasted message to you including the link. The goal of these scammers is to get you to enter your account login info on these sites so that the info is sent directly to the scammer so that he can gain access to your account when you're not using it.

NEVER click links sent by people through Steam. If the link sent is not from a Steam website or any other familiar website, then google the name of the site first if you are curious as to what it is.

Please note, that I have only listed methods that I have seen done on me and other people. If there are any I have left out, please tell me so I can include them!

Being scammed is just as easy as keeping yourself from being scammed. It's all about knowing what scams are currently used by scammers and never giving away your items for free.

If someone is pressuring you to give away your items, do not hesitate to remove them and report them. A legitimate trader would never ask to take your items without giving you something in return during the trade (minus middlemen and trusted PayPal traders.)

Always try to keep your items and your account as safe as possible.
Always use Steam Offers.
Always use common sense.

Good luck.