Heartbleed: What to Do as a Gamer

New Security Hole Affects 66 Percent of Websites

By Anni Simpson on April 9, 2014 at 11:28am

Yesterday, a new security hole was leaked by security professionals now known as Heartbleed.

Heartbleed is a security hole that affects the OpenSSL cryptographic software library. Approximately 66 percent of all websites online right now were affected by the leak, which provided hackers with plaintext passwords for countless websites for financial institutions and social media websites.

While users in the gaming and technology sectors tend to laugh off leaks of this nature (due to perceptions about superior security practices), Heartbleed is actually a big deal.

You may have already changed your password for your banking and credit card companies, as well as your school or university, your Federal Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), blog, and 2014 taxes, but remember that many gaming websites (particularly ones that store your debit or credit cards to more easily purchase games) are also affected. Change your passwords for the following websites if you haven’t done so already:

• GoG.com.


• Steam.


• Battle.net.


• Origin.


• PayPal.

This list is not all inclusive. You should change any passwords that have access to your social security number, banking information, credit card information, and financial aid details. Remember to engage in safe security practices, which do include not using one identical password for all of your important, personal information.