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Steam and PC Game Account FAQ and Glossary

Most recovery mistakes start with a misread term: an account name taken for a profile name, a trade hold taken for a ban. This page defines those terms from the platforms' own help pages and sends you to the guide that fits your situation.

Jump to the glossary

Nothing on this page asks for your password, codes or card details.

On this page

Official-sourced terms

Definitions follow Steam Support and Riot help pages, and official help pages where we could read them, reviewed September 2026.

No secrets asked

We never ask for passwords, Steam Guard codes, recovery codes or API keys.

Independent

Respawnr is not affiliated with Valve, Epic Games, Blizzard Entertainment or Riot Games.

Glossary: Steam and launcher terms

Tap a term for the short version; the linked guides cover what to do about it.

Account name
What you type to sign in, not what friends see. It is fixed for life; Steam says not even its own staff can rename it.
Profile name
Display name shown to friends; changing it doesn't affect how you sign in or how Steam Support finds your account.
SteamID
The account's permanent ID number, separate from both names above; Steam says it never changes.
Steam Guard
The check after your password on an unrecognized device: an emailed code, or a 30-second code (or approval) from the Steam Mobile app's authenticator.
Recovery code
One code tied to the Mobile Authenticator, shown once when you add it; it lets you remove the authenticator if the phone is gone. Not the same as backup codes.
Backup codes
One-time codes for signing in without the app; Steam emails you each time they're generated or used.
Authorized Devices
The Steam account page listing where you're signed in, with a Sign out everywhere option for anything you don't recognize.
Trade hold
A delay, not a block: items still leave, just later. Steam says up to 15 days if the Mobile Authenticator hasn't been on for 7 days (September 2026).
Trade cooldown
A pause on trading after certain actions, such as 7 days after you cancel a held trade; Steam says Support can't lift it (September 2026).
Trade ban
Set by Steam Support for scamming; Steam says most are permanent, unlike a hold or cooldown.
VAC ban
Valve's automated anti-cheat ban on a game. Steam treats it as permanent and non-appealable, whoever was playing at the time.
Game ban
A ban set by a game's developer under its own rules, not by VAC; that developer, not Steam Support, reviews it.
Web API key
A developer key on your account that scammers ask for. Steam says it should never be shared; revoke any key you didn't create.
Steam Families
The household group that replaced Family Sharing and Family View, with adult and child roles; Steam allows up to six members (September 2026).
Steam Mobile Authenticator
The Steam Guard authenticator in the Steam Mobile app: it gives sign-in codes or approvals and confirms trades; one per account.
Explore the glossary

Pick your launcher to get the right guide

Each card opens the owner-recovery route for that platform's own support process.

Steam

Can't sign in, Steam Guard trouble or a lost email: start with Steam's Help site.

Open the guide

Epic Games

Secure your email first, then use Epic's password reset or, if the email was changed, Epic's account recovery request.

Open the guide

Battle.net

Authenticator, Restore Code and Blizzard Support routes for your own account.

Open the guide

Riot Games

VALORANT and League of Legends accounts: sign-in codes and Riot Player Support.

Open the guide

A few details worth knowing

My Steam notice says ban, hold or restriction. Which one is it?

Read the exact wording on the notice first, then match it to the glossary above: a hold delays items, a ban stops something. Then open the ban, trade-hold or trade-ban guide that matches.

Someone in chat says my account was reported. Where do I start?

Valve staff never contact you through Steam Chat or Discord. Stop replying and follow the reported-scam guide.

Can I merge two Steam accounts or move my games to a new one?

No. Steam says accounts cannot be merged and games and keys are not transferable, so recovering the original account is the only way to keep its library.

I use Epic, Battle.net or Riot, not Steam. Which guide is mine?

Pick your launcher in the cards above. Each guide follows that company's own support process. To compare their sign-in protections side by side, see the launcher comparison.

What can nobody, including Steam Support, undo?

Steam says it does not restore items that left an account through trades, market sales or gifts, does not lift trading or Market restrictions, and cannot change an account name. What it can do is verify that you own the account and help you get back in.