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# Steam Is Asking Australians To Verify They're Adults By Linking A Credit Card, Something Millions Of Australians Don't Have
- URL: https://aftermath.site/steam-is-asking-australians-to-verify-theyre-adults-by-linking-a-credit-card-something-millions-of-australians-dont-have/
- Published: 2026-09-09T23:48:43.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-09T23:48:43.000Z
- Description: Not everyone has a credit card!
- Author: Luke Plunkett
- Tags: Video Games, steam, valve, australia

Earlier this week Steam joined[ Xbox](https://news.microsoft.com/source/asia/2026/08/10/microsoft-introduces-new-age-assurance-for-app-store-users-in-australia/?ref=aftermath.site) and[ PlayStation](https://www.playstation.com/en-au/support/account/age-verification-faq/?ref=aftermath.site) in forcing Australians to verify their age before purchasing adults-only games, and like so many other age verification processes this has been implemented about as shoddily as you can expect from companies like this.

Not only are there[ concerns over privacy and data security](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-03-09/privacy-concerns-about-age-verification-r-rated-games-websites/106432440?ref=aftermath.site), but there's also the question of verification's effectiveness; some platforms’ allowance of facial ID scans, for example,[ has allowed users of any age to gain access by pretending to be...*Yakuza's* Kazuma Kiryu](https://80.lv/articles/fans-are-using-yakuza-s-kazuma-kiryu-to-bypass-age-verification?ref=aftermath.site).

In Steam's particular case, though, that won't be a problem, because unlike Xbox and PlayStation--which give users a choice of methods, including uploading (yikes) a form of government ID--Valve is currently only allowing a single form of age verification: linking a credit card to your Steam account.

Anyone trying to access an R18+ shopfront listing who doesn't have a credit card already linked to their account is being shown the message:

> Valve is required by the Age-Restricted Material App Distribution Services Code to verify that you are 18 or older before accessing mature content. If you wish to do so, please add a valid Australian credit card to your account and afterwards update the Mature Content Preferences.

I see the logic here in terms of taking a shortcut on administrative work; you have to be 18 to get a credit card, and you would have needed multiple types of government ID to get one from your bank. The problem, of course, is that not everyone has a credit card. And those who are adults and don't currently have one aren't going to suddenly go out and make a major financial decision just so they can play some R18+ games on Steam. Which is fine, you shouldn't need to go out and sign up for a credit card just to prove you're an adult on a video game shopfront!

Making matters even more confusing is that while Valve's note specifies that users need a credit card,[ Australians are reporting](https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/974419?ref=aftermath.site#comment-17884815) that some *debit* cards--particularly those from the country's four largest banks--are working while others aren't. 

[Recent statistics report that there are currently 14.7 million credit cards registered in Australia](https://moneysmart.gov.au/credit-cards/choosing-a-credit-card?ref=aftermath.site), which has a total population of around 28 million people. When you consider that [around 22 million of those are adults](https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/population/regional-population-age-and-sex/latest-release?ref=aftermath.site), that's a lot of Australians without credit cards! A big enough number to make you wonder why Valve, for all the other options' flaws, didn't at least just copy what other platforms have done.

Then again,[ half-arsing things when it comes to Australia is nothing new for Steam](https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/full-federal-court-confirms-that-valve-misled-gamers?ref=aftermath.site)!