Gamers beware: malicious wallpapers on Steam found stealing accounts
Malicious actors are exploiting the Steam Workshop's 'application wallpaper' feature in Wallpaper Engine to distribute malware. These infected files can steal user accounts or install crypto miners on victim systems.
Why it matters
This highlights a critical security vulnerability in community-driven content platforms that allow executable code.
Since late 2025, malware has been spreading rapidly through the Steam Workshop, the gaming platform s built-in service for players to create and share custom content. The attackers are primarily targeting gamers in China and Russia, aiming to hijack their accounts. To pull this off, they are exploiting Wallpaper Engine – a popular live wallpaper app available on Steam – specifically leveraging its Workshop sharing feature. The malware is hidden inside the wallpaper packages users share with one another. Running one of these compromised wallpapers can lead to a stolen Steam account or leave the victim s system infected with backdoors or crypto miners.
The report provides a technical warning based on security research findings.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in