TikTok's phenomenal popularity means the platform is host to familiar issues that plague any large social media network.

Scams are rife throughout the video-sharing social site, targeting users of all ages despite the app's overwhelming popularity with a younger audience.

The latest scam doing the rounds are free Steam games or Steam games with cheats enabled, disguising malware.

So, how do you spot fake Steam games on TikTok?

Free Steam Games on TikTok? It's a Trap...

The allure of free games always has a major pull. New titles are expensive, especially AAA titles from the big-league game developers. When you factor in DLC and perhaps a game pass, you're looking at shelling out major bucks multiple times per year to keep up with gaming trends.

Of course, that's too much for many people to consider parting with, which is exactly how TikTok scams like the free Steam games propagate.

This time out, the Malwarebytes blog advises that numerous accounts are targeting Among Us, the massively popular who-dunnit-in-space multiplayer game, and Fall Guys, the cute battle royale multiplayer game.

tiktok free steam games scam accounts

The Malwarebytes team found numerous accounts advertising free access codes to both these games. Videos are uploaded showing websites displaying free downloads, free DLC, and other free content, advising users to come and download before the free period ends or they run out of free CD keys.

In reality, all of these fake websites are part of malvertising schemes designed to lure people into accepting a malicious download. After selecting the free CD key for download, users are presented with a CAPTCHA. While it looks innocuous, the CAPTCHA actually pushes malware to the device.

Searching TikTok for "free Steam games" reveals the extent of the issue, with hundreds of accounts with similar names all attempting to lure users in with the prospect of free games.

TikTok Steam Scams Are Nothing New

Fall Guys and Among Us are currently in vogue for scammers. Although Among Us doesn't cost much to buy, some people will go to any lengths to win, going as far as to download a modified "cheat" version of the game. Conversely, Fall Guys costs much more to buy new (around $20 at the time of writing) and is popular with a younger audience, many of whom won't have that much cash to splash on a game. In both cases, the scammers can find an angle.

But TikTok scams aren't new. Any popular Steam title has scammers attempting to part users from their money or use it as a backdoor into their computer.

Other TikTok gaming scams include fake skins for games like Fortnite or CS:GO, along with fake links that attempt to steal your account and its contents.

Related: TikTok Is Dangerous to Personal Privacy and Security: Here's Why

How to Stay Safe on TikTok & Avoid Steam Scams

The biggest red flag is always someone giving away something for free that normally costs tens of dollars or more. How can they afford to give away so much free stuff?

They can't is the answer.

Scammers are clever with the games they target, along with TikTok's average audience age. Given more than 25 percent of all TikTok users are under the age of 19, there's a strong chance any victim simply doesn't realize what they're getting into.

Taking a moment to talk to your kids about what they're looking at on TikTok is important, not least because there's a lot of adult content on the platform, never mind the free Steam game scams. But more specifically, opening up a dialog between you and your kids about their social media habits will foster greater understanding between everyone involved. You can drop them some handy tips on scams to look out for, how these free Steam game scams work and how to stay safe.

After all, it'll be you fixing their device or reaching into your pocket to pay someone else to sort it out.