steamdetective.com

What is SteamDetective?

SteamDetective is a free Steam OSINT (open-source intelligence) tool that runs as a userscript in Tampermonkey or Violentmonkey. Instead of opening a dozen tabs to vet a Steam profile, you install it once and it overlays reputation, ban and history data directly onto the profile page. Its stated goal is to make scammers, cheaters and alt accounts easier to spot.

What it does in practice

The tool aggregates data from over 30 sources and sorts it into three rough buckets:

• Account facts: ID2/ID3/ID64 and URL, account creation date, trade and community bans, VAC bans, and whether the account is "limited" (under $5 USD spent).
• Reputation checks: status and trust data from SteamRep (archive), Backpack.tf, Mannco.store, Marketplace.tf, STN.Trading, FirePowered, Skial, MvM Lobby, SteamHistory.net, SteamID.uk and SteamTrades.com.
• Audit tools: a group audit (every group the account belongs to, with keyword highlighting to spot patterns), a friend audit (full friends list with each friend's Backpack.tf trust score and ban status), and a Sourcebans checker that queries 20 community server networks at once.

It also auto-searches the Wayback Machine and Archive.today, and offers research links to sites like SteamDB, SteamLadder and ETF2L.

Who it suits

The clearest fit is someone doing a trade or purchase with a stranger: a quick profile check shows bans, limited-account status and third-party trust in one view. Community server admins benefit from the Sourcebans and group/friend audits when deciding whether an account is an alt. Casual traders who only want a ban check will find much of it surplus.

Trade-offs to weigh

• Userscript dependency: it needs a userscript manager, so it isn't a standalone site or extension.
• Steam API key: the friend-since date feature requires one; other features don't.
• Third-party data: reputation statuses reflect what services like Backpack.tf and SteamRep report, so gaps or stale records on those sites carry through.
• Noise: with 30+ sources, the output can be dense; the group and friend audits are most useful when you actually read the filters rather than skim.

Next step

If you mainly trade, start with the ban and limited-account fields plus Backpack.tf trust, then check the friend audit for suspicious clustering. If you run a community server, the Sourcebans checker and group audit will save the most time.

How do I install SteamDetective as a Tampermonkey userscript and run it on a Steam profile?

SteamDetective installs as a userscript: you add a userscript manager (Tampermonkey or Violentmonkey) to your browser, install the SteamDetective script into it, then open any Steam profile page, where the tool injects its data panels directly onto the profile.

Install and run

1. Install a userscript manager. Add Tampermonkey (or Violentmonkey) from your browser's official extension store. Chrome, Edge, Firefox and most Chromium browsers work; some mobile browsers do not support userscripts.
2. Get the SteamDetective script. Open SteamDetective and install its userscript from the page. Your manager will show an install confirmation screen — review the permissions and confirm.
3. Open a Steam profile. Navigate to any steamcommunity.com/id/... or /profiles/... page while logged in. The SteamDetective panels should appear on the profile itself, pulling in ban, reputation and history data from the sources it aggregates.
4. Optional: add a Steam API key. The friend audit's "friend-since" dates require a Steam API key, which you obtain from Steam's developer portal and enter where the tool asks. Without it, the rest of the friend list still works but lacks that date.

What to expect in practice

The tool layers several audits onto the profile: trade and community bans, VAC bans, limited-account status, group and friend audits, a Sourcebans check across community server networks, and reputation pulls from sites like SteamRep, Backpack.tf, Mannco.store and SteamHistory.net. For a trader vetting a counterpart, the fastest read is the ban and trust summary; for a server admin, the Sourcebans and group audit are more useful.

Decision criteria and caveats

• A clean result is not proof of legitimacy. Reputation sites have gaps, and a scammer with no reports yet looks clean. Treat the panels as signals to investigate, not verdicts.
• Third-party status can be stale. Sites like SteamRep rely on archived data, so cross-check anything decisive against the live source.
• Userscripts run with broad page access. Install only from the official source and keep the manager updated.
• Alternatives for a second opinion: SteamRep for reputation and Backpack.tf for trust and inventory context, both of which SteamDetective itself draws on.

If the panels don't appear, confirm the script is enabled in your manager and that you're on a profile page rather than the Steam store or community hub.

What do the ban and reputation statuses from SteamRep, Backpack.tf, Skial and other sources mean for a trade decision?

These statuses are other communities' judgments about a Steam account, shown together on one profile so you can weigh them before trading. None of them is a Steam-issued verdict, and each source covers a different slice of trading life, so a clean result on one does not clear an account overall.

What each source tends to tell you

• SteamRep (archive): Historically the reference point for scam reports and "caution" tags in Steam trading. SteamDetective shows archived status, so treat it as a historical record rather than a live rating.
• Backpack.tf: Built around TF2 trading. A ban there usually reflects rule-breaking in that economy; "no account" just means the trader never registered, which is common and not suspicious by itself. Its trust score and donation/premium status describe standing in that community, not honesty.
• Skial: A TF2 server community. Bans are often for server conduct (cheating, abuse) rather than trade fraud, though cheating bans are still a fair signal about the person.
• Marketplace.tf, Mannco.store, STN.Trading, FirePowered: Marketplace and bot-network statuses matter most when your trade would actually pass through those services. A ban at a marketplace you don't use is weaker evidence.
• Sourcebans networks: Community server bans, useful mostly if you play or trade within those communities.
• Steam-issued flags: Trade bans, trade probation, community bans, VAC bans and limited-account status come from Valve itself. These carry more weight than any third-party tag because they restrict what an account can do.

Turning statuses into a decision

Two habits make this more reliable. First, read why and when: an old ban with a public appeal reads differently from a fresh one. Second, match the source to the trade: if you are swapping TF2 keys, Backpack.tf and marketplace statuses are directly relevant; if you are trading CS2 items, they matter far less than Valve flags and the account's age and inventory.

A concrete scenario: someone offers a bulk trade on a five-year-old account with a clean Valve record, a Backpack.tf ban from three years ago and no SteamRep archive entry. That profile fits "was once banned in one trading community, has traded normally since" rather than "active scammer" — proceed cautiously, use a middleman or smaller first trade, and check the ban reason before committing.

For a second opinion, compare against SteamRep and Backpack.tf directly, and check the account's own Steam profile and inventory through Steam Community.

How can I use SteamDetective to spot an alt account or scammer before trading?

Use SteamDetective as a pre-trade screening step on a suspicious Steam profile, then verify anything it flags before you commit items. It is a free userscript that runs through Tampermonkey or Violentmonkey and displays data from 30+ reputation, ban and history sources directly on the profile page, so your workflow is: open the profile, read the panel, and investigate inconsistencies.

What to check first

• Account basics: creation date, limited status (under $5 spent), and trade/community/VAC bans. A very new, limited account with a valuable inventory is a classic red flag, though collectors and returning players can also fit that pattern.
• Reputation sources: SteamRep (archived status), Backpack.tf (ban status, trust, inventory value), Mannco.store, Marketplace.tf, STN.Trading, FirePowered and Skial. A ban on any one site is a prompt to ask why, not automatic proof.
• Name and URL history: SteamHistory.net and SteamID.uk show username, real-name and URL changes plus change counts. Frequent identity changes before a trade deserve a direct question.
• Group and friend audits: these list groups and friends with filters by member count, privacy, trust score and ban type. Shared groups or banned friends are circumstantial, so treat them as leads.
• Sourcebans checker: queries 20 community server networks at once. Relevant if you care about server-level cheating history rather than trading.

Spotting an alt

Look for a cluster of signals rather than one: a young account, limited status, a recently changed name or URL, and friends or groups overlapping a profile you already distrust. The friend audit's friend-since dates (which need a Steam API key) help show whether relationships are long-standing or freshly assembled. None of this proves an alt; it tells you which questions to ask and whether to walk away.

A practical pre-trade routine

1. Run the panel and note creation date, limited status and any bans.
2. Check Backpack.tf trust and SteamRep archive status.
3. Scan name/URL history for recent churn.
4. If anything is odd, ask the trader directly and compare answers with the evidence.
5. For high-value trades, cross-check inventory and account age on SteamDB or SteamLadder.

The trade-off is noise: aggregated flags from many sources produce false positives, so use SteamDetective to prioritize scrutiny, not to auto-reject. If a profile is clean but the deal terms are rushed or off-platform, trust your judgment over the panel.

How do I use the group audit and friend audit tools to investigate a suspicious account?

SteamDetective's group and friend audits are the two features that turn a single profile check into a network check. Both run as part of a Tampermonkey/Violentmonkey userscript, so the data appears directly on the Steam profile you are viewing rather than in a separate dashboard.

Group audit: look for pattern and fit

The group audit lists every group the account belongs to, lets you search by name, and filters by member count or public/private status. It also highlights common keywords across group names.

Use it when a profile looks plausible but the group list feels off. A trader with a thin inventory who sits in several small, private "trade" groups with overlapping names is a different signal than someone in a handful of large public communities. Keyword highlighting is the fastest way to see repetition: if many group names share the same word, that pattern is often more informative than any single group. Filtering by member count helps you separate mass-joined public groups from small invite-only ones. Treat all of this as lead generation, not proof—shared group membership alone says little, because legitimate communities are also small and private.

Friend audit: check the company an account keeps

The friend audit lists the account's full friends list and shows each friend's Backpack.tf trust score and ban status, plus a friend-since date when a Steam API key is configured. You can search by name and filter by trust, ban type or custom URL.

The practical move is to sort for the extremes. A cluster of friends with bans or very low trust is worth a closer look, and so is a friends list where many accounts were added on the same day—that can indicate a network of alts or a bought list. The friend-since dates are the most useful column here, so the API key is worth setting up before you rely on this audit. As with groups, a banned friend is a weak signal on its own; plenty of ordinary players have one questionable contact.

A workable sequence

1. Read the profile summary first: account age, trade or community bans, VAC bans, limited status.
2. Run the group audit, filter to private and small groups, and scan the keyword highlights for repetition.
3. Run the friend audit, filter by ban status and low trust, then check friend-since dates for same-day clusters.
4. Cross-check the reputation panels (SteamRep archive, Backpack.tf, SteamHistory for name and URL changes) to see whether the account has a history of renaming or relisting.
5. Confirm anything that matters on the original source before acting—for example, verify a ban claim through SteamRep rather than relying on a summary.

When the extra depth is worth it

If you are a trader vetting a high-value swap, or a community moderator triaging a report, the audits save time because they replace manual clicking through dozens of profiles. If you only need a quick ban check on a low-stakes trade, the profile summary and reputation panels are enough, and the audits add noise. One limitation to keep in mind: friend and group data reflect the account as it is now, so a scammer who has already pruned their network will look cleaner than they are.

Can SteamDetective check a player's bans across community server networks and what does the sourcebans checker show?

Yes. SteamDetective's Sourcebans checker queries the ban lists of 20 community server networks at once, so you don't have to open each network's ban page separately. For a single Steam profile, it reports each site's status, ban count and latest ban, and lets you filter results by status (active/inactive) and by ban type (temporary/permanent).

What you'd actually see

• Per-network rows: whether that community network has a record for the account, how many bans appear, and the most recent one.
• Filters: hide inactive or expired bans to focus on live restrictions, or filter to permanent bans when judging severity.
• Context alongside bans: the same profile view shows trade/community bans, VAC bans and limited-account status, so a community-server ban can be weighed against Steam-level penalties.

How to use it

A practical scenario: you're vetting someone for a traded-item deal or a community staff role. Start with Steam-level bans and account age, then run the Sourcebans check and filter to active bans. One active ban on a small server network is weak evidence; repeated active bans across several networks, paired with a young limited account, is a much stronger signal. Treat results as leads, not verdicts — ban records can be outdated, and usernames or appeals can change what they mean.

For cross-checking reputation and trade history beyond bans, the same tool aggregates data from sites such as SteamRep, Backpack.tf and SteamTrades.