How to Secure Your Gaming Accounts: A Simple Step-by-Step Checklist

Your gaming accounts hold years of progress, purchases, and memories. Losing one to a hacker is painful — and recovering it can take weeks. Fortunately, securing your accounts takes less than an hour. Follow this checklist from top to bottom.

Step 1: Secure your Google account first

Your Google account is the key to your Android phone, Google Play purchases, and often your game sign-ins. Start here.

1. Go to your Google account settings (on Android, Settings → Google → Manage your Google Account).
2. Open the Security tab.
3. Run the Security Checkup and follow its recommendations.
4. Turn on 2-Step Verification.
5. Consider setting up a passkey, which lets you sign in with your fingerprint or screen lock instead of a password.

Step 2: Use unique passwords for every account

Reusing passwords is the biggest risk. If one site is breached, attackers try the same password everywhere.

• Use a password manager such as Google Password Manager to create and store strong passwords.
• Make passwords long — a random 16+ character password or a passphrase of several random words.
• Change any password you’ve reused across multiple accounts.

Google Password Manager can also warn you if a saved password has appeared in a known data breach.

Step 3: Turn on two-step verification everywhere

Most major gaming platforms support two-step verification (2SV) or two-factor authentication (2FA), including Microsoft (Xbox and Minecraft), Epic Games, Riot Games, Supercell ID, Discord, Steam, and many others.

Choose the strongest option available:

Method	Security level
Passkey or security key	Highest
Authenticator app	High
Text message codes	Better than nothing

Step 4: Update recovery information

Make sure every account has:

• A current recovery email
• A current recovery phone number
• Security questions with answers that can’t be guessed (or random answers stored in your password manager)

Outdated recovery details are the most common reason people can’t get hacked accounts back.

Step 5: Link games to accounts, not guests

Guest accounts can’t be recovered if something goes wrong. Link every important game to an account. Our game backup guide explains how.

Step 6: Review connected apps and devices

• In your Google account, review Third-party apps & services and remove any you don’t recognize.
• In game accounts, check signed-in devices and sign out of devices you no longer use.

Step 7: Lock your phone

Use a PIN, pattern, or fingerprint lock. Anyone with your unlocked phone can access many of your accounts. Also turn on Find My Device so you can locate, lock, or erase a lost phone.

Step 8: Keep apps and Android updated

Security updates fix vulnerabilities. Turn on automatic app updates and install system updates when they arrive.

Step 9: Learn the common scams

Most account takeovers start with someone tricking the user. Read our guide on spotting mobile gaming scams and share it with younger players in your home.

What to do if your account is hacked

1. Try to sign in and change your password immediately.
2. Use the platform’s official account recovery page.
3. Contact support through the official website or app.
4. Check your linked payment methods and Google Play purchase history.
5. Secure your email account — if attackers have your email, they can reset other passwords.

Your security checklist

• ☐ Google Security Checkup completed
• ☐ Google 2-Step Verification on
• ☐ Password manager set up
• ☐ Unique passwords for every game account
• ☐ 2FA on all gaming accounts
• ☐ Recovery codes saved
• ☐ Recovery email and phone up to date
• ☐ No guest accounts for important games
• ☐ Phone screen lock and Find My Device on

Work through the list once, and your accounts will be far safer than most.