Beware of digital game download purchases from CDKEYS - my experience (2025)

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papps44 Posts: 8 Forumite

19 March 2021 at 1:30PM in Techie Stuff

I purchased a digital download key for a PC game in late November 2020 as a Christmas gift for my son from the online company CDKEYS. In late December I tried to activate the PC game through the Microsoft store but the game code was flagged as already redeemed.

I contacted CDKEY's that sold me the code and they told me to contact Microsoft. Microsoft revealed that the game had been redeemed in early December by an unknown 3rd party user with no record of the end users email address.

I passed the evidence to CDKEY's that the game code I purchased was used without my knowledge or permission. They dismissed my evidence and were adamant that the code was redeemed and that I was not entitled to any refund or a new activation game code.

I tried to go through PayPal which was the payment method but they sided with CDKEY's to my utter dismay.

To be honest I have been completely shafted by both companies. Thankfully the game only cost about £12.50 but If I had of purchased a say £50 game this would be even more enraging.

Please avoid using CDKEY's. You will be better off going through Steam.

dan958 Posts: 770 Forumite

19 March 2021 at 3:09PM edited 19 March 2021 at 3:30PM

That is grey market key sellers for you, perfectly fine 99.9% of the time, but sometimes you lose out.
underground99 Posts: 404 Forumite

21 March 2021 at 12:15AM

I've only ever had success with cdkeys.
You say you gave CDKEYs and PayPal some 'evidence' that the game code you purchased was used without your knowledge or permission. Such evidence is surely very difficult to give.
How did you prove you didn't give someone the code with your permission or let them steal it? It would seem a flawed system if I could buy a code over email in November, give it to my friend in early December for him to license his product... and then in late December go back to the place I bought it, and say hey, this code has already been used, can I have my money back now please?

What a great gift for your friend or family member that would be. They have got the product without supplying their genuine personal details, and you have got your money back.
So, in not surprised you didn't get your money back. Next time you buy a code, activate it immediately and then it will be pretty unlikely that someone else will have used it before you did.
forgotmyname Posts: 32,900 Forumite

21 March 2021 at 2:04AM edited 21 March 2021 at 2:05AM

2 plus pack game keys bought for slightly less than the basic game alone and no issues here.
Bought one in July 2018 and another in September 2018 and both still work. Activated perfectly
I did wonder how I would get on if it stopped working within 12 months or after 12 months.
I guess we need to have that in mind and only spend what you can afford to lose.

Censorship Reigns Supreme in Troll City...
A_Lert Posts: 609 Forumite

21 March 2021 at 2:34AM

Key reselling websites are a magnet to scammers and fraudsters, and the sites often turn a blind eye because they're getting their cut.
It's at the point that some game publishers now say piracy is less damaging than the key reselling.

1
forgotmyname Posts: 32,900 Forumite

21 March 2021 at 10:57PM

It's not piracy. The game I purchased sells for various prices around the world.
Selling a £60 game in a country where that is a monthly wage would be virtually impossible so they
discount the game in that region.
Piracy is less damaging? The game publisher got their golden shekel for a game I would not have otherwise
purchased. Would they prefer I had not bought the game and a 2nd copy and encouraged several others
to play the same game. So 2 or 3 full priced sales and 3 discounted sales, not sure how that is better than
piracy.
Should all sites be banned if they inform people that discounts are to be had?

Censorship Reigns Supreme in Troll City...
-1
A_Lert Posts: 609 Forumite

22 March 2021 at 6:45PM

That's not the only way cheap keys get on the reseller sites.
One common scam: Scammer gets stolen credit card, scammer buys keys, scammer resells keys and gets their money. Credit card owner reports the fraud, CC provider reverse the charge and slaps the original seller with a penalty charge or increased future processing charges. Game publisher revokes the key (which costs some money in admin work to do), innocent user loses out. Innocent user complains to game publisher support, costing publisher a bit more money. The only person making money is the scammer.
According to the developers of Factorio, the chargeback fee was 20 dollars per fraudulent key scammers bought from them using stolen cards, so that rapidly becomes thousands of dollars of costs, and they eventually claimed 40 grand in compensation from a major reselling site.

1
Peter999_2 Posts: 1,287 Forumite

22 March 2021 at 6:49PM

I've used CDKEYS for years and never had a problem, the keys have always activated fine.