In the complex Counter-Strike 2 ecosystem, trading in-game items is the main feature of the community. Skins for weapons, gloves, agents and other cosmetic items serve not only to improve appearance, but also as an indicator of status among CS2 players. In this article, we will talk about the tradelock, a seven-day ban on skins when trading or selling to other gamers.

What is a tradelock in CS2?

A tradelock in CS2 is a seven-day restriction on the transfer of newly purchased skins and other cosmetic items. After seven days from the date of purchase of the item, you can safely transfer it to another user.

Why did the seven-day skin ban appear?

In its statement in March 2018, Valve said that it was introducing this restriction to ensure the safety of users, and also because some services used the Steam platform for dishonest transactions. Although the company did not provide specific details, it was likely about roulette sites and bookmakers that used skins as bets.

Did the tradelock achieve its goals?

Was the tradelock successful? Yes and no. On the one hand, many suspicious sites (especially those involved in gambling) were quickly shut down. It was probably possible to prevent some fraud on Steam. On the other hand, users still lose their skins, and they cannot always get them back. In addition, the tradelock made things more difficult for honest traders and collectors.

Is it possible to avoid the seven-day skin ban in CS2?

If you receive a new item on your Steam account, it is automatically subject to a seven-day ban. There is no legal way to bypass this restriction. We do not recommend using third-party resources to buy/sell skins, as you risk losing your items once and for all.

Ten-day masking of items in the inventory

In the latest updates, Valve made one important change that complicates the lives of traders: after a purchase or exchange, the received items will be hidden from other users for ten days. The official reasons for this decision are unknown to us. However, most likely, this innovation was made for the same purpose as the tradelock – to combat third-party resources for the sale of cosmetic items. It is also impossible to bypass this restriction by legal means.

Thus, we can conclude that Valve is actively fighting against third-party services for selling in-game items from CS2. We recommend conducting transactions exclusively in a legal way – on the Steam Marketplace.