Are Fake USB Storage Devices Still Around in 2022?
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- Опубліковано 20 тра 2022
- It seems like there are people who believe the passage of time will either turn these scams into truth, or make them fade away and be replaced by genuine items. The reality is sadly nothing like that. Let's take a look at the prevalence of scam USB external storage in 2022.
If you want to test a device you have bought (it should be empty of files when you test it, because the process involves writing to it), here are some utilities:
H2TestW: www.heise.de/download/product... (this is the author's page, in German, but the download button is easy to find and the application has an option to install in English)
RMPrepUSB: rmprepusb.com/ (has a 'quick size test' option)
ChipGenius: bbs.mydigit.cn/simple/?t25890.... (can identify the actual hardware, sometimes)
Fight Flash Fraud (F3): fight-flash-fraud.readthedocs...
Testing These Devices
You know the device is legitimate when it's being sold by a brand called Dgfsfgfsghferhefyhedr, which is definitely a real name and not someone mashing their keyboard!
That case must taste pretty bland without any seasoning.
My stepson fell for a scam that was claiming to be selling 2Tb external drives for £35.00. I told him it was a scam and to cancel the order. Before he could do that he had notification from eBay that they were refunding his money and the seller had been removed for fraud. This was about ten years ago.
I hate that my reaction to that brushing scam was “ooh, free chocolate!” and not your more reasonable one of “hm, this seems suspicious and unsafe”
Important word of warning that was slightly glossed over: some of these fake storage scams also come pre-loaded with a malicious payload that infects your PC on connection and in some cases bricks your OS install. As far as I remember it only affects Windows PCs so far.
Amazon really should hold their sellers to a higher standard.
The Saturday morning ritual of a lye-in, coffee and whatever random information Atomic Shrimp has uploaded for us. I love it 🤣
I've had a large amount of people that have come to me, the "computer expert" they know, with a strange USB device claiming TBs of capacity that's losing their files and wanting an explanation. And the number of those who've actually gotten angry at me and called me a liar ("oh the computer expert just doesn't want to admit they're wrong"), or an idiot ("see, look it says so right here in properties, even your computer says so") after I've explained this scam is astounding.
The chocolate had T virus in it
Hmmm, but this video is two days old... Is this still a problem we could face in the modern day???
I'm glad you mentioned that these can even sneak into B&M stores. My brother was so frustrated when he bought a "2TB drive" for $50 from a little shop in our local mall. He thought he got a good deal. Fortunately, he didn't lose any files because he double backs everything up, but he was so pissed when he realized the flash drive was just deleting the files he was trying to put on it. He did take it back to the store and they gave him a full refund. The store had just taken the item off the market because they were getting so many complaints and returns. It's one of those small curio shop type stores, so maybe they got scammed, too, unfortunately.
"I can't show you the shipping label, cause obviously that's got all my details on it"
Back in the golden era of hardware (around 2008) I was a member of the largest community of pc enthusiasts in south America. A guy who had staff privilege was a little too excited about a bargain of a 128gb USB flash drive on dealextreme. He bought it and got a fake,but denied it for years, because he was an engineer who loved to flaunt his knowledge around the website. One of the other guys who jumped in for the deal, got an USB male adapter with hot glue and some washers for weight. And it wasn't cheap either, they spent like 60usd each.
When you mentioned the "brushing scam" I just had to tell my Mom and Grandma. Every. single. time they order
The brushing part of it is kinda scary, because I always hear, read or see it to people happening but never to myself. Thanks for educating people that scammers will be scammers until the end of time.
"All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident". ~ Arthur Schopenhauer
One thing that might have been useful for those who commented on the original video saying "just buy from Amazon" or stuff like that is a section where you explain how you identify what Amazon listings are fake and how they compare with real ones. Some people lack the technical background required to intuit what is and is not suspicious.
Rubbing alcohol doesn't dissolve hot glue, it merely causes it to release its grip.
See you in like a year when more people are still convinced that cheap 2TB thumb drives are a thing. Seriously though, thanks again for making a video like this. It really sucks that it's necessary but there are always gonna be scammers I guess :(