So, I was searching for a high capacity rugged USB thumb drive, and now this Amazon ad keeps following me around the Internet:
Wow! A tiny form factor waterproof 512GB USB thumb drive for only $15.10? That’s a fraction of the size of a similar capacity drive from a name brand manufacturer, at less than one twentieth the price! It’s gotta be too good to be true, right?
Of course it is. It’s a scam. And it’s not the only one. Amazon’s search pages are actually stock full of ads offering high-capacity drives at literally impossible prices, and if you click through, you’ll usually find helpful reviewers warning you off… typically scattered among a bunch of scam reviewers touting a “great product!”
No, this particular scam drive isn’t shipped directly by Amazon—but this one is. And Amazon is directly advertising these fakes both on its website and in ads like the one above, making it complicit in the scam. And in so doing, Amazon is surely fooling loyal customers by lending these ripoffs the credibility of its valuable brand. Makes you wonder if you can trust any bargain you find on Amazon? And if it doesn’t, it should, because if it’s happening with USB thumb drives, it’s surely happening in many other product categories.
And no, Amazon isn’t a victim here. The company has spent kajillions developing AI designed to sell us more stuff, so it’s certainly capable of developing technology that flags impossibly priced merchandise as potential scams.
Just imagine the scandal if Walmart was found stocking its shelves with fake discount merchandise, possibly knowingly? So why isn’t this a scandal when it’s happening at America’s largest online retailer?
Anyway, consider this post a free tip to ambitious investigative journalists, attorneys general, and class action lawyers. Because my Goldy senses tell me there’s a lot more to this scam than one impossibly priced fake 512GB drive.
Amazon has been under fire for a while now for allowing counterfeit products to be hawked by third parties through their website. As for why they’re so slow to do anything about it, one assumes they have other priorities, it’s difficult to police these vendors, plus they don’t want to acknowledge a problem with their business model.
So, you’re telling us they aren’t 512GB? Or they are virus laden? Or they just don’t work? Or some kind of gift horse…?
The reviews indicate it is maybe an 8 GB device with the controller chip tweaked so that it tells the OS it is 512 GB. But if you try to put large files on it they will not be read correctly and appear corrupted (maybe only the directory entries will be copied accurately).
The selling of counterfeit products on Amazon isn’t limited to computer chips. All sorts of fake products, including beauty products, are available on Amazon. For example,
http://www.brassyapple.com/2014/08/2184.html
The problem is that you can’t trust Amazon to make sure you’re getting a real product. Caveat emptor; buy only from trusted sources, and Amazon isn’t a trustworthy source.
This bums me out. I just bought my best friend a Kindle for his birthday. Now I’m confused.
Even when Amazombies list actual real functional products if you check other sources, you will find you are paying more on amazon. Anyone who shops there is a chump. One day you are gonna wake up and miss that local vendor that you helped sink via your amazon purchases.
I don’t think of Amazon as a “source”. In most cases it isn’t. It’s primary retail business seems to be as a retail logistics company that outperforms almost all others. They provide end to end logistics and e-commerce solutions to connect consumers with products and services (mostly products). That’s not at all the same as a bricks-and-mortar retailer. So just because Wall Street insists on analyzing Amazon as a retail company doesn’t mean we should. The fact that their website “feels” like retail should be considered a success, although it isn’t perfect. As these examples ably demonstrate.
Consider limiting your selections to “ships from and sold by”.
You may not get the very lowest prices. But you can avoid this kind of disappointment.
On the other hand, I’ve been able to get some kick ass LED flashlights from China for what seem like idiot prices. About one or two out of ten differ from the descriptions in the listings. And returns haven’t been easy. But I accept that when doing business with Chinese plutocrats unaccustomed to worrying about customer satisfaction.
@6,
I always shop my local retailers and distributors first. And for many purchases I will gladly pay a local retailer or distributor a higher price in return for expertise and support. Think of Les Schwab. There are cheaper suppliers. Many with more convenient hours. But Schwab still gets a couple thousand worth of business from me every year. Still, I wouldn’t consider going into most local auto parts retailers. And not surprisingly Amazon is targeting automotive (although so far not tires).
And sure there are clearly many product categories where Amazon vendors are fleecing habitual shoppers. But that’s a pretty common retail strategy, in case you didn’t know. Most modern retail and branding strategy is built around inculcating habit among consumers. Anyone who buys out of habit, regardless of where, is a chump.