This Amazon scam is selling portable 16TB SSDs for less than $100 – don't fall for it
Bad actors are listing 16TB SSDs that are 'shipped from Amazon', but it's a scam
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: 16TB SSD Amazon scam
😯 A new scam on Amazon is listing 16TB portable SSDs for $100 or less
💰 Drives of this capacity would typically cost hundreds of dollars
✋ The listings say “shipped from Amazon”, but don’t be fooled
🥸 The fake drives are 64GB micro SD cards repurposed to look like a 16TB SSD drive
If you’re in the market for a new external hard drive, be wary of the latest Amazon scam.
Some nefarious individuals are selling 16TB external SSD hard drives for $69.99, and the listings even promise that the product is shipped from Amazon. It’s unclear how they’ve managed to make their way onto the retailer, but it’s easy to see how people might be tricked.
A drive of this size would typically cost hundreds of dollars – a 2TB portable SSD costs at least $130 – which makes this seem like an incredible deal at first glance.
But don’t be fooled. Review Geek decided to purchase one of the dodgy drives and it turns out, perhaps somewhat predictably, not everything is as it seems.
As Review Geek notes, these drives are worryingly easy to find on Amazon. Unheard of brands like “WIOTA”, “TRSAMAZ”, “DIZIBK”, “VAOWPUER” and “SAJIULAS” pop up when searching for portable SSDs and the only giveaway is that they use the same stock design and are listed for a stupidly low price.
I did a quick search myself and was presented with this 8TB SSD from TRSAMAZ, which was being offered among official brands like Samsung, Western Digital, and WD_Black.
What makes these scam listings even more disconcerting is that they’re often accompanied by five stars reviews – or enough positive feedback that a customer would be willing to roll the dice on the low price.
Upon closer inspection, Review Geek found that the listings’ reviews don’t match the product in question and tend to cover all sorts of different products like pillow covers and steering wheel covers.
The product I found sold by “TRSAMZ” apparently has 23 global ratings, 76% of which are five stars. However, when clicking through no five-star reviews are shown, only a damning one-star review is.
“Will delete your data. Fake storage”, the headline of a user’s review reads. “Not a real storage device?” Thankfully, two people found this 1-star review helpful and may have avoided the scam as a result.
Unsurprisingly, when Review Geek received the “16TB portable SSD”, it turned out not to be a solid-state drive or even a regular hard drive, nor was it the capacity promised. Instead, it was just a 64GB micro SD card slotted into a circuit board.
You’ve probably heard the phrase before, but if something seems too good to be true, it usually is. Paying less than $100 for a portable 16TB SSD may seem like a win, but the only one coming up trumps is the scammer who has your hard-earned money. I sincerely doubt you’d be able to get a refund or issue a return.
It’s frustrating that Amazon has allowed these listings to appear – never mind the sheer number – and it’s even more concerning that the scammers have managed to include the trusted “shipped from Amazon” label. You’d expect Amazon to crack down on these scam artists quickly and put new measures in place to prevent this situation from happening again in the future.
In the meantime, stay vigilant and remember to do your research before you checkout, even on Amazon.