With memory prices spiking, gamers and PC enthusiasts are jumping on RAM deals to shore up their systems before costs balloon even more next year, and scammers are taking notice.

As VideoCardz reports, one of its readers purchased four DDR5 memory kits off Amazon Spain. He resold one and installed another without any issue. The third kit, however, contained sticks of DDR or DDR2 RAM instead of DDR5, with stickers intended to hide the difference in chip design and layout. They also added a metal plate to the package to make up the weight difference.

It's not clear from the images which generation they're from, but it's definitely not recent. The DDR5 sticker was also placed on top so that they weren't viewable through the clear packaging. They don't appear to be super detailed, but would probably fool someone at first glance.

As VideoCardz suggests, this is less likely to be a case of a seller scamming a buyer, and more a previous buyer swapping legitimate DDR5 with these old sticks, resealing, and returning. The seller would have then sold it again without opening the package. That's just a guess at this point; the reader has requested a refund from the seller, who appears to be based in Ireland.

As memory prices continue to rise, these types of scams are likely to continue. Whenever you are opening a box of something expensive—particularly sensitive electronics like memory or GPUs—consider recording yourself doing so. That way, if there is any discrepancy with your order, you can prove that you didn't tinker with the box yourself.

By: DocMemory
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