RTX 5090 for $1,199? Amazon has a major seller vetting problem
Amazon’s seller verification is failing, and it is leading to rampant GPU scamming
Nvidia’s RTX 5090 is in short supply, and there is no shortage of gamers who want to secure an RTX 5090 for a reasonable price. It is not uncommon to see RTX 5090 GPU listings with prices $1,000 over Nvidia’s MSRP in the US. This has led to frequent scam listings on Amazon, promising RTX 5090 prices that are too good to be true.
Last night, we encountered one of these scam listings on the Official PCMR Facebook Group. A user posted about the listing, asking if Amazon messed up and if this $1699 RTX 5090 was worth buying. The user thought that they would be able to return the item and get a refund if it was a false listing. Users of the group quickly told the user that the listing was a scam, citing the seller’s strange name, “new seller” status, and lack of feedback.
Scan listings on Amazon have become all too common, especially for PC hardware. Clearly, something about Amazon’s seller vetting process is failing, as these kinds of listings show up very frequently. On the Official PCMR Facebook group, one user told the poster of this scam GPU listing, “Do yourself a favor and check who the seller is, idk how many times it’s gotta be said on here.” Clearly, this advice has to be given all too frequently.
(Image via PCMR Facebook Group)
We found another RTX 5090 scam listing on Amazon
When we became aware of the above listing, we quickly went on Amazon US to see if we could find another. Sadly, it didn’t take us long to find one. This time, it was an RTX 5090 listing with a $1,199 price tag. Once again, this GPU listing was from a “new seller” with a strange store name. Obviously, this is another scam listing. It was also for the same GPU model as the above scam listing.
Why is Amazon allowing these listings? That’s a good question. Sadly, we don’t have an answer. Is it negligence, incompetence, or just plain stupidity? Amazon is failing to do its due diligence when verifying new sellers. Buyers on the world’s largest online retailer need to check for scams. That’s a sad state of affairs.
Even outside the US, Amazon has its problems. Last month, a reviewer bought a CPU directly from Amazon, only to find a fake processor inside their box. This was a “direct from Amazon” purchase, meaning this CPU came from Amazon, not a scammer.
To avoid scams, Amazon users should purchase from trusted sellers. Alternatively, users should avoid Amazon and buy products directly from trusted PC components retailers. That way, users can completely avoid Amazon’s scam listings.
You can join the discussion on Amazon’s seller vetting problem on the OC3D Forums.
