Fake Ryzen Processors Being Sold on Amazon

We at eTeknix love Ryzen. The amount we have written about them in the last few months should give you some indication of that. AMD have silenced a lot of their critics with the Ryzen range proving to bridge the gap with Intel’s higher performing processors at a very attractive price. Unfortunately, where there is demand there are fakes and this is no exception. A number of reports are confirming fake Ryzen processors being sold on major website Amazon.

Fake Ryzen processors – A dream turned nightmare!

I am one of many people who will buy a Ryzen, it’s simply a case of timing and budget for when it happens. I think I would be absolutely mortified if it turned out that having bought one it turned out to be fake. Lets be honest, if you’re going to buy a fake component in a PC, you would not expect it to be a processor. Therefore fake Ryzen processors are something to be taken very seriously.

So how are they being faked? Well, ironically people seem to be using old Intel and AMD processors, scrubbing off the serial and stamping a fresh one on. So you are buying a processor, however your Ryzen 1700x may turn out to actually be an AMD X6. Only about a £200 retail difference.

We recently reported on the excellent price of the Ryzen 1200/1300’s. Anything which is tainting the excellent reputation of Ryzens, particularly because of some scammers, is deeply disappointing to hear.

Why are people selling fake Ryzen processors?

It all boils down to Amazon’s return policy. People have been buying legit Ryzens, removing them, using them, and replacing the packaging with the fake enclosed. They then contact Amazon, claiming it’s faulty or unwanted and it goes back and if slip-ups occur (which they have it seems) then it gets back into the retail cycle. While PcGamesN reports that there are not many instances of this occurring, the amount of reports are increasing.

So, what can you do about this? – Not a lot really. Just be vigilant. At least if you buy from Amazon you will be protected, although at this stage Amazon is going to be very wary of returns going forward. It’s hard to tell how long this has gone on for without them noticing. Hopefully Amazon can trace these fake Ryzen processors back to the toe-rags who did the switches. I don’t think it too harsh to suggest the death penalty for them either.