Repairing Fake Flash Memory. How You Ended Up With This Problem And Challenge. From InspectorTech At FixFakeFlash.

So you are trying to repair a fake flash memory product? Wondering how you got into this mess? Well what do you know about the costs of flash memory?

SOSFakeFlash helps eBay members who have been frauded on eBay. They collect data as well as investigate fraudulent sellers caught. The InspectorTech group at FixFakeFlash is republishing their article. Please read it and learn why you ended up at the FixFakeFlash site!

Feel free to post the address to this article at websites and forums. You have a tough challenge ahead of you to fix your fake memory item. Warn people, help educate the global public. Write in your native language!

There are better things to do with our lives then repairing flash memory items reprogrammed to lie about their real size. Did you lose files and data?

Reprinted From SOSFakeFlash 20100108:

 

Why do people become victims on eBay when they buy flash memory cards, usb flash drives or MPx Players?

Members do not understand the real costs of flash memory chips. They assume the low prices on eBay are because the retail outlet has been removed from the picture. Wrong!

Please visit FlashFakeCentral . The site was fast tracked to the internet.

You have two very important lessons assigned to you:

A) Consult Flash Memory prices. Flash Memory Chips – Prices. You will even find a current hotlink to the spot prices for the day.

B) Read the Global report. It covers SOSFakeFlash’s efforts for 2008 to the end of 2009. Global – eBay Fake Memory. You will find out how much fake flash sellers receive in bid prices for their false capacity items depending on their continent of registration, What the average buying prices are by victims, even how the false capacity sizes offered is changing by business quarter.

After you have completed your lessons, return to SOSFakeFlash to test your item, report in and begin your fight against having been frauded on eBay.

Victim Of Counterfeit Flash Voyager GT 16GB and 32GB Purchased On eBay Creates A Visual Guide

What does a Counterfeit Corsair Flash Voyager GT usb flash drive look like? A recent victim on eBay documented his case, complete with purchase, feedback, testing, warnings to buyers and of course photographic evidence.

CaptainVoyager’s takes you step by step examining the flash drive with photos. Then he takes it apart. What does he find? Join CapatinVoyager on his detective mission and find out. His presentation is very different for the photo section – no text. You need to be a detective too! Hint. Examine the photo’s of the fake Flash Voyager GT, hover with your mouse to see his captions.

Visit CaptainVoyager’s page he made for you!

http://home.deds.nl/~counterfeit/

It’s his contribution to the war against fake flash usb drives and especially counterfeited brand names!

If you purchased a fake Flash Voyager GT usb flash drive advertised as 4GB, 8GB, 16GB, 32GB, 64GB on eBay please report in to SOSFakeFlash using their Report A Fake Tab.

Proving A Fake USB Flash Memory Pen Drive Stick Pen To Be False Capacity – A Visual Example – Guide Made Easy

A Fake usb flash drive, is a memory pen stick that has been digitally altered – reprogrammed to lie to an operating system about the real size of it’s flash nand storage chip. Once you exceed true capacity of the chip, you begin to loose files. People do not suspect the real reason, thinking it an error in the data transfer. Only when it happens again and again do they suspect there is something more… How can you find out if you have a fake usb flash drive?

MP Players eBay – Cheap Bargains or Fabulous Fraud and Profit? SOSFakeFlash Education Week

Is eBay the place to buy MP Players cheap? Can you get a 8GB or 16GB or 32GB Player on eBay for less that $40 or $50 US? SOSFakeFlash is launching an education week for consumers. Recently they launched an general education week on fake and counterfeit memory devices sold on eBay: SOSFakeFlash Consumer Education Week 20090605 – 20090612. The Problem of Counterfeit and Fake Memory Sold On Ebay

This time they will be show casing sellers who sold false capacity MP Players. Too many buyers fall for seller claims that the units are defective. Most never learn the truth, these items have had their flash chips manipulated to report a size much larger that the chips can support. SOSFakeFlash is inviting buyers to learn more and leave comments on their experiences.

Visit this site during the next week for an eye opening education!

http://sosfakeflash.wordpress.com/

The information is useful, not only to people who buy on eBay but any where on the internet for MP Players. Become a smart consumer!

BEWARE of FAKE 8GB 16GB 32GB 64GB USB Flash Drives – The Most Famous And Oldest Fake Still Sold On eBay And Internet Sites

Would you like to see the oldest and still very popular fake usb flash drive sold on eBay and available at internet wholesaler sites in China? This drive normally doesn’t have a genuine flash drive capacity more than 2GB but it has been reprogrammed to false capacity sizes as high as 64GB!

Important Reading:

• USB Flash Drives Best Price Bargains Fair Value To Sell Or Buy 8GB 16GB 32GB
• Genuine Verses Fake Counterfeit USB Flash Drives – A Guide – USB Flash Chips Used – Grades A B C D
• Buying Kingston and Sony USB Flash Drives On eBay Safely – A Guide
• Kingston USB Flash Drives – Detect Counterfeits And Fakes – Product Verification
• H2testw 1.4 – Gold Standard In Detecting USB Counterfeit Drives

Report in to SOSFakeFlash if your testing confirms you have a false capacity device.

It has been sold for several years on eBay, by many fake flash sellers. If you see a drive like this being sold – make your bidding fingers run in the opposite direction! There is something special about this particular fake besides the fact that more eBayers have been stung by this one model then any other. This is the false capacity usb flash drive that started the war on fake flash selling. If you are reading articles at one of the FrankenFlash Project websites – you can thank this model.

One of the good things about this fake is that it is easy to take a part to decode the flash chip and the controller chip. It usually has an icreate controller but the flash drive chips differ. It has been sold for very low prices and very high prices. Much depends on the size of the false capacity. For example if you want it to pretend to be 32GB this is a wholesale price being offered at a site in the orient for resellers.

The seller says there are 8 4GB flash chips inside. Hmmm.

The circuit board is 2 inches long. So how could you get 8 4GB flash chips and the controller chip to fit even if you use both sides? Old flash drives generally have a flash drive chip 3/4 inch long. Even if they are 1/2 inch long each, there is no place for the controller chip. The icreate chip is 1/4 inch in length. Flash drive chips need a distance from each other for soldering. To make 8 chips seen as one, you need a very advanced controller and that would cost $

It has been sold under so many descriptions and so many sizes. In the past, listings would boost about it being a Samsung flash drive. 50% of fake flash sellers on eBay still offer this ancient. It can be ordered wholesale in large quantities for as low as $2.5 Small wonder then that it continues to be present on eBay.

Use it at it’s false capacity and you will lose data.

Victims complain it stores files in Chinese. Please, nobody is kidding here but people unfamiliar with computers and technology have said this and not once either. No it does not store files in Chinese, but the swiggles and strange characters one often sees is the result of corruption once you exceed the true capacity. Not only that, you can not delete the files or folders. You have to reformat it in the operating system to begin another cycle of fake flash data loss.

The good news is that this is one of the easiest fakes to repair. And once repaired to it’s tiny real capacity it behaves.

This classic of classics will be around for a long time to come. It is very inexpensive for resellers, the temptation just too great. Mostly you will find it at 16GB these days. The higher false capacities are just too obvious to most and real 32GB and 64GB flash drives can be found under $150 these, with rebates from genuine brand, a lot less.

So if you see this drive advertised for more than 2GB in size stay clear. By the way, it comes in true capacities as low as 512MB…

If you want to review all the counterfeits found on eBay you can visit these two sites. Just type in the word Kingston in the search box to see what is currently documented:

• FakeFlashNews
• SOSFakeFlash

http://ebay.dybteam.com Attacked – The FrankenFlash Project Advises New Address http://ebay.totalh.com

Due to heavy bandwidth and the recent attack on http://ebay.dybteam.com/ the FrankenFlash Project has removed this website.

It addressed Bayers who suffered from fake and false capacity MP Players, USB flash drives and Memory Cards Purchased on eBay. Specializing in providing translation to reach the global community, eBayers Against False Capacity Flash will be missed.

It is not easy to fight the the issue of fake MP Players, Memory Cards and Usb flash drives. Fraudsters and scammers are finding their sales decreasing. That is what the project has in mind. Eliminating the traffic in false capacity fake MP Players, Usb Flash drives and MP Players. The profits made by these scammers and fraudsters is alarming. The damage being done to buyers with lost information is terrible. It is a war. Fake Flash needs to be stopped. eBay is the first area to be addressed. Fortunately there are team members who have a solid IT background working in the project.

Who has contributed to the fight? Everyone. From housewife and causal computer user, to accountants and IT professionals. Teenagers, Truck Drivers and Octogenarians – all have tried to give a helping hand. It’s a global problem. It needs to be stopped. The project has replaced http://ebay.dybteam.com/ with:

http://ebay.totalh.com/

we don’t intend to let the international community down. Ebayers Against Fake Flash Devices II has the same functionality of the old site. Translation will be slower but it is now offered in 42 languages. It offers caching but will only translate 1 article every 11 minutes. In time the cache will build to provide everyone with the information they need in languages they understand.

For translation on news for fake flash you can visit http://fakeflashnews.totalh.com/ FakeFlashNews II.

MP Players eBay Stop Buying 8GB 16GB MP3 MP4 At Cut Rate Bargain Prices SOSFakeFlash Advises

MP Players are hot on eBay! Beware. 8GB and 16GB Players with MP3 or MP4 are likely to be fakes or counterfeits if you bought at low prices. If you are lucky your MP player will be 2GB or 4GB – not more.

Fake MP Players on eBay are an old story and it’s been around for several years. Every day there is a new crop of victims. Why? Bargain hunting! SOSFakeFlash has no choice but to issue this warning. Do not buy any MP Players on eBay advertised as 8GB or 16GB. Period! Stop looking for bargains! You are not going to get a real 8GB or 16GB at $25 to $50.

We know that economic conditions are hard, but you need to be realistic about paying fair prices. If you want to pay less and get more – welcome to fake flash hell!

You might find SOSFakeFlash’s words harsh. They are. Too many people are being frauded and few get their money back. Many eBayers are conned into believing their MP Player is “defective”. There is nothing defective in reprogramming a flash drive chip to lie about it’s size!

Make sure to look at the reference reading presented below for additional information and advice. Also see the list of eBay Sellers caught selling fake MP Players as of April 4th, 2009 at the end of this article

Most of the Fake MP Players are coming from sellers in Hong Kong and China. There appear to be two distinct rings operating under many id’s. It is a fake flash collective. Beware that due to SOSFakeFlash’s internet presence eBay sellers are now listing advertising local countries. You will only realize the truth when your MP Player arrives.

The profits from selling fake MP Players is mind numbing! Current estimates are 1 in a 250 sold leads to a PayPal dispute, that is 249 ahead. Both eBay and fake flash seller are dancing with fake flash profit joy – at your expense!

Avoid the misery of filing disputes. The pain grows when eBay quickly suspends the seller, whoops all listings gone, all evidence gone. You will have to crawl under the hood of your Paypal account and do a lot of extra digging to file a dispute when a seller is deregistered.

eBay and PayPal are not not going to make it easy for you. The harder the better. After all they don’t want to refund you. eBay has never warned members who bought from a fake flash seller and they never will. Why? It means admitting to the fact they have a problem.

Never pay for an MP Player using your bank account, use your credit card with PayPal. It gives you a better chance of recovering your money. PayPal hates it. Fake flash sellers will hate it more! PayPal may say they can’t refund you because they need to get to the fake flash sellers funds. Funny how quickly they will claw back the money from the fraudster when the credit card company does a reversal!

For now, do not buy MP Players at 8GB 16GB with MP3 MP4 on eBay. Save up until you have enough to buy a real one locally. There are just too many fakes. eBay is not cleaning things up, instead they registering sellers so they can remove listings and all traces of what these scammers sold! The fraud is astonishing.

If you bought an MP Player on eBay, tested it and found out you have a fake, make sure you leave a negative immediately! File a dispute afterwards. Never withdraw your negative in exchange for a refund. Never return a fake with the hope or promise of your refund. Also be a good citizen and do your part – contact other buyers who left positive feedback and get them to test! If you left positive feedback – do follow up feedback indicating that you really bought a fake! Add in your feedback the web address sosfakeflash.wordpress.com – our calling card and message to fake flash sellers and to assist other eBayers trying to find the truth and get help!

• Fake MP Players On Ebay – 8GB 16GB Tidal Wave Of False Capacity – What Can You Do?
• eBay Fake Flash Sellers Of MP Players – USB Flash Drives – Memory Cards – About Their IDs
• Buying On eBay – MP Players – Memory Cards – USB Flash drives – Why You should Use A Credit Card To Pay And Not Your Bank Account
• Why eBayers Don’t Get Refunds When They Return Fake Flash
• PayPal How Long Do You Have To Claim For A Refund In Disputes? A Guide About PayPal From eBayer’s Experiences.

Also visit the new site http://flashdrivefacts.wordpress.com/ and read:

• USB Flash Drives Best Price Bargains Fair Value To Sell Or Buy 8GB 16GB 32GB
• Genuine Verses Fake Counterfeit USB Flash Drives – A Guide – USB Flash Chips Used – Grades A B C D

Report in to SOSFakeFlash if your testing confirms you have a false capacity device.

Now, have a look at the sellers caught by SOSFakeFlash so far.

PayPal Orders You To Return Fake MP Players, Fake MP Players , Fake USB Flash Drives, Fake Memory Cards To Get A Refund? Think Again!

Are you thinking of obeying PayPals demands to return fake MP Players, Memory Cards or usb flash drives purchased on eBay from a fake flash seller to get a refund? SOSFakeFlash has published many articles on why you should not. We think you should read the latest article just published by FakeFlashNews.

eBay Refunds For Fake Flash USB drives – Returning For Refunds. How Many Addresses Do Fake Flash Sellers Have – A Buyer’s Confusion

After reading it please consult PayPal How Long Do You Have To Claim For A Refund In Disputes? A Guide About PayPal From eBayer’s Experiences. and read all the helpful articles published in that guide to assist victims of fake flash purchases on eBay!

New Website Site Joining The FrankenFlash Project Soon – Scams MP Players – USB Flash Drives – Memory Cards

The FrankenFlash Project has a new site that will be joining the project very soon. FLASHDRIVEFACTS at http://flashdrivefacts.wordpress.com/ will address consumer education on the subject of flash technology for MP Players, USB Flash Drives and Memory Cards. Chaired by Flashchiptutor, it will expose counterfeit and fake items available on the international market.

Why is there a need for a new site? How can you help?

FakeFlashNews Releases a New Guide – Protect Yourself Against Counterfeit Fake Transcend USB Flash Drives – Product Verification

FakeFlashNews has just released a new guide to help people detect genuine usb flash drives made by Transcend from counterfeits. Transcend now joins Sony and Kingston to have counterfeit usb flash drives sold on eBay. Read Guide – Protect Yourself Against Counterfeit Fake Transcend USB Flash Drives – Product Verification

Kingston USB Flash Drives – Detect Counterfeits And Fakes – Product Verification

Did you buy an 8GB, 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, 120GB or 128GB Kingston USB Flash drive you think is a fake or counterfeit? Countries in Asia are very vunerable to these counterfeit items, but Europe and even North America are experiencing an increase of these items circulating for sale. What does Kingston have to say? Is there a tool you can use to check quickly to determine if you have an authentic item? Yes Kingston is aware of the problem and they have set up a web page to help. Yes there is a tool. SOSFakeFlash also found technical support numbers you can call.

Repairing Counterfeit Fake MP Players

SOSFakeFlash has been asked by victims of fake and counterfeit MP Players purchases – how can I restore to the real capacity? MP-Archer has provided some very useful information to help you begin your journey to return your MP Player back to it’s orignal Capacity.

SOSFakeFlash Releases List Of Genuine eBay Sellers For MP Players – Usb Flash Drives – Memory Cards

SOSFakeFlash at the request of victims who bought False Capacity MP Players, Memory Cards and USB Flash Drives has just released a list of Safe Sellers on eBay. Sellers who sell true capacity items and stand behind their products!

See Safe Ebay Sellers For USB Flash Drives – MP Players – Memory Cards – Genuine Capacity/

This is a new program lauched by the FrankenFlash Project. eBay members may nomiate sellers. eBay sellers may apply. The list is dynamic and will be updated. A similar program will be launched for internet sites soon.

Buying On eBay – MP Players – Memory Cards – USB Flash drives – Why You should Use A Credit Card To Pay And Not Your Bank Account

The evidence gathered in the last eight months by the FrankenFlash Project and their groups indicates that buying MP Players, USB Flash Drives and Memory Cards is a very risky business. You will find more than enough documented evidence at sosfakeflash.wordpress.com.

So if you are going to bid and buy on eBay why use a credit card instead of bank account funding?

Guide to fix hacked USB drives – A visual Example

One of eBay’s Fake Flash victims created a neat visual guide after reporting his fake to SOSFakeFlash. It is a wonderful example for anyone interested in repairing a fake flash drive and seeing how the tools work before trying to carry out a repair. Even if you don’t have an AMECO or Micov based controller chip on your fake flash drive, it can help you prepare. Many reflashing tools are similar in their interface and the general principals to operate.

Guide to fix hacked USB drives

After reading it, you are ready for a more detailed explanation of the things you will need to do to prepare for rescuing your fake.

About VID PID Repairing Counterfeit Flash Drives – Steps To Succeed

The fixfakeflash.wordpress.com site has some known solutions available. The most important information is the controller chip vendor for the flash item, known as the “Chip Part-Number” with ChipGenius.

If you don’t find a solution that works visit the main site for incoming information repair solutions. sosfakeflash.wordpress.com