- A PC builder expected to receive an RTX 5070 from Amazon but ended up with e-waste instead.
- The user likely fell victim to an Amazon return scam, where someone bought the GPU and then returned junk in its place.
- Amazon accepted the returned e-waste without checking and then shipped it to the user’s address.
Online scams have become bolder ever since the memory crisis began last year. Scams involving GPUs are also growing, with some scammers even putting plastic GPUs and scrap memory in RTX cards and selling them by tricking gamers with appealing prices.
Now, an unfortunate PC builder who was expecting a €605 ($700) RTX 5070 gift from his friend opened the box to find e-waste instead.
He was expecting a new MSI Ventus 2X variant of the RTX 5070, but Amazon sent him a mousepad, a DVD rewriter, and a broken logic board for a Kenwood AV receiver from the early 2000s.
Why it matters: Buying GPUs from Amazon always carries risk due to various forms of ongoing scams. A bad actor was at fault for issuing a return to Amazon while keeping the GPU, so both the user and the online store were victims in this case.
what i got sent instead of a 5070
byu/luutherr inpcmasterrace
User u/luuther on the r/pcmasterrace subreddit most likely fell victim to an Amazon return scam, also known as ‘scam-swap.’ A bad actor initially bought that GPU and filed for a return. However, he kept the GPU and filled the box with the specific e-waste that weighed the same as the MSI RTX 5070.
This allowed the box to go through Amazon, as the company does not open every returned item and inspect it thoroughly. That same tampered box filled with scrap was later shipped directly to the user.
The GPU was purchased from the official MSI store and sold directly by Amazon DE, as the user explained on Reddit, showing that scams can happen even through proper channels. In this case, no one can be blamed except the unknown bad actor who swapped the GPU.
The user can file a return request to get their money back moving forward. However, this scam shows that buying expensive GPUs from online stores is becoming an increasingly risky endeavor.
Do you think it’s even worth it to buy GPUs using online marketplaces, given the rampant scams? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, or join the discussion on the Tech4Gamers forum.
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Shameer Sarfaraz has previously worked for eXputer as a Senior News Writer for several years. Now with Tech4Gamers, he loves to devoutly keep up with the latest gaming and entertainment industries. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and years of experience reporting on games. Besides his passion for breaking news stories, Shahmeer loves spending his leisure time farming away in Stardew Valley. VGC, IGN, GameSpot, Game Rant, TheGamer, GamingBolt, The Verge, NME, Metro, Dot Esports, GameByte, Kotaku Australia, PC Gamer, and more have cited his articles.
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