I was sold fake airpods so what do I do

kiayay Said:

"I was sold fake airpods so what do I do: I bought airpods online and the box was authentic however the airpods within were not and I dont know what to do"

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Troubleshooting Getting Fake AirPods:

A. Request a Return:

Contact the site you purchased these from, and request a return. If purchased off of a site such as eBay or Amazon, the contact them, seeing if the seller can be held accountable, and if you can get your money back.

For reference...

B. Verifying Genuine AirPods:

1. Get the Serial Number: Find the Serial Number of your AirPods - Apple Support
2. Enter the Serial Number here: Check Your Service and Support Coverage - Apple Support
3. View the Results: If all shows up as an AirPod, then you are fine. If not, then these are fake, and that is likely why you are getting the issue of connectivity.

I agree. I just got scammed through no fault to my own. I found Air Pod Pros Gen 2. for a good price on eBay. Even had a serial number that produced a valid Apple Care + date. The pictures of the box looked legit and the seller told me that they were "genuine" but he couldn't decide if they were used, refurbished, or brand new. I asked to cancel my order out of suspicion and he was very dodgy saying he could not because they already shipped.

I texted Apple support and they confirmed that the serial number on the box is one that has been used in many fake Air Pods. I would not know until I realized all the features may not work and would have to take them into the Apple Store for repairs. I immediately reached out to the seller and demanded my money back or I was going to report him to eBay for selling fake merchandise. He did not want none of that thunder and agreed to refund me. Lesson learned for me, but if any of you are unsure about buying from someone other than a certified retailer, contact Apple Support and they can tell you if the serial number is legit or not. It helped me and saved me the trouble of not knowing if I got fake AirPods or not. Also according to Apple Support simply putting the serial number into "Check coverage" tab on the support app will not get you the info. needed to make a decision to buy. I hope this helps. Luckily I only lost 10 dollars but it could have been worse.

Online sales from individuals and from sketchy retailers can be counterfeit, yes.

You can report this to Apple: Apple - Legal - Counterfeit Questions

If the seller is unavailable or uncooperative about refunds, don’t expect a refund.

I got scammed for fake AirPod max too a week ago.Checking the serial number didn't help in my case.

Before paying I confirmed the serial number printed on the actual AirPods and Box matched.

I even connected to my phone I verified the serial number on screen.

Checked the warranty status on apple website for same serial number.

It still says it has warranty till march 2024.

While connecting It gave me pop as normal on my Iphone. Shown proper setup process like setting up personalise spacial audio,siri etc.

there was hardly any chance someone could figure this out that there were.

praths wrote:

I understand they can be copied(at-least I know now).But my worry is, when I went to apple service center for repair, they had all the repair history of that device.There were at-least 2 previous attempts to service them (from previous owners i guess)and repair were rejected because they were fake.

So they knew this particular serial number is FAKE and still they didn’t block it or did anything about it.

Which could well be thousands of copies of that serial number were made, and two came in for service.

There’s probably also a real device with that serial number, which can itself still need service.

And what is Apple to do? Post a note telling you that each and every serial number viewed can be copied?

Would adding that possible-to-counterfeit notice on every serial number even help? Somebody getting a “good deal” from a sketchy seller is always going to happen. That’s basically what happens to too many buyers of used (and Activation-Locked, or IMEI-blacklisted) and effectively-if-not-actually lost or stolen iPhone and iPad devices, too. Expensive, real, bricks.

Ask yourself too, would any of this have dissuaded you from your purchase here, or will it dissuade the myriad other folks (that don’t know what you now do now) from their own “good deal”?

Caveat emptor—buyer beware—is a very old phrase for a very old problem, after all.

PS: From other replies, Apple doesn’t shrink-wrap most stuff anymore, and shrink-wrapping machines do exist.

Thats cant be the only way, as most of the fake Airpods are using real serial numbers, which are showing even apple care +. I just bought one of these today and before to be shipped to me I checked the serial number and it was everything ok. But when I got the box unopened I suspected- first thing was the Airpods picture was poor quality, there was missing punctuality, etc. When I opened the box, they didnt connect directly, but asked me to press the button. Also, both buds had the same serial number, when you go to About, the version is not that one, which Apple claim should be, and the serial number is totally different. Finaly, there are lots of missing features.

gergana128 wrote:

Thats cant be the only way, as most of the fake Airpods are using real serial numbers, which are showing even apple care +. I just bought one of these today and before to be shipped to me I checked the serial number and it was everything ok. But when I got the box unopened I suspected- first thing was the Airpods picture was poor quality, there was missing punctuality, etc. When I opened the box, they didnt connect directly, but asked me to press the button. Also, both buds had the same serial number, when you go to About, the version is not that one, which Apple claim should be, and the serial number is totally different. Finaly, there are lots of missing features.

The suggestion to check the serial number is unfortunately unreliable. At best.

There are various different counterfeits, and some are “better” than others.

Any can copy a serial number, though.

Here is an investigation of different counterfeits from Adam Savage of Tested:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Db99cXMD780

If the seller can disappear, then the purchase of any Apple-branded gear should be considered speculation.

Had that literally happen to a friend was sold SEALED in apple AirPods Pro box even had the special cover wrap around AirPods, papers etc, one pod stopped working took to Applestore and he said he’s NEVER seen fake AirPods Pro’s so good. Printing, etc. Said AirPods are a bit more heavy and lid closes and feels different also where it was made be it one said China other said Vietnam. And they just duplicate serial numbers. Smh what a sham. He got em “brand new” from Mercari.

I am sure what to do at this point, other that accepting that we are scammed and let it go.

But I am going try one last time by visiting Apple store today.

My takeout from this is, never buy apple product used, as there is absolutely no way to confirm authenticity of the product in the limited period of time you get while buying used.

These counterfeits are getting more and more sophisticated as days are passing.

Even at this point we figured out a way of Identifying counterfeit product, Scammers will always find a loophole and fix it in future.

praths wrote:

I am sure what to do at this point, other that accepting that we are scammed and let it go.

But I am going try one last time by visiting Apple store today.

My takeout from this is, never buy apple product used, as there is absolutely no way to confirm authenticity of the product in the limited period of time you get while buying used.

Nobody else is going to compensate someone for having gotten scammed, not the least of which is because compensating anyone for having gotten scammed will just lead to other folks claiming to have gotten scammed; to scam scams.

A deal that seems too good to be true quite often is. And gear that is priced cheaply is always cheaply made. And that new graphics controller or that hard disk drive may just be a brick in a shrink-wrapped box, or that cable or that charger little more than electrically-hazardous junk.

If you don't trust the seller, any purchases should be considered sheer speculation.

Caveat emptor applies everywhere.

I didn’t looked for ultra cheap new deals…I specifically bought used which are m not packed so I can test before I buy.

Met seller in person, tested, confirmed the number, paid fair price for used ones.

There are 100s of listings selling it new for 200-250$ but I avoided my temptation to go for them.

Again, I am not looking for money back,I just want to know what could have done more to confirm the authenticity of product. Beacuse buying used is a thing in world (Just not in apple world anymore due to desirability and cost of the products, counterfeit market is more sophisticated )

If I would have know before that serial numbers can be copied and thats not the thing you can trust,I would have done things differently.

everybody on here needs to understand one thing and one thing only when it comes to buying fake apple products. Apple will not do a thing for you.In the long run I have not seen them do anything to combat this horrible lowly, lucrative trade, which we call counterfeiting. It’s sad to say that these criminals pray on people that cannot afford to go into the store and buy them legit. The number one way I have figured out how to determine if AirPods are fake, is simply before you buy it make sure you have a MagSafe Apple Watch charger with you and see if the “AirPods” will work with the charger. Nine out of 10 times,unless it’s a very expensive counterfeit, which defeats the whole purpose of counterfeiting in the first place, apple accessories will not work properly in every single way in which Apple prides themselves on with their genuine products. That being said, you can also check the box, but that’s easily the best way counterfeiters will fool you. Watch out for red flag, such as, seller, asking for money through electronic means, or the seller asking if you mind buying the product without the specific charger it’s supposed to come with, and last, and last but not least, go with your gut. If you see something for sale online, that seems too good to be true such as AirPod Pro second generation $60 yeah, it probably is too. Good to be true. And all this being said. I wish all of my fellow apple lovers good luck.

It is still boggling that someone might believe that a complex device can be closely counterfeited, but that some simple serial numbers from legitimate devices can’t be copied from legitimate devices, or the serial number patterns predicted. (Apple has changed how serial numbers are constructed, but that still won’t prevent copying.)

I understand they can be copied(at-least I know now).But my worry is, when I went to apple service center for repair, they had all the repair history of that device.There were at-least 2 previous attempts to service them (from previous owners i guess)and repair were rejected because they were fake.

So they knew this particular serial number is FAKE and still they didn’t block it or did anything about it.

Don’t misunderstand,I am not holding apple responsible here or not asking my money back or replaced airpods.

I know that ship is already sailed.

I just want to make everyone aware that,in every forum, it is mentioned that check authenticity of product by checking the serial numbers and Thats not true anymore.