Fake capacity flash

14 August 2024 Senior Product ManagerSummaryThe article discusses the prevalence of counterfeit USB flash drives that falsely advertise large storage capacities at very low prices. These fake drives appear to have the advertised capacity when connected to a computer, but their actual usable storage is much smaller. The article aims to educate readers on how to detect these counterfeit drives, the risks associated with using them, and introduces tools like Validrive that can help verify the true storage capacity of flash drives. The market is flooded with counterfeit USB flash drives that claim to offer one or two terabytes of storage at unbelievably low prices. These drives deceive buyers by showing the claimed storage capacity when plugged into a computer, but in reality, they may only have a fraction of that capacity. This article will guide you on how to detect fake flash drives, explain the risks involved, and introduce tools like Validrive that can help you identify the real storage capacity of your flash drives. Understanding Fake Flash DrivesFake flash drives deceive buyers into thinking they are purchasing high-capacity USB storage devices. Often these drives claim to offer terabytes of storage for prices as low as $9.99, but their actual usable storage capacity is far less. They use technical manipulation to misrepresent their capabilities.Genuine high-capacity flash drives, such as 1TB or 2TB, generally cost over $80. Flash drives claiming to offer terabytes of storage for a fraction of the usual cost are likely fake or of very low quality. If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. Detecting Fake Flash Drives Physical Examination Inspect the physical features of the drive. Fake flash drives often use generic housings or are built to look similar to legitimate brands. Look for inconsistencies in labeling, build quality, and specifications. For example, a drive claiming to be USB 2.0 but advertising fast multi-terabyte storage is highly suspicious because USB 2.0 is limited to a maximum theoretical transfer speed of 480 Mbps, which is not suitable for handling large amounts of data efficiently. Suspicious Listings Listings for fake flash drives often contain poor grammar, vague descriptions, and exaggerated claims. Descriptions like “Large-Capacity Storage: USB Flash drive super space” and promises of “excellent water resistance, magnetic resistance, high-temperature resistance, and X-ray resistance” should raise red flags. Identifying Fake Flash Drives with software Use diagnostic tools to check the drive’s reported capacity against its actual storage. Tools like Validrive, CapacityTester, MyDiskTest and H2testw can help determine if the drive is an expansion disk. Using ValidriveValidrive is a tool created by Gibson Research that helps identify the real storage capacity of flash drives. It works by writing random data across the entire supposed storage of the drive and then reading it back. If the data matches, the storage is real; if not, it is fake. To use Validrive, you can test a flash drive without erasing it. The software restores any pre-existing data if it tests a region already containing data. However, it is

Media. This means that while the file names and directories appeared on the computer, the actual data was lost.This type of behavior is typical of fake drives, where the firmware is programmed to overwrite existing data or not write new data beyond a certain point. Technical Details The drive reported having 4 billion sectors of 512 bytes each, corresponding to its claimed capacity. However, upon closer examination, it was found to contain only 58GB of usable storage. Any data written beyond this limit would not be stored correctly, leading to data loss. This discrepancy arises from firmware manipulation, which tricks the operating system into displaying false capacity information. Identifying Fake Flash DrivesCheck the Specifications Compare the advertised specifications with what is typical for genuine products. If a flash drive claims to offer an unusually large capacity for a very low price, it is likely fake. Familiarize yourself with the average price range for different capacities and brands to better spot anomalies. Examine the Physical Drive Look for signs of tampering or low-quality construction. Genuine high-capacity drives tend to have high quality materials and consistent labeling.Pay attention to the packaging as well; authentic products typically come in professionally designed and printed packaging, whereas counterfeit products might come in generic or poorly printed packaging. Review Seller Reputation Purchase from reputable sellers and avoid listings from unknown or dubious sources. Check reviews and ratings for signs of recurring issues with fake products. Be wary of sellers with a large number of low-cost, high-capacity flash drives and read through the negative reviews for specific mentions of fake products. Assess the Drive Determine if the drive is fake by checking its reported capacity against its actual storage. Use diagnostic tools to understand if the drive is misreporting data.If no data has been written to the drive yet, attempt to format the drive. If there are any discrepancies, such as the drive’s storage suddenly decreasing, or there are errors not allowing the drive to format, it is likely fake. Handling Data Recovery from Fake Flash Drives When dealing with fake flash drives, data recovery can be challenging. Since these drives often do not store data as they claim, recovering lost data may be impossible. Here are some steps to follow: Do Not Write Any New Data to the Drive New data being written to a fake flash drive jeopardizes the integrity of any critical files that may be still intact on the drive. Due to the delicate treatment required to properly handle accessing these types of devices, ensure use of the drive is strictly limited. Any unnecessary access leaves data vulnerable. Document and Report Keep a record of the fake drives you encounter, including details about their purchase source, reported capacity, actual capacity, and any recovery attempts. Report these cases to relevant authorities or platforms to help combat the proliferation of counterfeit products. Communicate with the Customer If you are an IT or computer repair professional, clearly explain the situation to your customer. Let them know

DriveSavers BlogHome » DriveSavers Blog » Identifying Fake Flash Drives: Data Recovery Challenges and Solutions May 22, 2024 DriveSavers Blog USB drives have become essential tools for data storage and transfer. However, the market is flooded with fake flash drives that often cause significant data loss. This blog post aims to help identify these fraudulent devices, understand their impact on data recovery, and ensure data integrity. What are Fake Flash Drives? Fake flash drives deceive buyers into thinking they are purchasing high-capacity USB storage devices. These drives often claim to offer terabytes of storage for prices as low as $9.99. However, their actual usable storage capacity is far less, and they use technical manipulation to misrepresent their capabilities. Unrealistic Storage Capacity and Low Price At this moment in time, genuine flash drives with large storage capacities, such as 1TB or 2TB, generally cost over $80. Flash drives claiming to offer terabytes of storage for a fraction of the usual cost are likely fake or very low quality.The cost of flash memory stays mostly consistent between reputable fabricators, and genuine high-capacity drives reflect this in their pricing. If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. Physical Examination Inspect the physical features of the drive. Fake flash drives often use generic housings, or are built to look similar to legitimate brands.Look for inconsistencies in labeling, build quality, and specifications. For example, a drive claiming to be USB 2.0 but advertising fast multi-terabyte storage is highly suspicious because USB 2.0 is limited to the maximum theoretical transfer speed to 480 Mbps. This speed is not well-suited for handling large amounts of data efficiently, which would be a typical use for multi-terabyte storage devices. Also, check for signs of tampering, such as missing or non-genuine parts, and compare the drive’s exterior materials and finish to known genuine models. Suspicious Listings Listings for fake flash drives often contain poor grammar, vague descriptions, and exaggerated claims.Descriptions like “Large-Capacity Storage: USB Flash drive super space” and promises of “excellent water resistance, magnetic resistance, high-temperature resistance, and X-ray resistance” should raise red flags. These listings might also boast features that sound too good to be true, such as being indestructible or having an unlimited warranty. Case Study: Analyzing a Fake Flash Drive DriveSavers has a designated department where we specialize in flash memory data recovery. Here is a detailed examination the team conducted of a fraudulent “2,000GB” flash drive and what we found: Listing Claims The drive was advertised as a 2,000GB USB flash drive with features such as “Plug and Work” and “excellent resistance to water, magnetic fields, high temperatures, and X-rays.” Such exaggerated claims are common in fake listings and are generally irrelevant to the technical functions of the storage device. Behavior Under Test After writing 58GB of data, the drive stopped storing new data correctly. Instead, new files were added to the File Allocation Table at the beginning of the drive but were not actually written in full to the storage

CapacityTesterTest your new USB flash drive from China to find out if its full capacity can be used or if it's fake!The volume test fills the filesystem, verifying that all of it can be used. It's slow, it takes hours.The disk test overwrites the drive itself and is much faster (some GB/TB large USB drives can be checked in less than 10 minutes); but it's somewhat experimental.To learn more, keep reading. To start using CapacityTester now, download and try CapacityTester for Linux (or Windows) now.New feature: Raw Disk Test - test your flash drive within minutes (feedback appreciated)Have you bought a 128 GB USB flash drive (pen drive, usb stick) for $10/€10,with "free" shipping from Asia?If you ask something, you get a response in broken English from a Chinese guywho's calling himself "Jennifer"...Thinking about taxes and shipping fees, you're beginning to wonder how cheapthis particular drive is compared to one in a local shop?Let's face it: You've probably bought a fake flash drive, i.e.,one that actually has much less capacity than it claims to have.This tool can test a USB drive or memory card to find out if it's a fake.For example, a fake might be sold as "64 GB USB thumb drive"but it would only have a real capacity of 4 GB, everything beyond this limitwill be lost. At that point, the fake flash drive is often rendered useless.This tool performs a simple test to determine if the full capacityis usable or not. All it does is fill the volume with test data (files)and verify if the data on the volume is correct.The drive selection window lists all USB storage devices.This is a Linux feature. If unavailable, all mounted filesystems are listed.Tip: You can run this program from a Linux live system like the Fedora installer disc.DownloadLinux Desktop:There are pre-compiled executable files available for Linuxwhich can be downloaded from the "Releases" page.Direct download for Linux.From the latest release there, under "assets", you'll find them.Windows:There is a Windows version available, but it's slightly experimental,the format feature is missing. See release v0.5.Direct download for Windows.The zip archive contains a couple of