A counterfeit Samsung 870 EVO 2TB SATA SSD is circulating in retail markets that fails completely after writing only 120 GB of data. The appearance of these fake drives coincides with recent SSD prices rising globally. Spotting the fake is difficult because the product packaging and the 2.5-inch (6.35 cm) enclosure closely duplicate the design of the genuine Samsung model.
PC builders will find that Windows initially detects the fake drive as a normal 2.81TB volume. While the device name appears as a generic label rather than the product brand, CrystalDiskMark benchmarks show read speeds of 492 MB/s and write speeds of 467 MB/s. These speeds are only slightly lower than a genuine drive, making the fake difficult to detect through short tests.
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The main issue occurs during full capacity testing with verification tools like H2testw. Writing stops completely at around 117,227 MB, causing the write speed to drop to 0 KB/s. After restarting the computer, the drive becomes completely inaccessible and is no longer recognized by the operating PC.
Buyers who use the drive without testing it risk losing valuable files once the storage exceeds 120 GB. Of course, this issue demonstrates how dangerous fake storage devices are for daily data backups. Hardware trackers note that while some fakes actually work as advertised, others are designed for quick sales without functioning hardware.
Disassembling the fake casing reveals a Realtek RayMX RM1135T controller and two NAND flash memory chips with no markings. In contrast, a genuine Samsung drive has a custom Samsung controller, branded NAND, and a dedicated DRAM cache. Users can verify their drives online using Samsung Magician software, which flags fakes as non-Samsung products.
For the utility software to check authenticity correctly, the computer must have an active internet connection. The SSD must also connect directly to the motherboard via SATA or M.2 slots because USB external cases can block the utility from verifying the drive. Buyers should purchase storage from authorized dealers to protect their data.
Source: Akiba PC
