Developers behind a leading PlayStation 3 emulator are warning retro gamers about a recent influx of fake Blu-ray drives. The counterfeit hardware has been spotted on retail platforms including Newegg and AliExpress, according to a report from Tom's Hardware.
Scammers are reportedly taking older, lower-end drive mechanisms and placing them in high-end shells, then using spoofed firmware to make the drives look legitimate. The emulator team cautions that these drives may not work as expected, potentially causing problems for users who rely on physical media for PS3 emulation.
While the warning is aimed at the emulator community, it also highlights a broader risk for anyone buying optical drives from third-party marketplaces. The developers advise buyers to be wary of deals that seem too good to be true and to verify the authenticity of drives before purchase.