Scalper-Bots Shake Down Desperate PS5, Xbox Series X Shoppers
upstart writes in with an IRC submission:
Scalper-Bots Shake Down Desperate PS5, Xbox Series X Shoppers:
Retail bots are helping scalpers scoop up PS5, Xbox Series X inventory and charge massive markups.
It's a big week for gamers across the globe, with imminent, dueling releases of Xbox Series X and PlayStation PS5. However, an army of retail bots threaten to drive prices up as much as three times the retail price, putting the coveted holiday gifts well out of reach of everyday fans.
Retailers were quickly cleared out of Xbox inventory on its release day Tuesday. Best Buy sold theirs out quickly, priced at $499.99. There were plenty available on eBay though, with price tags more than double that price, several marked at over $1,000.
The PlayStation 5, also priced at $499.99, doesn't come out officially until Thursday, but there were several pre-order confirmations - not even actual product - available on eBay listed for around $900. And experts suspect scalpers will similarly be able to snatch up those consoles on release day, just like the Xbox, mark them up and turn a tasty profit off holiday shoppers.
Making these high-tech hoarders harder to stop is that what they're doing isn't actually illegal, according to Jason Kent, hacker-in-residence for Cequence Security.
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