While the used market can often offer a lot of savings compared to the new, it also usually brings with it several risks. For example, the product may not be as good as it is advertised, or there is some underlying issue the seller does not disclose. Consumer technology goods, like processors, are no exception. In the latest report of fake CPUs, a new counterfeit AMD Ryzen 7800X3D processor has surfaced that does not even have a processor inside it.
The incident has been reported by YouTuber and chip overclocking guru der8auer who was informed about it by one of his subscribers from Romania. The buyer purchased the part on OLX, an online marketplace website that is popular in certain parts of the world.
When they installed the chip in their PC, they noticed that the system did not attempt to boot up. Suspecting that it was a bad CPU, they tried to get readings from it with a multimeter, only to find that there was nothing at all. The supposed 7800X3D processor they had bought was not sending anything when probed.
der8auer bought the chip from the duped buyer to investigate what was really going on under the hood. While counterfeit processors and GPUs are often faked by using lower SKUs that impersonate higher-end parts, the forged 7800X3D, in this case, did not have any CPU die inside at all, explaining the lack of any readings on the multimeter. It was only populated by capacitors, while both the I/O die and the CCD (core complex die) were missing.
| Forged I/O die and CCD are actually part of the IHS itself |
| The real I/O die and CCD are missing |
der8auer discovered this when he opened up the processor"s IHS (integrated heat spreader) and delidded the chip using a Thermal Grizzly Delid-Die-Mate to see what was inside.
He also felt that this was one of the finest examples of faking something, as it was done quite professionally. der8auer also noted some giveaways that can help identify such a processor. For example, the color of the paint did not quite match the real thing, and the Z-height was also different. However, noticing these things from afar is going to be very difficult.
Source and images: der8auer EN (YouTube)