Fake iPhone scam is worth of million-dollars
People all across the world are crazy about iPhones. Why not? The touch, looks, and features like never-seen-before make the iPhone more than just a smartphone. More importantly, the sense of pride that comes with holding the iPhone in the hands in full public view is unparalleled. But do you know that thousands of big fans of iPhone end up buying completely fake or improvised iPhones every year? It mostly happens when the new iPhone is launched making the last model outdated. It means the recent launch of the iPhone 15 is not just a launch. It's the start of the shopping spree of fake iOS phones at the global level and India is not an exception.
iPhone fraud gets momentum with launch of new phone in the festival season
The month of September of every year is taken as the beginning of the festival season in India. Thereby begins online shopping, so as the demand for electronic gadgets increases. People in their overwhelming urge to buy a brand new phone with an updated version of iOS, chipset, and features go rampant and don't think twice before placing an order. Their logical mind seems to be frozen when they find online advertisem*nts or videos offering heavy discounts on the purchase of a new iPhone. The same can be said about the buyers of second-hand iPhones. An opportunity to buy an iPhone at half rate destroys one's judgmental skills to understand that all that glitters is not gold. As a result, a large number of people get their hands on unauthentic iPhones and are left with no option but to regret it in the end.
But you don't need to worry. Ways are available to identify whether the phone is genuine or not. In the content below, you are going to learn the common and effective steps on how to find out if your brand-new or used iPhone is original or fake. Here we go.
How does a fake iPhone scam work?
Apple is best known for its cutting-edge process and almost impregnable security features. So, how can one make a fake iOS-supported phone? Good question! Let me clear one thing before everything else. By fake iPhone, I don't mean the dummy or toy iPhones. However, just because I am not talking about the dummy or toy iPhone, it doesn't mean people don't get dummy phones at the price of real iPhones. Time and again news of the delivery of dummy phones as part of scam makes headlines. The only way to avoid such a scam is not to pay in advance in any circ*mstances, especially if you are buying a second-hand iPhone from any third-party store, website, or seller other than a big brand e-commerce site like Amazon or Flipkart.
Cloning an iPhone is not possible
Now coming to your main question - can an iPhone be cloned? The answer is - No. So far nobody has been able to break the codes of iOS in the world. But sadly manufacturing the exact same copy of the iPhone is possible that frantically looks like the real one. And to make things worse, the scammers make replicas of iPhones with so much proficiency that it becomes difficult to distinguish between fake and real phones.
Replicas of iPhones run on Android
The half-battle is won by the scammers when they manage to copy the hardware and external look of the newly launched iPhone including size, colour, buttons, and screen. The rest half of the battle they win by manipulating the Android operating system. Yes, you read it right - Android. The fake iPhones run on Android. Despite the fact that iOS and Android are two different Operating systems with different application frameworks made for their respective brands, it is possible to convert the Android phone into iOS at least for some time until the phone is sold. All of it is possible because Android is an open-source operating system that enables users or third parties to use, see, and edit the codes.
It means that when you switch on the Android phone (thinking it is an iPhone) you get the interface including storyboards, icons, fonts, and elements will just appear the same as they appear on a typical iPhone. However, sooner or later, most of the users from the poor performance and frequent glitches get the idea of something fishy with their devices but then they don't have much to do except curse their bad luck.
How to check if an iPhone 15 or any other model is original or fake (new and old iPhones)?
Don't get carried away with the beauty of your new iPhone. No matter how cool, fresh, and glossy your iPhone 15 (or any other model) looks after unboxing, always remember that it can be a fake product of advanced engineering. If you don't want to get into trouble later on, consider taking a minute to check if the iPhone is real with the help of a serial number. These are the steps to follow:
Note: Users get the message on the brand-new iPhone - "This phone has not beenactivated". On the other hand, on old iPhones users find the date of activation.
How to check if your iPhone is refurbished or new?
It's simple to make a refurbished iPhone look like a brand-new one. What's more super simple is to check if the phone is refurbished or new using the phone itself. All you need to do is find the model number of your phone in the settings section and check the first letter of the model number:
How to check if your iPhone is reassembled with fake parts?
Well, the idea of buying an old iPhone from untrusted sources always comes with the risk of having duplicate parts. And the one sad truth is that there is no sure-fire way to check if all the parts of an iPhone are genuine. But you can check the authenticity of some most important parts of the iPhone such as the chipset, battery, camera, and display by going into the About section following the steps as mentioned above. In the About section, you will find the Parts and Service History of the iPhone. If any part of your iPhone has been replaced with a genuine part, you will find written "Genuine Apple Part" in front of the part name. Otherwise, "Unknown Part" will be written over there as mentioned in the image.
Your decision to buy iPhones from only trusted website like Amazon can be the first line of defense against fake iPhone scams.
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Also read: Does Orange and Green Dot on iPhone Mean Someone Spying on You?