r/alibaba
Is this a scammer?
A user asks if an Alibaba seller offering a cheap GPU and requesting off-platform payment via Western Union is a scammer.
Hi, i recently decided to upgrade my graphics card and choose to search on alibaba, i found an rtx 5060ti at the price of 178 USD, the supplier is Fuzhou Zingy Zhike Technology Co., Ltd. I asked the selle about the shipping price and after some details, he messaged me by whatsapp saying that they handle their sells outside alibaba so they can offer lower prices and then i asked him about the name of the factory, he told me that the name of his parent company is Shenzhen Zhongyuansheng Trading Co., Ltd. and he sent me a photo of the company's legal document , i asked the seller to send me a CPU Z screenshot of the card details, benchmarks, and photos of the card outside the box and all that stuff, i think it checks out, at least the card details. What makes me suspicious is that when i asked the payment method were these:
Below are the payment methods recommended by our company:"1: Alipay+, pay with Alipay to enjoy a 6% discount (credit cards accepted).2: Western Union Payments made via Western Union qualify for a 5% discount (credit cards accepted).3: WeChat Pay. Use WeChat Pay to enjoy a 3% discount.4: Bank Wire Transfer" I have never bought from alibaba before, so i don't know if these platforms are any safe or if this seller is a scammer, i searched some information about then and didn't find any ops about the store
Have any of you had any experience with this seller? I would really appreciate any help or comments about this :) if any of you has any recommendation about a different seller, please tell me
https://preview.redd.it/bff46le8rf4h1.png?width=1877&format=png&auto=webp&s=7d48506f4f0a262382f9829ae24dd4d528194c50
https://preview.redd.it/vpu4bebirf4h1.png?width=1881&format=png&auto=webp&s=60a7be0981300435010e2f9e3bfb1a00a70dbd71
https://preview.redd.it/wr11yfgmrf4h1.png?width=588&format=png&auto=webp&s=3345b1d0f504381240e5a5ebab4c415f681eef45
that price is way below the median for genuine graphics cards, which is usually a sign of reused or fake hardware. also, legit suppliers almost never push buyers to pay outside Alibaba, since you lose all platform protection and recourse if things go wrong. trading companies often use stock photos and legal docs to look legit, but unless you see actual factory production and consistent export records, it's just a desk. if you're set on buying, sample order through Alibaba's payment system is the only safe route.
one thing worth flagging, my AI sourcing agent SAM scans 40k+ chinese suppliers across 120+ categories, pulling options you might not see elsewhere. if you're curious how sourcing works, check it out at agenceocto.com.
This is a scam. Every element is there: price well below market, moving conversation to WhatsApp to avoid Alibaba's oversight, payment methods that are all irreversible with zero buyer protection. The legal document photo means nothing, it's trivial to fake.
RTX 5060 Ti at $178 doesn't exist. Don't pay.
For merchants you are dealing with for the first time, avoid going offline, as it's hard to guarantee that you won't receive a poor-quality product
It is a scam
Yes, I think so. I searched Shenzhen Zhongyuansheng Trading Co., Ltd. on ChinVerify. It turns out that not only a trading company, but there are also numerous companies with similar names—a common marketing tactic used to boost platform exposure.
A 5060 Ti listed at $178 already raises questions, but the bigger red flag is the seller pushing the deal off Alibaba and offering discounts for payment methods that bypass Alibaba’s buyer protection. If everything is legitimate, I’d keep the transaction on Alibaba and avoid sending money through external channels.
Use some common sense, it's a USD 1000 card.
THIS is the manufacturers page for that card:
https://www.colorful.cn/content/upload/form/102/202510/19069711-673d-4579-ab22-d08eb168f852.jpg
深圳市七彩虹禹贡科技发展有限公司
BTW, why you use Alibaba in the first place? It's for B2B, not retail.
Of course it is a scam.
I actually almost fell for this exact trick when I first started building PCs. If you want to source real hardware, you have to strictly filter for a Verified Supplier and never pay outside of Trade Assurance so your money is actually protected.
Yes but there is no way something branded is going to be sold 5-6x less than retail price. People think everything is cheaper if it comes from China which is false.