Scalpers and scammers target Steam Deck waitlisted buyers with fake eBay listings

Valve has begun sending waitlist emails to Steam Deck buyers, and within hours, inflated listings have flooded secondary markets like eBay. Screenshots of reservation queue confirmations are being altered and reposted to create the appearance of legitimate stock, targeting buyers frustrated by long wait times.

No one outside of Valve's development team possesses a Steam Deck yet, making all current resale listings fraudulent. Scammers are banking on disappointed buyers willing to pay premiums to skip the queue. Some eBay listings price the device at twice or three times its official cost.

The pattern mirrors what happened with the Steam Controller, which still appears on eBay at markups as high as 200 percent. Valve's registration system, the same one used for the Steam Machine, has failed to prevent scalpers from gaming the market on secondary platforms.

Buyers considering waitlist alternatives should exercise extreme caution. Reservation confirmation screenshots circulate widely online and can be easily doctored. Paying inflated prices to unknown sellers carries obvious risks of fraud or non-delivery. Waiting through Valve's official queue, however long, remains the legitimate path to purchase.