Test real and fake disks for bad blocks
Unmasking Fake Flash Memory
© Lead Image © Uliya Stankevych, 123RF.com
When it comes to cheap flash memory, buyers should beware. Fake flash memory often offers only a fraction of the advertised storage capacity. With no visible calibration mark, it isn't easy to discover a counterfeit. Here's a test to weed out fake disks.
Any customer in a bar who ordered a pint of beer would definitely complain to the barkeeper if their glass was only a quarter full. This kind of attempted fraud always fails in the real world because of the obvious lack of fluid in the glass, along with the high level of motivation of the consumer and the physical presence of the perpetrator.
Unfortunately, online buyers of flash storage media cannot hope for comparably favorable conditions, although their judgment is unlikely to be impaired by the effects of alcohol. Time and time again, you hear of buyers of USB flash drives and flash cards being duped by shady dealers on the Internet. It is not difficult to find media at surprisingly low prices where the storage capacity is wrongly stated, for example, on eBay [1, 2]. To protect themselves, sellers often make statements such as "the stick will store about 4GB of data."
In this article, I attempt to reveal these counterfeits by running the right tests. As test specimens, I use two Samsung Pro 128GB MicroSDXC memory cards (model MB-MG128) purchased in 2016 from two vendors on eBay.de. If you believe the label, they both should achieve up to 90MB/s read and 80MB/s write performance.
[...]
Buy Linux Magazine
US / Canada
UK / Australia
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Linux Kernel 6.16 Reaches EOL
Linux kernel 6.16 has reached its end of life, which means you'll need to upgrade to the next stable release, Linux kernel 6.17.
-
Amazon Ditches Android for a Linux-Based OS
Amazon has migrated from Android to the Linux-based Vega OS for its Fire TV.
-
Cairo Dock 3.6 Now Available for More Compositors
If you're a fan of third-party desktop docks, then the latest release of Cairo Dock with Wayland support is for you.
-
System76 Unleashes Pop!_OS 24.04 Beta
System76's first beta of Pop!_OS 24.04 is an impressive feat.
-
Linux Kernel 6.17 is Available
Linus Torvalds has announced that the latest kernel has been released with plenty of core improvements and even more hardware support.
-
Kali Linux 2025.3 Released with New Hacking Tools
If you're a Kali Linux fan, you'll be glad to know that the third release of this famous pen-testing distribution is now available with updates for key components.
-
Zorin OS 18 Beta Available for Testing
The latest release from the team behind Zorin OS is ready for public testing, and it includes plenty of improvements to make it more powerful, user-friendly, and productive.
-
Fedora Linux 43 Beta Now Available for Testing
Fedora Linux 43 Beta ships with Gnome 49 and KDE Plasma 6.4 (and other goodies).
-
USB4 Maintainer Leaves Intel
Michael Jamet, one of the primary maintainers of USB4 and Thunderbolt drivers, has left Intel, leaving a gaping hole for the Linux community to deal with.
-
Budgie 10.9.3 Now Available
The latest version of this elegant and configurable Linux desktop aligns with changes in Gnome 49.