PS5 money changers used a loophole to buy shares before they were launched in the UK

UK retailer Argos has been the target of PS5 scalping groups, possibly contributing to lower-than-expected availability during a recent inventory update. In the early hours of January 26, UK players were delighted to see the PS5 back in stock at Argos. But, as we have seen several times, the stock lasted much less than expected, amid widespread problems. Not only was the site full of bugs, along with the app, but it was also supposed to have even less inventory than expected in the already limited console supply.

Multiple sources (who wished to remain anonymous) confirmed to IGN that this is partly because individuals were able to order Argos PS5 consoles on January 25, a full day before the aforementioned official stock fall. This was due to a breach discovered by the scalping group Express Notify, a paid Discord server that shared links that allowed users to buy the PS5 before the general public knew about the new stock. Express Notify has publicly taken credit, with many of its users viewing their orders from multiple consoles.

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Argos reportedly closed these rogue links quickly, but not without several consoles being sold and even collected in Argos stores in advance. There was no confirmation of how many PS5s were claimed before the breach closed, but this is just one more example in the growing list of frustrations that customers are experiencing when trying to buy the next generation system.

To make matters worse, those who were legitimately trying to buy via Argos in the early morning hours did not exactly have an advantage. At first, the stock appeared to be available on the Argos application – which dropped repeatedly for maintenance – but not on the Argos browser-based website. However, even the success with the app depended entirely on her area and whether she wanted to play ball in general. Some users reported success, others said the money left their accounts without a confirmation email, while many others were left without a console again.

We contacted Argos to comment on the matter.

Scalping has become a major problem for the low-stock, high-demand PS5, and has been particularly common in the UK. The consoles disappeared from Amazon’s deliveries, were stolen from moving trucks, and retailers canceled large volumes of orders claimed for scalping rings. It was enough for a group of UK politicians to propose a debate on how to make island scalping illegal in the country.

Robert Anderson is Trade Editor and Business Specialist at IGN. Send him incredible screenshots of the game @ robertliam21 on twitter.

Credit for @ PS5StockAlertUK to help with information.