A second-hand mobile phone shop in Tokyo reportedly foiled an alleged scam involving several sealed iPhone 18 Pro boxes after using a simple magnetic test to check whether the phones were actually inside. The incident reportedly took place at a shop in Tokyo’s Shin-Okubo district, where a Vietnamese man arrived with multiple boxes that appeared to contain brand-new iPhone 18 Pro devices.
In the footage, a staff member can be seen placing the sheet over the back of one of the boxes. A genuine iPhone should produce a recognisable circular pattern because of the magnets built into the device.
The incident has also sparked discussion about the kinds of scams that can emerge around newly launched smartphones, particularly when demand is high. The video does not establish what happened to him afterwards. It is also unclear whether police were called or whether any arrest was made. The shop reportedly recorded the inspection and shared the footage online. The incident has since attracted attention on social media, with users praising the staff for detecting the suspicious packages before completing the purchase.
