The launch of the Pokémon card collection celebrating its 30th anniversary has led to an increase in fake online stores, according to recent reports. As the official release date—September 16—approached, these unaffiliated sites began offering pre-orders for highly desired card boxes, even though they had no connection to Asmodee, the distributor of Pokémon cards in France, and no actual stock. Since then, the number of these fake stores has grown significantly: the community platform Pokescam recorded 42 in September and 16 in October, compared to just three in August. These fake sites often mimic the look and feel of legitimate online retailers. They include detailed product descriptions, customer reviews, promises of fast delivery, and contact pages. Some even display false physical store addresses to appear more credible, while others include unrelated products like board games, toys, or Lego sets. Some of these stores charge slightly higher prices to simulate the effect of high demand and impose limits on how many items a customer can purchase at once, creating a sense of urgency. These tactics can be very convincing, especially for collectors who are familiar with the scarcity and inflated resale prices of rare Pokémon cards. The excitement surrounding the 30th-anniversary Pokémon boxes has made it easier for scammers to create these fake stores, and the availability of AI tools has lowered the barrier to entry. Scammers can now generate realistic-looking storefronts using tools like Claude or ChatGPT without needing any programming knowledge. According to Pokescam, victims reported losses totaling 8,847 euros in September alone, with a cumulative total of 15,431 euros recorded by October 7. However, the actual financial impact may be even greater, as many victims do not report their fraud experiences. To help collectors identify fake stores, Pokescam collects and verifies sites reported by users. The platform allows users to check a store's address against its database of known scams. Each listing includes the reasons for the alert and any available customer testimonials. The platform reviews reports carefully before adding a site to its list. For example, a site that imitated a well-known French toy retailer was confirmed as a scam, even though it had a mix of Lego, board games, and collectible cards, displayed stock, and offered reasonable prices.