Searching for a cheaper handset this month can lead shoppers to storefronts that never held stock at all.
Apple’s September 9 event introduced a foldable model and two Pro phones, and it set off a familiar burst of registrations that researchers tracking domain data describe as routine for launch season.
Alexandre Francois, who studies online fraud for the intelligence firm WhoisXML API, found names built around “Apple” and “iPhone 18” clustering around the keynote itself. Across four previous events, the day that followed each launch produced well over 200 fresh registrations, while ordinary days yield one or none, and he expects this round to run into the hundreds.
Why the copies look convincing
Browser warnings and security tools have been slow to keep pace. Dozens of engines already rate some of the domains as dangerous, yet the pages still load, because the blocklists those products draw on stay behind. Specs lifted from Apple once they go public make the copies convincing, and AI fills in the rest. Price remains the quickest filter, with Apple’s own tabs reading 1,199 pounds for the 18 Pro and 1,299 for the Pro Max, so anything far below that deserves suspicion, especially when payment is limited to a bank transfer or crypto, or when a countdown pushes for a fast decision. A listing for a plain iPhone 18 is another giveaway, since that model has not been announced, and shoppers should note that Apple runs no lotteries and never recruits people to trial handsets.
