Dan Ackerman / CNET
Given the limited range of the new PlayStation 5 and Xbox series X and S video game consoles, they sell out quickly when a store gets a new supply. Walmart announced plans on Tuesday to ensure that inventory ends up in the hands of real customers rather than bots.
Walmart says it has built and optimized its bot detection tools to get the majority of the consoles available to legitimate consumers. The announcement notes that bots can order multiple units in the time it takes a person to order a single one. Walmart’s software will attempt to stop these automated programs and will cancel any orders placed by bots that passed through the first layer of detection.
“A bot prevention action that we implemented just hours before the PlayStation 5 event on November 25, blocked more than 20 million bot attempts within the first 30 minutes alone,” said Jerry Geisler, Walmart’s chief information security officer.
The plan will be tested soon as the retail giant is about to sell its plan next batch of consoles at noon PT (3 p.m. ET) Thursday.
Updating: Anecdotal evidence makes it seem like bots were still making it difficult for consumers to get their hands on a console during this latest sale, with the PS5 selling out in seconds. We’ve reached out to Walmart for comment.
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