Beware of counterfeit Nintendo handhelds, say UK authorities

We were hoping for an explosive Christmas, but this was not quite what we had in mind.

If there's a video game console on your shopping list this season, be careful: you might get rather more than you bargained for.

British Revenue and Customs officials are warning shoppers about counterfeit Nintendo DS handheld game systems that pose a risk of fire, the BBC reports. The alert was issued after authorities seized hundreds of fake systems that included dangerous power adapters.

"You might find you plug it in and the adaptor sets on fire or the wires start to melt and stick out," Revenue and Customs spokesperson Clare Merrills told the BBC.

And that's not all. According to Merrills, there might be even more serious consequences: "When you buy these goods, you're not funding our economy, you're actually funding criminals in these far off places and it could be linked to terrorism," she said.

Could This Be A Bogus DS?

Yup, you heard that right. Buy fake DSs, support terrorism. While that may or may not be true, it's definitely the case that fake electronics can lead to tears, so here are a few tips to help you dodge the cheats this year.

Four ways to avoid a counterfeit Christmas

-- Stick to reputable stores. Wal-Mart, Gamestop, and Amazon are not going to sell you counterfeit consoles, and if they do you can probably sue them for a fortune. That shady fly-by-night website? Not so much.

-- If it looks too good to be true, it's probably too good to be true. Consoles are rarely discounted, especially in the holiday season. At best, retailers might throw in a free game or a gift card. Be suspicious of bargain-basement prices -- the DSs that were the subject of the warning were selling for 60% less than the regular price of the machine.

-- Get familiar with the official packaging of the console. Print out a picture, or even ask the advice of a friendly game geek. Fakes often have misprints, spelling errors, missing serial numbers, or subtly different logos. They can look like the product they're imitating, but rarely stand up under close scrutiny. Watch out for the "Neo Double Games," the "X-Game 360," and the "PowerStation 3" -- all "real" fakes.

-- Games can be faked, too. Although most consoles have built-in protections to discourage these sort of shenanigans, counterfeit Nintendo DS games regularly pop up for sale on ebay. Caveat emptor: the pirated versions are very hard to spot from an ebay posting, so if you're not a pro, stick to the mainstream game stores.

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