No official source documents an industrywide scheme involving "made-up grading companies" on Pokémon slabs. Buyers should distinguish an unfamiliar grader from a counterfeit or tampered slab pretending to come from a recognized company. A grading company evaluates a card and seals it in a rigid holder, or slab, with a grade and certification label. The name on that label is only a starting point: research the company, certification record, holder security, card, and seller before paying a graded-card premium.
Table of Contents
- Unfamiliar Does Not Automatically Mean Fake
- Verify the Certification Carefully
- Compare the Holder With Official Security Features
- Judge the Card Separately From the Slab
- What to Do When a Slab Looks Suspicious
Unfamiliar Does Not Automatically Mean Fake
A grading company can be real without being widely accepted. For example, eBay accepts PSA, SGC, CGC/CSG, and Beckett for its current Trading card Authenticity Guarantee, while listing GMA, HGA, KSA, WCG, and GBA as unapproved. That distinction shows why "not approved" and "made up" are not interchangeable, according to eBay's program requirements.
Start by determining whether the grader operates as an actual service. Look for a working company website, clear submission instructions, published grading standards, contact information, holder-security guidance, and a searchable certification database. Then ask a different question: does the market trust its grades? A functioning company may still have limited recognition, weak buyer confidence, or standards that do not match those of another grader.
Verify the Certification Carefully
Enter the certification number only on the grader's official website. Confirm that the result matches the card's name, set, card number, grade, and any available holder image.
A matching result is not proof by itself. PSA warns that criminals can copy publicly visible certification numbers onto counterfeit labels, so PSA's certification lookup explicitly says a valid number does not eliminate risk. Treat these mismatches as reasons to stop and investigate:.
- The lookup describes a different card, variety, or grade.
- The label's type, spacing, font, or information differs from official examples.
- A verification image does not match the slab being sold.
- The company has no official verification tool or holder documentation.
- The seller avoids clear photographs of the label, card, or case edges.
Compare the Holder With Official Security Features
Research the claimed grader's current slab design and compare it with the listing photos. PSA, for example, identifies advanced holograms, proprietary labels, tamper-evident cases, and certificate-verification images among its holder protections in its security announcement. Inspect the slab as a complete object, not merely a label with a valid number.
Look closely at seams, edges, label placement, case clarity, and signs that the holder may have been opened or resealed. This matters because a genuine-looking holder can conceal a substituted card or replacement label. PSA documents fraud involving lower-grade, altered, or counterfeit cards placed into opened holders, and its guarantee excludes tampered or fraudulent holders and labels.
Judge the Card Separately From the Slab
Do not let a high printed grade replace an examination of the card. Review clear front-and-back images for centering, corners, edges, surface condition, printing quality, and consistency with official Pokémon product images. A dramatically low price is another warning sign.
The Pokémon Company advises buyers to compare merchandise with official images and says pricing far below retail is a near-certain counterfeit indicator in its counterfeit-card guidance. Also separate authentication from grading. A marketplace inspection may confirm that a case and label appear authentic without deciding whether the company assigned an appropriate grade. If you cannot evaluate the grader's standards and reputation, base your offer on the card you can see rather than the number printed above it.
What to Do When a Slab Looks Suspicious
Pause the purchase and preserve the listing before confronting the seller. Save full-page screenshots, close-up slab images, the item description, seller messages, payment records, and the certification lookup result. If you already paid, report the seller through the marketplace and use its buyer-protection process.
Contact the card issuer promptly when appropriate; the FTC says credit- and debit-card users can dispute a charge while the issuer investigates. Do not crack, alter, or discard the slab while a dispute is open. The holder, label, packaging, listing photos, and written messages may all help document what was advertised and what arrived.
