Retail giant Walmart was able to thwart the attempts of PS5 bots attempting to purchase the current-gen console during the company's November 25 online restock, canceling 20 million different bot orders within the first half hour of the restock alone. The PS5 pre-order period and its subsequent online restocks have notoriously been fraught with site crashes, inconsistent listing times, and most of all a slew of botters attempting to circumvent human error and reaction time in order to snag consoles for resale.

It became such a problem this year that scalper groups and PS5 bots attempting to mass-purchase the console have come under significantly more scrutiny than usual, with consumers upset over the practice and how unregulated it seems to be. One PS5 scalper group infamously bragged about getting over 3,000 consoles during its first month of availability, something that was especially frustrating given the reports that fans attempting to get a PS5 on the secondary market had been targeted as victims of robberies. Since then, the discussion around how best to prevent the practice of PS5 bots and scalper groups taking advantage of online listings has been a hotly debated topic.

Related: PS5 Ordering Online: Every Site Promising PlayStation 5 Restocks "Soon"

Yesterday, Walmart Global Tech Chief Information Security Officer Jerry Geisler wrote a blog post on the company's corporate site outlining how it had worked to prevent PS5 bots from abusing its November 25 online restock. Geisler wrote that these "grinch bots" had seen an uptick this year, and that the company took preventative action measures to block what they company believes was 20 million PS5 bot attempts within the first half hour of the Walmart restock alone. Geisler also wrote that the company also audits and cancels orders that it believes were purchased by PS5 bots that "slipped through" the automated security measures already in place.

ps5 console restocks back at walmart

Perhaps the most interesting implication of the post, however, was that Geisler took the time to ask other retailers to join Walmart in "asking lawmakers to do more to prevent these unwanted bots on retail sites." Regardless of the perception of Walmart as a corporate entity, it's hard to argue with the fact it has a fair bit of sway in determining what sort of action might be taken against PS5 bots in the future. Hopefully, the call to action is one echoed by other retailers, and consumers - who would benefit greatly from axing the ability of PS5 bots to be so effective - will see some changes soon.

For now, though, it appears as though companies like Walmart have at least found some measure of success in canceling PS5 bot orders now that they're more prepared for the practice. It's also mind-boggling to think that 20 million PS5 bots attempted purchases in just a half hour - it's clear demand for the console, from both consumers and scalpers, hasn't lessened in the slightest.

Next: Why You Can't Buy A PlayStation 5 Right Now

Source: Walmart