UPDATE: Be Careful If you Are Selling on Ebay - I was almost just scammed out of my 300mm lens!

[ddt0725]

I listed my 300mm lens on ebay late last night and this morning someone had purchased it at the "Buy It Now" price!! FANTASTIC!

Then I received an email from the buyer asking me to change the shipping from priority (additional mailing fee) and put it as shipping included and he would send me a prepaid FedEx label.

Alittle suspicious of this request, I emailed ebay asking if it was ok to do. Within a few hours I received a response from ebay telling me that someone's account was hacked into (to make it look like a respectable buyer with awesome rating) and the hacker tried to get me to ship elsewhere without the account owners permission.

Hopefully,this posting will help someone else that may potentially fall victim to a scam like this!

Denise

Update 5/6/10:

The same exact thing happened again! For the second time in a week, someone hacked into a registered buyers account and tried to fraudulently purchase my lens and have me ship it off to who knows where! So once again, ebay pulled my listing ...that's it, I'm done trying to sell anything of major value on ebay! [8o|] [N]

[Sean Setters]

I had my ebay account stolen one time. It wasn't fun. Fortunately, the thief simply sent spam messages to people (back then, it was easier to do that it is now). Thanks for the head's up!

[Steven23]

I just tried to sell a d90 on ebay, and the winning buyer was trying to scam me. I picked up on it, and didnt finish the deal.

[Jon Ruyle]

I just tried to sell a d90 on ebay, and the winning buyer was trying to scam me. I picked up on it, and didnt finish the deal.


How did he try to scam you? Was it the same kind of thing, or something different?


If it was different, I'd like to hear about it. I'm just about to list two lenses on Ebay. You guys are making me nervous.

[ddt0725]

I'm just about to list two lenses on Ebay. You guys are making me nervous.



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Just be VERY CAUTIOUS of anyone trying to change the terms in any way from your original listing &amp; make sure paypal is holding the payment before you ship!

Go with your gut instinct on anything that trips a red flag!

Denise

[scalesusa]

This is not as common as it used to be, but big ticket items are still targets of thieves.


I had a $2300 camera stolen this way by a thief who stole a users ebay and paypal account. Some idiot used the same password for both accounts, like leaving the keys and a signed title in your car. this allowed him to change the confirmed shippingaddress and e-mail.


I had followed the ebay / paypal procedure to the letter.


1. Only ship to confirmed address. - absolutely a requirement


2. Ship with signature confirmation - absolutely a requirement


3. Insure it for full value. - In case buyer claims not received or broken.


It took a month, but Paypal did cover the loss. Ebay cancelled the sale and refunded my fees, so in the end, I received more money than if It had been a legitimate buyer.


I've had a couple of bogus purchases as well, in one case, ebay called me at home and said the bidder was a fake, in the other, I spotted it.


In the past two years, and thousands of sales, I only recall one issue coming up. I've never lost any money on ebay purchases or sales since I started in 2000.

[Steven23]

The guys ebay account was stolen, so he won the bid off auction, after he had won, he wanted it shipped to a different address than his paypal/ebay account, i told him ok, just change your address with paypal. Then he said "i'm not in the usa, i'm having a friend pick it up". I'm like lol, his address was from CO and the new shipping address was for FL. He was all spastic when i told him to change his info, he said "why are you asking this" i told him "to protect myself" and he stopped responding to emails, and the deal was pretty much off. I sent to ebay for a credit for the sail, then a day later, got an email from ebay saying the dude's account was stolen, and got the info back. A key thing to watch for is these things. They want a different shipping, they always want over night shipping(so you cant stop the item getting to them" They want a different address than there paypal(only ship to that same address to be covered, because they can cancle their CC and you get sol, because paypal doesnt cover if you shipped to a different address. They want it shipped to nigeria most of the time.

[ddt0725]

This is not as common as it used to be, but big ticket items are still targets of thieves.


And its not just the seller that gets taken in these scams either. Just last week, an engineer in my office purchased an awesome golf club at quite a good price. Turns out many other people did also ...from a seller who never shipped them or ever had them to begin with...he's says he got robbed on the way to the post office!

I would think now with the economy the way it is ...more &amp;morepeople are getting desperate to make a buck, anyway they can!

Denise

[Jon Ruyle]

Just be VERY CAUTIOUS of anyone trying to change the terms in any way from your original listing &amp; make sure paypal is holding the payment before you ship!


Good advise, thanks.


I've already stopped accepting IOU's because of shifty customers. What a world, what a world.

[JJphoto]

Denise, good to know, thanks!

[lynx0069]

thanks for sharing that denise..........its not just ebay you have to watch out for, about 3 months ago i thought i found a great bargain on craigs list, for a 100-400 for $1200 canadian. his add said he was in toronto, so i send off an email to him asking for particulars on the lens.....i got an email back from him at 3 in the morning, he said he actually lived in vancouver, but was currently in africa on business, but would ship the lens fromeurope once i western unioned the moneyto him..........LMAO........i didnt even reply back to him.......

[canon-ball]

Lives in vancouver, but in africa on business will ship from europe? lol


hahaha best line ive heard in awhile.

[scalesusa]

Unfortunately, on craigslist there are lots of scams. Most are easily spotted. They depend on greed of the buyer to save a lot of money.


As long as you are able to meet the seller in a public place, and see or try it out, you only have to worry if it was stolen.


I've bought many cameras and lenses on our local Craigslist, and only had a couple of problems with (inexpensivelenses.) However, I am very careful now to check out lenses even more, particularly if I'm buying a high priced one.


Most of the time, I just buy lenses new, but occasionally, a neighbor or someone nearby lists one for a very good price and I jump on it.

[peety3]

And its not just the seller that gets taken in these scams either. Just last week, an engineer in my office purchased an awesome golf club at quite a good price. Turns out many other people did also ...from a seller who never shipped them or ever had them to begin with...he's says he got robbed on the way to the post office!





How was payment handled? I got scammed by somebody on Ebay who wouldn't take paypal (so I had to get a money order, which I mailed to them). He sent "2GB" memory cards which only showed up as 1GB. I shipped back for proper replacements, and never heard from the seller...closed the Ebay account and everything.


Two years later, after I'd deleted all of my email trails, someone from either Ebay or the Postal service asked for info, as they were pursuing the seller for mail fraud, a federal offense. That could be a great way to pursue someone...

[ddt0725]

I even put in the ad shipping in the US only, Paypal ONLY, shipped to registered paypal address only and that address would be verified!

The person probably doesn't even read the ads and just attacks any that have a substantial dollar value attached!

In both email requests for me to use a fedex label that they were going to send me...they signed off the email with "thank,s".