Ebay scams ,scams,and more scams

Silvio Bello · Post by **Silvio Bello** » 27 Sep 2006 9:46 pm

Hi Bob,
Don't know where else to post this,so here goes...Thought it might be a good idea if there would be a place on the Forum to post scam transactions, wherever and however a scam might appear. Most Forum members can vouch for one another, but we have often been subjected to scam artists.I think it might be helpful to have a "Hot Sheet" of suspicious activities. Any thoughts?

Post by **Joey Ace** » 28 Sep 2006 4:14 am

eBay sales take away from the Forum's income.

I can't see why b0b would be interested in supporting them.

eBay has a lot of scam protection policies in place. They are far from perfect, due to large number of eBay users.

CrowBear Schmitt · Post by **CrowBear Schmitt** » 28 Sep 2006 4:26 am

i'll agree w: the Mod

when you get scam mail concerning ebay or paypal
send it to spoof@paypal.com or spoof@ebay.com

most important : don't ferget to send the internet header of the scam mail otherwise they won't be able to identify the nerd & squeeze him

Andy Sandoval · Post by **Andy Sandoval** » 28 Sep 2006 4:57 am

Recently I was involved in an eBay auction that had closed with me as the second highest bidder. Within days I received an email sayin that I was bein offered a "second chance" to purchase the item I had bid on because the winning bidder didn't pay for the item. I became suspicious and forwarded the email to spoof@ebay.com which confirmed the scam. Guess what? Within the next week I received a total of 4 more "second chance" emails from other scammers for the same auction. It makes you wonder how many unsuspecting bidders on high dollar auctions are victimized by this type of scam.[This message was edited by Andy Sandoval on 28 September 2006 at 06:00 AM.]

Jim Sliff · Post by **Jim Sliff** » 28 Sep 2006 4:59 am

There could be legal problems with "exposing" scams if they turned out to be just poor deals, not illegal, and negative things were posted about a seller. I doubt if b0b would want to set anything official up - a "buy/sell discussion" bhoard that's a little looser in overall intent might be OK, but a "scam" forum could get someone in hot water.

What Crowbear said is very important - all scams, whether fake deals or email scams should be sent to the "spoof" addresses (and you can send them to paypal of ebay - it doesn't matter, it's the same company and same department). The more they know the better job they can do working with authorities to stop the scammers.

Daniel J. Cormier · Post by **Daniel J. Cormier** » 28 Sep 2006 5:37 am

I sometime post on E-bay and the forum at the same time. If the item sells on ebay and is also listed on the Forum I still send a Donation to b0b.Biggest scam problem as of late are second chance offers.If you bid on an item as soon as it goes off I will recieve a second chance offer.I just foward them to Ebay

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Daniel J. Cormier
Mullen D-10 .
EVans FET 500 LV ,ProFex II
http://www.cajunsteelguitar.com email at djcormier@cox-internet.com

Wayne D. Clark · Post by **Wayne D. Clark** » 28 Sep 2006 7:38 am

Andy, I had the same thing happen to me about a month ago. I put a bid in on an insterment, It did not meet the reserve, so I forgot about it. About a day or two later I get this Email from [Ebay?] telling me the insterment had not sold and I had a second chance since I was the highest bidder. I checked it out with the seller, got no response so I deleted the whole thing.

About a year ago I was selling a Student Model Fender I had a $600 reserve on it Some one put an Auto Bid on it, got to be $1200.00 and I knew something was not right. I contacted Ebay They cancelled the Auto Bid, Later I got information that who ever had done that had put an Auto Bid Max at $3600.00 on my insterment. They commented that it is possible if some one is selling an item like yours of close to it price wise they will put an Auto Bid out to prevent yours from selling before theirs than cancel their Auto bid.

Lesson, Purchase or Sell your insterment via the Forum.

Desert Rose 3/4
Goodrich 120
Nashville 400

Jim Ives · Post by **Jim Ives** » 28 Sep 2006 10:31 am

I agree with Silvio: a hotlist of known scams should (in an ideal world) be available on the Forum. A lot of equipment gets sold here on a regular basis which is almost always safe.

But if you know about a rip-off artist out there, why on earth would you not share it with fellow forum-ites.

I see no legal culpability if a good faith error is made, falsely accusing an honest person of being dishonest. How often does that happen?

-Jim

Bobby D. Hunter · Post by **Bobby D. Hunter** » 29 Sep 2006 9:00 am

While I am not concerned with eBay scams (forward them to spoof@ebay.com), there is a place to forward scams that are directly related to your activities on the SGF. If you are a seller, or past seller, or offer services for a fee on the SGF and you receive an email that is suspicious, or is an obvious scam, please Forward it As An Attachment to me. I will trace the sender and ban him/her from viewing the Forum again.

Instructions for Forwarding as an attachment are found here and here.

For those who are not permitted to forward email attachments there are instructions in those posts for displaying the headers and source code, then copying and pasting it into a new email message that can be sent to me for tracking.

For those who don't know how to copy and paste text there is an excellent tutorial here, written by the Moderator of the Computers section of the SGF.

Thanks to the cooperation of many SGF members, who have reported scams to me (forwarded as attachments, or pasted headers and message bodies), I have been able to keep our forums relatively safe from Nigerian and other African scammers. However, they are still watching us and occasionally a new scam email run comes to my attention. Some are directed at sellers, while others are looking to scam people who (might) offer lessons. All involve overpayment with kited checks or money orders.

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Bobby D. Hunter
Security for SGF
Hunting down Slimeball Game
Reporting member of SpamCop

J W Alexander · Post by **J W Alexander** » 30 Sep 2006 3:36 pm

I'll add something here that is NOT intended to upset, offend or in any way disrespect memmbers here---PLEASE keep this in mind while reading!!

Currently there is a Webb amp for sale in that forum and one member chose to post a low ball offer far below the asking price. A bit of bickering ensued until b0b had to step reminding the kids to stick to business or email one another instead of wasting SGF space.

I'd much rather sell any items I have here on the SGF and contribute my fair share towards it's ongoing operation costs. When this sort of haggling or bickering begins it spoils the potential sale for everyone who reads the thread. If there is an advantage to eBay over SGF it's that those viewing the auction don't have to read any accompanying nonsense.

I also notice many members here recall when gasoline was 29.9 cents a gallon and seem to think everything is priced too high. It's as though nothing has increased in value over the years and should never be sold or offered for more than was originally paid. This is unfortunate for those trying to sell something here. If an item is priced beyond your budget or more than you think it's worth why not just move on and keep the negative comments to yourself? I know it's a site dedicated to mostly free expression but sometimes a bit of self-filtering would make this place so much more enjoyable!

Just my opinion AND why I ask potential buyers to email me direct!!

Wayne D. Clark · Post by **Wayne D. Clark** » 2 Oct 2006 12:22 pm

J.W. I agree, and I do remember gas at $.20 a gallon and $5.00 would get you and your date a movie and Malts after the the show. Regarding Pricing, I like others here have looked at insterment, Checked prices and if it is more than I can afford I move on. PSG's are not inexpensive, they are precision insterments, You don't take a pare of plyers and #10 wire to fix one.

MSA D10 8/2
Desert Rose 3/5
Goodrick 120
Nashville 400

Randy Gilliam · Post by **Randy Gilliam** » 2 Oct 2006 1:34 pm

I Bid on a steel and got two Offers From different people For a second chance Buy. One was in Italy.Randy

John Coffman · Post by **John Coffman** » 2 Oct 2006 5:27 pm

The battle of good verses evil. I have purchased many items from the forum and ebay. Both have good points. Scambay is my name for ebay. Many second chance offers have come my way. I even had a gentleman to repost an item so I could rebid. He got the price he want I got the protection I wanted.

Buyers beware!! In all transactions.

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Thomas SD10 3/4,Thomas D10 8/5 and Desert Rose S10 3/4. Beginner Just Steelin on the Brazos river.

[This message was edited by John Coffman on 02 October 2006 at 06:29 PM.]

joe long · Post by **joe long** » 5 Oct 2006 5:42 pm

I just received e-mail's from PayPal and Ebay concerning some suspcious activity on my account from China. When I click on the link for both sites they want my card information plus my 4 digit code for my ATM card. I have not given any of this information to them at this time. I sure appreciate some help regarding these e-mail's. Are they for real or is it the scam. The problem I have is giving out my ATM code and I can not understand why Ebay and PayPal would need it.

George King · Post by **George King** » 5 Oct 2006 6:17 pm

Joe, I get theese too saying I need to verify my account, but ebay policy states that any issues with ebay or your account will show up in your "My Ebay Messages" and if it's not posted there I would not answer it.

Ted Lowe Jr · Post by **Ted Lowe Jr** » 5 Oct 2006 6:21 pm

Forward the email to Ebay, spoof@ebay.com

they have a good tutorial on spotting fraudulent emails there also
http://pages.ebay.com/securitycenter/stop_spoof_websites.html#spoof

EBAY or Paypal would never ask for you ATM Pin, These Internet thieves are working a percentage game, if they mail out enough of these emails eventually someone will fall for it.......and get royally robbed...[This message was edited by Ted Lowe Jr on 05 October 2006 at 07:21 PM.][This message was edited by Ted Lowe Jr on 05 October 2006 at 07:35 PM.]

joe long · Post by **joe long** » 5 Oct 2006 7:23 pm

Thanks everyone. Just what I suspected.

James Quackenbush · Post by **James Quackenbush** » 9 Oct 2006 3:28 pm

Silvio,
How are you my friend ? ....I think that we as a group should keep our resources here on the Steel Forum ...So far I have had many pleasurable experiences buying and selling with forum members ... If Ebay is really concerned with scammers , I think it is THEIR responsibility to provide their clients with a "Hot List" ... Ebay to me has grown to a point whereby it is a breeding ground for scammers...Buyer beware !....Second Chance offers are on the rise .. I too think that we as members of this forum should SUPPORT THE FORUM before running to Ebay ....

............Sincerely, Jim[This message was edited by James Quackenbush on 09 October 2006 at 04:28 PM.]

Kevin Sowder · Post by **Kevin Sowder** » 9 Oct 2006 3:40 pm

Ebay scams sometimes work differently when you are the seller. I sold a violin that is really nice. I shipped it to the winning bidder and he complained that there was a crack under the apron. He wanted to return it to me. I said that was fine. When I got the violin back, the case handle was broken off and I never did see a crack. I looked with a flashlight in a dark room and tried to give him the benefit of the doubt. In the meantime, he told PayPal that he never received the violin and he somehow got money back from them or VISA. I was then asked if I had a shipping number. I provided all the information as it was shipped from work and signed for by him. Well, PayPal locked my account and then tried to get the money out of my personal bank account. I was then sent notice that I was being held accountable for the charges and it went against my credit report.
I would rather sell here on the forum...

Edward Meisse · Post by **Edward Meisse** » 9 Oct 2006 10:47 pm

How often do honest people get acused of being dishonest? Not just acused but convicted by a jury of their peers and sentenced to die. The former Republican governor of Illinois suspended the death penalty when dna evidence turned up exhonerating more than half the inmates on death row. Rememberr that? We need to be extremely careful if we're gonna try to out scammers here.

Paul Warnik · Post by **Paul Warnik** » 10 Oct 2006 12:01 am

Edward M-That former governor also commuted the death sentence to life in prison for one man who I am quite convinced deserved the death penalty-I was working on the day when the agency that I work for (Oak Lawn Police Dept) apprehended Robert Cloutier who was subject of a massive manhunt initiated by Chicago Police for multiple abduction/sexual assault/killings of young women in the area-I wont go into more grusome details that I was privy to but I can say that I am pround to have played part (albeit small) in assiting to capture this individual and I was quite dismayed that "The Honorable Governor George Ryan" let him off death row-Now our tax dollars can pay for three hots and a cot for the rest of the scumbags' natural life-I think you are incorrect about the DNA evidence-I believe that only played part in a few of those cases to exhonerate those convicted-all the others (at least 50 or more) were commuted to life sentence because of the other inconsistencies in our wonderful criminal justice system as it pertained to capitol murder cases[This message was edited by PAUL WARNIK on 10 October 2006 at 02:53 AM.]

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 10 Oct 2006 5:31 am

EBay has gotten too scary for me.

Someone listed 39 plasma TV's under my identification. Got to most auctions in time but was left with 8 winners, none of whom spoke English. My communications would have been funny except the amount of time I had to spend correcting the situation was absurd.

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL FORUM!
And fight topic drift!

Alan Kirk · Post by **Alan Kirk** » 10 Oct 2006 7:18 am

There are scammers here on the Forum, too. They tend to prey upon newcomers, sending emails rather than responding to topics. It doesn't matter where you are. Keep your eyes open.

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Gil Berry · Post by **Gil Berry** » 11 Oct 2006 12:20 pm

Other than items that have "increased in value" because of it's perceived historical/antique value, I doubt if anything much increases in value. What's happening, unfortunately, is that our good 'ole US currency is decreasing in value. An hour's work is worth an hour's work. Paying more money for the same thing only makes the money worth less. I know, I don't like that much, either. But it's the truth. As for eBay, it's a pretty good idea, but this Forum, for steel guitar enthusiasts anyway, is a hundred times better.

Lefty · Post by **Lefty** » 11 Oct 2006 4:45 pm

Not only Ebay, but Paypal is also in the Scam ring. I must say these people are like Ryan O'Neil in Paper Moon going through the obituaries, and selling bibles to the widows. I felt that way when I was almost scammed on the Lefty Sho-Bud I got outbid on. Short rope and a tall tree would work.
Lefty