Has anyone bought gear off E-Bay?

[captaincrash]

Well...

... obviously they pulled down the last listing that was using a stolen account. AND today I have come across another 46 fraudulant listings including one for an EOS 1Ds Mk II for $1200. This seller has taken over the account of a person from the UK with a 100% positive feedback rating of 188. The feedback ID stated they are in the UK (that could have been changed IF the thief were not so lazy) - and the visible feedback on items purchased implies they've transacted primarily from the UK... plus most transactions in the feedback history were paid for with british pounds... another indication of a resident of the UK. However, the current 46 sales listings state the item location as various places in the USA! Some locations say La Canada, California (about 40 miles from where I am sitting now) and another of their listings humorously termed their location as Yankdale, South Dakota.

So - I turned them on my discovery with 18 hours til they close - so they've been up for a little under 6 hours before I found them. It may take Ebay 1-6 hours to catch up with my complaints and shut them down. Not bad considering it is a regular weekday. I've seen greater fraud activity on holiday weekends as the purpetrators assume correctly that most of the ebay security staff is proabably off for the holiday weekend. I've seen a far slower response rate to my security complaints on holiday weekends.

So - I emailed the purpetrator asking how to take advantage of their "too good to be true direct bargain deal for $1200" ... below are quoted copies of their email responses minus their email and complete personal address... take a look and enjoy the snickering...

<EMAIL COPY FROM SUSPECTED THIEF OF AN EBAY ACCOUNT WHO IS TRYING TO GET US TO WIRE THEM MONEY>

HI THERE sIR,
The item is BRAND NEW, have international warranty provided by the factory
and come with all accesories that you need .my best price is $1200 including the shipping taxes.
I shipp via UPS (air service) , in max 2 days this item will be in your home.
i prefer to pay me via Western union bc is the faster.I am legit with
ebay also i have insurance in case something happens you will get full
refounds from ebay.( i have a buyer protection )
Thanks and mail me back
Best regards

<AND HERE IS A FOLLOW UP EMAIL WITH INSTRUCTIONS ON WHERE TO WIRE THE FUNDS>

Hi there ...
this is my payment info for western union money transfer :
To arrange the transfer, you must go in person to a Western Union office and
send the money from your name and address to my name and adrress

First Name: V...(I deleated the whole name)
Last Name: P... (I deleated the whole name)
address: Str.Chisinau Nr.4 Bl.H Sc.3 et.2 (APT # deleated)
city/zip/country: braila/6100/romania


tell me when you can make the payment because i must to know when i start the shipping

<THIS THIEF IS IN ROMANIA>

Oh well... I imagine this fellow must eventually catch a few unlucky ebay folks with money plus little common sense or practical experience. As such - even experienced ebay people are having their accounts stolen - as the original eBay history shows that the victim had 188 feedback entries at 100% positive. Too bad.

So - I just sent them a request for multiple units - and they happily declared they have 10 units for sale! Imagine ... buying TEN EOS 1Ds Mk2 for $12,000? SHippED TOO... 2nd day express from Romania???! I sent an email to the Braila police - in case anything might amount from it however unlikely as it may seem. Below is a map of Braila from the police department web site for Braila, Romania.

After waiting for 4 hours to see if Ebay security would respond to my email I grew impatient at the inaction. So, I got a tech live at their "live help" chat (click the Ebay logo at top left for the home page, then look for the tiny "LIVE HELP" hot link at the top right corner). I explained to the tech how I had waited 4 hours and the suspected listings were still up and starting to draw several bids... the tech stated he/she was going to check it... then they said they have confirmed my claims and were kicking it up to someones' attention. At this point I thanked them and added that I had just uncovered a new twist. The suspected thieves had sent me a new PISH... it was an email pretending to be Ebay security and asking that I click through a link to identify myeslf and register on their link!!! Creative... eh? I had received many emails from ebaby security in the past - and I even know how they invite real law enforcement folks to step forward to interface - and this clearly was NOT a proper link or method. I suspected that clicking the link would download a virus, data miner or simply a PISHING page for identity theft. FYI... the address to send PISH reports to is spoof@ebay.com AND they need the email forwarded with no changes to the header, subject line or hand typed explanation by you. Just forward the thing w/o ANY typing and they will handle the rest. At this point ... less than 5 minutes after I closed communication with the LIVE HELP eBay tech - the faked listings started disappearing as eBay was removing them! Below is a quoted copy of ebay's response to my PISH report ... it's a form letter, but it is informative just the same....

Hello,

Thank you for taking the time to write eBay with your concerns. My name
is Renata, and I'm happy to help you further.

Emails such as this, commonly referred to as "spoof" or "phished"
messages, are sent in an attempt to collect sensitive personal or
financial information from the recipients.

The email you reported was not sent by eBay. We have reported this email
to the appropriate authorities.

In the future, be very cautious of any email that asks you to submit
information such as your credit card numbers or passwords. If you are
ever concerned about an email you receive from eBay, simply follow these
steps:

1. Open a new Web browser and type www.ebay.com into your browser
address field to go directly to the eBay site.

2. On eBay, sign into your account and click the "My eBay" button at the
top of the page.

3. Check the My Messages section located at the top of the My eBay page.
If an email affects your eBay account, it's now in My Messages. Any
email sent to your registered eBay email address from eBay or from
another eBay member via eBay's member-to-member communication system
will now appear in My Messages.

Just remember, if you get an email to your registered eBay email address
that looks like it's from eBay about a problem with your account or
requesting personal information, check My Messages first. If it's not
there, it's a fake email. (* my note.... THIS ONLY APPLIES FOR messages from the eBay system claiming to be FROM eBay as opposed to individuals sending PISH or SPAM links! Also, whats' to stop a PISH or Data miner from creating a page that mimics the home page of MY EBAY with automated active links to your account?n That is why they say 1st off to enter ebay through a new wndow starting with www.ebay.com... ya gotta be careful folks when dealing with these Bad identity thieves.... )

If you still have any doubt about whether an email message is from eBay,
please forward it immediately to spoof@ebay.com. Do not respond to it or
click any of the links. Do not remove the original subject line or
change the email in any way when you forward it to us.

If you have already entered sensitive personal information, financial
information, or your password into a Web site based on a request from a
spoofed email, you should take immediate action to protect your identity
and all of your online accounts. We have developed an eBay Help page
with valuable information regarding the steps you should take to protect
yourself.

http://pages.ebay.com/help/tp/isgw-account-theft-reporting.html

To review eBay's new tutorial about Spoof Emails, please see the
following Web page:

http://pages.ebay.com/education/spooftutorial/

To help you better protect yourself from fake eBay and PayPal Web sites,
we have developed a feature for the eBay Toolbar called "Account Guard."
Account Guard includes an indicator of when you are on an eBay or PayPal
Web site or a known spoof (or "phishing") site, buttons to report fake
eBay Web sites, and a password notification feature that warns you when
you may be entering your eBay password on an unverified site.

To learn more about the eBay Toolbar with Account Guard go to
www.ebay.com, click on "Downloads" at the bottom of the page, and then
click on the "eBay Toolbar" link.

Once again, thank you for alerting us to the spoof email you received.
Your efforts help keep eBay a safe and fair place to trade.

Regards,

Renata
eBay SafeHarbor
_____________________________________________

Whether you're new to eBay or an experienced buyer and seller, the eBay
Security & Resolution Center can help you protect yourself on eBay and
online. For more information, please click the "Security Center" link at
the bottom of most eBay pages.
_____________________________________________

For our latest announcements, please check:

http://www2.ebay.com/aw/announce.shtml
_____________________________________________



Original Message Follows:
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Good deals can be had... I have bought and sold over 600 or so "sides" of a transaction (I sort of lost track) using several IDs. One was mine but my spouse keeps taking over and crowding me out with her tracking and purchases... and her sales! Plus I use one ID for just tracking and reporting fraud... that one hides as much of my identity as possible..., IE... everything but my URL which only eBay can see. O well... have a great weekend folks. If anyone has actually read all the way down to here and finds it constructive, helpful or even better... ENTERTAINING.... then post a reply so I know my bit of insanity in posting so much detail was worth at least a chuckle or appreciative nod from someone?!?

TTFN!