Somewhat off-topic, but food for thought

[Humpbacks1962]

Thought you might find this interesting. the top 10 reported frauds in 1999 and 2000:

1999 Top 10 Frauds
Online Auctions 78%
General Merchandise Sales 7%
Internet Access Services 2%
Computer Equipment/Soft. 1%
Work-At-Home 1%
Advance Fee Loans .2%
Magazine Sales .2%
Information Adult Services .2%
Travel/Vacations .1%
Multilevel Market/Pyramids .1%


2000 Top 10 Frauds Online
Auctions 87%
General Merchandise Sales 10%
Internet Access Services 3%
Work-At_Home 3%
Advance Fee Loans 2%
Computer Equipment/Soft. 1%
Nigerian Money Offers 1%
Information Adult Services 1%
Credit Card Offers .5%
Travel/Vacations .5%

In all cases, the most successful prevention was always address verification.
Applies to all of us...

Wanda

 

[swinginevilmike]

Thanks Wanda for posting that.... Makes me want to think next time I click on the place bid button...

 

[Luv2Roam]

Very sad indeed. But not too surprising anymore.

 

[pintrader]

Thanks, Wanda
A good friend and I are discussing the ins/outs , ups/downs of being a clearing house for on-line auction transactions. There is a great deal to consider. She has funding and is looking to start a new business venture. This could have appeal.

 

[Humpbacks1962]

I am glad many appreciated the info.

It is shocking to realize that although we hear about travel agencies, credit card scams and so forth, none beat online auction fraud when it comes to topping complaints and investigations. $10.00 here, $45.00 there quickly add up!

The other day an e - seller refused to provide to me his/her identity and adress beyond initials and a hotmail e-mail. For the first time ever, I refused to pay for an item I won, under those conditions! The person had many positives, it was the weirdest thing I ever encountered. Although it did not come to that, I was able and prepared to take a negative feedback, protecting my best interests.

It was comforting to read in that report I shared that the best prevention is to confirm the address provided.

Good luck in your endeavor, Pintrader. We sure can use online auctions based on solid honesty standards.

Wanda

 

[Regina]

It's a sad statistic, isn't it?

Thanks for the reminder that not everything is what it seems to be.

It's always smart to be a bit cautious.

 

[bridgetf]

Funny, the recent problem that many pin collectors faced recently had nothing to do with an auction but had instead to do with someone just posting a bunch of pins at prices which were way below what the auctions were fairly reaching. (This board isn't exposed to this because all pins sold on this board are expected to be sold for purely charitable reasons.)

Many takers at the "too good to be true" prices got burned.

Of course Online Auctions will get the highest fraud complaints - its one of the the fastest growing areas, and one where many small businesses find a window, unlike the "General Merchandise sales" where most the major players are previously established brick and mortar stores. The fact that online auction services have grown so incredibly large has to do with the low percentage of problems there, othewise people would stay away from them in droves.

As for the other categories, well, who on here would even admit if the were defrauded on "adult services"? Or admit that they were involved in "Nigerian Money offers"? Most of the list consists of fraud in areas that most of us would pass over as schemes without even opening the emails.

Everyone should use common sense when entering into any transaction, not just an online one. But I sort of hope that people reading this collecting board aren't swayed from going to auctions by continual negative posts of pretty much meaningless data.

 

[peoplemover]

I don't want to say it's useless until I hear what source the information came from.

Wanda, where'd you get the stats?

 

[bridgetf]

I was not questioning the validity of the data, just the import.

If someone did a survey. for example, to the effect of:

What height shelf would you have trouble reaching without assistence:

2 feet
4 feet
6 feet
8 feet

There would be a preponderance of people who would have greater trouble reaching an eight foot shelf. This would not be an invalid result, just an irrelevant one.

Without having any statistics as to the actual usage of the various categories, the number of complaints made is not a particular interesting number. If only 3 people got involved with the Nigerian Money but 2 filed fraud reports, and on the other hand, there were 12,000,000 transactions on online auctions, but 200 field fraud reports, the statistics given would indicate that online auctions have 100x more incidents. but ignore the very low percentage of occurance.

 

[Humpbacks1962]

The stats were quoted in the latest newsletter of the service I used to develop my website,
http://www.adansoniabonsai.com (Not related to pin trading, just a gardening resource to grow baobabs as bonsai). I did not read the newsletter in full, but assume the numbers were based on fraud investigation agency reports, found in greater detail on their websites, or running a search string on public consumer protection data. I merely copied and pasted them as an FYI post.

When you think of the number of people using the Internet nowadays, it is not surprising that swindling got versatile and now include auctions, posts, website offers and so forth. Cons target a wider audience! The old scam-in-the-mail and telemarketing techniques are obsolete.

This sudden evolution of technology has made it easier for crooks to avoid detection, keeping our law enforcement and fraud prevention agencies very busy. Stats like these merely bring what we strongly suspected out of the backburner.

Wanda

 

[Regina]

No one said not to use the auctions, just to be aware that it's an area where caution and common sense need to part of the transaction.

Another topic that seems to be in the news frequently is identity theft. Again, the internet has made this a lot easier to accomplish.

Thanks again Wanda! We sometimes get lulled into a false sense of security, and it's smart to be reminded that we need to be careful, and that we can take steps to protect our hard earned money.

 

[bridgetf]

Well, to quote Disraeli, there are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics.

BTW, the sky is falling.

 

[AZ JazzyJ]

Bridget,

I checked. The sky isn't falling. The earth is rising.

Jeff

 

[Humpbacks1962]

Oh my!

I wonder what was the highest level math class Disraeli approved...

Wanda

 

[AZ JazzyJ]

Oh wait, I think I am confused. Is Disraeli a person? I thought maybe that is what they were going to call the new Disney Israel pavillion at the world showcase. Hmmm, maybe a piece of earth rose up and hit me in the head.

Jeff

 

[bridgetf]

Well Jeff, from an old Irish blessing, May the road rise to meet you.

I guess that wasn't the sky fallling.

(But then, where'd that bump on my head come from?)

You were close -"Disraelis" are some of the castmembers in the Millennium Village.