Watch for Scams

Check out these scams before you bid.

• Shilling
  The most frequent scam. The sellers and their cohorts
  bidding the price of an item higher so that the winning buyer
  (you) ends up paying for the item at a higher price than you
  would otherwise have.

   

• Bid Shielding
  A buyer places a low bid and is then followed by other
  buyers (partners) who take the bidding up very high
  compared to the real value of the item, at the last moment
  the high bidders withdraw their bids and leave only the
  initial low bid remaining. Basically you end up selling the
  item for a lower than expected price and no one else has
  bid because of the high bids that have been withdrawn.

   

• Faked Photos
  Its so easy to make something look good or even replace
  it entirely and take a picture. Once the image is digitized
  further enhancements can be made. Look at the picture
  carefully, does it look like a stock shot? Does it have any
  areas of blur or fuzziness? (a sure sign it has been
  tampered with) Does it match the description? Print it out
  and also save it to disc, you may need it later.

   

• Untrue/Misleading Descriptions
  Again anything can be written about anything. When did
  you last buy a car, was that dent, rust, bad paint job in the description of the ad, of course not, sellers may fail to
  mention things they see as minor but you see as major
  faults and of course the same goes for auctions. Does the description match the picture? Is it a detailed description
  or just the make and model, sellers should give detailed descriptions and even point out faults, if you contact a seller
  before bidding and find that a lot of bad stuff has been left
  out of the description ask yourself if you want to do business
  with this person.

   

• Failure to Deliver Merchandise
  Usually online auctions require the buyer pay for the
  merchandise before receiving the goods. So you have paid,
  the check has been cashed and you have not received
  your goods. First contact the seller, if you get no response
  contact the auction site hosting the auction, tell them the
  situation and request any details they may be able to give
  you.
  
  Be sure to keep a record of all conversations,
  correspondence and cancelled checks.
  Many auction sites now require sellers to give credit
  card details for identification before they can sell, for
  obvious reasons choose your auction site carefully.
  
  In the US this is a crime and is classed as mail fraud
  so take legal advice.
  
  If the item is expensive use an Escrow service.
  Does the auction site provide insurance, if so it can save
  you money.

   

• False Feedback
  Visit the online auction's buyer feedback page. Sellers
  are rated by past buyers. The feedback systems can be
  easily manipulated by the seller using false user accounts
  and/or by their partners. If a seller has a perfect feedback
  rating this can mean they are either totally honest and timely
  with their sales or they are dishonestly posting false
  feedback, there is no easy way to spot false feedback,
  although, an average rating is probably a good thing, after
  all very few people are perfect. If you get burned be sure
  to let others know by using the feedback sections.

   

• Switch and Return
  You as a seller have sent your goods to the buyer, the
  buyer then switches your goods for older, copied or broken
  goods of the same nature and contacts you saying they
  are not satisfied with the goods and demanding a refund.
  
  You do not know this until the goods have been returned
  to you, so what do you do?
  
  Do not give refunds until you have the goods back.
  
  Before sending the goods take photos of them, describe
  them and note any model numbers, serial numbers or
  unique identifying marks.
  
  Contact the buyer and let them know you know and the
  evidence you have, then offer to return the goods to them
  when you receive payment for re-shipping.

   

• Pirated or Stolen Goods
  If you think the goods may be pirated or stolen contact
  the seller and ask for details of where and how they
  acquired the goods, then contact the original supplier to
  confirm. Software is particularly susceptible to this.

 

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