Just watched the segment on TT about eBay. Is it true that eBay is that bad and that people are leaving? I knew they had problems, but I didn't think it was big enough to get on TT.

Maybe the other auctions sites will blossom if we only give me a chance. I agree, I am sick of seeing all the chinese stuff, even tho I can filter it out, it just makes me think, are eBay really being customer orientated, or just out to make the biggest buck.

I got an MP3 player from a 99.8% seller, the device was suppose to have 2GB memory, but came modified, 512Mb faked to 2Gb. Even tho I got a refund, it's the principle that matters, the seller still got charged by ebay and is still selling this dodgy stuff..

Your thoughts!

I estimate eBay to be 80% Scammers in Some way.

Morphias writes...

s it true that eBay is that bad

There have been several lengthy threads about this over the past month, a search will reveal more (saves those having to type out the same posts again).

If anyone has a link to the Video it would be appreciated.

I know there more posts on this, but,I think there a little more to it this time.

eBay has all this protection for the buyer, but we all forget they a feuling the scammers with this. If I buy a fake item and eBay give me a refund, they still allow the seller to continue to sell, simply because the buyer got a refund. This is worng, as the seller should be banned.

The segment just made me think that eBay is allowing sellers to sell what ever they like, simply because they are receiving fees from the seller, and if the buyer pays via PayPal, they get even more fees.

Just makes you wonder who eBay has in mind when it come to their ethics.

I only buy within Australia unless the ebayer is hong kong with very very very very good feedback 4000+ is convincing enough. You need to do your research, actually investigate the feedback, dont be lazy people!

i haven't completed too many transactions on ebay but on the whole I've always had a pleasant experience on everything I've bought. I always read the users feedback both neutral and negative as well as carefully looking at the item description and perhaps asking the seller a few questions.

If something goes wrong there are also measures you can take, but most of the time based on my experiences if you follow the above you shouldn't have too many bad experiences. Also leaving feedbacks is for this reason, I generally use the item a bit before leaving feedback

--> forgot to mention to credibility of today tonight as well ^^

Morphias writes...

Just watched the segment on TT

There is one thing scarier than the scams that occur on Ebay and that is that people actually watch Today Tonight :P.

Morphias writes...

I knew they had problems, but I didn't think it was big enough to get on TT.

Enough to get on Today Tonight? You must be joking.

Morphias writes...

Even tho I got a refund

Did you have to send it back to get the refund?

Today Tonight is cool!!!!

You might want to read this thread, especially the last couple of pages.

forum-replies.cfm?t=939605

I have a laptop currenly on Ebay - been there for about 2 days

So far i have recived 12 questions about people wanting me to send it to god knows where and end the auction now and they will pay me a premium to do so - and 1 legitimate question asking a buyers question

I understand its all a scam, and i understand that there isn't a lot ebay are willing to do about it, so all i can do is wait and see.

I am sure that a competor will eventually come and have something that will compete against eBay, untill then, what are your options when you want to sell something - Trading Post is way to expensive, and lets face it, i am pretty sure that more people buy(bid) on impulse on eBay rather than have to ring up and then drive to wherever to look at an item you may not want anyway

As long as sellers keep paying their fees Ebay will keep looking the other way.

Morphias writes...

I knew they had problems, but I didn't think it was big enough to get on TT.

How much meat are in meat pies anyways?

I Forgot writes...

So far i have recived 12 questions about people wanting me to send it to god knows where and end the auction now and they will pay me a premium to do so - and 1 legitimate question asking a buyers question

I understand its all a scam....

Yep and you are wise enough to realise that those questions are from scammers but how many people with little knowledge are now using Ebay and likely to fall for these scams?

It is a scammers paradise. They say a sucker is born every minute and Ebay is like a White Pages of suckers so the temptation to make money off them is great.

Ebay naturally is racking in billions in profit and shipping it to its Swiss Accounts (have a look at where their financial headquarters are) so as long as they get paid they aren't really interested who gets scammed apart from maintaining a little PR to pretend they do.

whether it be eBay, or any other electronic company, i think people need to learn, if its too good to be true, it is.

There are no bargains to be found on the internet

I Forgot writes...

There are no bargains to be found on the internet

But..but...a guy had this really cheap macbook pro for like 2k under retail...im gonna go and get it, its truly a great bargain.

KavZ; "I always read the users feedback both neutral and negative"

Read the positive ones too... some people are too scared to give negative feedback, so they post it as positive but then say something negative in the feedback... I read as much feedback as I can

my friend brought a mac book pro off ebay, i believe it was a melbourne seller, with most of the top spec. inc 4gb ram. apart from some minor problems with australia post who screwed up the order and got delayed for about 2weeks, everything else was fine, so i guess it does depend on where your buying. myself personally brought a psp with 2gb memory stick, the memory stick was fake, but it still has the 2gb capacity, just slower than the real stuff, that i don't mind. apart from that ebay has been pretty good, as long as you look at who your buying it from

Morphias writes...

am sick of seeing all the chinese stuff, even tho I can filter it out,

You can't filter it all out, some provide fake Australian address locations and there are tons of scams.

We had an original painting on Ebay done by a family member, the price was set fairly high, within 24 hours some scammer had copied the picture of the painting and also offered it for sale! To add insult to injury some joker placed a bid then refused to pay saying their kid had bid on it accidentally, so we had to go through the rigmorole of getting the commission fee back etc.

Another issue is that the waters got muddied when Ebay took over Paypal, people get caught up in fraudulent situations and cant get their money back despite the Paypal "guarantees" displayed on their website.

I Forgot writes...

There are no bargains to be found on the internet

I found an absolute bargain - an ATV $2000 less than everyone else was selling. The key was he lived close to me in a country town. He was just desperate for money for a legitimate reason and delivery is too expensive with an assembled ATV so I could look before I bought.

There are bargains, you just have to be very careful and even then you must accept that the more you buy the more likely you will get ripped off. My brother in law buys heaps of cheap stuff from overseas. He has been ripped off twice in hundreds (maybe thousands) of transactions and that was when he was an ebay noob, so the noobs (like me) should probably stick to local transactions and be very careful.

Morphias writes...

I didn't think it was big enough to get on TT.

hahahaha thats gold....

whilst TT has some moderately useful information on it sometimes, its BS-to-good-info ratio is waaaaaaaaaaay in the wrong direction. so take whatever you see on there with a gigantic, planet sized grain of salt.

brad-> writes...

whilst TT has some moderately useful information on it sometimes, its BS-to-good-info ratio is waaaaaaaaaaay in the wrong direction. so take whatever you see on there with a gigantic, planet sized grain of salt.

T T doesn't do a story because 1 person complained.So obviously they have had numerous complaints re:the folder the reporter had...

She asked a simple question to the ebay PR dude and got stammers and stutters and everyone knows when a professional spin doctor is stammering and stuttering they have no answer and make some BS excuse.

video of report
www.openmediaproject.com/ttebay.3gp
sorry about the format
will upload to youtube soon

I have not bought much off ebay, maybe 20 things - but I've not had a problem with any of them, Australia, England, Hong Kong and America all good hehe. None of the items have been very expensive though - think the most was expensive was my old k750i mobile.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAlM0E-zrhM

The scammers are normally fairly obvious. If someone has like 10000 purchases with 99% positive then they are probably safe. I have never had a problem untill recently when I tried to sell my Nikon DSLR. It was purchased by Nigerian scammers 3 times in a row untill I finally included in the text that I would not deal with anyone suspected of being from Nigeria - That seemed to work.

~+SuFu_w3i+~ writes...

Today Tonight is cool!!!!

Today Tonight is a joke. You could not possibly reference it as anything without checking out the details of the story yourself.
As to eBay, I have not had any problems with it yet...

I Forgot writes...

There are no bargains to be found on the internet

There are. I bought over $1000.00 worth of stuff, for 1/4 of it's price. Seller was local. although at no stage did he/she use a name other than their ebay nick, even though I used my real name. I'm thinking it is a tax dodge or hot stuff.

I do know he/she is a Collingwood fan, as the email address was via collingwoodfan.com.au.

I also used direct deposit into a bank account, so would have a trace if needed.

However, I do tread carefully, though that may not work all of the time.

I don't go anywhere near paypal. No point bringing a third (fourth) party into the equation.

Spiffy! writes...

dont be lazy people!

I wasn't lazy, 99.8% Over 14000+ positive feedback and my item was faked. The only thing with the MP3 player i got, it worked fine until you put more data on it than what it could store. So most buyers would leave + feedback because the item works in a sense and once you find out it was faked, it's too late to retract your feedback.

Feedback is not 100% insurance the seller is legit, not even 80% in my books.
I really think eBay use PayPal as a lay back for dodgy sellers.

We have to remember one thing, eBay said they don't make a profit not so long ago, but they now say it's over $1billion, if that's not making a profit, what is...

Morphias writes...

eBay said they don't make a profit not so long ago,

I'm not sure that's the case.

1. TT? Are you kidding me?

2. I have brought probably 100 different things from ebay over the past 6 years or so and have never been burnt once.

I have brought everything from Art, to consumer level pc gear to fibre channel gear. All good.

Just do some research on the seller.

And ps, there are retarded amounts of bargins on the internet.

i've never been scammed, have bought more items than i can count...

krusty32 writes...

obviously they have had numerous complaints re:the folder the reporter had...

Yeah and waving a folder about it the air must mean it was full of stuff, not just blank sheets of paper /rollseyes

I have been scammed on eBay for $300.00. Its not a great deal to lose but it happened nevertheless.

I also bought a product 2 weeks ago and prior to the payment i asked for a total. The sell did not respond after 3 emails across a 10 day period so i left negative feedback. Low and behold once they seen this they couldn't email me back quick enough.

I paid the money via Paypal waited and no goods. I emailed them again and they confirmed receipt of payment and then tried to blackmail me forcing me to remove the negative feedback or they wouldn't post the item and then they would leave negative feedback for me!

I then reported it to eBay and as no surprise i have received no response from them.

I have had over 100 trades as a buyer & seller. If I want to purchase anything over $100 regardless of where they live I will always ask if I can pick it up in person, if they say no I don't bother bidding. I don't bid on items that have glossed up web images instead of actual photos. If I buy/sell computers or mobos it's pick-up only - Aus post are careless.

Morphias writes...

I got an MP3 player from a 99.8% seller, the device was suppose to have 2GB memory, but came modified, 512Mb faked to 2Gb. Even tho I got a refund, it's the principle that matters, the seller still got charged by ebay and is still selling this dodgy stuff..

As far as the 512/2g mp3 player goes its very common. With the apple refurb center its hard to justify buying a yumcha version, had you done more research I doubt you'd have bought one from ebay.
Because most people wont try to smack over 512kb on it straight up, they test that it works, seems to work fine and they leave positive feedback not knowing they just got scammed.

From my experience your less likely to be sold faulty goods on ebay than an your regular suburban auction.

That is why i constantly only pay via Credit Card through Paypal, So in case i do get defrauded and that if a paypal complaint does not resolve anything, i can and always rely on the credit card company to perform a chargeback eliminating PayPal from the picture...

Friend Bought there plasma tv $2300 , $700 less than the store was offering, but obviously they could have gotten a 5yr warrenty at a store, so far so good 2yrs on but that would be to dicy for me id prefer the warrenty and well id have no nails left waiting for a tv to come in the mail lol at that price . forgot to mention too the first tv that arrived was faulty or second as he has both new and second so it got sent back (crazy they weigh a ton) , then the real one came new as listed..boy i woulda been seriously dying of heart failure by now, 2300 is alot to loose if it had gone wrong, lucky for him it turned out ok but i woulda spend the extra 700 at a shop, and less hassle .
1month ago brought an external drive brand new, person had put it up @29 so i clicked buy now i think it may have been a mistake, because the following week same one was up at double the price. so you can get bargains but just need to look for them. Rule of thumb never spend anything more than your willing to loose.

TheFamilyMan writes...

eBay

+

Paypal

= BAD

Most reports I see on scams from eBay is that people use a third party to transfer money, rather direct such as credit card/bank card, netbank etc.

how long before ebay force us to use pay pal only for payment for any purchases
on ebay...

I would have thought direct deposit via internet transfer would be safer
as you have a persons banking details which can be traced by police,,,

Morphias writes...

eBay said they don't make a profit not so long ago,

They actually said that their Australian operation either makes no profit or operates at a loss, (I remember that) :).
Its true, but an underhand statement, as they didn't mention their profits overseas.
I'm not sure if this is still the case as my debits on my bank statements changed some time ago from ebay.com to ebay.com.au.

But they did make that statement some time ago, devil is in the detail :)

illicit writes...

2. I have brought probably 100 different things from ebay over the past 6 years or so and have never been burnt once.

Hi illicit,

It seems the World is changing VERY fast and its a very different world now (again).

I myself have over 300 perfect transactions on buying and selling with Zero Negs of feedback.

I have been burnt about half a dozen times but from late last year including this year I have been burnt another 3 times.

There was a seller who is now selling FAKE investment type software.
He had good feedback so I bought numerous things from him.

I got the disks except 1 particular one was missing (never got posted with the rest).

The disks were Ritek G05 printables with badly printed surface and cheap bubble jet printed covers.

Now he assured me these were not fake, and says if you dont like them send them back and I will refund you.

Thinking he is a good rated seller, I send the disks back being unsatified with the transaction and believing I will get my money back.

Do I get my money back??? Nope, he wont make contact now and he has made his profile private and now I start to see others are putting negative feedback against him also.

Adding to this, as expected, I got the sellers contact details and the Phone Number is not connected, which was no surprise.

Like Today Tonight,

Weeks/Month(s) pass and I have had enough, I then wish to dispute it with eBay, so I go to the form, and follow the transactions and it then takes me to PAYPAL.

Paypal asks a few questions and tallies all the items and then I describe what went wrong. After doing this you click finish and then it takes you to a screen saying:

YOUR ITEM IS NOT COVERED BY PAYPAL BUYER PROTECTION, THUS WE ARE UNABLE TO HELP YOU AT THIS POINT.

IF MORE CLAIMS ARE MADE AGAINST THIS SELLER IN THE NEXT 180 DAYS WE MAY REVIEW THIS CASE MORE CLOSELY.

PLEASE CONTACT THE SELLER DIRECTLY TO SOLVE THIS CASE.

WE HAVE TO DEBIT THE REVERSAL AMOUNT AS WELL AS A 5 EURO PROCESSING FEE FROM YOUR PAYPAL ACCOUNT.

Now can you believe this??????

They let the guy run free off the hooks for another 180 days.

They automate this process through paypal and then TAB you money for even trying to do the right thing.

The Buyer Protection thing is a ROBOT answer that also makes money.

Now I used to believe in the EBAY - PAYPAL story but I have lost full confidence now.

Its not alot of money, ($100 US) compared to some but for me its alot of money to lose.

I dread to think anybody who goes and spends $thousands on ebay as if a hassel happens, KISS IT GOODBYE.

So the back to my first point.

This is a very different world we are living in thus a different EBAY which IMO sux.

Food for thought anyways.

Today Tonight has got it right and I would also agree and say Yield the warnings and at the very least DOUBLE check the Seller.

jimgg writes...

they didn't mention their profits overseas.

Yes, ebay as a business has been profitable for quite some time.

I hadn't heard about the Australian operations, but it would seem surprising given how much of the local market they have (unless this was back in the days of sold.com, gofish and the numerous other start-ups).

noddywa writes...

I would have thought direct deposit via internet transfer would be safer
as you have a persons banking details which can be traced by police,,,

And I can verify, that this does work. I got scammed, (not on ebay though) the cops chased the dude through his account, case went to court, and I got my money back in full, and I didn't have to attend court. I'm in Vic, offender in Qld.

When I contact seller, I'll post my email address in the response. Often they will use their own emailer to reply, so you get an email address, which can help.

For my latest transaction, I'd seen one lot sold and positive feedback left. So it looked legit. And it was. But it could have gone sour. This dude didn't ever use his real name, but I got bank details, and his email was via collingwoodfan.com.au. Seemed pretty safe. He didn't allow local pickup, so he could be moving hot goods. But who is to know?

But I am very careful with ebay. For any system, you will get scamsters.

rocket writes...

And I can verify, that this does work. I got scammed, (not on ebay though) the cops chased the dude through his account, case went to court, and I got my money back in full, and I didn't have to attend court. I'm in Vic, offender in Qld.

how much money was this?

somebodyhere writes...

how much money was this?

$1250.00 transferred by direct deposit.

JackCare writes...

Another issue is that the waters got muddied when Ebay took over Paypal, people get caught up in fraudulent situations and cant get their money back despite the Paypal "guarantees" displayed on their website.

100% true.

If it is a high volume trader you will have no chance... even the most blatant scammers.

They protect their revenue sources very well.

It is a farce, be warned.

I just watched the video... what a farce thiEfBAY and scamPAL have become.
The audacity of those that post praise to it on here is beyond belief, obviously they have not taken the time to become informed before posting.

One part of the interview involving the Director of Trust and Safety, Alister McGibbon, almost made me choke. He could not lie straight in bed... why?? ... his 3 recommendations for safe use were..>>

1. "Use Feedback to ascertain the users credibility."
Fake feedback has been running for years and he knows that...!!
Also people will give good feedback to avoid receiving bad feedback in return. A big fault in this system.

2. "Read the description carefully."
If a high volume scammer is advertising fake items they will get away with it.

3. "Use payPal".
Ebay own PayPal and together they support their massive revenue earning high volume scammers. If you are expecting impartial support and protection from PayPal "you also believe in fairies".

He was soooo straight faced when he made those statements .. He may be seeking a career in politics in the near future.

The whole reporting process is designed to frustrate the victim into giving up. What is reported is nowhere near the real number of incidents. The online chat console fails too as they just fob people off onto some link quickly so as to maintain their call handling rate. Not an ounce of genuine interest exists.

Scammers and cheats exist everywhere but when they are protected and encouraged stinks to hell.. they deserve to be closed down until they can demonstrate improvements to their systems and guarantees.

I also noticed that there is a planned boycott on Ebay starting 1st May, mine started a while ago.

Join the boycott...!!!

I Forgot writes...

There are no bargains to be found on the internet

Not true "I Forgot"...

There are some "fantastic" deals and they're provided by very honest and reliable vendors.

It is just that the criminals give the system a bad name and in turn affect the genuine ones.

More Power writes...

One part of the interview involving the Director of Trust and Safety, Alister McGibbon, almost made me choke. He could not lie straight in bed... why?? ... his 3 recommendations for safe use were..>>

trust and safety ,,,how can anyone trust him...

he kept avoiding the questions with political answers...
auto response email are not sent by someone answering your emails...

he wouldn't know what trust and safety was,,

why advertise a guarantee if they don't provide that guarantee..

Ebay sent me an email asking why I haven't bought anything in the last year.
I told them I didn't like paypal as it is an offshore banking system (Swiss I think) so doesn't come under Australian banking rules, didn't like the way they treated some of my friends (it really erodes my confidence in their dispute system) somewhere I admited that lack of money and products that I wanted at a price I'm prepared to pay (I see ebay as a secondhand market due to the ability to return for refund so it needs to be less than half price). Told them I would never sell anything if I had to except paypal. Don't like the hidden bidder list as it makes it hard to tell if your being pushed (which is legal at real onsite auctions) Was probably a bit nasty so I may get NARUed.
Never had a problem with any of my purchases. My Chinese Kazuma 50cc quad is still going strong 2.5 years later even doubling the kids double the weight limit. The portable dvd player still works (over 3yrs) better the the other one bought from JBs.

zone writes...

WE HAVE TO DEBIT THE REVERSAL AMOUNT AS WELL AS A 5 EURO PROCESSING FEE FROM YOUR PAYPAL ACCOUNT.

Now can you believe this??????

They let the guy run free off the hooks for another 180 days.

They automate this process through paypal and then TAB you money for even trying to do the right thing.

The Buyer Protection thing is a ROBOT answer that also makes money.

Wow, that's unbelieveable! I've only used Ebay a handful of times so thankfully so far I have avoided having to put in a claim via Paypal.

But Paypal to offer a "buyer guarantee", then refuse your claim after some automated Robot asks some questions and then get BILLED an additional 5 Euro for the Robot's hard work?? That's pretty criminal...So not only do you get scammed and lose your money but then Ebay has the audacity to make money off you while you're trying to do the right thing...

noddywa writes...

how long before ebay force us to use pay pal only for payment for any purchases
on ebay...

never happen there is always cash on pick up

MY GOD that is soooo funny that bald guy from ebay...

In prospective.... EBAY RIPPED ME OFF (NOT A SELLER... it was EBAY)
PAYPAL HAVE ALSO GOT $1850.00 in my account OF MY MONEY that I SENT THE STOCK TO CUSTOMERS

AND THEY WILL NOT GIVE IT TO ME that say that i am not me... LIKE WTF how do you know who i am.... you never asked for ID when i joined you block my account for some reason and ask for id which is fine as the amount of money that was going in and out.... then you have the balls to tell me that i am not me.... WTF

Banking ombardsmen says that they cannot help they give me a number for paypal and tell me to call them....

got the same message that i got from there emails...

so all up these ebay pricks have

1850.00 (paypal)
1122.36 (overcharged in ebay fees)
1122.36 (3rd time i payed for the same fee's)
----------

jrf writes...

never happen there is always cash on pick up

never say never...we are talking about ebay and paypal here ...

sarcasm !!!

lol i thought that was a song by vandalism lol

but last i check Paypal is regerstered with the ATO and Ebay was not.... lol

Morphias writes...

I got an MP3 player from a 99.8% seller, the device was suppose to have 2GB memory, but came modified, 512Mb faked to 2Gb. Even tho I got a refund, it's the principle that matters, the seller still got charged by ebay and is still selling this dodgy stuff..

I'd like to say that Mp3's on Ebay from China / Hong Kong are full of scammers like this. Lot of people are falling for 4GB's which are only 1GB. Compressed memory which isn't actually real.

yeah well everyone should have a look at this:
forums.ebay.com.au/threa...readID=500077710

50 other ebayers, as well as myself just got scammed in what appears to be over $6000 worth of DDR400 RAM.

One guy bought 100 sticks at $20 each, and he paid by bank deposit.

The seller is now un-registered and ebay cannot help, all they keep saying is, contact your local authorities... etc, pretty pointless even having their live help service

KnowingNothing writes...

I'd like to say that Mp3's on Ebay from China / Hong Kong are full of scammers like this

Yeah, it was a gamble, since the sellers feedback didn't have any negatives for faked MP3 players, just poor postage and DOA items. It was cheap enough for the risk, got stung, ebay still lets him sell the fake items... More disgrunted buyers....

My rule is I never buy stuff over $100 and so far I haven't had any real problems.

Bought a fake memory card a while back but I guess it's pretty common now. It actually was up to the specifications and the read/write speed was good too but it was nevertheless fake so I got a refund.

With anything above $100 I go through Australian companies that have ABN's and seem reputable. That's how I bought my camera and router. Rather pay a bit more (and often the price difference isn't that great compared to ebay) for a peace of mind :)

Edit: Australian companies as in internet businesses

Might be worth the extra money using an escrow service,of course depending whether it would still work out cheaper than buying in a bricks and mortar shop.

Where can i watch this on video file online? Love to watch it because i didn't get to watch it when i was home.

I think alot of people are truely leaving ebay just because each day everydays there are fake ebay emails been send to and from your account. Alot of people would think its a geniune email and there for ones you click that link on the email your on a attack stroll by a gutless idiot who wants your money all the way. I mean these emails does look real. It contains ebay.com on the end of the emails.. But then again you don't no if its real or real because of that. Just strange..

I thought ebay has this implant rules well years ago and still you see stalkers on ebay stealing people money.. Well i gues in the usa you end up in the high court and into prison.

So thats why people are leaving. But not only because of that....... But also because people are not geniune when they send the item to you and realise it was half the item or the item dosn't work and so much for trusting the auctioner.

Theres alot of mess going on with ebay and its happening every 5 seconds around the clock 24/7 and theys till ignore the rules that ebay has.

Morphias writes...

Your thoughts!

Only pay with PayPal that is your greatest form of security, something happens then you are most likely to get you money back once a dispute is opened.

frequency2 writes...

Where can i watch this on video file online? Love to watch it because i didn't get to watch it when i was home.


www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAlM0E-zrhM

I'll just add this, if you sell items using PayPal as payment, don't treat it like a bank, get your money out quick smart.

Currently eBay are refusing to pay my seller fees using the automatic PayPal option, which I have setup. I can only assume they are waiting to charge me that late payment fee before making my automatic payment, or my guess is they'll close my eBay and PayPal account and keep my all my money in PayPal. (Time to get it out)

PayPal is fine if you don't buy from eBay, and you transfer out ASAP.

Thanks Jim for the video

Morphias writes...

if you sell items using PayPal as payment, don't treat it like a bank, get your money out quick smart.

But it's linked to a bank account you have given them permission to use, so they just draw it back from that account whether it has funds in it or not (then your bank charges you for overdrawing) check the forums it has been done.

I got tossed out of Ebay 2 years ago because I criticized them in their forums.They hate the truth!!! Recently I registered a different username but same email AD and was welcomed with open arms.(so much for their stringent checks etc)I really dislike Ebay and their ways of operating,but you cant expect much else,I suppose,when it is yank owned and operated.

If Oztion was to get their act together,they could capitalized on Ebay's fall from grace.I had wondered why some of the big power sellers were no longer selling on Ebay,now I know.

BTW if you believe that this is all a beat up look here and see for yourself.
forums.ebay.com.au/forum...he=1206760623245

hi aussie.. that website for ebay has alot of strings attach.. more like attacks and winge winge. I can see why everydays ebay are always with problems every 5 seconds,

www.pcauthority.com.au/N...bay-stories.aspx

Even PC Authority have this in their latest magazine... Is eBay really going to care, maybe this will tell.

arr wingpool always worth a chuckle id love to see a post your mug post im sure 70% of people on here would worry even the biggest poindexters with your 6inch glasses and tinfoil hats

Morphias writes...

Even PC Authority have this in their latest magazine...

Their report was a joint item with Today Tonight; they refer to them on the cover.

Morphias writes...

Currently eBay are refusing to pay my seller fees using the automatic PayPal option, which I have setup.

My guess is that there are financial problems, and ebay/paypal are hanging on to peoples money so that they can pay their own bills first.

Imagine if ebay/paypal hold peoples money for just a couple of days. The interest ebay/paypal would earn would be huge over thousands of accounts.

It seems to be a cash flow problem, and the general public are the easiest to inconvenience.

I bought several 2nd hand mainboards off the one seller a couple of years ago and when they arrived NONE worked. The sellers arguement was they were sold 'as is' however 2 of the boards were clearly damaged. I tried talking to the seller who wasnt interested. I then reported it to ebay who didnt give a damn. Left negative feedback for the seller and he did the same to me even though I had paid within 24 hours! (obviously I'd done nothing wrong so the negative feedback wasnt justified).

I then reported this to ebay asking the negative feedback left by the seller be removed, (explaining everything that happened) and again they said there was nothing they could do. What a joke! Course the seller got away with an easy $70..basically it was just theft and ebay were party to it.

One of the main problems with ebay (apart from their lack of interest) is you can buy something and the seller is not obligated to leave feedback. What they do is wait until the buyer provides feedback and if its negative they provide the same.

aidan94 writes...

I then reported this to ebay asking the negative feedback left by the seller be removed, (explaining everything that happened) and again they said there was nothing they could do. What a joke! Course the seller got away with an easy $70..basically it was just theft and ebay were party to it.

wonder if a class action against ebay for something like being an accessory after the fact on the theft issue.Or something like providing the portal to recieve money by deception...

If you have proof. Because ebay is clearly providing the means for these mongrels to continue stealing from people and obvious fraud.

aidan94 writes...

I bought several 2nd hand mainboards off the one seller a couple of years ago and when they arrived NONE worked. The sellers arguement was they were sold 'as is' however 2 of the boards were clearly damaged.

If the seller was in Australia, then you'd have him under the trade practices act, that things must be fit for the purpose they were sold for. ie you can't sell stuff that doesn't do what it's designed to do.

I think the yank version is summed-up by Caveat Emptor.

aidan94 writes...

What they do is wait until the buyer provides feedback and if its negative they provide the same.

I recall being told, although it takes a while, to leave feedback at the 89th day, 23rd hour and 59th minute, and the seller won't be able to leave his feedback because it is more than 90 days by the time he realises.

Sellers use feedback as blackmail. You give them negative, and they respond with negative, even though you did eveything right and legit.

rocket writes...

I recall being told, although it takes a while, to leave feedback at the 89th day, 23rd hour and 59th minute, and the seller won't be able to leave his feedback because it is more than 90 days by the time he realises.

I like that must look into it further.

Hi guys, I'm Phil who appeared on the Today Tonight report on Paypal. I actually haven't seen it yet as I was in the process of moving to Thailand. Here now, internet back on. Parents have videoed the clip and are sending. Sorry If I didn't appear too serious during the interview - we were having a laugh about how ridiculous the situation was!

Anyway - latest news. The very next day after the item aired, Paypal unlocked my account and I was able to withdraw the money. I'm now going to close the PP account. I just wonder why it takes so much for them to do the right thing?

Just thought I'd let you know what happened!
Cheers
Phil

I've bought a fair number of stuff off eBay, both domestic and international. Other than a very small number of no item received after having paid (I'll say 1-3 in over 200-300 transactions) for them, I've had no major issues. Bear in mind that eBay does have good protection for those who pay with Paypal. You just have to do your homework before buying from any seller - have a look at the feedback comments and look for any trends (just the score isn't good enough). Oh, and I agree that you have to be EXTRA careful with international purchases (especially the Asian ones). I've had a few transactions with China and HK for electronics, and so far they are ok. But there are usually quite a fair number of shifty Chinese and Thai sellers. You may get a good deal online, but there's such a thing as too good a deal so be prudent. Most of my purchases are in Australia or the States, but never a single transaction over $500.00 and very few over $100.

I'm VERY surprised any learned Australian still watches Today Tonight, let alone think it's 'cool'. It's got to be the most mis-informed piece of media trash other than ACA. Not to mention it promotes racial hatred and Australian values when I suspect they don't even know just what it means to be Australian. I dare these 'current affairs' shows to produce the truth of what's happening - such as the Human Rights Torch movement. The Olympic spirit is so totally stained this year and for Channel 7 to promote it without question is so very unlike the spirit of true journalism and democracy.

For entertainment, you'd do better watching Pride and Prejudice, and for news, The Chaser and MediaWatch are MUCH better.

As of last weekend , a 15 yr old female from brisbane was raided and charged with 37 counts of fraud from scam ghost ebay auctions...
she had taken over 20k from early closing auctions items such as macbook pro computers brand selling for about 2k..
by going under assumed names and several bank accounts isp's and multiple mobile phones and residential locations she was still able to continue to rip people for approx 3-4 months..
its believed that she has ripped off more than 25 people nationally and several people in nz are unaware they fell prey to the scam and that there paid items will never arrive...
i think its best for now i dont publicly name her but as testiment to her convictions.. her shopping spree was only halted last week end with a police raid and property seizure and the 15yr old made accountable and charged with 37 counts of fraud ..her recent assets bought with the scam money are now 2 be auctioned off to recover the debts to the buyers that got ripped off...

i was one of the first to be scammed and have posted this pubicly for social comment discussion

transcend888 writes...

i hope it is worth a laugh for someone or helps publicly shame her and her family lol

Or perhaps we should publicly shame you for getting bested by a small teenage girl.

Honestly the amount of stories I hear from people getting scammed, always oblivious to the signs and walk right into it, literally people just ask to have these things happen.

Easy to blame eBay for their own mistakes.

it is obvious your right !!!
funny i was standing on crutches at the bank thinking do i pay in cheque or cash so i was aware it was risky but this is a serious crime and i was paying into an australian bank account so that and the convincing story tipped my scale i wanted a great deal..
so im not blaming ebay at all i love ebay and buy 4-5 items a week with no dramas..
i put it down to opportunity.. and my stupidity in making this decision on the spur of the moment with half a brain in my head full of general...
this really is not one of the regular stories u hear she has been charged with 37 counts of fraud so it will be interesting to see the outcome and extent of her exploits..

transcend888 writes...

this is a serious crime

serious crime by some other standard but mine.

harged with 37 counts of fraud

I doubt it was fraud they charged her with, perhaps 37 counts of obtaining property by deception namely money? Differs between states, still I don't think it would be called simple fraud.

She is a minor, probably with no previous convictions and either a history of drug abuse or family violence.

Expect a slap on the wrist and some long term therapy (around 6 months).