Ebay scams that you should be aware off

I've been using eBay for around 10 years now (I started late!) and am still regularly hear stories from many people who have fallen for the various scams that are out there. Scamming is a nasty business that leads to unsuspecting users being defrauded out of millions of dollars every year. In this hub, I hope to share a little knowledge so that you can avoid being one of those statistics.

The types of scam vary from the crude to the highly sophisticated, but each type of fraud regularly has success. The following is a description of each one, and how to avoid it

Scam: The Check (cheque) scam

Buyer sends the seller a check (cheque) for more than the total of the auction, post the goods and bank the check. The buyer then contacts the seller and says "I sent the wrong fee, can you wire me the extra amount". The unsuspecting seller sends the extra amount back to the buyer who now has the goods and a little extra cash. Meanwhile, the Check bounces and the seller has just paid to sell his goods.

How to avoid the check scam: Never send goods until the check has cashed. Also, if you do recieve a check for more than the amount, send the check back and ask for the correct amount.

Scam: Bogus Email

Your email address recieves an email from eBay asking you to confirm your details. You click on the link and fill in your details on the eBay site and forget about it. That was not the eBay site, but a clone designed to steal your details. Result of this scam is ebay/paypal accounts being hijacked/

How to avoid the bogus email scam: NEVER click on an email asking you to verify your details. eBay will never send you anyting of the sort.

Scam: Second chance email

The bidders who do not win the item recieve an email offering them to buy the item as the second chance bidder. The bidder clicks on the link and it takes them to a site that looks exactly like ebay. The bidder pays but nothing is sent. The site was an ebay clone.

How to avoid the second chance email scam: If you are not sure, do not click on the link. Check your account on ebay, it should tell you if you have a second chance offer. If you cannot find that information, ask the seller if they sent you a second chance email.

Scam: Wholesale list scam

Highly desired items are offered in bulk at a very cheap price. The bidder clicks buy it now and hastily pays for the items. Awaiting delivery, they recieve a pdf file with a list of wholesalers in it. The bidder didn't read the auction listing properly, the tiny print at the bottom of the listing said this auction is for a list.

How to avoid the wholesale list scam: Read the entire listing, and read it again. If you are not sure then ask the bidder a question. Once you hit buy it now and pay, its all over, your bid is legally binding.

Scam: Wire transfer payment

Seller (usually in a foreign land) demands payment by western union. You wire the money and never recieve the good.

How to avoid the wire transfer scam: NEVER wire the money. Stick to sellers that accept paypal. If you suspect fraud report it to ebay.

Scam: Intermediary buyer

A bidder from your country buys the goods and asks you to ship to someone abroad because he was only buying it on their behalf. He pays by paypal, you ship the goods. A few weeks later Paypal tells you that the account was hijacked and they recover the money from you. The bidder has dissapeared and so have your money and goods.

How to avoid the interediary buyer scam: Refuse to send the item abroad. Report the problem to eBay and explain what you suspect.

These are just some of the more popular scams, if you follow some basic rules and use some common sense you can save yourself a whole lot of pain and money.