Common eBay Scams

Entering the eBay selling world is something you do no only with ambition - but with caution as well. Fraud on eBay is as common as bully’s stealing kids lunch money at school. In this article, I will tell you exactly how to spot two specific different types of eBay fraud because being on the wrong end of a $3,000 eBay rip off can really ruin your day.

EBay scam number 1

Rule number 1 for eBay scams: Do not believe anything that anyone says that claims to be from the country Nigeria! If someone says they are from Nigeria or asks you to ship something out to Nigeria, 99% of time it is an eBay scam. Things to look out for when dealing with these kinds of eBay scams include:

1. The eBay fraud will usually make up a long elaborated story on why you should ship this out to Nigeria as fast as possible. For example, the first Nigerian eBay scam artist that I encountered asked me to ship out a play station 2 a.s.a.p. because it was his grandfathers birthday. He even asked me if I would be kind enough to go out and buy his grandfather a birthday card and include it with the gift! Long elaborate stories are usually the first thing these eBay scam artists will include in their eBay email to you.

2. The next thing the eBay fraud will do is throw a ridiculous price that they are willing to pay out there for you. They will ask you to just stop that auction and tell you that if you do, they will pay you a considerable amount of money for your product. $400 dollars for your play station 2 may seem nice, but as always if something is too good to be true, it usually is.

3. Usually the eBay fraud will send you an email promising to pay you once you have already shipped the item out, and then of course never following through.

4. Usually the eBay fraud will ask you to ship out the item as fast as possible for some odd reason, but then they are still “willing” to pay the same amount if it takes you longer to ship the item out.

Why do these type of eBay scams exist? These eBay frauds want your product for free so they can go and sell it and make a huge profit off of it. A rule of thumb for eBay selling is to make sure the money is in your PayPal account before shipping anything out unless you are 100% sure that you will be receiving the money.

EBay scam number 2

Rule number 2 for eBay scams: Do not fill out any personal information for your eBay account from an email sent to you that is not through your “My Messages” section on your “My eBay” page. EBay will NEVER send you an email through any other email account other than the “My Messages” account on your eBay account that asks you to fill out a personal information page. These eBay scams come in the form of spoof emails.

What is a spoof email?

A spoof email is a fake email or hoax sent to you to mimic popular websites, usually one that tries to obtain personal information from you like eBay or email sign in information. You can spot a spoof email by keeping these points in mind:

1. First recognize that the senders email address is NOT a good indicator of the authenticity of the email. Email address accounts can easily be forged and are obviously done so.

Fraud on eBay emails usually starts with a greeting in the message that is very vague and general. Greetings like “Welcome eBay user” or “Dear eBay user” are a good indicator that the email is a spoof.

2. Emails that say that eBay is updating it files or accounts and urge you to act immediately on the email are a sign of an eBay rip off.

3. The eBay scams will threaten that your account is in jeopardy and you will not be able to take part in eBay selling if you do not act quickly.

4. When wondering if a site for eBay is fake or not, stick to this rule: Any legitimate eBay site must have two things that are always a constant: In its URL a “.” (period) must be right before the word “eBay” and a “/” (forward slash) must be right after the word “com.” Example: “www.ebay.com/”

Reporting fraud on eBay is easy and important. All you have to do is forward the message to spoof@ebay.com without altering the subject line or forwarding it as an attachment. After that, you can delete it.

Other things that you can do to help protect yourself from eBay scams include:

1. Download eBay toolbar with Account guard. You should do this especially if you are new in eBay selling or buying because you will be more susceptible to eBay fraud and this will help protect you.

2. Verify emails ONLY in the “My Messages” section of your eBay account.

3. Frequently scan your computer for viruses.

4. Frequently check your account status to see if anything suspicious is taking place.

5. If you think your eBay account may have been breached, change your password immediately. Changing your password frequently is also a good way to stay clear of eBay scams.

If you follow these instructions you will prevent being scammed on eBay and therefore prevent losing lots of money!