HEADS UP! BE AWARE OF THESE PROP SCAMS ON EBAY

[Rylo]

Guys, I know most of us are smart enough to know better but we all need to keep an eye out for this sort of thing.

I've seen it happen in other markets; mainly electronics and the like. Now, these people seem to have targeted high end prop replicas and sci-fi collectibles.

One of them, This seller (current ID) kdfgrrte has already stolen images and descriptions from us in the past. They keep popping up on Ebay with different users names...just letters scrambled together. The one constant is the location. CHINA

Anyway, they target high end completed auctions and then steal the photos and exact description and run the same auctions in hope of hooking the buyer with a super low, buy it now price.

Take a look and remember the old saying. If it's too good to be true, it probably is.

Every single time I report these people they simply pop up with a new user ID and try it again. Each time adding more props completed by others just days before.

Contact Ebay's trust and Safety each time you see something like this.

Let's look out for each other. :thumbsup

 

[IFA]

Hi Rylo.

Yes, that's true and thank you very much to remember that to all of us.

 

[HoundofCulaine]

Yeah I've spotted a few of these around. Yes so far they've always appeared as in China, and with random letters as they're eBay names. Normally with a zero rating, but I have noticed a couple who have 10 ratings but then all the 'raters' (??) come up as no longer registered with a zero rating, assume even eBay spotted that one (but then why not cancel his rating back to zero?).

I notice your guy currently has an auction for a tricorder where he's linked to another persons pictures (you?), so they've changed the pictures to a warning message. Class. JUst what this git deserves.

There's been a group who have been flogging full size R2D2's for the last few months, for a very low price. But what give's them away totally is they've stated shipping costs as £30 worldwide. Now having bought a full size R2 before I know how much these things cost to ship, and it would be more than the cost of the item itself. Trouble is the description is pretty convincing, and might fool some people.

I've thought for years eBay should have a rule that you can't sell a large value item until you have a sufficant rating. Otherwise the whole system is up for abuse.

I once got snagged by some guy selling a Batsuit. His description looked like he knew what he was talking about, and he had all the right pictures (assume they were all ripped from somebody elses auction, must admit he claimed to be in the UK but the pictures had a US feeling about them). As I was suspicious I asked a few pertinant questions and asked for more pictures. I heard nothing from the guy and the auction ended without me bidding. My last email suggested I'd be willing to pay more if only I'd been sent more info. A few days later I got an email from him offering the suit for an extra £50. I said I wasn't sure, and surely somebody else had won it. He could see I didn't trust him so offered to use a UPS service where he sends them the item, you then pay UPS via Western Union transfer to hold the money, they deliver and once completed and signed for release the money to the seller. I said I still wasn't sure (or more likely smelled a big fat rat) so he said he'd send me the item on approval. Well if he's sending it how can I lose? I agreed, but what happened next? I got an email from UPS saying they had a parcel sent by X and I needed to send them the money needed by Western Union. Thing was it was full of spelling mistakes and broken links, and wouldn't fool a 5 year old. I spoke to UPS and they confirmed that they offer no such service, and in particular would never deal with Western Union transactions as they are supposed to be between friends and family. At that point I handed it over to our onsite fraud squad guys and let them take it from there. And where did he come from?????? Nigeria, where else.

 

[JOATRASH FX]

And let us all not forget the recent scam attempt when Howard sold his Obi Cutaway....

It makes me so "#¤%"¤%¤" mad that there are people out there doing this stuff.

 

[NEKROFANATIC]

http://cgi.ebay.ca/Star-Trek-Phaser-Commun...1QQcmdZViewItem

Nothin' like a direct link...

 

[Simba]

Yeah I recall a few months back there was a LOT of listings for the MR TOS Phaser (back when there was a high spurt in their prices) out of Australia from "brand new users". All had different names but the description was always the same and used MR stock photos.
That stuff really honks my horn. :angry

 

[Apollo]

Some idiots.

I wish we could thro these fools in Jail.

 

[temponaut]

Check the link in Post #5 again. The auction was "won" by a newly registered user called "ihateripoffartists."

One of us? :love

 

[Rylo]

Man, they even have a Firefly script up that ended not long ago.

 

[Gojira61]

I love the photos of the old Remco Lost In Space Robot they are selling, just look at that typical country style kitchen in the background, hell I can even see what I believe is a red Fenton Glass bowl on the shelf.

Man, for China these folks really went American. :lol

Jim

 

[JunkSabers1138]

<div class='quotetop'>(joatrash @ Aug 30 2006, 04:40 AM) [snapback]1309719[/snapback]</div>

And let us all not forget the recent scam attempt when Howard sold his Obi Cutaway....

It makes me so "#¤%"¤%¤" mad that there are people out there doing this stuff.
[/b]

Did I miss something.?. What scam happened there?

 

[Rylo]

<div class='quotetop'>(gojira61 @ Aug 30 2006, 04:27 PM) [snapback]1310102[/snapback]</div>

I love the photos of the old Remco Lost In Space Robot they are selling, just look at that typical country style kitchen in the background, hell I can even see what I believe is a red Fenton Glass bowl on the shelf.

Man, for China these folks really went American. :lol

Jim
[/b]

I thought the same thing. :lol

 

[OldKen]

<div class='quotetop'>(JunkSabers1138 @ Aug 30 2006, 04:35 PM) [snapback]1310107[/snapback]</div>

<div class='quotetop'>(joatrash @ Aug 30 2006, 04:40 AM) [snapback]1309719[/snapback]

And let us all not forget the recent scam attempt when Howard sold his Obi Cutaway....

It makes me so "#¤%"¤%¤" mad that there are people out there doing this stuff.
[/b]

Did I miss something.?. What scam happened there?
[/b][/quote]


howard sold his cutaway, then some fool used his pictures of this ONE OF A KIND piece, and said that they had the exact same one for cheaper... well a couple of RPFers gave him a good run for what he thought was his money. :thumbsup

 

[darthgordon]

here's a link to that. Hilareous, but long.

http://www.therpf.com/index.php?showtopic=...obi-wan+cutaway

 

[SaberFreak]

That's why I only buy from trusted sellers, or through referrals. But even that is not 100% safe nowadays, as we've seen on here and other forums...