Beware of eBay Scammers
Saturday, March 8th, 2008There are thousands of scammers operating on eBay every day. The trickiest of these scammers are the ones who sell intangible products or services - things you can’t hold in your hand, like domain names, websites, scripts and instructional courses.
Did you know that PayPal and eBay will NOT protect you when you purchase an intangible item such as a domain name? First, eBay won’t have anything to do with your complaint if you paid through PayPal (and most of us do use PayPal). If you click on the link eBay shows for you to file a dispute on an auction you won, you will be taken directly to PayPal to file your dispute through them. Second, if you are filing a complaint for an intangible item, you have already lost the dispute - PayPal will not give you the option of explaining your side of the case or allow you to provide any supporting documentation. The option is simply not given to you! The seller, however, is given ample opportunity to say whatever he/she wishes to say and you have no opportunity for rebuttal. If you bought an intangible item on eBay and paid with PayPal, you are just plain out of luck.
What if the eBay seller promised a refund in his auction if you weren’t satisfied with your purchase? Well, as far as PayPal is concerned, there is no such thing as an enforceable refund if you bought an intangible item. PayPal does not care if the seller promised a refund. PayPal will not require the seller to make the refund. If you bought an intangible item, you’re just plain out of luck!
If you’re smart though, you used a credit card to pay for your item in PayPal. If you have a decent credit card company, they will go to bat for you. Your credit card is the ONLY thing that can save you. That, and all of the documentation that you can provide, including a complete printout of the eBay auction you won and any email or telephone communications you had with the seller. The credit card company will need this in order to fight for you.
To better protect yourself when buying domain names on eBay, make sure that the seller really is who he says he is: the owner of the domain name. I’ve seen many high-quality domains that just wouldn’t show up on eBay under normal circumstances. These have ultimately turned out to be some fool trying to scam eBay domain buyers for several thousand dollars on a domain he doesn’t even own. Always check Whois information and, especially if you expect to be spending a large chunk of cash, call the phone number listed for the registrant and confirm that the owner is selling their domain on eBay. If you can’t confirm it, don’t bid on it!
Every year the Internet is flooded with another fresh crop of scammers. “Buyer beware” has never been more appropriate than in today’s online world. Be careful with your money and your information!
