Online Auctions – Avoid Scams and Fraud

Every marketplace has its share of con artist, scammers and pickpockets. The great eBay market also has no exception. We have heard how “when a some thing sounds too good to be true; it PROBABLY is!” The reason for this learning is due to some concerns that have been observed and experienced on eBay. In light of the various Apple iPhone scams that are out on eBay currently; we need to actively educate our ourselves and other eBayers. These scams have been wreaking havoc and have been causing eBayers to not trust other honest eBay sellers. So that’s why we are here to write a guide to minimize being scammed.

Fraudulent users are quickly discovered, eliminated and most of them prosecuted so your buying experience on eBay is almost always fun and safe. eBay provided a Red Flag checklist you may use when contemplating a major purchase. Many a people have been scammed and defrauded on eBay. eBay is a web portal to bid on items and to sell items. You must know how to recognize and avoid a scam, or you quickly join the ranks of those who have lost their money to eBay scams. If you are scammed, there are some actions you can take to correct the situation – but in most of the cases, the scammer does get away! However the best option is to avoid being scammed.

You can easily avoid most of the scams with the payment method that you use – either you are a buyer or a seller. eBay owns Paypal, and Paypal is the payment method, which is, regarded the safest. You should use this method of payment. As a buyer, if you are scammed or not satisfied with the item when it arrives, you can dispute the charge easily, and demand a refund. The seller must reply and show proof that the item was shipped, and that it arrived in the condition that you expected; otherwise Paypal would return your funds to your account. On the other hand by accepting Paypal as a seller, you can protect yourself. This will eliminate doubt of receiving a bad check or having the buyer dispute a credit card charge. Instead, they must dispute the charge through paypal, and you of course will be able to prove that you shipped the product so deal is complete from your side. However you cannot prove that the product arrived in the condition that was expected. In this case, you should demand that the product be returned first to you before the refund is issued.

Another very common scam that usually some buyers use is the bidding scam. This kind of scam is run by two separate eBay accounts – with one person in control of both of them, or with two friends with separate eBay accounts. A very small bid is placed on your item, using one account followed by a very high bid, from the other eBay account. Right before the bidding ends, the high bid is withdrawn, leaving the low bid as the winning bid. This scam can be avoided by setting a reserve price – the lowest bid that can be placed is the same as the reserve price that you set.

If you are an eBay seller, by placing a notice on your auctions page you further can protect your auctions by placing a notice on your auctions page, declaring that you have the right to back out of the sale if you suspect potential fraud.

Always beware of spoofed emails both as a buyer or a seller. These emails will appear in your inbox and claim to be from eBay. The email may claim that you need to verify some of your information regarding eBay account, and ask you to login to your eBay account. A link will also be provided for this. If you follow that link, the site looks exactly like eBay, but it is actually a scam to get your eBay login details, and credit card details!

Keep in mind that eBay will never ask you to do so. If you suspect a spoofed email, report it to eBay as soon as possible!

Don’t let the scammers flourish your eBay business! A good common sense, and a reasonable amount of caution, every thing will be running smoothly. Report suspicious activity of any kind to eBay, so that these scams can be avoided and if a deal doesn’t feel right, simply back away from it and just move on to the next auction. These are the some basic ways to ensure yourself from being a victim of fraud.

Article Source: http://www.auctionwebsite.net

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