I got scammed on eBay with a Noctilux auction

People are no more dishonest than in older times, but the crooks have a new means to screw you--the Internet.

Think about it for a minute-would you have sent $$ to some complete stranger (idividual) inside/ outside of your country years ago w/ the HOPE that he's send the merchandize? Are you kidding? Only to a reputable business!

I lost a $600 vintage watch to a ring of Nigerian thieves operating out of the Netherlands recently.
 
Sometimes, you can tell by the writing if the seller knows what they have. But crooks can be clever, so it's not always a given.

For example, folks who sell items from estate sales will sometimes have cameras listed among them. There can be good bargains there.

I think the most expensive item that I've ever bought on eBay was my Rolleiflex SL 66 with two lenses for $1,100. That was about 2002, before the scammers really got to work.

The rise and maturing of the Internet but has also brought with it more sophisticated scams.

There's something to be said for paying a higher price but being able to see it in person.

I'd like to see scammers vaporized, but sadly that isn't going to happen.
 
RITskellar said:
Me too. But that's not eBay in this case (original posting).
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No, of course not. I just don't agree with the notion that responsibility for a scam is divided between the scammer and the victim. Regardless of how much checking a customer does on eBay, the scammer is 100% responsible for the scam.
 
35mmdelux said:
I had scammers and their cousins coming out the woodwork when I sold my Noctilux. The lies were simply amazing. One guy asked me to mail the Noct to a company in the city next door -- I thought that was weird given the close proximity. I suggested person-to-person for the $4000 trade. Long story short: Turns out the "local guy" was actually in Saudi Arabia and the paypal would have been from overseas. Of course he would have told paypal he didnt receive the item for a full refund or he would have cancelled the credit card payment.
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In such cases, P-p-p-Powerbook is the best response 😛
 
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I think we Anglo-saxons have it worst; we exported it to you, then re-imported the US version. I see it as connected to the passing of craftsmanship; now the convention is that anyone who does a decent day's work actually making things is a mug. When I travel to America and see people who manufacture clothing, or guitars, or of course cars, they're all a bit beaten down and defeated. It's sad.

Aint this true! If you actually add value by making something usefull to the economy these days you are most likely at the bottom of the pile, but if you are involved in `money go round' then you are a star?
 
Epimetheus said:
Yep, I sold a lot of gear and and worked hard to fund it.
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I understand. It's a huge sacrifice to fund gear like this.
All I can say is, "karma"
Some people deserve to be castrated !
Wish you well over the holiday season. You have a great photopblog, karma says that lens belongs to you. All our hearts go out to you I am sure. Peace
 
fraud

fraud

i was once contacted by a buyer who said he paid $10,000 for a motorcycle to
my ebay user name, asking me for the $. it was several years ago, and i ignored it.
i'm sure that sort of thing happens on a regular basis.
 
Epimetheus said:
Swedbank probably has his real name and address. eBay certainly has his IP address. So it should be possible to trace the guy if I can get the authorities to do so.
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Really hope you get your money back. Some guy scammed me once and I was the seller. Lost a camera and that was it, but it still sucked really bad. I can't imagine losing as much as you. I guess the best way is for Swedbank to track him down. And trust me, if this guy is good or has a bit of common sense he'll probably be hiding behind sock5 proxy servers and what not (impossible to trace). So there's probably little luck to track him down through his IP.
 
I'm really sorry to hear this Markus, I hope police will be able to help you. If there's anyone from Swedish police forces reading this, now's the time to demonstrate some of that much spoken cooperation between the Nordic countries.


And now something in loud Finnish to the scammer: PERKELE !!!
 
I won an auction for a 43mm Mamiya 7 from an ebay user with good history.

The lens arrived as described and I was perfectly satisfied until 3 months later I received an email from the police asking me to contact them. They had confiscated the computer of a fence and my email address was on the computer related to a lens that had been stolen. Was I party to the theft, they asked?

I was outside the one month to make a claim on ebay. Paypal is a waste of space with low limits on claims. Pay PayPal with a credit card.

Fortunately for me, the police had seized some cash and later I had my money returned by the courts.
 
So sorry to hear this. I've been scammed as a seller. While it is hard to understand ebay/paypal policies, if you look at it from their point of view, they have no idea who is telling the truth. Thus it is up to each party to take read all the policies and take safeguards to ensure you are protected if something goes wrong. Now I never ship anything without signature confirmation for example because of paypal policies and I learnt the hard way after losing money. I also only pay when I am assured of protection via paypal. As other people have pointed out, there are warning signs sometimes that are easy to ignore, especially when the deal looks good and your really want the item. I know how it feels - hang in there, this will pass and you will own a Noctilux someday!
 
ebay scam

ebay scam

It is truly unfortunate that you lost that much.
This points out one of the major flaws in the Ebay business model, and points out some opportunities.
I have bought almost all of my current camera equipment on ebay, with a few minor exceptions. However, I have lost some sleep wondering if, and what would show up. Basically buying on ebay as become an exercise in self-insurance.
I appreciate your posting about your experience, however painful that was,
Groups like this could provide a central clearing house for equipment and cash transactions. Or, a point to hold the cash until it is verified that the goods have been received.
I am about to stop buying camera equipment on ebay, and go back to KEH and Adorama.
 
One lesson to be learned, imho, is that ebay should not be used for expensive buys. Another one is to always use a credit card to pay.
 
It's funny isn't it. Ebay with all of it's "safety" protocols to protect the buyer and seller and people are still getting scammed wheras I've had more good transactions on this forum and others (like getdpi.com and fmforums.com) and there is much less of a safety net for buyers and seller in a way. I would much prefer to buy from a photo community than someone trying to make a quick buck.

I can also vouch for keh.com.
I will only sell on ebay, not buy for this very reason. Sorry to hear about this hope you get your money back somehow.

http://www.danielvalentephotography.com
 
nrb said:
One lesson to be learned, imho, is that ebay should not be used for expensive buys. Another one is to always use a credit card to pay.
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Even on RFF, PNET, DPI a fair amount scammers is part and parcel of doing business unseen on the web. There are a few guys on RFF & PNET for example that trade expensive gear routinely and they are more trustworthy than others all things being even.
 
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