Fake sellers from Hong Kong

[rogerroger754]

Guys why are there sooo much fake Hong Kong sellers on ebay. That just takes the privilege out of using this site to make online orders. It comes a point where your like am done using this site to shop. Any suggestions on how they can block these seller's , or what the buyer should use to identify them.  I am just really hateful about fakebay now. 

[bonjourami]

Looks like you have had lots of problems buying here, and need to vet your sellers a little better. If a seller has lots of negative feedback for not as described, or item not received..chances are, you will have problems with that seller too...hit the back button.

[eburtonlab]

Not sure what you mean by "fake sellers". Possibly you are seeing hijacked accounts used to list scam items at too-good-to-be-true prices, or else simply fraudulent accounts that do not deliver what is advertised.

In general, you can avoid a lot of headaches by choosing to purchase only from established sellers that have recent and past positive feedback as a seller for selling items in the same category that you intend to buy. If someone is selling a dozen apple watches, but has no feedback, or only has feedback as a buyer, or only has feedback for selling dress patterns or fishing lures (actual examples I have seen), perhaps wait until they have a track record of positive feedback for selling electronics before you buy from them.

You might miss out on a good deal from a new seller once in a while, and nothing can guarantee that you won't still run into a scammer anyway, but you can avoid a lot of potential problems by choosing to do business with established sellers. Anyone can put together a listing that looks nice -- it is not hard at all to simply copy an existing listing -- but it is much harder to create a history of consistent sales and positive feedback.

[48hrs-clothing]

Are you doing extensive business in Hong Kong?

What criteria are you using to identify sellers as " Fake".

Different cultures view things differently and this does not mean they are fake they are just different.

Asians generally speaking do not respond well to aggressive tactics or language and if approached respectfully respond brilliantly.

May be you were just unlucky as I have 35 years of  business/ trading history with Hong Kong and have always found people of Hong Kong to be polite, friendly and very co operative and during my younger years . on average I used to visit HK and other countries in that region at least 6 times a year.

[48hrs-clothing]

To my knowledge and understanding counterfeit items are being produced in every country and it is buyers of these counterfeit items that keep this industry going. 

As an example an authentic/ genuine Apple item selling for say U$ 1000 in USA will never be sold for $100 or even $300 anywhere in the world as this brings Apple corporation into disrepute with all of it's customers and to protect the Apple brand all authorised sellers are required to sell at approximately same price and in addition to this Apple INC spend huge amounts of time and money in making sure that fake/ counterfeit goods do not make it into their most valuable selling markets. US customs confiscate and prosecute prosecute American people and businesses for attempting produce and or to import billions of dollars worth of FAKE goods annually.

If you see an item on any platform claiming to be Authentic that is 50% cheaper than your home country then be assured that this is Counterfeit and if some one is looking to buy these kind of products at bargain basement prices and they think these are legitimate then they are as guilty as the seller of these Fake items.

[mudshark61369]

@rogerroger754,

Other than using the U.S. only filter, which does not block all chinese sellers, there is no other way to do that except by doing your due diligence as a buyer.  Shopping using the Price: lowest first, almost guarantees the first listings will be coming from China.  Because ebay coddles them Best Match also returns mostly Chinese sellers first.   I set my searches to Time: ending soonest.  I still get chinese sellers in the results but not all in the first few pages.  I prefer not to buy items from China but because it is sometimes difficult to determine if a seller is located in China from a listing page, use the info below to try and ferret them out.  

Indications on listing pages;

1. Item location not giving a city or state Ex. Ca. /USA, Many places USA, USA/USA.
2. Extended delivery or handling time frames. Especially, from supposed U.S. based sellers.
3. Very low prices w/ Free shipping
4. Using a brand name in the title but listing it as unbranded in the item specifics
5. American flag symbols and many statements of being a U.S. Seller
6. The same photos and listing templates used by many other sellers
7. Measurements that are both metric and inches.
8. Use of Asian models in photos
9. Verbiage in descriptions that do not sound like they were written by a person whose first language is English

On feedback profile pages;

1. Country of registration ... sometimes.
2. Very high volume seller registered between 2010 and now.
3. Feedback percentages below 98.9% The best high volume sellers will have a 99.6% or better rating.
   
4. Neutral and negative feedback sometimes in the hundreds  (you can click on those numbers to read only those comments)  look for slow shipping, non delivery,  partial orders received, and items shipped from China comments, as well as poor quality ones.
5. Replies to non positive feedback that indicate English is not the persons first language
6. Repetitive replies to non-positive feedback

[tutwa-20]

It's bad, it's not just here...
Now they're taking over Walmart's online shopping site too...
I'm sure Amazon's inundated and overflowing with it...

Here's the real kicker:
When I applied to sell on Walmart they denied me.

Even thou I stock what I sell, I literally own every last piece of goods for sale.

Apparently my product line isn't good enough.
But these dropshippers and counterfeiters and copyright thieves and trademark infringers, these search engine spammers with their hundred thousand listings all of the same item who own nothing but actually place the order elsewhere when a buyer places an order THROUGH (key word: THROUGH) them, yeah... It's all right for them to sell on these sites.

Mark my words...
These venues and the present direction are going to cancel each other out and drive each other into the grave, they'll all wonder what happened later but by then it will be too late.  Well, not true, a few will wonder, the rest will have left a long time ago and those who are still there are the clueless bunch.

And retail stores will thrive again.

[lady_madonna]

@rogerroger754 

I discovered an easy solution a few years ago....I check to see where the seller is located and do not purchase from those sellers located in Hong Kong/China.

[mudshark61369]

@48hrs-clothing,

You replied to @eburtonlab ,  "To my knowledge and understanding counterfeit items are being produced in every country and it is buyers of these counterfeit items that keep this industry going".

While there may be counterfeiting happening in many countries, only China's manufacturers openly and unabashedly engage in the practice with the blessing of its government.  Most other countries governments try to shut down the counterfeiters, whereas Beijing doesn't care.

While there is a case to be made that the buyers of those items encourage the practice, some because they can't afford the real brand/designer, but many more because they see a low price and are blinded to the possibility of a scam by it.

[48hrs-clothing]

Each country has it's own laws including intellectual property laws.

Counterfeiting like drugs is a very profitable business only because of buyers and when law enforcement agencies shut one down 2 open to take it's place.

Marijuana is illegal in most countries and with the blessing of local and or federal government what is illegal in most countries is accepted and encouraged in others . I draw this comparison only to make a point  and in no way am I criticising USA or other countries that allow this to happen.

I also know for a fact that there is a huge industry in USA as well as Europe that produces counterfeit items and I do not accept that this activity is with the blessing of our respective governments.

Elected politician never go on national TV and say that we produce counterfeit items and that our companies steal technology yet the same politicians state that Chinese companies do with the blessing of their government.

This is playing politics and fuelling racism.

I will not point an accusing finger at another country or society when my own is not free of same ills.

I fully recognise and accept that everyone has a right to their view and I would hope that those very same people will extend same right to me.

[stoptrackingmydataebaay]

It don't matter cuz Hong Kong lies .. I have tried cal. Is worst. Than us seller only 30 plus down not us Hong Kong . Than craps Moog bearing I did truck counterfeit on on on done eBay after 20 plus years going back store I got scammed 7 times past month . Want talk to American lol put you hold for hours . Called 10 times to Asia joke 

[soh.maryl]

You replied to a 5 1/2 month old post.  And is your post supposed to make sense?  

[figgis67]

I too have fallen victim to a scammer from Hong Kong to the tune of £240. They say they are dispatching from a UK city within 3 days but when you look at thier profile they are in Hong Kong.

They provided tracking info which made no sense and said it had been delivered.

Messaged them several times over 2 months and all they say is we will sort this, have a nice time.

Paypal protection is useless because if they provide tracking info which was obviously false.

[reallynicestamps]

@figgis67 

You are protected as a buyer three ways.

First, eBay's Money Back Guarantee, which allows a Not Recieved dispute if the item is not received by the date eBay gave you. But you have only 30 days from that date for Dispute.

Second, by your Paypal account for 180 days from Payment.

And third, by the chargeback policy of the credit card you used to purchase.

If the tracking info is "obviously false" you should be able to win an INR dispute easily.

But before that, use the advice earlier in this thread.

Read the seller's feedback .

95% is poor feedback.

Do the negatives  and neutrals have a common theme? Poor quality, slow delivery, never received?

How long will delivery take? Long delivery periods usually mean shipping is from a distant location.

Are you willing to pay for an upgrade to faster delivery?

[mudshark61369]

@figgis67,

You have posted on a year old topic about counterfeit items from China, H.K. on the U.S. community.

You have fallen victim to a fake tracking number scam.  The scam works because companies like ebay and PayPal  use automated systems that can only look for a Delivered scan, because of various shipping agencies privacy policies.  The information I am about to post has links and info in it that may not work in the U.K..  You may get better answers on the ebay's U.K. site's community. (link below)  You will have to separate out the things that only apply to U.S. buyers.  Maybe substitute Royal Mail for United States Postal Service (USPS)  or copy and paste this message to the U.K. community board.  Start your own topic when you post.

https://community.ebay.co.uk/

The package was delivered some where, just not to your address.  eBay's automated Item Not Received (INR) system can only look for a Delivered scan, if it sees one they decide the dispute in favor of the seller.   What you can do for items not sent by USPS is use the link below, which can give you the shipping information and package type/size weight.  https://www.ship24.com/

For packages that have USPS tracking, you need to go to your local P.O. you will need to bring the ebay order details page which shows the tracking # and your shipping address. You can bring your phone or pad if you use one to buy, or a print out of the page if you use a computer.  You ask the clerk to check the tracking info against the address on the label, and the package info. If those things do not match, ask the clerk to write a note on USPS stationary saying the label address does not match the order address, and if applicable that the package type/size/weight is not appropriate for what you should have received. USPS clerks can only give you general information not specifics.

With that note a screenshot or scan from the link above. You can appeal ebay's decision, by going back to the dispute you opened. There should be an appeal button there.  You can also contact ebay on their Facebook Page. You will need the seller's username and the item numbers of the items that did not arrive. you also have to give them your username real name and some contact info.  You can add the screen shot  a clear photo or scan of the USPS note to the claim. 

https://www.facebook.com/eBayForBusiness

The package was delivered some where, just not to your address.  eBay's automated Item Not Received (INR) system can only look for a Delivered scan, if it sees one they decide the dispute in favor of the seller.   What you can do for items not sent by USPS is use the link below, which can give you the shipping information and package type/size weight.  https://www.ship24.com/

For packages that have USPS tracking, you need to go to your local P.O. you will need to bring the ebay order details page which shows the tracking # and your shipping address. You can bring your phone or pad if you use one to buy, or a print out of the page if you use a computer.  You ask the clerk to check the tracking info against the address on the label, and the package info. If those things do not match, ask the clerk to write a note on USPS stationary saying the label address does not match the order address, and if applicable that the package type/size/weight is not appropriate for what you should have received. USPS clerks can only give you general information not specifics.

With that note a screenshot or scan from the link above. You can appeal ebay's decision, by going back to the dispute you opened. There should be an appeal button there.  You can also contact ebay on their Facebook or Twitter Pages. You will need the seller's username and the item numbers of the items that did not arrive. you also have to give them your username real name and some contact info.  You can add the screen shot  a clear photo or scan of the USPS note to the claim. 

https://www.facebook.com/eBayForBusiness

https://twitter.com/askebay