Attempted scam, what should i do?

[darkde_4]

Earlier today somebody had bought my Nintendo Switch and wanted me to text them and give them my paypal email.  I did give them my email which was probably a stupid thing to do at the time and later i got a few fake paypal emails saying that he paid for the item when in reality i got no such payment. He later then said that i had to change the shipping address to something in Nigeria so that solidified the entire thing. I have already requested a cancel on the order and i'm not sure if there's anything else i can do besides that. Would anything happen to me if i relisted my item? Any help would be appreciated since i'm somewhat new to selling.

[sunnysouth1]

You should have opened the unpaid item case since this thief would not have paid.

When a buyer doesn't pay:
http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/unpaid-items.html

Since you have canceled it's too late to do that now.

Add the member to your blocked list:
Blocked bidder/buyer link:
http://offer.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?bidderblocklogin

Set your buyer requirements:
Go to your My eBay > Account tab > Site Preferences > Selling Preferences > Buyer requirements and block buyers who:

Have received 2 Unpaid Item strike(s) within 12 Month(s)
Have a primary shipping address in a location I don't ship to
Have a feedback score of -1 or lower
Check the box to block members on your blocked list from contacting you.

Consider listing with a fixed price and immediate payment required to stop this.

[mam98031]

You are absolutely correct.  It is a scam.  

Don't worry about giving them your email address.  The buyer can get that once a transaction has happened on Ebay, so it was something they could get all along.

Cancel the transaction immediately.  Use the reason: Problem with buyer address.  That way you will not get a defect.

Put the buyer on your BBL

Report the buyer for targeting you and attempting to commit fraud.  Don't overlook this step as it is important that sellers do this.  The more we do this the more Ebay has to work with to get these buyers off Ebay.  It is VERY important and will only take you a moment.

Great job catching this.  Keep up the good work.

[pburn]

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@mam98031 wrote:

Don't worry about giving them your email address.  The buyer can get that once a transaction has happened on Ebay, so it was something they could get all along.

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@mam98031 

I'm looking at the details for my latest purchase, both in eBay and PayPal, and I can't seem to find the seller's email address. Is it in eBay or PayPal? Can you just describe where I might look for it?

[fashunu4eeuh]

Hi, sorry this happened to you. New sellers sometimes get targeted by the undesirable element, tho usually those scammers concentrate on very expensive items. So glad you have good instincts and didn't fall for the scam.

A variation on this kind of attempt is the defrauder asking for your cell phone number so they can text you. Buyers do not need your email or phone number  to discuss the purchase. All communication should take place thru eBay Messages where there is a record of the discussion that eBay can access in case of trouble.

In addition, it is a policy violation for both buyer and seller to exchange contact info in most cases. Ebay considers it an indication of off-platform selling, a big no-no. That violation can get a seller suspended even if he did not initiate the contact request.

So glad you followed your gut and came here for clarification. Good luck with your sales and come back anytime!

[southern*sweet*tea]

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@pburn wrote:

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I'm looking at the details for my latest purchase, both in eBay and PayPal, and I can't seem to find the seller's email address. Is it in eBay or PayPal? Can you just describe where I might look for it?

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Find the transaction in Paypal and open it up.  Scroll down toward the bottom, you'll see it next to payment sent to.

[darkde_4]

Thank you for the kind words and information. Everybody here has been very helpful towards my future of selling things here and i appreciate the replies. Would it also be okay for me to just relist the item and put it back up on sale since the buyer has no intention on paying for it?

[fashunu4eeuh]

Hi, you are most welcome.

Before you can relist, you must either cancel the transaction or open an Unpaid Item Dispute.

If you cancel, use the reason “problem with address” as the other poster recommended. This gets your Final Value fees credited back to your account, and does not penalize you for canceling. Then you can relist.

If you choose to open the UID, this gives the buyer a black mark on his account for failure to pay. This process takes longer. 48 hours must pass since “purchase” and then the buyer has 4 days to remit. If they do not, then you close the case, your Final Value fees get credited, and you are then free to relist.

Keep in mind that eBay charges those FV fees as soon as the buyer clicks to buy, even if no payment has yet been made. Many sellers use Fixed Price listings with Immediate Payment Required to avoid the scenario where they buy, but don’t pay, which takes the item off the marketplace. Immediate Payment Required prevents the item from being removed unless actual payment takes place.

[mam98031]

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@southern*sweet*tea wrote:

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@pburn wrote:

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I'm looking at the details for my latest purchase, both in eBay and PayPal, and I can't seem to find the seller's email address. Is it in eBay or PayPal? Can you just describe where I might look for it?

---

Find the transaction in Paypal and open it up.  Scroll down toward the bottom, you'll see it next to payment sent to.

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@southern*sweet*tea 

Thank you for the assist.  I was out running errands.

[tdumonde2014]

Buyer hasn't paid yet so there won't be any information in paypal. 

[mam98031]

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@tdumonde2014 wrote:

Buyer hasn't paid yet so there won't be any information in paypal. 

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Sellers can get the buyer's information from the Sales Record on Ebay.

However, you should NOT communication with your buyer directly to their email address.  Do everything within Ebay so that Ebay can see it if the need arises.  They will NOT consider any outside emails at all.

If this were my transaction, I would do as I outlined in Post #3.

[sunnysouth1]

@darkde_4 ,

I know you have already canceled the transaction but it this ever happens again you really need to file the unpaid item case. Doing that will get the scammer a strike and 2 or more strikes will block them from most listings. This helps protect other sellers who have their blocks set to block members with 2 or more unpaid item strikes.

These scammers use different ID's but at least you can help stop them on the one ID they used to try and scam you.

[chapeau-noir]

Also, if you don't want this person hassling you by email, block his email address on the IP level.