I got scammed as a seller. I don't know what to do. Please Help.

[mrmroof]

So I was selling on eBay when a buyer reached out to me and offered $700 for my laptop. Even though the laptop was only $550 but the buyer said the extra money was for shipping and handling. Then they said to send a PayPal request and I did. Then I got a fake email from eBay saying to send out the laptop so I did. Then I didn't receive the money and the fake eBay email said to send $700 of gift card but I didn't because well that was a lot of money. Then I confronted the buyer to be a scammer and they didn't disagree and I asked for them to send my laptop back but they said they did even though they didn't. I don't know what to do know.

[inhawaii]

This is what you do.

Learn from your mistake and never do this again.

You fell for this classic scam and did not follow ebay protocol.

Sorry this happened to you.

[dqdistribution]

Since this doesn't seem like it has anything to do with eBay (outside of fake email, and the buyer contacting you within ebay), because you decided to take it upon yourself and set up a transaction outside of eBay (Which is violation of eBay policy). You will have to try and fight it with Paypal.

Anyone trying to offer more money is up to no good.

Sorry this happened to you, but eBay can't do anything. Your best recourse is a case via PayPal.

[theteamsetguy]

@mrmroof ,

If you have recently sold the lap top and it hasn't arrived, you can contact carries to have it returned to you. There will probably a small fee.

[lamber9347]

I'm sorry but there is NOTHING you can do now. All transactions must take place on this platform- meaning no PayPal invoices, only sales through eBay. That is the policy here, it is in the TOS, and you agreed to that when you signed up. You broke policy when you accepted to sell your laptop by sending out an invoice, rather then completing a transaction on eBay. That false email from eBay has nothing to do with this because you first agreed to send this person a PayPal request. 

Scammers target new sellers and low feedback sellers of electronics because they hope you will be seduced by the thought of getting a sale outside of eBay. Do yourself a favor and read up on all of the policies on here before you attempt to sell more items. Always follow the policies as a seller. They are there to help you. Best of luck to you....

[candd205]

I"m sorry you fell for this very common scam. As you now know, the e-mail wasn't from eBay. it was from the scammers. Unfortunately no way to get your laptop back. It probably was shipped overseas. You are on their list now, don't fall for any more scams they send your way, such as them asking you to send money to send the laptop back. They aren't going to send it back to you.

[new_spin_boutique]

Unfortunately, you did get scammed. They primarily target new sellers who just joined with little feedback. Everything involved in the transaction needs to be done through eBay, otherwise you're not protected. 

I'm so sorry you experienced this. As far as I know, your only real recourse is to contact your local police department and file a criminal complaint. 

I wish I could help you and I'm so sorry this happened. 

The buyer, if they were genuine, would have simply bought your item. Or, if you had agreed to a different price and you didn't have Make An Offer enabled, then you could have sent them an offer through eBay, which they then could have accepted and paid. 

Definitely contact eBay customer service and report it to the eBay security center. Also, as I mentioned, contact your local law enforcement and file a criminal case. I'm linking the eBay Security Center below. 

https://pages.ebay.com/securitycenter/index.html

[new_spin_boutique]

You need to report it to law enforcement and to the eBay Security Center. I tried to link it to you but for some reason my long winded, detailed response was deleted. Google eBay security center and start there. Sorry this happened. They target new accounts because they know that's the best chance to find a victim who doesn't know the platform. 

[bossesale77]

There's nothing you can do. You took the transaction off eBay and by doing that you stripped yourself of the miniscule seller protections eBay offers. eBay didn't receive any fees off this transaction so they couldn't care less about you getting ripped off, they might however come after you for those fees if they pick up on the fact that you took a transaction offsite.

The following are major red flags that a "buyer" is trying to scam you:

The "buyer" wants to take the transaction off eBay

The "buyer" offers you more than your asking price

The "buyer" asks for your PayPal info

The "buyer" asks you to include a gift card

[luckythewinner]

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offered $700 for my laptop. Even though the laptop was only $550

An offer that is too good to be true is a sure sign of a scammer.

Then they said to send a PayPal request and I did

Refusing to pay through eBay and asking you to violate eBay policy is a sure sign of a scammer. eBay will not help you when you do this. 

Then I got a fake email from eBay saying to send out the laptop so I did

The reason they want you to send a Paypal request is so they can get your email and send you a fake message.

I asked for them to send my laptop back but they said they did even though they didn't.

Of course not. Their intention from the start was to steal it.

I don't know what to do know.

You can report the theft to the authorities if you wish. But eBay has no way to make a thief return the item, and they are not going to reimburse you.It sucks that this lesson will cost you a $550 laptop.

[janet9988]

Paypal was never involved for the payment. They can't do anything.

[dqdistribution]

Oh, thank you for correcting me. I read he received a fake eBay email.

Didn't realize he didn't verify nothing came out from the invoice he sent out from Paypal.

I know a lot of scammers use stolen Paypal accounts and try and move offsite for them.

Well if he got 0 money, and sent something out, unless he can still get the package intercepted, it's gone.

[iamalwaysright]

Precisely the reason why that policy is in place to not take sales outside of ebay, to protect the seller.

[ittybitnot]

Then they said to send a PayPal request and I did. Then I got a fake email from eBay saying to send out the laptop so I did. 

@mrmroof 

You can congratulate yourself for not sending the gift card, too.  You would be out that money was well.  As others have stated you are NEW and thus a scam magnet for those that know how the system works.  You can read the eBay policies all day and all night, but still not understand the implications and meaning.  However, if you read here, you will know all about it. 

It is recommended that new sellers DO NOT use the Best Offer or the Auction format.  Post as a Buy it Now, fixed price listing with immediate payment required. Ignore and report on the Message System under the ACTION tab, any and all contacts that request that you take communication off eBay (sending a PayPal invoice, reply to a text, etc.) 

You should not sell anything that you are not willing to lose.  All items on eBay can be had for free at the seller's expense with the right kind of scam/phony claim. You need to know this going in, and adjust according to your risk tolerance. 

The scam you fell for is one of the easiest to avoid. 

You can read here and the usual scams are repeated on a weekly if not daily basis.  Educate yourself.  Know what these terms mean: 

text me scammer

change of address scammer

scammer that impersonates your real buyer for a change of address or refund request

 SNAD/INAD/NAD claims

freight forwarder

cheap trinket (return) scam

fake tracking scam

INR Item Not Received

(I am sure there are more)

You can always ask HERE.  Never be embarrassed. Most of the helpers here have seen it all, and there is usually something new going on from which we all can learn. 

[dbfolks166mt]

     You are a new seller listing items that are HIGH targets for every scammer out there. Unfortunately coming here to ask after the fact is a little late. Had you inquired before multiple sellers on this site would have told you it was a scam. Something to remember in the future. 

     As for what you can do now unfortunately you have probably lost the item but you should have the shipping information and the message exchanges. You may want to offload those to a file on your computer. Since this didn't actually go through eBay as a sale there is little you can do with eBay other than to report the buyer and provide the message exchanges and bogus email you received. 

     You can file a police report with the buyers local police department if the item did not simply go through a freight forwarder and end up somewhere overseas. Hopefully you have the serial number information from the laptop and a receipt from when you purchased it. You can also file a complaint with the FBI cyber crimes division. Neither of these may get a lot of attention unless there have been multiple reports filed on this individual.