Wow, this is the most elaborate eBay scam I've ever seen, and they tried to pull it on me.
Here's the anatomy. It's holiday season, and I thought it would be a good idea to sell an old Thinkpad (IBM notebook) of mine. When the bidding ended I couldn't believe my eyes. The notebook had been bid up to $440 as the email below confirms.
![](2007-12-18/ebay1.png)
My joy didn't last long. Shortly thereafter I received an email telling me that the winning bid had been a fake. Someone had taken over the bidder's account and bid up the item without the account owner's knowledge. Thus eBay canceled the auction, leaving me stranded.
![](2007-12-18/ebay2.png)
The previous two emails were genuine, as far as I can tell. Next, however, I received an email telling me that it was all a mistake and that the auction was proper and should go through. I was urged to ship the item to the buyer.
Uhh, a reversal of fortunes?? Looking at the email header suggested quickly that this might be a scam and I decided to wait---I filed a complaint with eBay in the meantime (probably to no avail).
![](2007-12-18/ebay3.png)
To top things off, an hour later I received an email confirming a transfer of $640 into my PayPal account. What a nice gesture... The supposed buyer overpaid by $200. The email urged me to ship the item right away. You can see it below. To get a good laugh out of this, please scroll down and look at the shipping address---of all places, I'm supposed to ship to Nigeria. Maybe the extra $200 were supposed to cover shipping charges.
![](2007-12-18/ebay4.png)
Well, what a nuissance. I have to try selling my notebook again, this time after christmas, and I will probably get $100 less or so than what I would have get now. A high price to pay for getting a first-hand education in online fraud. And I didn't even ask for it. So much for selling stuff on eBay.
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