Deceitful Ebay Sellers (what to look out for)

Having it is one thing, mandating it be used, is another. Ebay needs to mandate it's sole use for "Reproductions" and stiff penalties for listing in sections other than that. Plus, they need to provide us a way to report it as a counterfeit, under the Report Item link at the bottom of every listing.

Why is it that with coins, we have to go somewhere special to report counterfeits and can't use the Report Item link? The only way I can see to use that link is to report it as being fraudulent and I didn't bid, which only gives me 100 letters to elain and it's impossible to explain in 100 letters.

Ribbit

 

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I keep this link: http://www.ebay.com/ccw
in the toolbar and click on it after I copy the item #. The CCW (Coins Community Watch) is sporadic in its response time, probably reflecting its relative importance in eBay funding and staffing. Usually they will pull a listing if the evidence of forgery is compelling, but I just had them ignore a report of an 1877 Trade dollar with a type-1 reverse. Oh well.

 

That link is now redirected to Ebay Customer Support. Is that the same thing?

Ribbit

 

Here's a very interesting one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=260272699590&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=016

With what I know about early coppers, that's a cheap counterfeit. The pitting on the obverse is heavy on the smooth surfaces and not on the raised areas, the arrows & olive branch are weak compared to everything else, and it looks like a electroplate counterfeit.

I've seen so many electroplate counterfeits sold on Ebay and so many of them have a "story" of how they were found, that makes them sound authentic. Like that one seller that found a cigar box full of very rare coins in a house they restored in New England but you could easily tell they were all counterfeits but peeps bought their BS story and they made a fortune off counterfeits. The story on this one makes me want to laugh but the bids make me want to cry.

What can be done to stop sellers from selling counterfeits like this and all the other ones being sold on Ebay as the real deal?

Ribbit

 

Uh... Contact ebay when you see a fraudulent/erroneous listing and explain clearly why you suspect fraud/error. Give them enough ammunition to give to their ANA "experts". Do this often enough and maybe they'll eventually take steps on their own to correct the problems.

Also, to resurrect a horse from the dead and beat him a bit more, marking counterfeits with "COPY" when they are found would prevent future fraudulent sales of those items.

 

i have to look at all threads nowdays

 

No, if Bidder 1 had a high opening bid than $8 it would have appeared once Bidder 2 surpassed it. Since there is no bid for bidder 1 higher than $8 (4 pounds, I'm rounding) that WAS their max bid. I would say Bidder 2 had to keep bidding, 60, 80, and then 99 pounds or more because it was probably a reserve auction with 99 pounds for the hidden reserve.

 

You're right! :thumb:

I must have been brain dead when I was talking about this earlier. :rolling:

Ribbit

 

I agree posting copies or reproductions outside the reproductions category should at least be grounds for the having the auction pulled.

I actually see it as a good thing. Rather than having our reports get lost in all the other "report this auction" reports, the coin reports have their own separate fast track that kind of moves them to the head of the line. Reports made using the "report this auction" link almost never get any response. But reports made through the other link are much more likely to get the auction pulled.

Yes, it goes to the same place as the link I posted. It is a special section of Customer Service Support. You notice the subject for the report is already filled in with Selling Coins

Your right about the Massachusetts half cent, obvious fake.

You can't stop them, the best you can do is slow them down and keep trying to get them removed when they are discovered. As Davidh says just keep reporting them.

 

Here's a different type of fraud:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=180275260285&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=008

For anyone not familiar with the pics on that auction, here ya go:

http://www.coinfacts.com/silver_dol...morgan_dollars/1881o_morgan_silver_dollar.htm

I translated the page and nowhere does the seller say anything about that being a stock photo or anything about it not being the coin you'd receive.

As far as I'm concerned, that's outright fraud and the seller should be banned for life! :hammer:

Ribbit

Ps: I've seen this before in Germany and reported it but I never know if anything is ever done about any of the items I report?

Pps: I contacted the winner/loser of that auction and gave them the skinny.

 

eBAy has said that they won't pull an auction for using stolen photos unless the photo owner complains to them. These things are proliferating on eBay thanks to their lax policy- key Morgans and especially high grade gold. On the CFE group members have tried emailing the scammers and confronting them with the evidence. Occasionally one will fold, most bluster and leave the auction up. Sometimes eBay will void the auction days later, but good luck to the victim who has to try to get their money back.

Good for you H.T.!

 

Yes you would have to get either Superior Galleries or PCGS to file a complaint with eBay about it. (I'm not sure which because the iages were lifted from Coinfacts which is owned by CU or PCGS, but the images were supplied by Superior so they probably still have the copyright on them.

 

I can understand using stock photos for selling a book or something similiar but coin values are based on grade and thus, the pic has to be of the coin being sold and stock photos cannot be used unless the seller specifies the photos are stock photos and are not the coin the buyer will receive. Ebay cannot overlook this and someone needs to get them to understand this simple fact!

Ribbit

Ps: I just emailed the auction link to the COO (CEO) of Superior Galleries and informed him of the fact that Ebay won't do anything about photo piracy unless the actual copyright owner complains. All Superior has to do is complain properly once and Ebay will have to kill any and all auctions brought to its attention, where a Superior Galleries Photo is being used without their permission. CT has had problems with copyrighted material being posted on here, now it's Ebay's turn to have those problems.