13 RED FLAGS
To Warn a Bidder of a Fraudulent Transaction

• Fraudulent names that have been used include: Square Trade, Secure Trade, eBay Safety Board, Trade Secure Division, eBay Transactions, eBay International Safety, eBay Buyer Protection Program, eBay Security Center, Square Trade Seal Program, eBay Trust Fund, eBay Safety Board, eBay Courier, Safe Harbor, Trade Secure Division or similar.

• Square Trade is not a division of eBay. Square Trade neither provides escrow service nor facilitates transactions. Square Trade does not send emails to prospective buyers.

• Criminals have created a remarkable number of fraudulent Square Trade and escrow.com look-alike and sound- alike websites to which victims are directed. The fraudulent site claims that the seller is adequately insured against fraud for more than a sufficient amount and that an instant cash wire transfer is specifically required and sanctioned.

• A bidder/buyer who is doubtful and undecided may receive a spoof email, appearing to originate from eBay, vouching for the seller and security of the transaction, and advising the buyer to complete the transaction.

• These fraudulent emails often assert that the seller has placed a multi- thousand dollar security deposit with eBay.
• Some further claim that the item will be shipped from an eBay warehouse. eBay neither holds security deposits, nor confirms or guarantees the safety of transactions. eBay does not own any warehouses in which merchandise is stored.

To determine if an email which appears to be sent by eBay is genuine, forward it to
spoof@ebay.com

7. The item is listed on hijacked account

Some characteristics of hijacked accounts are:

• There is a prominent statement on the auction page to email the seller/scammer.
  The scammer often states that email contact through the conventional eBay ask seller a question link is unavailable ( various excuses are used ). A hijacker does not want the true owner of the account tipped off by receiving an email about an auction which they did not list.

• There is no conventional Buy It Now button, but the auction terms state Please email me for the Buy It Now price, or there is a phony Buy It Now button embedded in the auction.

• The apparent seller (the real owner of the account, not the scammer) has excellent feedback which was acquired solely from buying or from selling items unrelated to the expensive item being offered.

• Items are suddenly listed on a dormant account. (Inconclusive when considered alone).

• The auction page indicates that the item is located in, or will be shipped from, a country other than the country in which the seller is registered.

• The hijacker may offer a creative reason for being in a foreign country.

• The feedback is primarily in a language which is inconsistent with the sellers location (e.g. a seller registered in China whose feedback is primarily in German).

• One or three day acution. (Inconclusive when considered alone)

• Private auctions. (Inconclusive when considered alone).

• The seller does not respond to questions. (Inconclusive when considered alone).

• The payment methods listed on the auction page include the allowed payment - PayPal. When the seller contacts the buyer, only non-secure payment methods, such as cash or Western Union cash wire transfer, abruptly become the only accepted payment methods.

• The auction description is well written, polished, and professional, but the shipping and payment details are unnatural and obviously not composed by the same person. That signals that the description was stolen from a legitimate auction, with the terms of sale replaced by the account hijacker.

• After a potential victim indicates serious interest, in order to reduce the opportunity for the authentic account holder to detect the fraud and notify eBay, the hijacker may end the auction early.

• A genuine listing is "re-directed" to a fraudulent listing.
  When accessing/opening a listing, there may be a delay of 1-2 seconds, and the screen may flash or blink, as a different screen appears to replace the original auction listing. All or part of the original page is replaced by false information (such as an eBay endorsement of Western Union cash wire transfer), and links to fake pages controlled by the hijacker.
  If a delay and change of page occurs when you first view a listing, and if there are statements in the payment area that clearly violate eBay policy, DO NOT proceed. Use the back button to exit quickly.

• Bids have been cancelled by the hijackers, giving reasons such as "wrong amount" or "please respect eBay policy". The scammer then proceeds to offer the item as a Second Chance Offer or off-eBay offer to several bidders on the auction, which was originally listed on eBay by the legitimate owner of the account which has been stolen.

To report a suspected hijacked account:

• To ensure that a Second Chance Offer is legitimate, go to http://www.ebay.com and click on My eBay. Then sign in and make sure the Second Chance Offer appears in your My Messages.
• Legitimate Second Chance Offers are forwarded directly from eBay and appear in My Messages with a blue background and subject stating: Second Chance Offer for Item ....
• eBay will never send a Second Chance Offer email with the subject line: Question from eBay Member.
  If you receive an email pretending to be a Second Chance Offer with that subject line, it is fraudulent. Do not respond.
• Second Chance Offers never state that an item has been won "by default" or "automatically".