[Heathkit] stupid ebay scammer

Tue, 6 Jan 2004 05:30:21 -0800 (PST)

This is good information to pass around.  Don't stop
it since it was news to me and I am sure news to
others.  We need to be informed of this type of thing
and to hear of solutions, even if on the heathkit mail
list.

Thanks,

Mike

--- Gerry Steffens <[email protected]> wrote:
> Duane has one thing correct. Let's get back to
> business.
> 
> A personal thanks Bob, for setting the record in the
> correct basic
> direction regarding the auction place.  I have a
> very close blood
> relative employed by the place in California.  Most
> all of the goblins
> one sees and hears about them are worth about the
> same as a few other
> "sensitive" topics, exactly what one pays for them. 
> For those who
> doubt, check the stock listings.  There aren't that
> many suckers out
> there to provide the successes now being experienced
> in the financial
> marketplace.
> 
> There are better topics which don't bring out the
> worst in folks and
> stay much closer to reality.  So let's get them
> glowin'.
> 
> Cheers from Minnesota
> 
> Gerry
> 
> 
> Collecting & Restoring since 1959
> Gerald Steffens P.E.
> Oronoco, MN
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [email protected]
> [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of
> bob
> Sent: Saturday, January 03, 2004 5:44 PM
> To: Duane Fischer, W8DBF
> Cc: Jim Isbell; DataPro; [email protected]
> Subject: Re: Fw: [Heathkit] stupid ebay scammer
> 
> Ebay is in the state of California and operates
> fully within the laws of
> 
> the state and federal governments. It is a big
> business, bigger than 
> AT&T or any store chain. It is doing some 6 million
> transactions per day
> 
> and no one can keep track of them all. To have a
> clerk type available 
> for each transaction (5 minutes to post, 10 minutes
> when sold) would 
> require a staff of around a million people and would
> cost a couple 
> orders of magnitude more than they are now charging.
> 
> 
> If 0.1% (one in a thousand or about the same chance
> of you getting hit 
> by lightning) of their transactions go bad and
> require intervention by a
> 
> person, that is also around 10,000 employees just to
> handle the 
> complaints. I seem to remember that they have around
> 4,000 employees 
> total including the marketing, ITs and other
> computer folk. I believe 
> their PayPal bank just passed B of A in total
> personal accounts/volume, 
> making it the largest in the country.
> 
> It seems very natural for such an entity to rely
> upon it's customers to 
> be responsible and caring and take care of most
> things themselves. It is
> 
> not the federal government, that has taken on the
> role of providing full
> 
> nurturing to folk that seem to be victims of life,
> but a SERVICE 
> allowing common folk to get rid of or add to the
> mess in the garage.
> 
> WBob
> Duane Fischer, W8DBF wrote:
> 
> >FYI: there was a break in into the information user
> data storage base
> some
> >months back and many credit card numbers were
> stolen. The electronic
> auction did
> >not make this public and they did not advise users
> of said theft
> either. 		
> >	
> >Keep in mind: you are dealing with a computer
> system, not human beings
> here!
> >There are a handful of people employed to anser
> e-mail. Nobody can call
> into the
> >electronic auction and reach a human being and they
> will not call you
> if you
> >request it by e-mail! Although I have no solid
> proof, I have been told
> the
> >actual location is beyond the USA territorial
> waters and is not subject
> to our
> >laws and regulations. However, the e-mail is being
> handled out of
> California.	
> >	
> >This is a flaky operation, terrible security,
> horrible management and
> all sorts
> >of credit card and ID theft and so forth. If you
> participate, you take
> your
> >chances! 	
> >	
> >Discussing it here accomplishes nothing, so let's
> try to avoid getting
> this
> >going guys and get back to the list topic, ok? Send
> your valid gripes
> and
> >complaints to the proper authorities and le tus
> hope for some
> affirmative
> >actions and positive improvements. 	
> >	
> >Duane W8DBF	
> >
> >	
> >
> >----------
> >From: Jim Isbell <[email protected]>
> >To: DataPro <[email protected]>
> >Cc: [email protected]
> >Subject: Re: Fw: [Heathkit] stupid ebay scammer
> >Date: Saturday, January 03, 2004 5:00 PM
> >
> >I also had my E Bay ID stollen.  It was a week
> before E Bay would do 
> >anything about it. Then they tried to shift the
> blame to me saying my 
> >password was not complicated enough to deter theft.
>  I am sure the 
> >complexity of my password had nothing to do with
> the hijacking. 
> > Meanwhile a reciever I was selling languished for
> several days and the
> 
> >final bid was withdrawn and I still have the
> reciever after thinking it
> 
> >was sold for $250.   I found the same stonewalling
> you found on E Bay. 
> > They feel they are the only game in town so can
> treat the customer
> like 
> >S**T.  Similar attitude to the Cellphone co.  and
> the Cable co.  All
> who 
> >figure one customer is readily replaced by a new
> customer and the 
> >expense of customer satisfaction department is less
> effective than the 
> >same amount of money spent on advertising to get
> NEW customers and let 
> >the old ones go.
> >
> >DataPro wrote:
> >
> >  
> >
> >>About 6 months ago, I had my access stolen on eBay
> and then saw
> obvious
> >>fraudulent postings valued at thousands of dollars
> under my ID.  It
> took me
> >>several days to get eBay to do anything about it. 
> Their phone number
> is
> >>unlisted, and they don't accept any email.  I
> logged into the FBI "web
> >>fraud" web page and found it so busy, and
> difficult to use that after
> 3
> >>hours of trying to post a complaint, I was forced
> to give up.  I also
> >>contacted a special phone number that is run by
> the 
=== message truncated ===

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