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New eBay Scam Using Skrill Escrow Payments | Ripoffs

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A New Twist the eBay Scam Using Skrill, Its a HUGE Ripoff

eBay Scam Using Skrill is the latest scheme to take your money. Every few months a new scam evolves on eBay or a variation on an old one gets a new life.  eBay isn't at fault for this, Con-artist find potential victims on eBay every day. Despite all of the protections on eBay anything that seems like a, to good be true deal, most likely isn't.  Thieves are especially fond rip-offs which are not commonly known.
 
If you're reading this, have you've  been offered something on eBay the seller wants to be transacted through Skrill? The idea sounded strange? Being a smart buyer you began checking Google for answers and you landed here.

This post is a brand new eBay scam using Skrill payments. Its a doozy! Keep reading.

Con artists use eBay to approach thousands of buyers and sellers every year, or use listings to attract victims. We'll it just happened again. We buy and sell primarily Asian works of art, in particular porcelain. As a result, we're always on the look-out for good pieces from which we can make a profit. Consequently, we see much more than the average buyer. So pay very close attention to what we encountered and prevent yourself from being robbed.

Last week I came across this listing... # 321566576589 on eBay

eBay Scam Using Skrill

A New Twist on an Old Scam Using Skrill

 
 
This listing is a compelling one if you know about Asian antiques.  A very rare pair of 19th C. Chinese elephants and are being listed and sold without reserve. You say to yourself "Ohh boy!  a great pair of rarities for my collection." Consequently, crooks reply on this emotion to take advantage.
 
Warning #1....The seller has ZERO Feedback, while everyone starts someplace, Zero Feedback with a pair of porcelains worth thousands of dollars is a bit odd..but not unheard of..just a heads up.
 

Further down the listing you see this

 
"Here you have up for auction a large and very rare pair of Chinese porcelain modeled elephant vases dating to the late 19th or early 20th century.  tightly curled up under. Both wearing elaborately painted saddlecloths painted with a crane flying above a group of waves and beaded drapery below. The bodies are finished with a light peach colored wash with grisaille accents to the wrinkled skin. What really makes this set rare is that both come with the original Famille Rose painted vase. Each are molded with flaring top rims and are painted with a sky blue glazed ground done under a ring of ruyi. They are in very good condition. International shipping."
 
 
Oddly the listing had no dimensions. Perhaps innocently you attribute it to the lack of experience by the seller, perhaps  he simply had forgotten. So you send him a message for a condition report and the measurements. The rest of the description looks ok. This allows the miscreant to begin laying his trap as a result.
 
So, I sent him a message for more information asking "what size are they?" etc.
 
After a few days and no reply, I sent another message, as I did I began wondering what was really going on. I let him know "I cannot bid on these without knowing the size, it makes a huge difference in value.."
 
A day or so later a reply comes.
 

Uh Oh, the first strong whiff of the eBay Scam Using Skrill, the First Warning

 
 
 
Now Warning # 2. Remember this seller was allegedly in Mississippi then suddenly he's in Spain "on Business"..RED Flag. and did he bring the Elephants with him? 
 
Then Warning # 3 He also has a fixed price offer well below the market value, Way below market value, this is an immediate red flag
 
HUGE WARNING # 4 
MASSIVE RED FLAG...The Inspection Before Paying for It.  BIGGEST WARNING OF ALL...  QUOTE:
  • "Also I want to let you know that you will have the opportunity to receive and inspect the set before you actually pay for it. If you are interested and want to know more details regarding the purchase just contact me.".. with his email address in the "PS"..
The above suggestion is the oldest angle in the book. Over the years I've gotten dozens of these, every time it has been a scam.  

Its A TRAP...BUT How....?

 The New eBay Scam Using Skrill Escrow Payments

(new and improved)

After seeing this, I knew from past experience, he had listed the items only to garner interest. He then pulled the listing after getting I am sure a few inquiries about the pieces. They were either buyers asking for more information or buyers who had made straight out Buy It Now Offers. For this seller its time to cash out.

The question in these cases isn't whether he is a crook or not, but on HOW he is planning to take your money, whats the END GAME?

eBay Scam with Skrill

The Scam Progresses

To find out, I sent him my eMail information and waited for his next move. After a couple days, his response came, along with some very well done images of the pieces, from all sides. It also included his pitch.

Warning # 5 Now he wants me put the money in ESCROW at "Skrill" . (Skrill is a legitimate payment system, like Pay Pal in the EU mostly. They however do have a poor reputation and a longish history with Scammers.  So once I get the pieces I let SKRILL know to release the funds to the seller now in Spain "On business".

hmm..O know what some of you are thinking.Ok, maybe I was wrong on this, maybe he's legit? Have I misjudged him?

Ans: Not hardly..this is a new eBay scam using Skrill escrow payments with a very clever twist.

Hint, notice how the word "ELEPHANT" is in a different Font than the rest of the text, this indicates he's using a form letter and is only cutting and pasting it into eMails, and simply inserting the name of the item being used in the crime..

So I took a quick look at the Skrill site, saw how I could easily open an account. So  when I as THE BUYER make a purchase I can request the money be held in Escrow until the item is received. Then,  I authorize them to pay the seller. I wondered how can he screw me on this?

So, I sent him this reply...trying to figure out his angle.

Hello Jeremy,
 
Thanks for the pictures, do you by any chance have the stands they were made with originally?...
The Elephants look ok to me, they are late 19th C. examples…are they free of any repairs, no cracks etc.? Please check them carefully…
If they are ok, send them along to us.
As for the payment. I do not have a Skrill account and did some poking online about them, they have a pretty bad reputation as far as resolving problems go, double charging customer, poor customer service etc..
Their fees seem about the same as Pay Pal’s..if you have a Merchant Account, but a lot more if you’re not…
I have no problem with you sending me an invoice through Pay Pal and I can simply pay you. Just describe the item..i.e.
19thC. Chinese Porcelains Elephants, $1,500 etc…
 
Let me know what you think about using Pay Pal as an alternative…
 
Sincerely, Peter Combs
 
and I waited, just a few minutes, and got this reply back the SCAM is Revealed,  HOW he would steal my $1,500.00, the new eBay scam using Skrill is clever. 
 
 
new-ebay-scam-using-skrill-escrow-payments
 

Spotting the Scam

Did you spot it? There are several things actually. Life is full of inconsistencies.
First this one.

<img src="Ebay Scam.jpg" alt="Fake listing on ebay">
 
 
In the original eBay listing, he accepted every payment system know to man including Pay Pal, a couple days later?? No Pay Pal account, so he must have closed it on the way to the airport for Spain ?
Next, he does not have a bank account in Spain so he cannot open a Pat Pal account? Gee, he had one just a couple days ago and of course you can open a Pay Pal account from anywhere from any bank, even back in the States. This inconsistency is your biggest warning, consequently you should abandon all notions of doing the deal. 
 

LASTLY the Big LIE

 
????????
 
So, you may be asking yourself, how is this supposed to work? How can I pay him without opening a Skrill account? How are they going to refund me if the deal goes South? 
How is HE, our man in Spain, going to ESCROW the money when Skrill clearly states the BUYER asks that money be Escrowed and cannot use the service without first opening an account with them. The answer is simply, He can't its that simple. 
Its all so easy, ...our man in Spain..Mr. Jeremy simply sends me a PHISHING LINK! To a mock up of a Skrill Account, hoping I will tap in my Credit Card Number...and click the SEND PAYMENT Button .

Viola! A robbery has taken place...and your money flows into Romania, Russia, China, Nigeria or the Phillipines, DONE.

So be careful out there! Never get involved with a transaction where the seller doesn't want Pay Pal involved as much as you want to, or suffer the consequences.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Comments

  1. Deniece says

    OMG! You have just saved me $1500. I have been on Ebay for many years and I am always leary about auctions like this. I spent hours researching the item, an “Irish silver freedom box.” Then when I emailed him that I was interested the response email was basically the same as yours. Except he added his maid to it and changed his name to Ralph Murphy and he’s in Pelham, AL.

    “Hi ,

    Please check the attachments for more photos. My maid will do the delivery for me, so I don’t have to be in US to complete the transaction.
    Regarding the payment I want to make the transaction through Skrill. This way you will have the opportunity to inspect the box before you actually pay for it. I’m saying this because you will have a maximum 14 days inspection period. You will send the money to Skrill and they will keep the money for us. Payment is held by Skrill until you receive and approve the box, I won’t have access to the money until you will give them your approval. As soon as Skrill has the money I will ship the box to you.
    Skrill releases funds to the Seller once the inspection period has passed without the Buyer requesting cancellation of the transaction and upon Skrill verification of the transaction information. The inspection period is agreed to by both the Buyer and the Seller and commences once the Buyer has received the item. Funds are released to the Seller the same or next business day after completion of the transaction and upon verification by Internet Skrill Services.
    As soon as I will have your full name and also your full shipping address I will open an escrow case with Skrill and they will give you step by step details on how to proceed with the deal and to make the payment.
    Thanks,
    Ralph”

    Once I received his email, I started researching Skrill, as I had never heard of it. That was when I discovered your article. Hopefully many folks will research prior to sending him any details. Again thanks so much for removing any doubt I had about this “too good to be true” auction!
    (Another thing that I thought was weird was he has an AOL account. Who has AOL any more? )

    Reply

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