posted on August 11, 2006 06:17:48 PM new
Someone won two of my auctions tonight - but I don't expect this transaction to go smoothly - at last count this bidder had won 897 auctions today.
It looks to me like it must be a stolen account - but I'm not sure what one gains from bidding like that. Anyone care to enlighten me?
posted on August 11, 2006 06:31:31 PM new
It happens every summer. When school gets out, the kids get bored and 2 or 3 decide to have a contest to see who can win the most auctions in one day. It happened to me once. The guy had racked up over 600 auctions. Looks like your thrill bidder has been extremely busy. Don't expect payment anytime soon. You should report this to Trust and Safety. If they can shut him down, you, and the other sellers, can get immediate FVF credit. Otherwise, you'll have to wait through the UID time limits to get credit.
If Murphy's law is correct, everything East of the San Andreas Fault will slide into the Atlantic
posted on August 11, 2006 06:33:03 PM new
Contact trust and safety. Post name here too in case of the rest of us are affected. Make sure you save name of second highest bidder because ebay will probably cancel all of the listings (they did the last time this happened). You might try to do a second change offer if applicable now.
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posted on August 11, 2006 06:39:52 PM new
I had already told trust and safety - got a form response back. It basically said thanks for the info - we can't tell you anything.
posted on August 11, 2006 06:48:56 PM new
Had it happen to me once and ebay completely removed the listing from their site. (No, I didn't do anything wrong. I received an email letting me know that the bidder's account had been compromised.)
I only mention it because if you haven't copied and saved the text in your listing (always a good idea anyway), you might want to make a backup somewhere just in case.
If you had any other bidders on the item, you might want to jot down their user-ID's now while you can.
posted on August 11, 2006 07:20:21 PM new
Anybody remember how long it took ebay to take down the listings? I'm wondering if this is something they wouldn't get to until Monday.
I find it a little disheartening - but I'm not really worried about it. The auctions he got me for only totaled around $40.00.
posted on August 11, 2006 07:26:27 PM new
I put him on blocked list as he is still active just checked and is not naru-ed yet. That is a shame someone can do that and get away with it for a bit. Ebay could instigate a limit rule on how many you can bid on in a day like banks with credit cards have a limit for daily withdrawal spending limit on most cards unless you are platinum or what ever proven credit worthy etc.
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posted on August 11, 2006 07:40:05 PM new
When mine happened, it was with a newbie bidder. At that time, you could bid without limit on a new account. We had to wait till the time limit passed, file a NPB report, and wait the full week before we could claim credit. It was only after he racked up his 3rd NPB that Ebay suspended him. The new system is much better. You can't go on a spree with a day old account, and if the bidder gets NARU, you can get immediate credit.
If Murphy's law is correct, everything East of the San Andreas Fault will slide into the Atlantic
posted on August 12, 2006 07:26:58 AM new
Sellathon reported on another board that they looked at some of the auctions they were tracking to see if they could find the ISP - the bidders (and there were others yesterday - looks like a robot attack) never actually visited the aucitons. They must have used a sniping tool or ebay API. This is not idle child-play.
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posted on August 12, 2006 09:01:11 AM new
I am betting that 99% of the sellers on this guys auctions do not know they have been had yet and the mr spuge is still not naru. most of the sellers won't go look at his record until they don't get paid. I only look when something is suspecious looking at time they left bid or if they ARE low feedback I look to see their history and maybe even what they are still bidding on etc. You would be suprised at the number of sellers that don't realize you can go look up someone's bidding history etc. I had a fellow seller just cuple weeks ago that I contacted who sold to same person I did wanting to know if they heard from the buyer bla bla bla their email invalid etc and the guy wrote back wanting to know how I knew all the information and found his user ID item guy bought etc and this seller had upwards of 1000 feedback and didn't know how to find out information on buyers or sellers. He was tickled to learn you could find out all that kind of information.
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posted on August 12, 2006 02:40:30 PM new
I got an e-mail from ebay that said the results of the auctions had been cancelled and the fees had been credited to me. It also said that the bids were made without the account owner's authorization and that the account was temporarily suspended.
posted on August 12, 2006 07:41:27 PM new
Texas Men Arraigned on Terrorism Charges
Prosecutors Say They Were Targeting a Bridge
Associated Press
August 12, 2006 9:25 p.m.
CARO, Mich. -- Three Texas men were arraigned Saturday on terrorism-related charges after police found about 1,000 cell phones in their minivan, and prosecutors say they believe the men were targeting a bridge connecting Michigan's Upper and Lower peninsulas.
But two of the men said they were only trying to buy and sell phones to make money, and one said the money was intended to help pay for his brother's college education.
A magistrate set bond at $750,000 for each of the men, who are charged with collecting or providing materials for terrorist acts and surveillance of a vulnerable target for terrorist purposes. No pleas were made at the arraignment at a District Court in Caro, about 80 miles north of Detroit.
Officials have not said what they believe the men intended to do with the phones, most of which were prepaid TracFones. But Caro's police chief said cell phones can be used as detonators, and prosecutors in a similar case in Ohio have said that TracFones are often used by terrorists because they are not traceable.
"All we did is buy the phones to sell and make money," Louai Abdelhamied Othman told the magistrate. He said authorities had previously stopped the group in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
"We've been checked by the FBI before," he said. "They even gave us their card and everything."
Tuscola County Prosecutor Mark E. Reene told The Saginaw News that investigators believe the men were targeting the 5-mile long Mackinac Bridge. He declined to say what led investigators to that belief.
Mr. Reene and the FBI did not return phone messages Saturday to The Associated Press.
Messrs Othman and Maruan Awad Muhareb, both of Mesquite, Texas, and Mr. Adham Abdelhamid Othman, of Dallas, were stopped before dawn Friday after they purchased 80 cell phones from a Wal-Mart in Caro. Police said they found about 1,000 cell phones in their minivan.
Messrs Adham and Louai Othman are brothers and are in their early 20s. Mr. Muhareb, 18, is their cousin. All are being held at the Tuscola County Jail, Caro police said.
Mr. Muhareb told the magistrate: "This is a misunderstanding." He said he was selling the phones to earn money to help pay for his brother's college education.
The arrests in Caro came three days after two men were arrested in Marietta, Ohio, where police said they aroused suspicions when they acknowledged buying about 600 phones in recent months at stores in southeast Ohio.
Ali Houssaiky and Osama Abulhassan, both 20 and from Detroit suburb of Dearborn, have been charged with two felonies -- money laundering in support of terrorism and soliciting or providing support for acts of terrorism -- and misdemeanor falsification. A preliminary hearing on the felony counts was set for Tuesday.
Defense lawyers said Messrs Houssaiky and Abulhassan planned to resell the phones simply to make money. They say the men were targeted only because they are of Arab descent.
posted on August 12, 2006 09:35:51 PM new
They should have claimed to be Ebay powersellers buying $20.00 phones and listing them as $200.00 high end phones. No terrorism involved, just good old fashion scamming of innocent Ebay buyers. The cops would probably have let them go.
If Murphy's law is correct, everything East of the San Andreas Fault will slide into the Atlantic
