XBox 360 - Are they all scams?

As an eBay shop owner who sells XBox 360's and other items, I regularly check other listings for prices etc to keep ahead of the competition and sometimes I purchase such items to see how other companies perform.In this process I have come across some really dissapointing news. Nearly all XBox 360 Premium consoles are either scams or are listed badly with in correct and misleading information.First off... Bad listings - Listing as new.These are the facts:An item that is sold in it's originally factory sealed state is a new item. And that's it. No exceptions.So if your item is either:Opened - even if for testingSeal is brokenOwned and used for any period of timeItems removed from their wrappingsIf item is re-sealed with authentic markings removedORtampered with in anyway then the item should be listed as USED.All you have to ask yourself is this. Would you buy something from a shop that was already opened and expect to pay the full price?BAD LISTINGSBlocking bidders from general auctions.
These should only be used if trying to protect yourself from scammers or if you are selling information or pre-orders and want to check that potential buyers totally understand what they are purchasing. And believe me, wether you think the listing is 100% clear there are literally hundreds and thousands of eBayers who just do not bother to read the ad or don't understand it and then refuse to pay when they realise their mistake. However, what is happening in this case is the seller is a scammer and uses other scammers to bid and win the item. This in turn improves each buyers feedback rating and creates an illusion of a decent and trust worthy seller. Just try to get them to put you on their list. I guarantee that in most cases they won't let you. If they do, then you will be ripped-off.Hiding bidder ID.
In my opinion, this should not be available to any seller. It opens up the chance for someone to run a scam by having lots of other scammers bid to make a fake auction look real and also drive up the amount of money the scammer will get from a legitimate buyer. If the conmen win they complete the purchase give each other positive feedback and relist. If a legitimate buyer wins they are ripped-off. Hidden feedback.
Again, another 'feature' that should not be available for sellers and buyers alike. In this case scammers are running multiple sales ripping people off and don't want you to read their negative feedback. They do a few sales and then disappear. In my opinion anyone who has private feedback should not be sold to or bought from.SCAMSThere are lots of ways to scam people on eBay some of which I have already gone through. There are many others that are currently being used.Hi-jacked auctions and accounts.
Now I am not fully sure how they do this because it is very clear that they do not have full eBay usage. ie. eBay message system etc. I believe they use some sort of software very similar to Turbo Lister that can hack into an account and create a listing without the need to actually 'log-in' to eBay. These listings will usually ask you to email their personal account. These addresses are nearly always hotmail or google accounts. If you contact them you will get a broken English response and all they are really interested in is getting your money. For example, I was 'testing' one the other day and before I could get to asking what is involved, what I was after etc I got this response. Please do pay into Western Union account so I can see that you have the money (I hadn't even discussed what the value of items were) and when I see that I will deliver the items. What the???Promoting off eBay sales.
Often when you are selling 'hot' items such as Consoles, PSP's, Mobiles, PC's etc you will be contacted from someone who claims to be from such and such Asian, Eastern European company and they offer excellent prices on all their goods. Very tempting. Now I am not saying that all these companies are scams, but I can assure you, that ALL of the companies that have contacted me ARE. If you purchase from anyone who suggests you buy off of eBay you must be very wary and expect to be ripped off.10. 50, 100 + units.
100% total scam. They break eBay rules by offering off eBay sales ONLY and then try to rip you off with Western Union and money transfer deals. If you use these companies you are an idiot. Sorry but you are. I have also been made aware that they sometimes will do a deal to you for say 2 or 3 XBox 360 consoles at an excellent price and then when they deliver you trust them enough to go back for an even bigger deal. This is when they get you. Let's face it. If someone is offering 60 XBox 360 for under 2,000 and they deliver successfully a smaller deal then why wouldn't you go back? It's a risk for them initially but 70% of the time works in their favour.Ruining rivals auctions.
How many XBox 360's have you seen relisted due to timewasters, or non paying eBayers? I've seen at least 50. What is happening is the scammers are trying to draw sales away from their auctions by simply opening a fake account and bidding to win an auction just so they don't lose sales to others. This is really a nasty thing to do and I guarantee it is happening. They also try to steal info from you. You have no idea how lucrative your email can be for some companies and scammers. So be careful.Buyers with low feedback.
Always read feedback. That is simple. Check what potetial buyers and sellers have bought to create their feedback. If they have bought items for 1 or 2 pounds/dollars at a time then they may well be dodgy. They will bid and not pay, or try to sell you something, take your money and never appear again. Well until they re-register under a new account anyway. My advice is to steer clear of anyone with low feedback when buying and selling. Sorry but when it comes to consoles and other hot items I just don't feel that they are trust worthy enough. Sorry if you are genuine but that is the way I feel.All the above scams are being used for lots of the following items:Mobile phonesPSPXBox 360PCHD TVVideo GamesHow do I spot a scammer?
To be fair if any listing has any of the above issues in them I would say 90% of the time they are a scam. My company has managed to recoup 'luckily' over 3000 GBP of lost funds through scams using PayPal for XBox 360 consoles. In all but one situation the seller has been a scam artist and got away with the cash. I managed to get the money back, but others have not. Be very careful and take your time over your purchases. Ensure when paying through PayPal that the seller is Verified. Any purchase over 500 will void an un-verified account and put it in hold. This can mean that you could have to wait up to 2 weeks for your item to be processed or may never receive your money back or the item delivered. I think that PayPal should list before you buy wether the sellers details are verified because it only currently tells you AFTER you have paid. On two occasions I almost lost 480 GBP due to this issue. Also, contact them through Ebay message system. If they do not respond within 48 hours I would suggest their is something not quite right there. THIS IS NOT FACT, but just an initial thing to consider.Further advice.
Quite simply, as a customer I would not buy a console from eBay UNLESS it was from an eBay shop. The reason for this is most shops will sell you something that is genuine and refund you if there is a fault. After all these people are running a business and want to be the best. Well most of them do anyway.Also any auction you believe to be dodgy. REPORT THEM TO eBAY. If they are genuine and not breaking any rules there will be no problem, but if they are dodgy then they will be removed and de-registered. And believe me there wouldn't be many more XBox 360 consoles on eBay if all the scammers were removed. I personally have reported any person I believe to be a scammer and all of them have been removed, because the fact is they were scammers. If the genuine eBay community were to do the same I am sure eBay would be a much safer place.