Simply bad ebay scams

I've posted my old SPV M600  to ebay for the 4th ti now. Everytime I post it up, some scam artist tries to  con me out of my phone. Well I'm fed up of readying the phishing emails and so wanted to post them for others to read. So Ebay sent me this a while ago.

Dear Italic_dj

The results of the following listings have been cancelled due to bidding activity that took place without the account owner's authorisation:

160103815659 Orange SPV M600 + 2GB SD CARD Boxed and Used

We have temporarily suspended the bidding account and we are working with the account owner to prevent any additional unauthorised activity. Since the account owner did not initiate these bids, fees resulting from the listings in question have been credited to your account.

Unfortunately, it is not possible for us to automatically relist these items for you. Instead, to relist these items you will need to start from the beginning of the listing process, either through the Sell Your Item process or through your third party listing service. We know that this is an inconvenience and we apologise for the negative impact it may cause you. We are working on tools to allow you to relist your items without starting from the beginning, but they are not available at this time.

So the first email I got from the con-artist was this.

Hello, I am very sorry i have not been able to get back to you till now, i have taken such time because of the easter period. Just want to let you know that payment will be sent on monday or first thing on tuesday morning
Best Regards.
argentium149@verizonmail.com

Then this crafted email from the con-artist to look like it came from ebay

Dear Ian Forrester

Failure to do as we have indicated in this email will lead to your suspension on eBay due to concerns we have for the safety and integrity of the eBay community.

“Abusing eBay” of the eBay User Agreement states, in part:

“…we may limit, suspend, or terminate our service and user accounts, prohibit access to our website, remove hosted content, and take technical and legal steps to keep users off the Site if we think that they are creating problems, possible legal liabilities, or acting inconsistently with the letter or spirit of our policies.”

This email is to inform you that you can now proceed with the transaction between you and Chris Marshall (argentium149) the buyer of your ebay item 160103815659. The transaction was initially cancelled because we noticed that someone else accessed the account and some transactions where made with the account without the owner's concept, which was complained to us by the account owner. This has been resolved and now, we are at the point of completely restoring the account back to the owner. You are expected to send out the item tomorrow because payment has just been sent by the buyer through paypal, your payment is currently placed on HOLD by us. As soon as the buyer confirms to us that he has received the shipment details from you and that everything is ok, your payment will be credited into your paypal account. Failure to send out the item tomorrow will lead to your suspension on ebay. Make sure the item is sent out tomorrow and the shipment details sent to the buyer for confirmation.

Then the conformation email from the con-artist himself

Hello There,

Just want to let you know that i have resolved all problems with ebay and that i have just sent payment for the ebay item I have also added a extra amount of money so as to cover the shipping cost of the phone to my son. I bought the phone for my son as gift. This is address where the phone should be sent to.

Name :- Okwuchukwu Ugochi
Address :- 1 Ojo Street, Off Babalola Bus-Stop
City :- Mushin
State :- Lagos
Country :- Nigeria
Postal Code :- 23401

I have also attached a copy of the confirmation email that paypal sent to me confirming payment, they have asked me to contact you for the shipment details. I want the phone sent to my son via royalmail international signed for delivery(Recorded). Let me have the royalmail reference number when it has been sent so i can contact ebay and paypal to let them.

Regards.
Chris.

And just incase I wasn't certain a fake email from PayPal.com

You've Received Payment for an eBay item!

Dear Ian Forrester,

Chris Marshall just sent you a payment of £300.00 GBP for an eBay item.

Chris Marshall is a verified buyer.
Payment Details Buyer's User ID: argentium149.
Buyer: Chris Marshall
Amount: £250.00 GBP
Postage & Packing: £50.00 GBP
Postal Insurance: £00.00 GBP
Total Amount: £300.00 GBP

Item Information
eBay User ID: argentium149

Delivery Information
Address: Okwuchukwu Ugochi
1 ojo street,off Babalola Bustop
Mushin,Lagos
Nigeria
23401
Address Status:  Confirmed

Message:

This payment has been placed on Hold. We have asked the buyer to contact you for the shipment tracking/reference number, as soon as the buyer confirms to us that the item has been sent, your account will be credited immediately. This is the New Paypal antifraud rule, this is done in order to secure both buyers and sellers. The item should be sent out within 24 hours and the shipment details sent to the buyer.

So as you can see this is so obviously a con/scam. I didn't even need to look at the headers for the emails or check my Paypal account. The English was a mess in places, account details wrong and worst still it had all the hallmarks of a scam. That level of urgency, the tail for which to follow. I'm so fed up with scammer like this I think I might post them up here everytime to convine scammers that I'm serious about taking action.

You've been warned scammers!

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Author: Ianforrester

Senior firestarter at BBC R&D, emergent technology expert and serial social geek event organiser. Can be found at cubicgarden@mas.to, cubicgarden@twit.social and cubicgarden@blacktwitter.io