I think a buyer is trying to scam me on ebay?

Question

I recently put a PSP for sale on ebay and within an hour it was bought buy a new user. He sent me an email asking for more photos and for my paypal email address(even though it was already linked to eBay and was verified). Think this is potentially a scam and how do I resolve this on eBay?
This was the content of his/her email
Hello seller i am the one who just won your item out of eBay please i want you to send me more Photos of this item to my email address now asap ...... ([e-mail]) And also i want you to get back to me with your correct PayPal email address,so i can proceed with payment as soon as possible.Regards
Janet

Answer 1

Something doesn't seem right.



If you set up the auction through Ebay to use PayPal then you would not have to provide the buyer with your email address for PayPal.



My gut says scam.



The scammer will send you and email that looks like is is from PayPal but it is fake. The email will say the your money is on hold pending shipment and it will prompt you to enter a tracking number for the shipment. However, PayPal doesn't actually do this.



Also, notice how the scammer says "item" in their email. He (and yes, "Janet" is most likely a "he" and he is in West Africa) doesn't really know (or care) what is purchasing. He is trying to get you to ship it without him actually paying for it so he doesn't care what it is.

Answer 2

Well for one thing, they may not be a scammer, but they're a stupid buyer either way. What person commits to buying a product and then asks for "more pictures asap"? The pictures no longer matter. They commit to buy and they have to buy, otherwise you can open up a case against them if they take too long to pay. They don't need pictures if they're going to be getting the physical item within days and they apparently already saw enough to purchase outright. "Correct paypal address"? What's that? Anyone using Ebay or Paypal should have a "correct" Paypal.

Answer 3

If it's a new user they may just be unsure of procedures, though I don't know why they'd want more pictures, it seems really odd. I would send back a response saying they can pay through ebay, (how hard is it to click "Pay now"), and wait until funds have cleared before shipping. If they don't pay or just keep sending weird emails I would file a report with ebay. Look under customer support, resolution center.

Answer 4

No I don't think so... Although they just should of asked for more photos before. I'd just explain that your eBay and Paypal are already linked and if not tell her the e-mail address to send money to. And if they don't pay open a dispute with eBay :)

Answer 5

I don't necessarily think the buyer is trying to scam you at this point. I would reply and remind the buyer that you've already posted your PayPal information and that as soon as you receive payment, you will gladly forward extra photos to him/her. If possible, put a signature watermark on your photos so that you can identify them (in case he just wants to use your images to scam someone else).

Answer 6

NEVER give out your paypal email address as this scammer will use it to send you a spoof email tricking you into believing you have been paid. You have been warned. Notice they use ITEM rather then what you are selling as they send this to hundreds of people.

Answer 7

I don't think its a scam. He did say "correct Paypal email address", meaning the original may have not worked or he just didn't see it.

Answer 8

Both eBay and Paypal will get worried. Inform him that you've proof you are right. I'd e mail each PayPay(if that is what you used) and ebay, and allow them to in on the problem. He is mainly going to backpedal.

Answer 9

If you know that the link is good then tell them that the lik is good and to use it. If you don't recieve payment don't ship it.