Safety Tips For Selling Online

The Internet affords us with oodles of information right smack at our fingertips, but with such access comes a slew of potential dangers. If you own a computer that runs Windows, like so many Internet users do, then you’re probably all too familiar with the weekly (if not daily) need for secure updates. But what about the security that you must do for yourself?

Last week I wrote about how to avoid being scammed when looking for a job. This week it’s that other brave area of the Classifieds: selling online.

Just this week alone, I have been the almost-victim of two attempted scams from just the few items I am selling (on the mothership of all auction sites: ebay). Thieves are clever, and they won’t stop until they have someone’s account, or money, or identity, or all of the above. But, if you follow these tips you’ll know how to stay safe (and possibly even make a little money).

First off, when selling items online you should always deal with ebay, since it offers buyer and seller protection, and since it works in alliance with Paypal to insure that you are always selling to only legitimate reputable people. Less popular auction sites might be just as authentic, but ebay and Paypal are truly the most secure.

The first safety tip to remember is to sell only to buyers with confirmed addresses. Just this week a person from Indonesia with an unconfirmed address tried relentlessly to buy a laptop I was selling even though I specifically wrote in the item listing that I only ship to confirmed addresses (addresses verified by Paypal). I later found out that he had stolen the account he was using and the money he sent me was not his own! Paypal froze his payment and I blocked him from bidding on my auctions in the future. Never ship to an unconfirmed address, even if they live in your own city or state. Paypal has a new policy in place since October 2008 that protects sellers even if they ship to unconfirmed addresses; but it is always best to ship to those addresses you know are secure.

Just a few days after that ordeal, I received a message from a potential buyer who wanted to know if I was selling the same item (another laptop) under a different user name. “I think this guy is trying to rip me off,” the message began, “he’s selling the same thing you are. Check it out.” The link he provided was not clickable, so I had to copy and paste it into my browser. Since it wasn’t clickable, I couldn’t discover any secret embedded links, and visually it was identical to an ebay link, so I copied and pasted it into my browser, and up popped the familiar ebay login page. So I didn’t think anything was wrong. Then something caught my eye.

A secure ebay login page ALWAYS begins with https, and if you use IE7 like I do, the URL bar turns green. It was then that I noticed that the URL had changed. I’d been rerouted to a different website entirely. This made me nervous. I left the website (but not before copying the URL) and immediately e-mailed ebay. I forwarded the message I’d received (including the URL my browser was rerouted to) to spoof@ebay.com. Within a day or two I received a response from ebay which confirmed my suspicions; I had been the (almost) victim of a scam.

Apparently, an unknown scammer had obtained access (unauthorized of course) to the ebay account of someone I didn’t know, and was using that ebay account to try and get other ebay accounts. The website I had visited rerouted me to a spoof site, which looked identical to ebay’s login page. Had I logged in with my information, the scam artist would have gotten my username and password, and could’ve then used my account to gain other people’s information; it’s all a vicious cycle. What saved me from being a victim was that certain factors raised a flag in my mind: the URL was obviously not secure, because it was not an ebay URL, it was not green, and it did not begin with “https” (the “s” is added to indicate that your transactions are secure). I should have never copied and pasted the URL in the first place. Never copy & paste, or click on links that are sent to you even by fellow ebay members. Ebay members should only ask questions about the items you are selling; no links should ever be necessary.

Also, never ship the merchandise until you’re paid. Once in a while you’ll find that an item will sell, but the buyer never pays. Because of this, it’s rule number one never to ship an item until payment has cleared.

Never agree to sell an item outside of ebay’s terms. If you want to avoid the fees, which can stack up after awhile, you could always go to Craigslist and agree to meet a buyer in person. But if you do, ALWAYS meet in a very public place like a restaurant or a mall, and always bring a friend and let someone know where you’re going. Plus, it’s smart to get as much information on the person as you can. However, if you are operating inside the system of ebay’s rules, you should never try to circumvent their policies. You might be breaking a contract and unknowingly setting yourself up to be scammed in a place where ebay cannot protect you.

Last but not least, if you are ever in doubt, know that ebay and Paypal have extensive help sections on their websites, as well as easily obtainable phone numbers. Any time you have a question, or are suspicious as to whether or not something is authentic, remember that it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Selling items online can be a fun and profitable process, but the fun stops when someone gets unauthorized access to your account or your finances. There is no better weapon against scam artists than the weapon of self-awareness. Know what secure URLs look like (https), know when to ship your items and when not to, and know who to contact if you are ever unsure. By remaining vigilant you just might be able to escape the clutches of a greedy thief out to steal your information. And then maybe you can finally have some fun and make a little money, which is what selling online is supposed to be about in the first place.

By Andrea Nostramo
May 8, 2009
© Daype Inc.