How do I know this isn’t a scam?

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Toxic__Phoenix

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Jul 20, 2017
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I listed my Xbox one for sale on eBay yesterday after noon and this morning I received a text from a “buyer” saying his name was Sukumar and he wanted to buy it for his mom. I wasn’t sure if him contacting me for text rather than email was a red flag so I just asked him if we could email so I have a better record of transactions. He asked me to confirm my PayPal email so do I tell him the email? I also looked on his page on eBay and he’s located in India. I’m a first time seller so I don’t know common scams and I want a smooth sell
 
Solution
geofelt
Be very careful as a seller.
Ebay protects buyers, not sellers.

You could get paypal payment, ship the item, get confirmation of receipt and think you are ok.
Then the buyer claims the product is defective or not as advertised.
You request a return shipment.
Buyer returns a box with rocks and gets his payment back.
He also has documentation that you got delivery.
He has the product and his payment; you have a box of rocks.
In a dispute, ebay does not know who is lying and will side with the buyer.

I know, a similar thing happened to me.

Best to be fairly certain about the reputation of the buyer.
If you are concerned about the value of the item be extra careful.
Probably best to ship only to USA locations.
You are right to insist on...
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Toxic__Phoenix

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Jul 20, 2017
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Also his location is India but his address is Hawthorne California. All his buyer “reviews” are really similar and seem spammed. A ton of them mention how he’s an “A++++++” buyer so I’m starting to think this is a scam.
 
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COLGeek

COLGeek

Cybernaut
Moderator
Apr 6, 2009
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Then you make it go through the purchase process. That way you are covered by both eBay and Paypal. When you set up your account, all of this was setup with your profile (Paypal address), correct?

If he pays, upon confirmation, you ship. If suspicious, contact eBay for assistance.
 
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COLGeek

COLGeek

Cybernaut
Moderator
Apr 6, 2009
54,143
3,395
179,340
Did you list your number (for texts) as the method to use for contact? Does the buyer not want to contact you via email? Did you receive a message from eBay regarding the transaction? If so, use the links provided to work out the sell/shipping arrangements.
 
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geofelt

geofelt

Titan
Oct 9, 2006
54,274
4,130
174,240
Be very careful as a seller.
Ebay protects buyers, not sellers.

You could get paypal payment, ship the item, get confirmation of receipt and think you are ok.
Then the buyer claims the product is defective or not as advertised.
You request a return shipment.
Buyer returns a box with rocks and gets his payment back.
He also has documentation that you got delivery.
He has the product and his payment; you have a box of rocks.
In a dispute, ebay does not know who is lying and will side with the buyer.

I know, a similar thing happened to me.

Best to be fairly certain about the reputation of the buyer.
If you are concerned about the value of the item be extra careful.
Probably best to ship only to USA locations.
You are right to insist on communicating via ebay email for a full audit trail.
 
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