Auction Identity Theft
by the Staff at the Online Auction Academy

Con artists who wish to use online auction houses (usually targeting
eBay because it is the largest) to bilk unsuspecting users for
thousands of dollars usually follow a fairly straight-forward
scheme. It generally preys on the unsuspecting or less savvy,
aiming at their ignorance of technology and security to steal their
money.

The best defense against these crooks is to not be ignorant. Two
simple rules will protect you from most of their schemes without
fail:

1) Never give out your account information (be it PayPal, eBay,
Yahoo!, or any other) over the phone or through a link in an email.
ALWAYS log into the site directly (e.g. Type "www.ebay.com" into
your browser) rather than through a link in an email or from another
website.

2) Never give out your credit card number to anyone who is not
trustworthy: be they a business, a person, a website, or whatever.
Make sure that websites you deal with when giving out personal
information are using security certificates (the little lock appears
on your browser to show that you are "locked" into a secure site)
and that you know who they are and why they need your information.

Both of those rules translate to "ALWAYS BE SKEPTICAL."

The con that these criminals follow is easy to understand and also
easy to perpetrate if you have the wish to do it. Luckily, it's
also fairly easy for police to catch you once they are on your trail
as hiding your movements is not always easy. Especially if you
run "both ends" of the scam (both buying and selling).

The first thing these criminals will do is get a credit card
number. The means of doing so are many and have been around in one
form or another since the use of credit cards began. Once a number
is had, the rest is easy.

Using the stolen credit card, the criminal then registers a domain
name such as "ebay-info.net" with the card and perhaps also
purchases hosting (if needed) to put up a website. This can be done
at any number of automated hosting companies that host for a monthly
fee.

Now that the site is begun, a simple website - one that usually
steals its design from the actual site being copied (in this case
eBay) - is put up to gather information. A free email address at
Hotmail or similar is set up as well. A simple web form and an
explanation as to why the personal information is needed to "update
the user's account" (such as passwords, usernames, email addresses,
credit card numbers, etc.) is created.

Then an email list is compiled using any number of programs for
doing so or the list is purchased from a list broker (someone who
compiles lists for email marketing). The list is then emailed using
any kind of SPAM software to "safely" send it without being traced.

The emails simply instruct the recipient that his or her account at
the service (in this case eBay) is in need of an update and that
they should follow the link given and fill out the form to be found
there. The form's information is automatically emailed to the
criminal's free address (badguy@hotmail.com for instance). The
criminal now has only to enter the email and retrieve the
information.

Now the real scam begins. By gathering this information, the
criminal can now log into the accounts of those who fell for his
scam and begin selling bogus goods using the stolen identity. A
false PayPal account, an anonymous PO box, etc. are all that is
needed to receive the ill-gotten gains.

A scammer can usually pull off several short-duration (and generally
high-dollar) auctions under many different identities before being
completely shut down and losing this stream of income. By then,
thousands in stolen money and, worse, thousands more in illegally
purchased goods from the auction site can be made.

The good news is that, in general, these people are usually caught
by authorities fairly quickly because of the various security
measures already in place: the IP address of the crook is not
always hidden, a physical box to receive mail must be had or bank
account must be opened to receive money, etc. Since these can't be
forged easily (the cost would be prohibitive for the expected
return), they are almost always the links that catch the crook.

So remember: BE SKEPTICAL and you will not be a victim of these
online scams and your good name online, that you've worked hard to
maintain for your business, will not be ruined.

In closing, The Online Auction Academy would like you to know that
the information given here is for informational purposes only in
order to arm you against those criminals who would steal your good
name for their own gain. Any use of this information outside of
this purpose is solely the responsibility of the wrongdoer and is in
no way endorsed or condoned by the Online Auction Academy. In the
end, it is easier to make money legitimately than it is to steal.
Stay safe!

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The Online Auction Academy is the premier training school for
learning to sell at online auction and create a profitable business
online. Sign up for a free online seminar featuring the AuctionMan
Craig Meyer: http://www.awwstore.com/oaa/