In the settlement eBay agreed to provide customers’ detailed disclosures Report Scam when they register for a PayPal account investigate account errors more quickly and provide users quarterly account statements by e-mail.
July 24, 2004. A San Diego police officer and his wife were accused of conducting a major fencing operation out of a Chula Vista warehouse.
The Estrellas bought stolen property directly from thieves, and then sold it on eBay. James Estrella has been a San Diego officer for 15 years. Authorities said that the property recovered was valued at more than $275,000. John Estrellas received two years in jail and a $30,000 fine.
January 28, 2005. Gilbert Vartanian defrauded at least 10 eBay buyers of nearly $100,000, and he now faces 12 counts of mail fraud that could net him 20 years in prison and $250,000 in fines. Vartanian pleaded not guilty. Vartanian offered tickets for Knicks games, as well as for games involving the Pittsburgh Steelers, the New England Patriots, New York Giants, Green Bay Packers, Philadelphia 76ers and New York Jets.
Vartanian used his nygiants031 eBay account to place the winning bids on five auctions in which he was offering items for sale under another screen account name. This resulted in a better rating thus enhancing his creditability.
October 15, 200.4 A Scam known as “second chance” emerged in Britain . People who lost an auction were sent an email offering them a second chance to buy goods they bid for. When the consumer clicked on a link in the email, they were taken to a hacker’s website where their credit card details were stolen. The scam cost British eBay users millions.
Dec 4, 2004. A group of three high school students Steven Matthew St. John, Joseph Daniel Owen and Lance Allen Miller, all 17, were arrested and charged with five counts each of felonious breaking and entering and four counts each of felony larceny. The group stole more than $100,000 worth of property and then tried to sell some of the goods, such as computers and computer parts on eBay.
Dec 7 2004. A seller was offering a valve on eBay which might have allowed people to divert their gas supply to avoid having to pay any bills. The item was listed with the caption “Easy to use gas bypass. Why pay for your gas when you don’t have to? Think of those winter nights and the gas that you’ll use and save.”
November 5, .2004. Advance copies of the video game “Halo 2” were sold on eBay fetching as much as $ 265 each. The search Microsoft game was one of the most anticipated in history.
November 4, 2004. A 19-year-old man stole musical instruments from Stetson University and sold them on eBay, in Deland , Fla. Anatoli Seinczenko confessed to stealing over $20,000 worth of instruments and property.