eBayers Pound PayPal Doors For Help Against Fake Flash Seller 3ToTrade

eBayers of Counterfeit USB Drives purchased from 3ToTrade on eBay continue pounding the doors of PayPal for assistance.

At PayPal due to a flaw in the dispute console, eBayers are unable to find an option to report counterfeit merchandise, instead the only option is ” Significantly Not as Described item”. This leads to an automatic response by a robotic responder ordering the eBayer to return the item – blind to the fact it is a counterfeit. It is illegal in most countries to use the Postal System to send or receive counterfeit items.

The robotic emailer is leaving eBayers frustrated and leaves PayPal exposed for future liability. When calling PayPal and speaking directly to a claims agent the position is generally the opposite. We want to know…

PayPal – Reasons To File Dispute For Counterfeit Flash Drives Purchased On eBay

Why should you file a dispute with PayPal against a seller of counterfeit flash drives on eBay? As we have said many times – eBay and PayPal can do litte against a counterfeit seller if people do not report or file complaints. We advise avoiding direct contact with a seller if you have tested and found you bought a fake. Here is why.

PayPal – How Investigations On Counterfeit USB Flash Drive Sellers On Ebay Could Be Raised

PayPal might raise an investigation on a fake flash seller on eBay – but only if there are multiple complains from eBay buyers. The only way this can happen is if you file disputes at the dispute console. If you are under the gun for a 10 day time limit read on to learn more about investigations or if you want a fake flash seller on eBay dealt with.

3ToTrade – Communication with The Don Of Fake Flash – HarryEvidence

HarryEvidence has been battling 3ToTrade for his refunds for fake flash drives. The following is a selection of email communications in chronological order as presented to us by HarryEvidence. It does not begin at the early stages but when things started to heat up.

eBay Not Responding To Counterfeit USB Flash Drive Warnings From eBayers

eBay is not responding to Counterfeit USB flash drive warnings from eBayers. The problem appears to be a flaw in their robotic emailing system that claims to be “Tailored Responses”. As a result one of the worse offenders on eBay – 3ToTrade continues to remain active. As much as eBayers are trying to help eBay they are meeting with resistance. Here is an example.

What is This Fake Flash All About?

Exactly when it began, is a mystery to all of us. What is clear is that it was detected on eBay back in 2005. This can easily be verified by querying the internet. As the demand for higher capacity drives grew and as they were very expensive, someone found a way to reprogram controller chips on flash drives. Or that is what people think. The truth is more likely that people saw an opportunity to make money by using the genuine tools for programming the controller chips in an illegal manner. Purposely choosing the wrong parameters to report the existing flash drive size as higher than they really are.

Fake Flash Sellers eBay Report 20080902

eBay Flash Drive sellers, wonder if they sell fakes? Do you wonder which eBayer countries have been stung by fake flash USB drive purchases on eBay? Not certain which seller to chose? Well you are not alone.

We can’t really tell you about the honest sellers – we know they exist but they are being drowned out by the counterfeit flash drive sellers on ebay. We can tell you who has been caught with their hands in the counterfeit fake flash cookie jar.

Fake Flash Sellers Stopped eBay Report 20080902

This report lists eBay Sellers identified with the selling of counterfeit drives on eBay and who have been stopped. The information comes from the FrankenFlash Project’s sub group: eBayers Against False Capacity Drives.

For the first time information kept in-house and confidental is being released to the public. Note that if a seller was a victim, the seller is identified as such. See the article: Bay Sellers Can Be Victims – How Does This Happen? for details.

Unfortuately, those stopped do start again when they think the coast is clear to begin once more – it is a never ending battle and little help has come from eBay or PayPal directly so far. The best we can do at this point is leave a bread crumb trail for them to follow. It seems to help, to a degree.  Fakessellersstopped20080902.pdf  Future reports may be released, at best on a monthly basis.

H2testw 1.4 – Gold Standard In Detecting USB Counterfeit Drives

H2testw 1.4 has proven itself to be the best of breed for detecting counterfeit Flash drives. It is extremely easy to use and proves detailed information. Created by Harald Bögeholz, the interface is in German but has the option to run in English. It is free and standalone.

New!  This article contains a poll you can vote on.

Nothing is installed into the operating system. Designed for Windows it can run under Linux if Wine is installed. It will not run under Macs as it is a Windows Software . If your computer can not run the software – ask a colleague or friend who has a windows based computer to help you test.  However if you are a Linux or Mac user we have good news for you,  keep reading. A software has been developed based on the idea of H2testw,  just for you.

To learn more and for download information

eBay Fake Flash Sellers List 20081205

eBay Sellers of Fake Flash (False Capacity) devices as of 20081205 documented by SOSFakeFlash. The ebay sellers on this list have been documented and investigated. SOSFakeFlash has made it easy for you to research, you no longer have to click and scroll through a sea of feedback to get to the important information.

This list is now closed and old Please see a more recent list.

eBay Fake Flash Sellers Negative And Neutral Feedback – 20080920

See investigated eBay Fake Flash Sellers negative and neutral feedback quickly using this tool. It can be hard to find the negative and neutral feedback that eBayer’s leave to warn their fellow buyers especially with a powerseller who moves in volume.

SOSFakeFlash has made it easy for you to research, you no longer have to click and scroll through a sea of feedback to get to the important information.

Buying Flash Drives On eBay – How To Protect Yourself

Are there a lot of fake flash drives on eBay?

Sadly, the answer is YES!

Does eBay know about the problem?

YES, the internet is drowning in evidence dating back to 2005.

Why doesn’t eBay stop the traffic in false capacity flash drives?

That is something everyone is asking and has been asking for a number of years. Nobody seems to have the answer, but we can guess at reasons.

What is known, is that if enough people file disputes for a fake drive,  it makes a difference. The red lights begin to flash at the dispute console. Some Sellers stop selling entirely, others stop listing these fake drives. The problem is, there are always new Sellers waiting to take their place.

Are there steps you can take to protect your self from becoming a victim of a false capacity drive?

YES!

Read on for a defense in bidding on flash drives.

3ToTrade – The Battle Continues

eBayers continue to struggle against this fake flash seller. Paypal continues to support 3ToTrade in demanding the fake drives be returned using the postal system.

As of September 14th  2008, there are 77 drives in the 32 GB models that have been confirmed fake.

Also the seller is asking eBayers to return with a low custom value declaration. DON’T!

It is bad enough that both seller and Paypal are requiring eBayers to risk breaking the law by holding their purchase price at ransom.  It illegal to ship counterfeit items using the Postal System in most countries.  The interpretation varies from country to country.  If you chose to return the drive please declare the true value.  This includes:

1. Price you paid for the drive in a bid
2. Price to ship to you
3. Price to register with a tracking number
4. Price to insure the package
5. Price to post

Also please ensure to declare for the item in easy to read print:

Return of counterfeit merchandise to eBay Seller for Refund by order of PayPay.

This will help to alert the postal authorities in China that this seller is dealing in counterfeit merchandise and committing fraud. Also, there is no reason to under declare the value of the drive and all your costs. Tell the truth.