🚀 go-pugleaf

zoara <me3@privacy.net> wrote:

<Snipped Text>

> The web levels the playing field for large and small companies, but it
> seems it also levels the playing field for the scammers. Us geeks say
> "well, it's obvious that they look dodgy", but how's your Average Joe
> going to distinguish between www.trustworthysupplier.co.uk and
> www.scammingbastard.co.uk?
>
> What can be done? Edumucation? Some sort of certification to verify
> legitimate companies?

Possibly, commercial adverts are covered by MOPS, but free-ads are
Caveat Emptor.

All of the rules and legalities are there in plain English on the eBay
web site. IIRC you have to say you've read them before you open an
account.

However, common sense should prevail. I have a rule for eBay, only buy
from there what I'm prepared to lose. Generally it'll be spend or sell
no more than £100. Any more than that and I'll look elsewhere, either
bite the bullet and buy new from a known retailer, or buy where I can
see the goods first.

--
Andy Hewitt **  FAF#1, (Ex-OSOS#5) - FJ1200 ABS
Honda Civic 16v: Windows free zone (Mac G5 Dual Processor)
http://www.thehewitts.plus.com

zoara <me3@privacy.net> wrote:

> how's your Average Joe going to distinguish between
> www.trustworthysupplier.co.uk and www.scammingbastard.co.uk?
>
> What can be done? Edumucation?

Yup, pure and simple.

Besides, I suspect the woman was being a little disingenuous. She's
obviously clued up enough to have an eBay account, and a Paypal account,
and three thousand pounds available. I'd say she was well and truly
scammed in the usual way - greed over-riding common sense.

As for the premium rate rogue dialler story - did it just not occur to
these people to unplug the computer's modem? Or turn the bloody thing
off when they're not using it? Somebody who gets caught by a rogue
dialler once is, to be charitable, unlucky. Somebody who leaves the
computer turned on and plugged into the phone line after they know their
computer has a virus that dials out is just stupid.

"Do you have the packaging your computer came in?"...

--
Pd

> There was also an article on rogue diallers [2]. Customer liable but
> complains it isn't her fault. No mention of Macs, just installing
> antivirus and getting BT to block international/premium rate lines.
>
>         -z-
>
>

I saw X-ray too, and just after the sentence from them saying what you
could do to prevent this problem I said to my wife 'Or get a Mac instead
of a PC!'  :)

As far as the shower scams (and other scams) go, it is a difficult one.
As you say ANYONE can produce a smart and professional looking website
just to get peoples money without any intention of ever sending them any
goods . It's not just an e-Bay problem, it could be any website. As
X-Ray said, escrow payments are one way to go, although I'm not sure
many companies provide this option yet if you are buying directly from
their website. paying by Credit Card is obviously another way to protect
yourself.

Al.

--
Alan Cole. E-mail: justal at lineone dot net
http://www.forces-of-nature.co.uk [Coastal Sports]
http://www.tsunami-site-design.co.uk [Website Design]
http://tinyurl.com/64xrd [Plusnet ISP]

On 23/11/04 7:28 am, in article
justal-B64DDC.07284623112004@ptn-nntp-reader01.plus.net, "Alan Cole"
<justal@lineone.net> wrote:

> X-Ray said, escrow payments are one way to go, although I'm not sure
> many companies provide this option yet if you are buying directly from
> their website. paying by Credit Card is obviously another way to protect
> yourself.

I think some of the scams involve fake escrow accounts - the escrow company
being related to the seller, that sort of thing. So it is tricky. I'm sure
that nice Mr Blunkett will solve it all for us ;-)

Cheers,

Chris

Andy Hewitt <hairy.biker@spamcop.net> wrote:

>  I have a rule for eBay, only buy
> from there what I'm prepared to lose. Generally it'll be spend or sell
> no more than £100. Any more than that and I'll look elsewhere, either
> bite the bullet and buy new from a known retailer, or buy where I can
> see the goods first.

Apart from obvious cases of account hi-jacking (an account previously
used to buy cigarette cards is now selling 17" PBs with 23" AND 30"
Cinema displays for £2000), feedback records are a pretty good guide to
risk on eBay. It takes consistent hard work to get in the very high 90s.
It's also obvious when someone has been very active, but one in 10
customers have posted -ve feedback. If someone has sold high value goods
over a decent period, with storming feedback, then you'll get _better_
service and less risk than with many other sources, including High
Street names.

Stuart
(99.8% because some moron lost his screws in the post, and posted -ve
feedback before asking me to send him some more! Doh!)
--
Try stuartsmacs at dsl dot pipex dot com to email me.

Stuart Bell <spamfritterspam@spamfritterspam.com> wrote:

> Andy Hewitt <hairy.biker@spamcop.net> wrote:
>
> >  I have a rule for eBay, only buy
> > from there what I'm prepared to lose. Generally it'll be spend or sell
> > no more than £100. Any more than that and I'll look elsewhere, either
> > bite the bullet and buy new from a known retailer, or buy where I can
> > see the goods first.
>
> Apart from obvious cases of account hi-jacking (an account previously
> used to buy cigarette cards is now selling 17" PBs with 23" AND 30"
> Cinema displays for £2000), feedback records are a pretty good guide to
> risk on eBay. It takes consistent hard work to get in the very high 90s.
> It's also obvious when someone has been very active, but one in 10
> customers have posted -ve feedback. If someone has sold high value goods
> over a decent period, with storming feedback, then you'll get _better_
> service and less risk than with many other sources, including High
> Street names.

That can be true. It could even take using a seller a few times to get
to know them as well.

> Stuart
> (99.8% because some moron lost his screws in the post, and posted -ve
> feedback before asking me to send him some more! Doh!)

(100%) :-P

--
Andy Hewitt **  FAF#1, (Ex-OSOS#5) - FJ1200 ABS
Honda Civic 16v: Windows free zone (Mac G5 Dual Processor)
http://www.thehewitts.plus.com

PeterD <pd.news@dsl.pipex.invalid> wrote:

>
> As for the premium rate rogue dialler story - did it just not occur to
> these people to unplug the computer's modem? Or turn the bloody thing
> off when they're not using it? Somebody who gets caught by a rogue
> dialler once is, to be charitable, unlucky. Somebody who leaves the
> computer turned on and plugged into the phone line after they know their
> computer has a virus that dials out is just stupid.

Indeed.

I had to deal recently with one such case. Old friend who has a music
store and was very worried when a seven hundred pound telephone bill
landed on his mat. He swapped his old Mac 5500 for some bog-standard
wintel PC (worse, a Packard-Bell box from PC World or some such) so you
could perhaps say that he deserved anything he got... but you can't say
that like that.) In any case, he asks me about this virus he seems to
have in his computer and at the same time is wondering about the phone
bill and 'internet calls'. I just looked at his computer desk. The
broadband connection there, but also, incredibly, the modem plugged in
to the phone line...


--
flavio matani
guitar tuition
homepage.mac.com/flavio_matani/guitar/
www.livejournal.com/users/flavius_m/

Flavio Matani <flavio_matanitakethisbitout@mac.com> wrote:

> PeterD <pd.news@dsl.pipex.invalid> wrote:
>
> >
> > As for the premium rate rogue dialler story - did it just not occur to
> > these people to unplug the computer's modem? Or turn the bloody thing
> > off when they're not using it? Somebody who gets caught by a rogue
> > dialler once is, to be charitable, unlucky. Somebody who leaves the
> > computer turned on and plugged into the phone line after they know their
> > computer has a virus that dials out is just stupid.
>
> Indeed.
>
> I had to deal recently with one such case. Old friend who has a music
> store and was very worried when a seven hundred pound telephone bill
> landed on his mat. He swapped his old Mac 5500 for some bog-standard
> wintel PC (worse, a Packard-Bell box from PC World or some such) so you
> could perhaps say that he deserved anything he got... but you can't say
> that like that.) In any case, he asks me about this virus he seems to
> have in his computer and at the same time is wondering about the phone
> bill and 'internet calls'. I just looked at his computer desk. The
> broadband connection there, but also, incredibly, the modem plugged in
> to the phone line...

I get rather worried by the number of users I get calling up who then
get BB, plug the iBook into the ethernet, then call up saying when they
try to connect the computer can't get a dial tone when they are still
asking the dial up to connect. Double worrying when half of them have to
plug into the ethernet socket at work for the net etc.
--
Jon B
real email to usenet at jonbradbury dot com

"Flavio Matani" <flavio_matanitakethisbitout@mac.com> wrote in message
news:1gnp4ub.1qhfbh816sl7nkN%flavio_matanitakethisbitout@mac.com...
> ...The
> broadband connection there, but also, incredibly, the modem plugged in
> to the phone line...

Well, my PC is hooked up via broadband and also has the modem plugged into
the phone line. The reason? Fax.



Cheers,
Ian

>> ...The broadband connection there, but also, incredibly, the modem
>> plugged in to the phone line...
> Well, my PC is hooked up via broadband and also has the modem plugged
> into the phone line.  The reason? Fax.

We get faxes by email once in a blue moon, never send the things.

Should have broadband soon, and the Mac will still be hooked up
to the modem.  Phone dialler database.

========> Email to "j-c" at this site; email to "bogus" will bounce <========
Jack Campin: 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU; 0131 6604760
<http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/purrhome.html>  food intolerance data & recipes,
Mac logic fonts, Scots traditional music files and CD-ROMs of Scottish music.

Flavio Matani <flavio_matanitakethisbitout@mac.com> wrote:

> PeterD <pd.news@dsl.pipex.invalid> wrote:
>
> >
> > As for the premium rate rogue dialler story - did it just not occur to
> > these people to unplug the computer's modem? Or turn the bloody thing
> > off when they're not using it? Somebody who gets caught by a rogue
> > dialler once is, to be charitable, unlucky. Somebody who leaves the
> > computer turned on and plugged into the phone line after they know their
> > computer has a virus that dials out is just stupid.
>
> Indeed.
>
> I had to deal recently with one such case. Old friend who has a music
> store and was very worried when a seven hundred pound telephone bill
> landed on his mat. He swapped his old Mac 5500 for some bog-standard
> wintel PC (worse, a Packard-Bell box from PC World or some such) so you
> could perhaps say that he deserved anything he got... but you can't say
> that like that.)

Just ask him how much he saved by not buying a Mac.

--
~ Adrian Tuddenham ~
(Remove the ".invalid"s and add ".co.uk" to reply)
www.poppyrecords.co.uk

Adrian Tuddenham <poppy.uk@ukonline.invalid.invalid> wrote:

> Flavio Matani <flavio_matanitakethisbitout@mac.com> wrote:
>
> > PeterD <pd.news@dsl.pipex.invalid> wrote:
> >
> > >
> > > As for the premium rate rogue dialler story - did it just not occur to
> > > these people to unplug the computer's modem? Or turn the bloody thing
> > > off when they're not using it? Somebody who gets caught by a rogue
> > > dialler once is, to be charitable, unlucky. Somebody who leaves the
> > > computer turned on and plugged into the phone line after they know their
> > > computer has a virus that dials out is just stupid.
> >
> > Indeed.
> >
> > I had to deal recently with one such case. Old friend who has a music
> > store and was very worried when a seven hundred pound telephone bill
> > landed on his mat. He swapped his old Mac 5500 for some bog-standard
> > wintel PC (worse, a Packard-Bell box from PC World or some such) so you
> > could perhaps say that he deserved anything he got... but you can't say
> > that like that.)
>
> Just ask him how much he saved by not buying a Mac.

- :D

Indeed




--
flavio matani
guitar tuition
homepage.mac.com/flavio_matani/guitar/
www.livejournal.com/users/flavius_m/

Alan Cole <justal@lineone.net> wrote:

> > There was also an article on rogue diallers [2]. Customer liable but
> > complains it isn't her fault. No mention of Macs, just installing
> > antivirus and getting BT to block international/premium rate lines.
> >
> >         -z-
> >
> >
>
> I saw X-ray too, and just after the sentence from them saying what you
> could do to prevent this problem I said to my wife 'Or get a Mac instead
> of a PC!'  :)

Girlfriend knows that already - she's been nicely brainwashed and will
happily tell people how Macs don't get viruses (by which she means
malware) without *quite* understanding what that means ;)

        -z-


--
My lozenge is a full earthy herbal lozenge incorporating a miscellanea
of weeds known for advancing sexual longing and performance, causing
an increase in sexual craving, a betterment in your volume and
execution, besides as increased energy and joy during sexual activeness.