How do scammers get away with this stuff?

Allen

You see all the fake cards on ebay, all tha forged autos, the auctions of cards that you know the seller dosn't have, all the scams that are out there. So how is it they get away with it? I have seen thousands of scams and very few stories of anyone getting their money back or the criminal paying for his crimes. Do people just make an effort and realize that the system sucks and just stop pursuing it? I know I got screwed on $225 and after a bit of work I was able to get it back, but I am sure that alot of the other people who he scammed didn't get theirs back. I just don't see how they get away with it, you think ebay, paypal, law enforcement, etc. would do something about it.

helionaut

There's no money in it for ebay. If they could somehow be made responsible for money lost due to scams, or if it hurt their business in any way, they'd be able to do something about it. As it is, they won't even do anything about bogus retaliatory feedback, something completely within their control, so taking responsibility for policing the people that use their service is beyond their imagination. Law enforcement, well, that's something else. No DA is going to get elected by being tough on memorabilia fraud. There probably is quite a bit being done, but you only hear about the big busts like Operation Foul Ball, or when a high profile investigation is launched, like with Pete Pihos. But a call to a local DA or police department with a complaint over a certain amount would probably get some action. The key is making deterring people from attempting fraud in the first place, which will probably never happen.

stevek

The small time scammers in the United States can be sued in their local small claims court. This can all be done by phone and mail, and is very effective. The bigger scammers in the United States can also be sued, and will eventually get prosecuted and pay fines and/or go to prison. The bigger problems on ebay are scammers overseas in Russia, some of the other former Soviet Union countries, and some other countries. Nigeria is infamous for their overseas theft of bank accounts, credit card numbers, etc., from individuals and businesses. These foreign scammers hijack an ebay account, then the winning bidder or "pre-qualified bidders" will be scammed out of their money in a variety of ways. Google words like "ebay scammers" or "ebay account hijackers" etc., and you should come up with some websites which can guide you on how to avoid these scammers.

Smellthis

You have to remember something when it comes to a lawsuit and theft. For a lwsuit, if you sue someone, but they don't have the money, they will garnish it from their pay from there job, that is if they work on the books. I laugh when people win these giant lawsuits because they actually think they will see the $2million they won. About a third of it goes to the lawyer, and he get's paid first. Once he's paid, if the defendant has no money, only a percentage of his income will be taken out every year for 10 years.
As for the theft. I knew someone that worked for a pharmacy and she said that one day a homeless man tried to steal some candy. They called the police. The police came and said "why did you call us when he stole less than $23 worth of goods? We can't arrest him" So, depending on how much this person steals, he may not be liable for anything if it is for small amounts from multiple people. The law sometimes protects the criminal before it protects the victim.
Also, people do give up. There are no debtors prisons, with the exception of deadbeat dads, so if the person you're suing has no assets or money, you probably will spend more time energy and money than the theft was worth. It's a shame.

DirtyHarry

Smellthis - welcome. You have appeared on the forum rather quickly, with a number of insightful and opinionated posts. Have you been here before? Please share your interests. Regards.

stevek

<<< There are no debtors prisons >>>

That is correct, but scamming is not an incurred debt - it is a crime. Also, you do not need a lawyer to file a claim in small claims court. Depending on the particular court, it costs about $35 - 50 to file. If you win the lawsuit, the defendant has to pay the court costs. If the scammer is a homeowner, the odds are excellent of getting your money. If the scammer lives in an apartment and skips town, the winning small claims lawsuit is usually not valid in another town. Then you are out not only your scammed money but also the court costs. Unfortunately, "professional" scammers know all this and after a big score on ebay and/or getting served with lawsuits, they usually do move out of town and leave no forwarding address, so they are difficult to track down.

Smellthis

You didn't read what I said. the debtor's prison I was referring to was for large lawsuits such as $2million. When it comes to a small claims suit. If you have no assets, and no legal income, then what I said applies as well.