Sydney ebay Forger At It Again NOW: dawh-9130 & stampcentre

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 22 Nov 2020 14:17

Fake C. Departmental on SA 6d Blue forged by antiquesunlimited111_1 currently at $31

303775328882

Link: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/SOUTH-AUSTRALIA-Departmental-C-in-black-on-6d-blue/303775328882

Fake "C." Departmental forged by antiquesunlimited111_1

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 22 Nov 2020 14:20

Fake C.O. Departmental on SA 4d Dark Purple forged by antiquesunlimited111_1 currently at $31

303775330412

Link: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/SOUTH-AUSTRALIA-Departmental-C-O ... 3775330412

Fake "C.O." Departmental forged by antiquesunlimited111_1

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 26 Nov 2020 06:15

Mr " antiquesunlimited111_1 " currently has 9 items on Ebay, all saying "Payment must be via bank Deposit, I no longer accept paypal." This is a serious violation of Ebay rules, which require all sellers to accept PayPal and forbid demands to pay via unsafe non-refundable methods such as bank transfer. Perhaps if lots of forum members click a few of his listings' "Report this Item" buttons, Ebay will take some action.

Or you could just send him a message and tell him what you think of him ¦:¬) . One of his listings helpfully gives this e-mail address : antiquesunlimited111@gmail.com

That listing also contains a blatant authenticity disclaimer, also forbidden on Ebay : "Not sure proof or Reproduction" -
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NZ-1930-32-2d-Smiley-Boy-Not-sur ... Swrk5fgCOH

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 29 Nov 2020 16:35

More fake SA overprints and perfins from The Greek Forger alias antiquesunlimited111_1

Some of these Departmentals drawn on with a texta!

This lot currently at $152.50 with 3 hours to go, closing tonite: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/SOUTH-AUSTRALIA-Collection-of-81 ... 3784284879

Fake SA overprints faked by The GReek Forger on Ebay

eBay item number:303784284879

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 29 Nov 2020 16:41

More fake NSW overprints from The Greek Forger alias antiquesunlimited111_1

Some of these wobbly OS overprints drawn on with a texta!

This lot currently at $102.50 with 3 hours to go, closing tonite: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NSW-State-Collection-of-70-stamp ... Sw4gRfv01t

Fake NSW overprints faked by The Greek Forger on Ebay

eBay item number: 303784287664

Report antiquesunlimited111_1 to ebay using the report button!

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 30 Nov 2020 03:14

I have several years' experience of reporting stamp scammers to Ebay, including regular liaison with a senior officer in Ebay UK's CEO office. It may be helpful to summarise what I have learned.

To be effective, you need to report scammers / forgers for something OTHER than selling counterfeit stamps. Ebay's approach is that they cannot cancel listings or take action against a seller just because someone else says that their items are forged - regardless of what expertise or status the reporting person claims to have. This is on the grounds that Ebay are not experts themselves, do not handle the item, and cannot judge the item. Nor can they judge the reporting person's knowledge or motives.

So normally the only way to get counterfeit listings taken down or a forger disciplined is if you can show Ebay proof of other serious rule-breaking. The most likely one is shill bidding - for example one scammer recently used another of his accounts to "buy" 3 stamps, gave himself positive feedback for these sales, but then immediately re-listed the same items for sale again.

One of the best clues to shill bidding is to take a look at the bids on the scammer's other items. Ebay anonymises account names, but the feedback score shown is always correct and constant for the ID across all bids. If you see the same feedback score appearing multiple times on multiple listings, it may be evidence of shill bidding from the seller's other accounts. This is a very serious breach of Ebay rules and if you report it, the Trust & Safety team will check the accounts for links, including the IP address of the computer used by that account. If proven, this will normally result in the seller and shill IDs being permanently suspended.

Rather than having to report each individual listing via the "report an item" button, which only allows 100 characters, you may be able to report multiple instances via the form linked below, which is specifically for reporting shill bidding and goes direct to the Trust & Safety team. But it is an Ebay UK form and I'm not sure if it will work from other countries :

http://contact.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ContactUs&wftype= ... on=&expira

Other clues to shill bidding may be repeated distinctive language or spelling errors in the listings or feedback. One scammer used the weird word "solid" to describe stamps in two different shill feedbacks given to himself from different IDs.

Rob

The Pom · Post by **The Pom** » 30 Nov 2020 03:27

blue-within-blue wrote: ↑
30 Nov 2020 03:14

Ebay's approach is that they cannot cancel listings or take action against a seller just because someone else says that their items are forged - regardless of what expertise or status the reporting person claims to have. This is on the grounds that Ebay are not experts themselves, do not handle the item, and cannot judge the item. Nor can they judge the reporting person's knowledge or motives.

True, but then you'd like to think that pictures of a stamp before & after the addition of the fake overprint/perfin/postmark, plus a nice simple explanation using short words might be enough, but this is ebay......

Lakatoi 4 · Post by **Lakatoi 4** » 30 Nov 2020 10:26

blue-within-blue wrote: ↑
30 Nov 2020 03:14
I have several years' experience of reporting stamp scammers to Ebay, including regular liaison with a senior officer in Ebay UK's CEO office. It may be helpful to summarise what I have learned.

To be effective, you need to report scammers / forgers for something OTHER than selling counterfeit stamps. Ebay's approach is that they cannot cancel listings or take action against a seller just because someone else says that their items are forged - regardless of what expertise or status the reporting person claims to have. This is on the grounds that Ebay are not experts themselves, do not handle the item, and cannot judge the item. Nor can they judge the reporting person's knowledge or motives.

So normally the only way to get counterfeit listings taken down or a forger disciplined is if you can show Ebay proof of other serious rule-breaking. The most likely one is shill bidding - for example one scammer recently used another of his accounts to "buy" 3 stamps, gave himself positive feedback for these sales, but then immediately re-listed the same items for sale again.

One of the best clues to shill bidding is to take a look at the bids on the scammer's other items. Ebay anonymises account names, but the feedback score shown is always correct and constant for the ID across all bids. If you see the same feedback score appearing multiple times on multiple listings, it may be evidence of shill bidding from the seller's other accounts. This is a very serious breach of Ebay rules and if you report it, the Trust & Safety team will check the accounts for links, including the IP address of the computer used by that account. If proven, this will normally result in the seller and shill IDs being permanently suspended.

Rather than having to report each individual listing via the "report an item" button, which only allows 100 characters, you may be able to report multiple instances via the form linked below, which is specifically for reporting shill bidding and goes direct to the Trust & Safety team. But it is an Ebay UK form and I'm not sure if it will work from other countries :

http://contact.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ContactUs&wftype= ... on=&expira

Other clues to shill bidding may be repeated distinctive language or spelling errors in the listings or feedback. One scammer used the weird word "solid" to describe stamps in two different shill feedbacks given to himself from different IDs.

Rob

Makes total sense Rob. So basically as I thought, members here are wasting their time just loading up images, saying they’re fakes and asking others to do the same without either:

1. Loading up the fake as well as the pre-fake stamp, both with eBay links.
2. Providing evidence of shill bidding or other serious eBay breaches.

The second point taking precedence over the first, but with both done it should be a slam dunk to get the scammer barred.

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 30 Nov 2020 13:16

blue-within-blue wrote:One of the best clues to shill bidding is to take a look at the bids on the scammer's other items.

Ebay anonymises account names, but the feedback score shown is always correct and constant for the ID across all bids. If you see the same feedback score appearing multiple times on multiple listings, it may be evidence of shill bidding from the seller's other accounts. This is a very serious breach of Ebay rules and if you report it, the Trust & Safety team will check the accounts for links, including the IP address of the computer used by that account. If proven, this will normally result in the seller and shill IDs being permanently suspended.

Correct. This is a very good and astute comment. I have done this before and ID'd Greek shill bidding from the feedback & feedback score. Some pages back.

It is not easy to do. However, with at least one example why can't Ebay Trust and Safety do a complete audit of all known Greek Forger accounts after receiving a complaint.

The bidding history is closed to mere mortals but Ebay can see the bidders clear as day.

The shill bidding will flash like a Christmas Tree.

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 30 Nov 2020 13:20

blue-within-blue wrote:So normally the only way to get counterfeit listings taken down or a forger disciplined is if you can show Ebay proof of other serious rule-breaking.

Refusing Paypal is a violation of ebay rules. Ebay *will* act on it - either by deleting the listing or editing the description to delete the offending words.

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 30 Nov 2020 23:03

He has just added another half-dozen similar listings, all containing the same wording about not accepting PayPal. If anyone wants to make a quick report on those the individual listings, the appropriate route via the "Report item" link is :
Listing practices > Banned or inappropriate payments > Misleading or discouraging payments.

You can also use the Help link near the top of the page (along from the G'day / Hello greeting from Ebay) to send a longer report. From the linked page, type "report seller" in the search field. Then click the big blue "Report a seller" button and select the final option - "The seller has violated one of Ebay's policies". Click Continue, and then enter his ID and click option "Other". There is a 1000 character field there for writing a report.

I have just sent this report :

This seller is known in philatelic circles as "the Sydney Forger". He has been committing multiple crimes by defrauding buyers with crudely counterfeited stamps for several years, sold using multiple Ebay IDs. But I know you can't take action on counterfeits because Ebay doesn't have expertise or handle the items.

However, he is now committing a serious violation of Ebay selling rules on all his items. Every listing has text saying "Payment must be via bank Deposit, I no longer accept paypal. "

All sellers are required to accept Paypal in this selling category. Please take urgent action to shut him down. His criminal activities have been going on far too long.

You can see other experts' opinions of him and his fake items here :
https://www.stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=82428&start=100

Previous Ebay IDs include biblica99, dawh-9130, stampcentre, rayahelou-0, la-lune-collectables, strampsdownunder, stamps143 .

ROB (stamp collector for 47 years)

luke_coolhand · Post by **luke_coolhand** » 03 Dec 2020 14:23

Annoying when you see a stamp you've been looking for and it's probably a forgery. Still might be a decent spacefiller?

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/South-Australia-1891-2-6-Pale-Vi ... SwBPZfxzpm

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 03 Dec 2020 14:33

Rob, for starters, why look on ebay for this stamp? It is guaranteed to be a dud. This example is a forgery hands down. It is not a "decent filler" - it is a forgery produced yesterday. Why buy a known forgery as a filler?

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 03 Dec 2020 23:51

That recent post about buying a filler wasn't from me. I am not seeking any stamp here, just doing my bit to get him shut down.

Rob

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 04 Dec 2020 15:50

I was responding to luke_coolhand. Sorry Rob!

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 07 Dec 2020 14:36

THE GREEK FORGER STRIKES AGAIN - NOW FAKING RARE POSTAGE DUES

Global Administrator wrote: ↑
06 Dec 2020 21:55
Some Bunny, with your same Rose Tinted View of the ethics of eBay just paid near $500 tonight for this landfill below. It makes me angry.

TOTALLY forged - printed last week and dipped in Coca Cola etc. Sold as genuine. Cheer Leaders like you help assure such BRAIN DEAD MORONS that ebay is safe and secure, so they keep doing it.

Totally Fake 20/ Postage Due sold on ebay $473

Ebay Item Number: 303793683953
Seller: antiquesunlimited111_1
Description: 20/ Dull Green Australia Postage Due unused
End Time: 06 Dec, 2020 19:45:00 AEDST
Closing Price: $473
Link: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/20-Dull-Green-Australia-Postage-Due-unused-/303793683953

No watermark. Printed on a home computer last week. A forgery of Australia's rarest basic stamp.

Report antiquesunlimited111_1 to ebay using the report button!

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 07 Dec 2020 14:39

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 08 Dec 2020 15:39

THE GREEK FORGER NOW FAKING VICTORIA CLASSICS

Totally Fake Victoria 3d Half Length block on ebay

Ebay Item Number: 303797985133
Seller: antiquesunlimited111_1
Description: VICTORIA 1851 3d Blue Half Length block of 4 used, Scarce!!
End Time: 09 Dec, 2020 21:53:42 AEDST
Link: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/VICTORIA-1851-3d-Blue-Half-Lengt ... 3797985133

Reproduction from an old auction catalogue. Printed on a home computer last week. Paper dipped in coca cola or something to make the paper look old.

"Payment must be via bank Deposit, I no longer accept paypal.' = So I can rip u off. So I can avoid Paypal refund chargebacks.

Report antiquesunlimited111_1 to ebay using the report button!

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 17 Dec 2020 04:02

Looks like we may have got the antiquesunlimited111_1 ID banished - most of these Ebay links now go to a "We've looked everywhere..." dead-end, and when I searched for items just by this one seller, I get zero results.

But it appears that ID starcollectables may be the same person ...

https://www.ebay.com.au/sch/starcollectables/m.html?item=313 ... 7675.l2562

Rob

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 17 Dec 2020 12:38

blue-within-blue wrote: ↑
17 Dec 2020 04:02
Looks like we may have got the antiquesunlimited111_1 ID banished

Doubt it Rob. He has many, many, active accounts. antiquesunlimited111_1 is the "mothership" account but sometimes he does not use it and lays low. If he were banished it would say "no longer an active member".

starcollectables is the same person.

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 17 Dec 2020 14:47

blue-within-blue wrote: ↑
17 Dec 2020 04:02
Looks like we may have got the antiquesunlimited111_1 ID banished - most of these Ebay links now go to a "We've looked everywhere..." dead-end, and when I searched for items just by this one seller, I get zero results.

Rob, this is a bit odd. Is this just as case of ebay deleting closed lots?

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 17 Dec 2020 14:54

THE GREEK FORGER NOW FAKING VICTORIA CLASSICS

Totally Fake Victoria 1d Half Length block on ebay

Ebay Item Number: 174557350138
Seller: strampsdownunder
Description: Victoria 1850 1d Reddish-Brown Half Length Block of 4 fine used
End Time: 19 Dec, 2020 20:12:25 AEDST
Link: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Victoria-1850-1d-Reddish-Brown-H ... 4557350138

The Greek Forger must be *desperate* for money to buy Christmas presents (new forgery equipment for himself) as he is really cranking these out of late.

Reproduction from an old auction catalogue. Printed on a home computer last week. Paper dipped in tea or coffee or something to make the paper look old. Selvedge hinge added to back. Fake "PS" in circle Fake "expert" mark added to the back for good measure.

Currently at $49, 6 "bids", 6 unique, 2+ days to go.

"Payment must be via bank Deposit, I no longer accept paypal." = So I can rip u off. So I can avoid Paypal refund chargebacks.

Report strampsdownunder to ebay using the report button!

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 18 Dec 2020 04:38

He's obviously learning what not to do. All the 8 current listings for strampsdownunder do not contain the wording saying he doesn't accept PayPal ; perhaps that's why ID antiquesunlimited111_1 had the listings cancelled. And all the bidder IDs are private/identity protected, making it impossible for us to spot shill bidding, though Ebay should still be able to check whether the IP address of bidders and seller are the same, if someone alerts them. The 270+ items listed by ID starcollectables are all buy-it-now, so no shill bidding there at all.

I'll take a shot in the dark and ask Ebay to check the bids on strampsdownunder's items for any shill bids from his other IDs or same IP address.

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 18 Dec 2020 14:05

blue-within-blue wrote: ↑
18 Dec 2020 04:38
He's obviously learning what not to do. All the 8 current listings for strampsdownunder do not contain the wording saying he doesn't accept PayPal ; perhaps that's why ID antiquesunlimited111_1 had the listings cancelled.

Quite possibly. The few "strampsdownunder" lots are auctions but with the offending "no Paypal accepted" words removed, so he has obviously been rumbled by ebay over the Paypal issue.

Let us know how you get on. Hopefully ebay will check IP addresses on his bids

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 19 Dec 2020 20:35

The Victoria block is shown as sold for over £100, but all his other listings have now vanished - so I suppose that's two cheers out of three.

It's puzzling how none of the feedbacks for these IDs show criticism or alerts about forgeries ; surely, occasionally, SOME buyers must look closely at their purchases and realise that they have pixels? How does he keep on getting away with this?

Rob

andy66 · Post by **andy66** » 20 Dec 2020 00:54

blue-within-blue wrote: ↑
19 Dec 2020 20:35
The Victoria block is shown as sold for over £100, but all his other listings have now vanished - so I suppose that's two cheers out of three.

It's puzzling how none of the feedbacks for these IDs show criticism or alerts about forgeries ; surely, occasionally, SOME buyers must look closely at their purchases and realise that they have pixels? How does he keep on getting away with this?

Rob

For eBay fake-sellers a 100% feedback is the most important thing to keep. So, when a buyer does discover a fake, they will take it back and refund immediately, with excuses etc.etc.
Considering that these sellers abound in any country in which eBay has its site, it's guaranteed that buyers that discover the fake are so few that's not important to them the doing of some refunds...

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 21 Dec 2020 09:07

Now that ID strampsdownunder has apparently been blocked from selling, ID starcollectables has suddenly added 9 short-duration auction listings onto his items for sale ; previously, all his items were buy-it now. There are already numerous bids on 6 of the 9 auction listings, which are all overprints or perfin/punctures.

I have asked the same Ebay Trust & Safety contact who dealt with my report on strampsdownunder to check the IP addresses for bidders and seller on these auction listings.

Rob

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 21 Dec 2020 12:43

Thanks Rob. Great work.

Have ebay confirmed that strampsdownunder and antiquesunlimited111_1 have been blocked from selling? (and is this different to a totally banned account?)

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 21 Dec 2020 12:48

andy66 wrote:For eBay fake-sellers a 100% feedback is the most important thing to keep. So, when a buyer does discover a fake, they will take it back and refund immediately, with excuses etc.etc.

Way back at the beginnings of this thread, The Greek did get some neg feedback.

And he was also getting a lot of returned lots and Paypal chargebacks. Still, only a % of buyers discover they have bought a complete dud.

But Andy66 is totally right, The Greek has spent a lot of time giving refunds and trying to keep buyers at bay from giving neg feedback.

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 21 Dec 2020 13:52

antiquesunlimited111_1 is back

The Greek Forger as antiquesunlimited111_1 currently has 7 lots of forged overprints (SA, NSW, Australia and SA Departmental "O.A." in red on 2d Orange) closing tonight 21 Dec 2020 at 7.30pm. All on mega short 1 day listing.

Link: https://www.ebay.com.au/sch/antiquesunlimited111_1/m.html

Lakatoi 4 · Post by **Lakatoi 4** » 21 Dec 2020 20:18

blue-within-blue wrote: ↑
21 Dec 2020 09:07

...........I have asked the same Ebay Trust & Safety contact who dealt with my report on strampsdownunder to check the IP addresses for bidders and seller on these auction listings.

Rob

Someone as cunning as he obviously is may deliberately not have a static IP address or uses anonymiser software to hide his IP address.

That depends of course on whether eBay don’t worry about connecting an IP address to a specific account. Does anyone know if that’s the case

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 22 Dec 2020 05:03

I assumed (wrongly) from the fact that numerous listings disappeared at the same time from ID antiquesunlimited111_1 , that Ebay had blocked him from selling ; but clearly not, or only for a limited time. I have alerted them again about the new listings. For some reason I can't find the listing numbers via a search on Ebay UK, only by using the links to Ebay.au which you folks provide. Normally that means the seller has opted out of selling to my area, but his listings seem to show worldwide shipping.

He has also included the statement about not accepting PayPal in all his current listings, so I have separately reported him for that violation too. If someone can do that from the Aus end as well, via the Help tab then Report a Seller, it may increase the chances of taking him down.

Rob

David Benson · Post by **David Benson** » 22 Dec 2020 05:07

Items listed on Ebay.Australia do not show up on other sites if they are listed for sale to Australia only. If they are listed on Ebay Australia for sale worldwide then they will show up on the other sites.

David B.

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 22 Dec 2020 12:26

current antiquesunlimited111_1 lots on ebay, either wholly forged or with forged opts or perfins. All close today, 22 Dec 2020 AEST between 19:23 and 19:43:

303819335945 TASMANIA 1854 4d Orange Imperf Courier used https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/TASMANIA-1854-4d-Orange-Imperf-Courier-used/303819335945

303819333527 Small Group of 8 Pre Decimal stamps MNH-MLH https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Small-Group-of-8-Pre-Decimal-stamps-MNH-MLH/303819333527

303819343965 1918 3d Olive 3rd wmk Roo perforated Double OS fine used https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/1918-3d-Olive-3rd-wmk-Roo-perfor ... 3819343965

303819339145 NSW 1890 1/ Maroon Roo Ovptd OS with Break in the "O" of the OS used https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NSW-1890-1-Maroon-Roo-Ovptd-OS-w ... 3819339145

303819349046 1932 KGV 4d Olive C of A wmk perforated large OS used https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/1932-KGV-4d-Olive-C-of-A-wmk-per ... 3819349046

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 22 Dec 2020 15:49

andy66 wrote: ↑
20 Dec 2020 00:54
For eBay fake-sellers a 100% feedback is the most important thing to keep. So, when a buyer does discover a fake, they will take it back and refund immediately, with excuses etc.etc.

Like here - antiquesunlimited111_1 negative feedback disguised as positive feedback:

Purchase cancelled by mutual argeement
(Private listing)
Buyer: g***r (3773)
Past 6 months

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 22 Dec 2020 20:37

" Items listed on Ebay.Australia do not show up on other sites if they are listed for sale to Australia only. If they are listed on Ebay Australia for sale worldwide then they will show up on the other sites. "

That is exactly why I'm puzzled - all the listings state "posts worldwide".

Rob

David Benson · Post by **David Benson** » 22 Dec 2020 20:45

when an item is listed, the seller can stipulate where it can be sold. In this case the seller has filled in on the listing form " Australia only". If it is an auction then the buyer is outside of Australia he will receive an Ebay invoice without a specific postage charge with a note to contact the seller for the rate.

If an item is listed " Australia only ", it will only show up on the Ebay Australia site but anyone can bid on it if they use the Australia site.

David B.

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 23 Dec 2020 08:56

If the Aus members really want to shut this man down, in theory it should be simple to find his Ebay address and get appropriate feedback onto his account :

1. By agreement, several people place a large "killer" bid on one of his items (ie one listing per volunteer), big enough to guarantee winning.
2. Pay for the item and wait for it to arrive.
3. Do not contact the seller. Immediately lodge a formal Ebay Return request via My Ebay, stating that the buyer is a specialist and has identified the item as a forgery. This will trigger the formal Ebay process which involves asking the seller whether he will accept the return.
4. If he accepts, this should trigger a return pre-paid postage label which will have his Ebay address on. If he declines to provide a label, the returns process allows the buyer to ask Ebay to cover the return postage - which again should produce a pre-paid label.
5. If he refuses the return, or fails to reply within a few days, Ebay will step in and close the return in the buyer's favour - again triggering a pre-paid return label.
6. If he has given a genuine address, we get to find where he lives, and upon delivery Ebay will refund the payment in full. If he has given a false address, the post office tracking system will mark it as undeliverable and Ebay will again refund the item payment ; and they will now know that he has lodged a false address on Ebay. That should reinforce what we have told them about his suspicious activities.
7. In addition, the volunteers get the opportunity to leave multiple severe negative feedbacks on his account, at no cost.

Shoot me down if you see any glaring holes in the plan ...

Rob

andy66 · Post by **andy66** » 24 Dec 2020 00:11

This sounds me like a good idea. Being overseas I couldn't participate, but if you can find at least a dozen volunteers you could give it a try, and usually with eBay guarantees for buyers you will not risk losing your money. So let's see if there are enough volunteers...

gregbear61 · Post by **gregbear61** » 24 Dec 2020 01:50

.
Publicising the Greek's activities has been a key way to minimise his fraud over the years. Stampboards has always been at the forefront with this, but not every philatelic eBay user is a member here unfortunately.

Negative feedback has been left on the Greek's various eBay accounts over the years which has caused the Greek to abandon them, as the scam is then blown, although this has never happened in an organised way. Just angry buyers having their say.

There doesn't seem to be too many of these recently - he is possibly buying back much of his dodgy material himself through his own shill bidding and attempted bid push-ups, and then leaving positive feedback for himself.
.

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 24 Dec 2020 15:56

THE GREEK FORGER NOW FAKING VICTORIA CLASSICS

Totally Fake Victoria 1d Half Length pair on ebay

Faked by antiquesunlimited111_1

Ebay Item Number: 303822032659
Seller: antiquesunlimited111_1
Description: VICTORIA 1850 1d Brick Half Length pair fine used
End Time: 24 Dec, 2020 21:58:34 AEDST
Link: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/VICTORIA-1850-1d-Brick-Half-Length-pair-fine-used/303822032659

The Greek Forger must be *desperate* for money to buy Christmas presents (new forgery equipment for himself) as he is really cranking these out of late.

Reproduction from an old auction catalogue. Printed on a home computer last week. Paper dipped in tea or coffee or something to make the paper look old. Fake hinge added to back. Everything is fake.

Currently at $26.01, 4 "bids", 4 unique shill bidders, 6+ hours to go.

Sadly these can sell for $$$ hundreds $$$ to the uninformed. Real Value = $0.00

"Payment must be via bank Deposit, I no longer accept paypal." = So I can rip u off. So I can avoid Paypal refund chargebacks.

Report antiquesunlimited111_1 to ebay using the report button!

MJ's pet · Post by **MJ's pet** » 24 Dec 2020 16:03

Ebay Item Number: 303822035134
Seller: antiquesunlimited111_1
Description: 1931 3d Blue Kingsford Smith Ovpt'd OS SUPERB MNH, Good Condition
End Time: 24 Dec, 2020 22:02:56 AEDST
Link: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/1931-3d-Blue-Kingsford-Smith-Ovp ... 3822035134

Fake OS overprint on 3d Kingsford Smith

Another one from The Greek Forger. This one about a real as a Bangkok Rolex.

Report antiquesunlimited111_1 to ebay using the report button!

Lakatoi 4 · Post by **Lakatoi 4** » 24 Dec 2020 21:43

blue-within-blue wrote: ↑
23 Dec 2020 08:56
If the Aus members really want to shut this man down, in theory it should be simple to find his Ebay address and get appropriate feedback onto his account :

1. By agreement, several people place a large "killer" bid on one of his items (ie one listing per volunteer), big enough to guarantee winning.
2. Pay for the item and wait for it to arrive.
3. Do not contact the seller. Immediately lodge a formal Ebay Return request via My Ebay, stating that the buyer is a specialist and has identified the item as a forgery. This will trigger the formal Ebay process which involves asking the seller whether he will accept the return.
4. If he accepts, this should trigger a return pre-paid postage label which will have his Ebay address on. If he declines to provide a label, the returns process allows the buyer to ask Ebay to cover the return postage - which again should produce a pre-paid label.
5. If he refuses the return, or fails to reply within a few days, Ebay will step in and close the return in the buyer's favour - again triggering a pre-paid return label.
6. If he has given a genuine address, we get to find where he lives, and upon delivery Ebay will refund the payment in full. If he has given a false address, the post office tracking system will mark it as undeliverable and Ebay will again refund the item payment ; and they will now know that he has lodged a false address on Ebay. That should reinforce what we have told them about his suspicious activities.
7. In addition, the volunteers get the opportunity to leave multiple severe negative feedbacks on his account, at no cost.

Shoot me down if you see any glaring holes in the plan ...

Rob

Members here do realise that this is an open topic which can be read by anyone, they don’t even have to be a member to do so

I’m certain that the eBay forgers would read every cunning theory or plan broadcast here with great interest and devise a counterplan, don’t you

Global Administrator · Post by **Global Administrator** » 24 Dec 2020 22:07

.

Not sure what ''counter plan'' there is re the above?

He needs to give a valid address - that ebay will see - and it doubtless has not bearing to what he told them he has, or he loses the stamp and the money. AND gets a Black Strike too.

ViccyVFU · Post by **ViccyVFU** » 26 Dec 2020 06:16

blue-within-blue wrote: ↑
23 Dec 2020 08:56
Shoot me down if you see any glaring holes in the plan ...

Hmmm, Well, the "in theory" bit is non contentious" ....

If I have understood this “plan” correctly,
Several SB members should bid “top dollar” for items “they know are forged”, “pay” (outside Paypal), with the express intent “to leave negative feedback”.

According to eBay rules, the forger can have you all banned from eBay for that (coercive planned negatives), as well as “lose all chance of recovery of the cash, which will be long gone”

When you receive the item, etiquette demands you contact the vendor first with your concerns. If eBay get several reports in, all following a template format, they will assume you are “acting as a concert party” to destroy one of their vendors businesses. YOU will be the ones held accountable.

His return address may well be a PO box – What you going to do … stake it out?
He may also have a return address that’s “a clearing house” (rented forwarding) or “a dummy” (never checked), simply preferring to lose “the dollar forgery” than risk their operation.
Either way, tracking would advise delivery, so they know when to refund.

Or, of course, other options include “non receipt of returns”, or the classic “what was returned, was not what was sent”. (A very quick way to lose your cash).

“We get to find out where he lives” is a menacing statement.
If you want to know the address that his purchases have been shipped to, why not ask a PTS member “for the detection of possible fraud, and crime prevention”. (You can look down the list of purchases, and see a couple of PTS members).

Be absolutely clear, “the purchasing of any item off eBay, principally for the purpose of intentionally leaving negative feedback, can get you suspended / banned”.

You can, of course, report them “as many times as you see fit” – There is no limit to fraud reports that can be filed. Its stacked against you, in that they are rarely actioned in a timely manner, (and the person can simply “sprout another trading arm” via another free email account).

In terms of “what can you do, to make a difference”, I’d think in terms of “filing a report for every occurrence you encounter”, and maybe keeping a hotlist here on SB of “the names / accounts” you believe are linked to “current active trading” , but these crooks are far more agile and unpredictable than you’d think.

In terms of “what counter plan / measures can the Sydney Forger respond with”? Well....
Initially eBay may well be “a staunch supporter of his business”, especially if it looks like you are “side lining their reporting systems, to bad mouth a vendor”. They might delete all your negative comments (“As they reserve the right to do”), and give you “the strike”.

So, “NO, I don’t think it’s a good idea to commit YOUR money (paid outside Paypal), to support this criminal activity”.

Steer well clear of all purchasing from any account with “even one bit of dubious material”, and advise others to do the same.

(I’m really not trying to be negative, just realistic “to the games these seasoned vendors play”).

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 26 Dec 2020 11:28

Unfortunately your message uses far too many quote marks. You should only use those when you are quoting what someone else said, or something which is published elsewhere - never when you are merely stating your own thoughts, otherwise it gets very confusing.

Here, when I'm quoting from your message, I will use italics to make that clearer.

If I have understood this “plan” correctly ... “pay” (outside Paypal)
NO - I just said pay for the item, not pay outside PayPal. Why would anyone do that? PayPal is how you get the refund when someone sells you a dud, as here. Your later comment "No, I don’t think it’s a good idea to commit YOUR money (paid outside Paypal)" makes the same wrong assumption.

According to eBay rules, the forger can have you all banned from eBay for that (coercive planned negatives), as well as lose all chance of recovery of the cash, which will be long gone.
Where, exactly, in the rules do you get that from?

When you receive the item, etiquette demands you contact the vendor first with your concerns.
If an item is a blatant forgery, deliberately falsely described by a criminal intent on defrauding multiple buyers, etiquette doesn't matter a damn. I have begun and won several returns without first contacting the seller ; Ebay did not question my actions.

If eBay get several reports in, all following a template format, they will assume you are “acting as a concert party” to destroy one of their vendors businesses. YOU will be the ones held accountable.
Firstly, I did not say anything about following a template format. Volunteers would be free to write their own criticism of the item, and word their own feedback. And again, please state exactly which part of the Ebay buyer rules you think forbids several buyers from all reporting that a seller sold them a forgery.

Or, of course, other options include “non receipt of returns”
I have no idea what this means, and your use of quote marks again is confusing as it is unclear whether you are actually quoting part of the Ebay rules - please explain. Ebay pre-paid return labels always use tracked mail ; either the post office will record delivery, or not. Ebay can see the tracking data and will trigger a refund once it shows delivery or refusal to take delivery. I have had both.

...or the classic “what was returned, was not what was sent”. (A very quick way to lose your cash).
I don't know of cases where a seller tried this, but generally Ebay and PayPal err on the side of the buyer in disputes.

Be absolutely clear, “the purchasing of any item off eBay, principally for the purpose of intentionally leaving negative feedback, can get you suspended / banned”.
Again, your use of quote marks makes this appear to be a quote from Ebay rules, whereas it seems merely to be your own opinion. If not, where exactly in the Ebay rules does it say this?

You can, of course, report them “as many times as you see fit” – There is no limit to fraud reports that can be filed. and
In terms of “what can you do, to make a difference”, I’d think in terms of “filing a report for every occurrence you encounter
We all know, and can see, that this doesn't have any effect - for the reasons I explained previously when quoting the Ebay CEO's office.

If you want to know the address that his purchases have been shipped to, why not ask a PTS member “for the detection of possible fraud, and crime prevention”. (You can look down the list of purchases, and see a couple of PTS members).
Sounds like a good plan - but who are they? Can an Aus senior member make that contact?

Rob

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 26 Dec 2020 11:47

All the current dozen listings again have the statement that he won't accept PayPal, so I have again reported him to Ebay for this violation ; this time direct to the Ebay.au chat team.

blue-within-blue · Post by **blue-within-blue** » 27 Dec 2020 02:37

Sorry, I just realised my original plan was unclear (thus I am hoist with my own petard). Any purchases would need to be on the starcollectables ID, whose listings do not say that he declines PayPal payments ; or on the antiquesunlimited111_1 ID once Ebay have forced him to remove that statement and accept PayPal as required by the Ebay rules. It isn't clear why they have not yet done this ; the stamps category is not one of those where sellers can decline PayPal.

Some of the starcollectables overprints and punctures are very cheap, and he says he posts worldwide. If a knowledgeable Aus member can confirm a few of the low priced item numbers as definite forgeries, I'll buy one myself and give the plan a try ...

Rob

jujuboy · Post by **jujuboy** » 28 Dec 2020 14:22

If a seller offers a Merchant CC service they do not have to accept paypal. If you have active listings you can do this simply by editing your item. When doing so just uncheck paypal payment option and check the credit card option, you will of course need to have merchant facilities. Not sure if this is cheaper or more convenient.

doc · Post by **doc** » 28 Dec 2020 15:48

eBay a few years ago tried to insist payment be ONLY made via PayPal - no exceptions.

ACC said that was a monopoly, and made them accept direct bank payment as well if a buyer chose to do that. But eBay made darn sure PayPal was to be offered as ONE payment option for all listings.

To get a merchant card facility you need to prove to a bank you are a real business. With real persons and real addresses etc, and they check this carefully. This conman opens new fake PayPal account to get new accounts to skim off all his fakes peddled on eBay.

Banks are a ton tougher to fool to get a Credit Card merchant account. Your credit report is compiled by companies known as credit reporting bodies. There are 3 credit reporting bodies in Australia – Experian, Equifax and Illion (formerly Dun and Bradstreet).

These credit bureaus are the companies that create, and keep hold of your credit reports. They gather information about your credit history, and put this into a credit report and calculate a score for you based on this information. In turn, lenders will ask one or more of these agencies for information about you before accepting your credit application.

After all the Royal Commission findings and mega-millions in fines to Banks this year, and Directors resigning etc, for not checking IDs, that door has totally closed now.