Details of eBay phishing with actual examples and advice on protection

This article provides details of eBay.com phishing emails and scam attacks with real world examples of those messages. Any eBay.com logos displayed on this page are copyright of the company and are a part of the phishing emails which I have received. They have been shown here only for the purpose of educating the gullible, informing them of the potential danger of eBay phishing attacks and advising them in detail on how to identify such emails.

What is eBay?

I would not be wrong if I say eBay.com is the largest market place in the world. You can find virtually anything on it. I've bought vintage lighters (some 1940s lighters that were in almost mint condition and needed only a new flint), Wedgwood collectibles, posters and even molecular biology laboratory stuff which were hard to find. In fact, the lab items were for a client for use on an archaic piece of equipment that was no longer in manufacture and I was able to make a 130% profit (USD 240), just because the customer wanted these really badly as they were not available from the original company.

So I kid you not - eBay.com is used for fun and for profit. There are people running full-fledged business making thousands of dollars in profits each month and most of them are doing this from their homes. From its humble beginnings of an online garage sale kind of web site, eBay.com has grown tremendously and proved that the Internet can indeed be used by almost anyone to run a business. Nowadays, eBay.com lists real estate properties, airplanes, cars and more.

What is your information stored at eBay so important?

If you run a business on eBay then you already know the answer. Your eBay account will typically be linked to your Paypal account and will also have your credit card number and other such details.

Parting with your eBay.com login details to scam artists will put all the stored information (at your eBay.com account) in their hands. You can also potentially lose your online business and might need to start afresh. For instance, all your ratings that you have built over a period of time can come to naught if you are involved in a irresolvable dispute. Fraudsters might buy products using your eBay account for which you will be held responsible.

What will eBay phishing email look like?

Like any other phishing attacks, an eBay scam will try to distress you with an unnerving email subject and might also be formatted to look like a legitimate email. However, it has the same loopholes with which you can identify the fraud - the email will not be addressed to you and the link URLs will not be from the eBay.com web site.

Email with subject lines such as "Your account has been suspended", "Change your password", "You have a disputed item" etc. are common in eBay.com phishing attacks and with a few examples, I am sure you would be quickly and easily identify them.

eBay.com phishing email example #1

The email is not well formatted but has the eBay logo. However, once you mouse over the glaring link in the middle - "View the dispute thread to respond" - you'll notice that the URL is not from the original web site, though attempts have been made to make it look like a legitimate internet address from eBay.com.

Example #2 of a scam involving a fraudulent eBay email

Again this email is not addressed to anyone in particular. It neither carries a name nor an eBay login name. Also note the threat of account suspension if you do not act quickly. If you are distressed, change your password at the eBay.com web site by opening it in a fresh browser window instead of clicking on a link from an email.

Example #3 of an eBay.com phishing scam email attack

A much better formatted email that looks like an actual email message from eBay.com. Also notice the cheek of the scam artists. At the very beginning of the email they mention that "your registered name is included..." however, it's not in the email at all.

eBay phishing email scam example #4

This is really a top class scam job. The email is very well laid out and the language is professional. But again, it does not carry your name or your eBay username.

Protecting yourself against eBay phishing attacks

• Do not act rashly. Take a moment to go through the email and try to spot the loopholes
  • If it doesn't carry your name/eBay username it's probably a scam
  • Is the URL of the link you are asked to click on from the eBay.com web site?
  • Does the email even carry an eBay logo?
• If you are indeed upset by a email, open a new browser window and go to the eBay.com web site instead of clicking a link from the email.
• Download and install free antiphishing toolbars from Yahoo! and Netcraft. The Yahoo! toolbar offers protection for eBay and Paypal accounts and also allows you to directly search on eBay.com, eBay Express, Half.com and the web.
• Report eBay.com of any phishing emails that you receive - eBay.com security center to report ebay phishing scams
• Read the articles in the Security center on eBay if you want to know more.
  eBay.com guide on stopping spoof web sites
  Report account theft