Got ripped off on eBay, have mysterious iPhone that says "No Service"!

[Arisian]

I think you should actually try and involve the police in the area of the buyer as he has actually stolen YOUR phone as well. Sounds like you have plenty of info that he returned a phone that is not yours. It's not like it will make your situation any worse and it will probably freak the crap out of the scammer

make sure it wasn't an honest mistake first - though I seriously doubt that it was. Getting the police involved would make the situation a lot worse if he simply just packed the wrong iPhone, as seriously unlikely as that may be

Is there a precedence for getting police involved in something like this?

 

[ventro]

Ok I ran ultrasn0w and unlocked the phone, and I have full service now.

However, no sound comes through the earpiece. I can only hear if I put it on speaker. Is this a problem with the unlock or is there yet another hardware issue with the 3G this guy sent me?

 

[Applejuiced]

It might be a hardware issue.
Try plugging on and off the headphones to see if its stuck on audio thru that only.
Or restore it and rejailbreak and unlock.

 

[Queen of Spades]

Ok I ran ultrasn0w and unlocked the phone, and I have full service now.

However, no sound comes through the earpiece. I can only hear if I put it on speaker. Is this a problem with the unlock or is there yet another hardware issue with the 3G this guy sent me?

Sounds like a hardware problem. Try plugging/unplugging the headphones a few times. Otherwise, it's likely it's the phone itself.

I really feel for you. People like him are scumbags and I wish we could personally beat their @ss for doing things like this. Hopefully Paypal does the right thing, for once.

I agree with whoever said to get the police involved. This is theft, and should be treated as such.

 

[ClutchThese]

damn!!! if this story is legit...that's one hard lesson learned.

 

[boshii]

can you post a link to the auction?

 

[pasipple]

can you post a link to the auction?

I too would like to see some details from the auction. I find it hard to believe that if an item comes back to the seller that there isn't a safeguard in place with PalPay to hold a refund until the seller verifies that he got the item back in like condition.

If this scam is as easy as sending the item back and showing a tracking number to get the moneys back there would be a high volume of this type of scam going on. And then PayPal would have changed their return policies to prevent this.

And I'm not questioning the OP...if this is what happened then it sickens me that you got ripped off like this. But on the other hand, if you are careful and follow all the eBay and PayPal requirements for selling and buying...there is fraud protection in place to cover this. But this just makes no sense to me that Paypal would release the funds back to the scammer without verifying the return with the original seller.

 

[tiptopp]

Block the iPhone?

I seem to remember from a thread a couple of years ago that, in the States, you can't get phones blocked by the carriers, whereas you can in the UK. But if you can, you should at least get this done so that the sod who's stolen your phone can't use it, and if they've sold it there'll be some comeback on them from their buyer as well.

But I agree that the police should be involved. If you have the imei and serial numbers of the phone, and the eBay/Paypal evidence of sending/receiving phones and money, I would have thought that the police would be interested. And you must also have an address that it was sent to, so you can lead them right there.

Good luck - eBay has helped me buy and sell a few things over the years, but the whole concept, with the built-in the potential for fraud, and so many stories of eBay being less than helpful when something goes wrong, makes me quite angry...

TT

 

[GoCubsGo]

He didn't buy something, he got ripped off (according to the story we're told,lol).

That is what I read too.

So many inconsistencies in that story. Bolded sections to emphasize my points of conflicts. Is the OP the buyer or seller? Wy not contact Paypal/eBay?

Not really. Two different paragraphs. First he talks of the sale and now he's trying to get his money back because he had to give a refund. It's clear, just not crystal.

OP: that is terrible. Did you have clear pictures of the item you sold? If so I would use those because the issue was not that you sold a 3G as a 3GS, it was that the guy says you sold a 3GS that didn't work or whatever. I hope you get your cash or your phone.

 

[spamdumpster]

What do I need to do to get the phone working again? Just install ultrasn0w?

All these posts, and no one has actually tried to offer the OP advice on the problem. OP - make sure that the repo for ultrasn0w is installed in cydia. It's http://repo666.ultrasn0w.com. Hopefully, this will allow you to unlock and use the phone while you're waiting for the dispute to be resolved.

Also, don't give up hope on having this resolved the right way. When the original iPhone was first jailbroken and software unlocked, I tried to make some cash by buying them, unlocking them, then selling at a profit - my plan was to do 50 of them. The first one I sold was to a scammer in vietnam who had hacked into some dudes ebay and paypal accounts in Florida and asdked me to ship it to vietnam to his friend. Yes, I was a complete moron for falling for this. It was a huge hassle, but, at the end of the day, I got UPS to recall the phone from vietnam BEFORE delivery and send it back to me AND I got to keep the cash from paypal.

 

[pixelated]

Ok I ran ultrasn0w and unlocked the phone, and I have full service now.

All these posts, and no one has actually tried to offer the OP advice on the problem. OP - make sure that the repo for ultrasn0w is installed in cydia. It's http://repo666.ultrasn0w.com. Hopefully, this will allow you to unlock and use the phone while you're waiting for the dispute to be resolved.

maybe read the thread first, the OP has solved the unlock

 

[douflag]

All these posts, and no one has actually tried to offer the OP advice on the problem. OP - make sure that the repo for ultrasn0w is installed in cydia. It's http://repo666.ultrasn0w.com. Hopefully, this will allow you to unlock and use the phone while you're waiting for the dispute to be resolved.

Also, don't give up hope on having this resolved the right way. When the original iPhone was first jailbroken and software unlocked, I tried to make some cash by buying them, unlocking them, then selling at a profit - my plan was to do 50 of them. The first one I sold was to a scammer in vietnam who had hacked into some dudes ebay and paypal accounts in Florida and asdked me to ship it to vietnam to his friend. Yes, I was a complete moron for falling for this. It was a huge hassle, but, at the end of the day, I got UPS to recall the phone from vietnam BEFORE delivery and send it back to me AND I got to keep the cash from paypal.

I suggest that the OP not even try to fiddle with this returned iPhone. If it is indeed a phone from the buyer, then anything you do can be claimed against you. The buyer can turn around and say that you messed up their phone and that you owe them a new one. I'm not saying the buyer won't do that anyway, but just in case.

 

[spamdumpster]

maybe read the thread first, the OP has solved the unlock

Yup -- I only read the first page. Sorry!

 

[gwynne]

If this scam is as easy as sending the item back and showing a tracking number to get the moneys back there would be a high volume of this type of scam going on. .

From what I've seen anecdotally across many different forums, this is exactly what is happening. There's a reason so many people talk about how much eBay sucks now. If you haven't spent a lot of time trying to sell there very recently, it's probably best not to assume you know what's going on.

We tend to have a gut instinct about the way things 'should' work, and I can assure you that's not what's happening on eBay/PayPal (same thing) these days. For example, the OP won't even be able to leave negative feedback about the buyer ripping him off. Seller is always assumed guilty until proven innocent.

 

[Karnivore]

OP- since you know where the scammer resides contact their local police force and see if you can file a criminal complaint against them. Here in Kentucky any theft in amount equal or exceeding $300 is considered a felony. Consider filing a claim in the small claims court. Also, if the phone was mailed back to you via postal service you could possibly initiate a mail fraud investigation. Lastly, if your PayPal is linked to a major credit card as a funding source (I hope it does, for your sake) and money that PP refunded to the buyer was withdrawn from there, you may be able to initiate a charge back.

Bottom line, you still have options but you'll have to jump through some hoops first.

 

[froggiemlm]

Ok I ran ultrasn0w and unlocked the phone, and I have full service now.

However, no sound comes through the earpiece. I can only hear if I put it on speaker. Is this a problem with the unlock or is there yet another hardware issue with the 3G this guy sent me?

Sorry about your ebay situation. have you reported the 3gs as stolen so Apple can brick it? second try blowing air in the head phone jack for your sound issue i had mine get dusty/dirty and this solved my volume issue

Also has the buyer had any negative transactions against him recently? that could work in your favor.

 

[Arisian]

Sorry about your ebay situation. have you reported the 3gs as stolen so Apple can brick it? second try blowing air in the head phone jack for your sound issue i had mine get dusty/dirty and this solved my volume issue

Also has the buyer had any negative transactions against him recently? that could work in your favor.

Agreed. Out of sheer curiosity, what did the buyers history look like. I used to always block users w/ a certain small history - I remember that being one of the options

 

[mlts22]

This is a hard lesson -- eBay used to be a haven to be able to buy and sell at.

Then the scammers moved in, in force. Sellers would get chargebacks due to PayPal getting hit with hacked credit cards. Buyers get chunks of cinderblocks instead of computers.

I wish eBay would do more, because even though there are a number of successful transactions, it seems that more and more I read about horror stories.

 

[wanzer]

I too would like to see some details from the auction. I find it hard to believe that if an item comes back to the seller that there isn't a safeguard in place with PalPay to hold a refund until the seller verifies that he got the item back in like condition.

Believe it. The only safeguard in place is for the buyer. PayPal does hold the refund, but only until the tracking number states that the item has been delivered back to the seller, in which case, PayPal immediately releases the funds back to the buyer. Sellers can then appeal, but it is very rare the seller would win the appeal, as the tracking number that shows the receipt of the returned item is the ultimate evidence against him.

If this scam is as easy as sending the item back and showing a tracking number to get the moneys back there would be a high volume of this type of scam going on. And then PayPal would have changed their return policies to prevent this.

It is as easy as sending a brick back with a tracking number, unfortunately. Obviously only PayPal would know the true number of these fraud cases. It is the same concept as SJ's claim that only 0.55% of all iPhone 4 users complained about the antenna issue (which is BS given that not everyone has AppleCare), or that 1.7% (51,000) of iPhone 4's have been returned. The number of fraud cases like this is most likely very small and PayPal sees no reason to significantly increase their manpower and staff just to accomodate this small percentage of users. However, if there was suddenly a huge eBay-gate scandal where it was all over the media (like the iPhone 4 antennagate) you can bet PayPal changing their policies the very next day.

 

[Arisian]

ebay is trash now - Between 2001 and 2007 I custom built mountain bikes on ebay by buying parts and then would turn around and sell the whole bike for a profit on ebay.

I did this about 50 times and got scammed 4 times... and attempted to be scammed about 20 other times.

The thing that blows my mind is that ebay keeps complaining about how they are losing money - well... this is the reason. Wish they would get their heads out of their asses because it USED to be a great tool.

Nonetheless - likelihood of getting this all sorted aside, I wish the OP all the best. You aren't alone in your current and future anger against ebay

 

[ventro]

Hi all,

thanks for the responses. I'd prefer not to publicly post the buyer's information over the internet until the case is closed, one way or the other. The buyer bought it through his company's ebay account. This case still could be resolved in my favour and could be an honest mistake (though I doubt it). So if you want the auction info please SM me.

I am going to uninstall ultrasn0w so the phone is in the exact same condition it was before I received it. I can just uninstall it through Cydia right? Or is it permanent?

 

[benflick]

Hi all,

thanks for the responses. I'd prefer not to publicly post the buyer's information over the internet until the case is closed, one way or the other. The buyer bought it through his company's ebay account. This case still could be resolved in my favour and could be an honest mistake (though I doubt it). So if you want the auction info please SM me.

I am going to uninstall ultrasn0w so the phone is in the exact same condition it was before I received it. I can just uninstall it through Cydia right? Or is it permanent?

Cydia>Manage>Sources>Edit. Then delete Ultrasn0w.

 

[pasipple]

Hi all,

thanks for the responses. I'd prefer not to publicly post the buyer's information over the internet until the case is closed, one way or the other. The buyer bought it through his company's ebay account. This case still could be resolved in my favour and could be an honest mistake (though I doubt it). So if you want the auction info please SM me.

I am going to uninstall ultrasn0w so the phone is in the exact same condition it was before I received it. I can just uninstall it through Cydia right? Or is it permanent?

Well if he bought it through his company's eBay account that's good for you. That means you can track him to his workplace. Doesn't really sound like a scam then? Unless he used the account and quit his job. Otherwise he can be located by the local police and he would be compromising his employment.

So if this is a scam...it's a stupid one! Like a burglar dropping his wallet at a crime scene!

This gets more interesting...

 

[ventro]

Well if he bought it through his company's eBay account that's good for you. That means you can track him to his workplace. Doesn't really sound like a scam then? Unless he used the account and quit his job. Otherwise he can be located by the local police and he would be compromising his employment.

So if this is a scam...it's a stupid one! Like a burglar dropping his wallet at a crime scene!

This gets more interesting...

I don't get how his buying through his company makes it any easier for me? I have his home address. I doubt the police will have any trouble finding this guy if they want to look into it. I can look at his house through Google Street View. The problem is that my feedback is meagre compared to his company's powerseller status

I have a good case and all the evidence is on my side. I'll see how the Paypal claim goes, if it starts going south I will get the police involved.

 

[pasipple]

I don't get how his buying through his company makes it any easier for me? I have his home address. I doubt the police will have any trouble finding this guy if they want to look into it. I can look at his house through Google Street View. My feedback is meagre compared to his company's powerseller status

I have a good case and all the evidence is on my side. I'll see how the Paypal claim goes, if it starts going south I will get the police involved.

I wish you luck.

Knowing his employer is just that much more information that can be utilized in running the guy down for criminal prosecution should you report this to the local police. And you should if you don't get full eBay or PayPal restitution on this. Also, if he was using his company's eBay account for scamming...I would think the employer would not look favorably on that. If an eBay fraud investigation doesn't resolve the matter to your satisfaction...If I were you...I'd contact the employer and let them know that one of their employees is committing fraud with their eBay account.

(Note: I'd certainly involve the police too. Let them contact the employer. I had a fraud case 10 years ago on eBay and my local police took a report. Obtained emails...and did investigate the matter. Turns out the guy closed all accounts and high tailed it...but your guy isn't going anywhere if he is still employed with this firm).

I'm not a lawyer but committing fraud in this way opens up the company to criminal liabilities.