That won't prove WHO tampered with it.
Think about it. The buyer may have attempted a modification or jailbreak that went south.
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Sold iPhone on eBay & Buyer says its faulty. Accepting the return
- Thread starter bobbytallant
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First, sorry for the unfortunate circumstances surrounding this scam. I hate scammers and it seems like for every legit buyer there are at least 2 scammers. Getting a fair $ for your used stuff seems to be still very difficult, even with all the huge sites that have been designed for that specific purpose.
Have you tried creating a custom firmware with sn0wbreeze (windows) or pwnage tool (mac)? Make sure your hosts is not pointing to Saurik's server (which it likely now is since you've used Tiny umbrella) and if it is, change it then reboot to make sure it's applied. Then, download iPhone 3G 4.2.1 firmware and use one of the above tools to create a custom firmware. CFW + not using hosts files, if the issue is software, should get the phone working. No recovery kickout is required. Once you use the tools above they should put the device in PWNED DFU mode and restore with an integrated jailbreak. If that doesn't work then you'd have convinced me that the issue is hardware related and, most likely the buyer messed around inside the phone.
Have you tried creating a custom firmware with sn0wbreeze (windows) or pwnage tool (mac)? Make sure your hosts is not pointing to Saurik's server (which it likely now is since you've used Tiny umbrella) and if it is, change it then reboot to make sure it's applied. Then, download iPhone 3G 4.2.1 firmware and use one of the above tools to create a custom firmware. CFW + not using hosts files, if the issue is software, should get the phone working. No recovery kickout is required. Once you use the tools above they should put the device in PWNED DFU mode and restore with an integrated jailbreak. If that doesn't work then you'd have convinced me that the issue is hardware related and, most likely the buyer messed around inside the phone.
It seems that the person might have tried to unlock iPhone 3G and messed up.
I did one last month. I bet the person used the wrong method.
I'll see if I can find my notes and do a guide.
I did one last month. I bet the person used the wrong method.
I'll see if I can find my notes and do a guide.
Yea, if I sign up, sell an item and get scammed it evens out because some other seller scammed a buyer 8 years ago. Sounds even to me.
I stand by my statement that selling on ebay for a random Joe Blow like myself is bad news right now, which conveniently is the only time period that is relevant to the decision.
That's all fine and good, but if it was a software mistake that the buyer is trying to cover up for, the seller is pretty much SOL because proving that to eBay would be nearly impossible. If there was hardware evidence, on the other hand, that would make for a fair case.
I really think eBay and Paypal work together....don't mess with either of them because sooner or later you will end up on the wrong end of a scam.
This is exactly why I don't use fleabay anymore. Yeah it was great in the middle 90's when it was a startup. No more. Let me tell you my horror story. I sold a Panasonic video camera in mint condition to a guy who complained to PayPal that it didn't work. I tried email communication with the buyer but he refused to talk to me. Even though my auction clearly stated no returns - PayPal said he was protected by some buyers protection and yanked $700 out of my account to give back to him. Well I received back the camera...but it was NOT the same one I sent him. After endless phone calls and emails to PayPal, they said sorry Charlie, nothing we can do. I called the local police to where this guy was living to report it as fraud. The kind detective I spoke with said it was a civil issue not criminal. So in the end the buyer got his money back AND got to keep my mint condition video camera. I ended up with $700 stolen from me and cheap, broken camera that he probably bought at a yard sale for $5.
Oh it gets better....two months later PayPal sends me an email saying my account has been "limited." I had $1000 in there and could not withdraw even a dollar. They gave me very obscure reasons for why they were freezing my account but in the end they said my account was "high risk." I had no previous problems with Ebay or PayPal. After 24 months, I received access to my money and I declared I would never again use this fraud company called Ebay.
When Ebay allowed cash, checks, and money orders to be used to complete auctions, I never had a problem. I used to send cash and people would send cash or checks to me and it was a fun place to use and make some money. It's changed and changed for the worse - at least in my humble opinion.
Oh it gets better....two months later PayPal sends me an email saying my account has been "limited." I had $1000 in there and could not withdraw even a dollar. They gave me very obscure reasons for why they were freezing my account but in the end they said my account was "high risk." I had no previous problems with Ebay or PayPal. After 24 months, I received access to my money and I declared I would never again use this fraud company called Ebay.
When Ebay allowed cash, checks, and money orders to be used to complete auctions, I never had a problem. I used to send cash and people would send cash or checks to me and it was a fun place to use and make some money. It's changed and changed for the worse - at least in my humble opinion.
I went through something like this years ago. I sold a Moto RAZR for $300 via eBay. I mailed it off the next day, and a day later, I got an email from Paypal saying the credit card had been stolen and to not ship the item. Of course, this was four days after it sold. I withdrew the money from my account and called Paypal. They said I did not qualify for protection and it was my responsibility to get the item back, which had now made its way to Miami. They sent a collections agency after me for months trying to get their money back, but they never did. They stopped bothering me once Paypal changed their terms of service It isn't on my credit report either, so I guess they removed it.
Now, I have to wait 21 days before I can get the money each time which is really annoying. I had it waived a few months ago, but I did not sell enough in that time and they reinstated it. I haven't been scammed since that one time, but I always check out feedback before I sell. If they had questionable responses, I probably would not ship.
Now, I have to wait 21 days before I can get the money each time which is really annoying. I had it waived a few months ago, but I did not sell enough in that time and they reinstated it. I haven't been scammed since that one time, but I always check out feedback before I sell. If they had questionable responses, I probably would not ship.
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8C148 Safari/6533.18.5)
It sounds like the problem that your buyer is describing is a dead short creating a boot loop. If he is scamming you it is possible that he has swapped a shorted component(such as an LCD or top ribbon) or worse the main board. If it's the main board it will be easily detected as the serial number will be different under Settings>General>About. Other components of the phone are not numbered which would make it impossible to detect other than the "do not remove" sticker being broke. Anyone with this expertise would probably understand how inexpensive it would be to just repair an individual part. The value of an iPhone is the main board. So if the serial number matches when you get it back(in the about menu, not on the case) then your phone has probably developed a short somewhere, possibly aggravated in transit, and these are usually easily diagnosed and repaired by any reputable shop.
It sounds like the problem that your buyer is describing is a dead short creating a boot loop. If he is scamming you it is possible that he has swapped a shorted component(such as an LCD or top ribbon) or worse the main board. If it's the main board it will be easily detected as the serial number will be different under Settings>General>About. Other components of the phone are not numbered which would make it impossible to detect other than the "do not remove" sticker being broke. Anyone with this expertise would probably understand how inexpensive it would be to just repair an individual part. The value of an iPhone is the main board. So if the serial number matches when you get it back(in the about menu, not on the case) then your phone has probably developed a short somewhere, possibly aggravated in transit, and these are usually easily diagnosed and repaired by any reputable shop.
Problem is your theory has holes. Any person who has been repairing phones for sometime now knows that the do not remove stickers can be replaced and to make things worse is if the person who bought it knows anything they could have switched the heat shield on the motherboard itself. I know because its happen to me before with ebay. Only way would be to compare the number on the sim card tray and the number on the board to see if they match up....also inspect the board carefully and look for bends or scratches along the sides of the heat shield.....hopefully this helps..
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8C148 Safari/6533.18.5)
The serial number is present on the cooling plate on the mainboard. Not impossible to swap, but highly difficult to to do without being detected by someone knowledgeable.
The serial number is present on the cooling plate on the mainboard. Not impossible to swap, but highly difficult to to do without being detected by someone knowledgeable.
Man, you just trust anyone anymore. A few bad apples...
Don't sell on eBay. It just seems like there is nothing you can do to be fully protected. The buyer is always right on eBay.
Don't sell on eBay. It just seems like there is nothing you can do to be fully protected. The buyer is always right on eBay.
I haven't read the whole thread so I apologize if this has already been brought up but I would never sell an iPhone on eBay.
I would always do this via Craigslist. It's always a quick and easy transaction and you'll never have to go though the situation that the OP has mentioned.
I would always do this via Craigslist. It's always a quick and easy transaction and you'll never have to go though the situation that the OP has mentioned.
A little help from a seasoned eBayer
So lately i have seen this issue come up a lot. I buy sell and repair iPhones every day. Our biggest issue is buyers swapping out the logic boards within the phone itself. So there are a few steps you can take to protect yourself as a buyer.
#1 Always contact paypal for issues. eBay is not helpful and the support is based in india.
#2 Always make a note of the serial and imei. (Good job on doing this).
#3 Always purchase shipping insurance and signature confirmation on sales exceeding $175 USD.
Since you have the serial and imei all you have to do is open the phone. There is a serial number printed on the board. It is normally pretty easy to tell if the phone was opened. The black "Do not remove" stick will be cracked or broken, also there will be fingerprints on the logic board.
Sometimes buyers will try to peel off the old serial sticker and place it on the bad board, it's pretty easy to tell that that has been done.
If you don't go physically open the phone and check if the phone was tampered with you will lose your paypal case. Unfortunately either way you will most likely receive negative feedback.
Feel free to PM me for more info I will PM you my gmail email also.
So lately i have seen this issue come up a lot. I buy sell and repair iPhones every day. Our biggest issue is buyers swapping out the logic boards within the phone itself. So there are a few steps you can take to protect yourself as a buyer.
#1 Always contact paypal for issues. eBay is not helpful and the support is based in india.
#2 Always make a note of the serial and imei. (Good job on doing this).
#3 Always purchase shipping insurance and signature confirmation on sales exceeding $175 USD.
Since you have the serial and imei all you have to do is open the phone. There is a serial number printed on the board. It is normally pretty easy to tell if the phone was opened. The black "Do not remove" stick will be cracked or broken, also there will be fingerprints on the logic board.
Sometimes buyers will try to peel off the old serial sticker and place it on the bad board, it's pretty easy to tell that that has been done.
If you don't go physically open the phone and check if the phone was tampered with you will lose your paypal case. Unfortunately either way you will most likely receive negative feedback.
Feel free to PM me for more info I will PM you my gmail email also.