Going, going, gone.I really would like to participate in online auctions, but I am afraid of getting scammed. Is there anything I can do to protect myself? --L. Jackson, Washington, D.C. Unfortunately, online auction buyers are being ripped off all the time. Some send in their money and never receive their goods, or they receive fake or broken merchandise. In fact, there has been an increase in the number of Internet fraud A crime in which the perpetrator develops a scheme using one or more elements of the Internet to deprive a person of property or any interest, estate, or right by a false representation of a matter of fact, whether by providing misleading information or by concealment of cases. The National Consumer League in Washington, D.C., received 10,660 complaints about consumer fraud in 1999 (87% were for online auctions), almost a 36% increase from the year before. Even the big three, eBay, Amazon, and Yahoo, admit to fraud on their sites. These sites also argue that they have programs in place to try to keep fraud to a minimum. You can get a refund if you get burned on Amazon and eBay. With eBay, you can get back up to $200, after a $25 deductible That which may be taken away or subtracted. In taxation, an item that may be subtracted from gross income or adjusted gross income in determining taxable income (e.g., interest expenses, charitable contributions, certain taxes). . All auctions are guaranteed up to $250 with Amazon. For those auctions in which the seller pays through Amazon's 1-Click program, refunds are guaranteed up to $1,000. But until online auctions do a better job of policing their sites, which may come sooner than later thanks to recent lawsuits, your best form of protection is to follow the old adage "caveat emptor [Latin, Let the buyer beware.] A warning that notifies a buyer that the goods he or she is buying are "as is," or subject to all defects. When a sale is subject to this warning the purchaser assumes the risk that the product might be either defective or " (let the buyer beware be·ware v. be·wared, be·war·ing, be·wares v.tr. To be on guard against; be cautious of: "Beware the ides of March" Shakespeare. v. ). Use your head. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. At one time, the primary way to protect yourself was to study feedback tables, which were comments by buyers about a particular seller. Of course, they didn't keep scam (SCSI Configured AutoMatically) A subset of Plug and Play that allows SCSI IDs to be changed by software rather than by flipping switches or changing jumpers. Both the SCSI host adapter and peripheral must support SCAM. See SCSI. artists from building up great reputations and then cashing in on their good name by later hosting phony auctions. To better protect yourself from online scams, see the seven tips outlined in "Going Once, Going Twice ... No Sale," Shopsmart, March 2000. For more information on online offers and fraudulent transactions, visit the Internet Fraud Watch hotline (www.fraud.org). Also read Internet Auctions: A Guide for Buyers and Sellers, a publication of the FTC FTC See Federal Trade Commission (FTC). . You can order a copy of the guide or file a complaint online at www.ftc.gov or call 887-382-4357. Mail your technology-related concerns to Cyberwise at BLACK ENTERPRISE, 130 Fifth Ave., New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , NY 10011, or send an e-mail to dingled@blackenterprise.com. |
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