Customer service inconsistency regarding the sale of counterfeit goods
Summary: athar42 expresses frustration at eBay’s lack of responsiveness regarding an Italian seller offering counterfeit sneakers, despite several reports. lingma85 advises providing solid evidence and contacting the DGCCRF. Anonymous User points out the legal differences regarding counterfeits in Italy. Several participants discuss the limitations of eBay’s reporting system and the need for a more complete case. athar42 is considering reporting it directly to the brand involved. The discussion also covers the role of “reporters” and the legal complexities tied to international sales.
Hello everyone here,
I wouldn't single anyone out here, but I'm sick of eBay customer service being two-tiered.
A "pro" seller (Italy, since 2022) is allowing himself to sell counterfeit goods (medium-quality "reproductions").
The photos, when they aren't stolen from the web, clearly show that these are plain old fakes, and yet eBay moderation is completely random.
This seller (since here, I'm targeting one in particular) has more than 100 counterfeit products, in several quantities of course, all reported and all "rejected" by eBay.
So I tried reporting just one of the items, one of the most blatant ones, and this time? removed.
Yesterday, the seller relisted this removed item + some new ones... new report and... rejected, not removed.
The fact that the counterfeit report is limited to 100 characters is already an aberration in itself (how are you supposed to properly demonstrate the validity of the report in 100 characters? impossible. That said, even if you include all the evidence, it could still be rejected because of a lack of knowledge on the subject).
Anyway, that was a rant, I already know eBay won't do anything, so dear sellers of fake **bleep** counterfeits, have fun, it's paradise for you here!
felin12
·2 years agoHello everyone
@athar42
What seems inconsistent is that your preferred brand is a member of Ebay's Vero program and that they do nothing to curb counterfeiting.
Regards
nareio
·2 years agoHello.
I have the honor of being a goofball (and the pleasure too...).
If you want to be effective, start by reporting where you should and as soon as you should everything that seems false, fraudulent, or unacceptable to you, without forgetting that this cannot have an immediate effect because one report is not enough. It may be motivated by the desire to do harm. You need several consistent ones, coming from different people. Otherwise, it is not e-bay that is harmed, but honest sellers. that anyone could slanderously denounce to take their place.
And come here and say what you have to say, as politely as possible, because it's clearer, and above all more credible.
So,we will be delighted to offer you,too, a copy of the big red nose .....
athar42
OP2 years agoThat’s cool, I’m able to get a reaction, it works like on Twitter (or X rather 🤣).
So, in order:
@lingma85 : It’s for sale on eBay.fr, and although I had Italian lessons in my youth, my residual knowledge is limited to counting from 1 to 10, with greetings and thanks.
Sure, there’s Google Translate & the like, but for a negligible result and a waste of time, I’ll pass.
@frelonverre : You hate “reporters” as you call them, so you support the counterfeit trade (whether you want to or not). Inaction in this case being, in a way, proof that you support them.
But it’s true, I didn’t especially think to report this seller directly to the brand, I’ll do that then.
(Small aside: I also hate “reporters” when their only final goal is to harm a legitimate seller or sellers. The strength of a “good” community is also being able to rely on good-faith reports to stop illegal activity. That said, the “good community” on eBay... the fact that I only sell very rarely also shows that I know full well there are scam buyers, and I don’t have time to play around with them).
@Anonymous : As mentioned a bit earlier in this reply, the seller is registered as a “pro seller” based in Italy, but he does sell on eBay France.
@nareio : Exactly, as I said in my first message, in this seller’s case, I reported almost all of his items (not my fault if it’s all counterfeit...) so more than 80-100 reports. All rejected.
As I also said, I focused on a single listing for the second attempt: listing removed.
However, within 48 hours, the seller put the same product back up for sale, still just as counterfeit, reported, not removed (which brings us back to the thread title: inconsistency of eBay security customer support).
Once again, I’m not going to do another round of reports because the system just isn’t optimized and is too restrictive (the 100-character limit means you can’t really say anything to back up the findings in 100 characters).
@felin12 : I discovered this “VERO” program last night, purely by chance, but I didn’t know they were part of the members. In any case, I’m going to report it directly to the brand and they can do whatever they want with it 🙂
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felin12
·2 years ago@athar42
https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/ebay-for-business/verified-rights-owner-program#appendix-N
cordialement
frelonverre
·2 years ago@athar42
[Content removed]
to answer you about the fact that by my inaction I encourage counterfeiting, I would tell you that I don’t care if products are counterfeit, that those who buy them know very well what they’re getting into, (you shouldn’t want to look the part when you can’t afford it), that products from prestigious brands are bought in the brand’s own stores, and that when you find a new item at half price it’s already suspicious, but when there are 100 of them there’s no room for doubt
so beneath the hair there’s a brain, it’s up to each person to use it, and not to expect everything from sales sites that are only “classified ads papers”
athar42
OP2 years agoThe price, more than expensive enough for cheap knockoffs, but one very funny thing is that whatever the model, he practices "one price for all", all at €119 + €10 shipping, it's really "a **bleep** to laugh" (excuse my expression).
There for example, I can see he is selling "Adidas Campus 00s" for €119+20.
Quick Google search: brand new for €80 on the Adidas site (if buyers fall for it, I'd be tempted to say long live natural selection, but also shame on eBay for doing nothing against the **bleep**).
After that, the ones I'm keeping an eye on are Nike ones (Air Max Plus 1/TN and 3), so obviously, real or fake, they come from Asia anyway (and in any case, the labels are fake, so they don't mean absolutely anything).
Also, as I said in my initial message, normally it's a seller "based in Italy", so not much recourse possible, but we're talking about a big **bleep**, because right now, he is selling 117 products.
Without looking at all the listings, there are at least, on average, 5 sizes available... quick calculation: 117*5 => 585 * 119 => €69,615
That is currently the "market value" of his catalog, roughly speaking, top-tier scammer/thief/**bleep** pro business.
I still want to put up an image (because that's the max I'm allowed here... as funny as the 100-character limit on reports), because this is really absurd, and it'll help me blow off some steam.
Quick comparison, on the left the unscrupulous seller, on the right, taken from my own legit pairs...
I added arrows to guide the eye, just to point out the most shocking differences (on the fake pair, there are also glue marks all over the back near the sole, or just major finishing flaws).
I don't think it's necessary to comment on the "why I'm sure these are fakes", it's visible from 3000 kilometers away, and all the pairs he sells are of the same type, counterfeit, and eBay lets it slide, it's just shameful (for a company supposedly wanting to fight counterfeiters, because they wanted to take back the "sneaker collector" market, well, it's a failure given the treatment here.
Anyway, I know full well that this is a community help forum here (although given some replies on other posts, I doubt it), this message is just a rant against eBay which is inactive and does no real checks, at best "pretends" to do the right thing, while in reality, as I can clearly see, they are being inactive.
*bleep*
athar42
OP2 years agoNot bad, the photo that doesn’t fit in the previous message, super limited here... at least you can see the link, the curious can go have a look...
lingma85
·2 years agoGood evening @athar42
You write-----> " Those 3 same guys who like all your posts really made me laugh, it looks very "bot-like", but I had a good laugh."
Oh yes... your remark also really made me laugh.... 🤣🤣🤣
There isn't much activity here... and then as already said... the people you're replying to aren't very generous or, more simply, don't know how to do it...
But it doesn't matter.... you were able to let off steam, as you say... this place can also be used for that when you're annoyed or furious (delete as appropriate...)
But if your star seller is in Italy.... it's not on the eBay France forum that you should intervene, it's here-----> https://community.ebay.it/
You may get a more attentive hearing, because this is direct and unfair competition for Italian sellers...
Kind regards
frelonverre
·2 years ago@athar42
I’m one of those weirdos who like Lingma’s answers; it just so happens that we’ve known each other since 2007 and that, friendship aside, Lingma is someone whose answers I’ve always appreciated for how accurate they are and for the honesty he shows when he makes a mistake by posting an erratum
whether you like it or not!!!
and if I hadn’t replied to your "rant" until now, it’s simply because I personally hate all kinds of "reporters" who are everywhere on the net
leave the policing function to the site, counterfeit goods do exist, sure, but the brands you want to protect all have that option, so report the suspicious listings to them and they’ll force eBay to put a stop to it
lingma85
·2 years agoGood evening @athar42
Take a look here-----> eBay.fr - eBay is committed to fighting counterfeiting
For a piece of evidence to be accepted, it has to be certified by a bailiff, for example... or by another serious means... because a regular photo or a guess isn't enough to accuse someone...
A screenshot can sometimes be accepted if the device could be identified (device no./IP address/etc.)... that said, you need to build a solid case to make an accusation.
Regards
athar42
OP2 years agoAs a collector of the models in question, when you see a product code on the tag that doesn't match any real released model... no need for advanced studies to draw the conclusion... counterfeits.
I’ll skip over other details (bad typography on the logos,粗糙 stitching, mediocre product quality (yes, you can see that in photos).
If you don't believe that we can detect this kind of counterfeit seller like this here, I'd be happy to make a comparison example with an item currently for sale (without naming the seller or anything else, it will be hidden anyway by moderation)
lingma85
·2 years agore. @athar42
and the price of the sneakers...? - low... medium... high... ???
European manufacture...? American...? Asian...??
You show that you're attentive to details.. that's good..
but doing all this detective work for the forum won't get you much further in your battle...
People who come here only come with their own concerns and don't pay much attention to others'... We live in a very personal time, not to say selfish...
I don't mean to discourage you.. but the best way to discourage a seller (if he's a French pro, of course) is to make him seriously face his counterfeits... the DGCCRF is there for that.... but you have to not only put together a file, but bring proof (= buy the sneakers and have them appraised by the brand first of all.) ...
Best regards
Anonymous User
·2 years agohello, heads up, old listings or ebay .fr or it? Italian law prohibits counterfeiting but allows imitation of certain products best regards