Ebay SCAM Alert on Nexstar 11 and possibly other Telescope Equipment

Ok, here's the story:

To start off with, take a look at this listing on Ebay,
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tegory=31 745

I contacted an Ebay seller, topsalles, last week about the exact same
listing to purchase of Nexstar 11, Ebay #3151688507,
and received a response to purchase the item outside of Ebay.

If you check for item #3151688507 you'll notice that it
doesn't exist anymore leading one to believe that Ebay has taken
some action. This is an assumption that cannot be verified.

The e-mail from topsalless originated from a UK based company
whose website, www.wtrade-shop.com, was created on Oct.24,2003.
This is based on the Whois internet database
(http://www.networksolutions.com/en_US/whois/index.jhtml).
It looked really suspicious and I started to investigate it
further. As I dug deeper, it was looking more and more like a sham.

First, the Whois revealed the following about the website this
seller was associated with:

1.Registrant:
2.Mr sattam al noaim
3.17800 E Colima RD
4.Rowland Heights
5.CA
6.91748
7.US
8.
9.Domain Name: WTRADE-SHOP.COM
10.
11.Administrative Contact, Billing Contact:
12."Mr sattam al noaim"
13.Phone: 6267808183
14.Fax:
15.Technical Contact, Registrar:
16."Mr Easyspace Hostmaster"
17.Phone: +44 1932 350 097
18.Fax: +44 1932 350 222
19.
20.Record last updated on 2003-10-23.
21.Record expires on 2004-10-23.
22.Record created on 2003-10-23.

Ok, so we have a company in the UK, according to the website,
that was registered by someone in the US on Oct. 23, 2003.
Next, the contact for this fellow is through a yahoo account,
line #12, which makes it terribly difficult to track down
the individual. Lastly, on line #2, it shows a highly suspicious
name for the administrator based out of Southern California.

Now let's take a look at the e-mail that was sent to me from the
seller topsalles:

1.Received: from webshield.cihi.ca (smtp.infonex.com
[168.143.114.4]) by mailtor.cihi.ca with SMTP (Microsoft Exchange
Internet Mail Service Version 5.5.2655.55)
2. id 40R9DY94; Sun, 26 Oct 2003 13:26:36 -0500
3.Received: from smtp.infonex.com(168.143.114.4) by
webshield.cihi.ca via csmap
4. id 5b0e07d4_07c0_11d8_898f_003048245df9_6133;
5. Sun, 26 Oct 2003 14:26:15 +0000 (UTC)
6.Received: from localhost (rigel2.cyberpass.net [168.143.113.102])
7. by smtp.infonex.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id C28EC34804F
8. for ; Sun, 26 Oct 2003 10:25:10 -0800 (PST)
9.Date: Sun, 26 Oct 2003 20:24:58 +0200
10.From:
11.Reply-To:
12.X-Priority: 3 (Normal)
13.Message-ID:
14.To:
15.Subject: Question for seller -- Item #3151688507
16.In-Reply-To:
17.References:
18.Mime-Version: 1.0
19.Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
20.Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
21.X-NAI-Spam-Sco 2.5
22.X-NAI-Spam-Level: **
23.X-NAI-Spam-Rules: 5 Rules triggered
24. PRIORITY_NO_NAME=1.2, MAILTO_LINK=1.2, NO_REAL_NAME=0.6,
25. EMAIL_ATTRIBUTION=-0.5, SIGNATURE_LONG_SPARSE=-0
16.X-NA
17.Hello rcabrita,
18.
19.Would you be interested in buying this new item now ? My prices
are
20.fair and I am willing to negotiate.
21.
22.You can do that instead of all bidding process which takes time
and
23.give you no reassurance you will win the item.
24.
25.Let me know at your earliest convenience, sir/madam.
16.
17.--
18.Best regards,
19.
20.Wtrade Ltd.
21.
22.Offices in Europe
23.Phone: 0034661051283, 00447747715980
24.E-mail:
25.Web: http://www.wtrade-shop.com

16.Friday, October 24, 2003, 10:49:54 PM, you wrote:
17.
18.rcc Need info on your sale of this item.
19.
20.rcc Cheers!
21.rcc scabrita
22.rcc --------------------
23.
24.
25.rcc Question from: scabrita
16.rcc Title of item: New Celestron Nexstar-11 GPS
Telescope
17.rcc Seller: topsalless
18.rcc Starts: Oct-24-03 02:41:14 PDT
19.rcc Ends: Oct-29-03 01:41:14 PST
20.rcc Price: Currently $102.50
21.rcc To view the item, go to:
22.rcc http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=3151688507

Look closely and you'll see that this e-mail originated from
rigel2.cyberpass.net e-mail server on line #6. The domain name
"cyberpass.net" is owned by Anonymizer,
http://www.anonymizer.com/docs/faqs/sshfaq.shtml, and used by
those who do not want to be found.

At his point it was enough for me conclude that this whole thing
was a scam. What's scary is that there are some unsuspecting buyers
that are going to get fleeced big time. I've contacted Ebay and
hopefully this listing will be taken down before the bidding closes.

As I was finishing this message I was alerted to two additional
listings of the exactly the same but with different seller id's
based out of Europe.

Let's get the word out and prevent some innocent folks from
getting taken in.

Cheers!
RC

PS: Check out this link on an Ebay antiques scam that is similiar
to this one:
http://www.maineantiquedigest.com/ar...3/indo0603.htm

"cepheuskappa" wrote in message
om...
Ok, here's the story:


Nice one. I spotted that auction too and as soon as I read "Contact us
before bidding" I thought it probably is a scam. Couldn't conclude either
way right enough as I wasn't prepared to dive into as much detail as you
have.

Clear cut now, I believe.

Incidentally, if you find somewhere with decent scope prices, give me a
shout as I'm looking for one (probably Meade lx200 gps). So far my only
hope is to fly to the US and bring one back...

Cheers
--
K.

"Kipper" wrote in message
...

Incidentally, if you find somewhere with decent scope prices, give me a
shout as I'm looking for one (probably Meade lx200 gps). So far my only
hope is to fly to the US and bring one back...


Ah, your in the US... Thought I was on a different NG there. This auction
is viewable from ebay UK if you click on the "available to UK" link. Thanks
for the info.

Cheers
--
K.

I think you went through a lot of effort and digging when you really didn't
have to. There are a few cardinal rules on ebay that should _never_ be
broken. The first is NEVER buy from a seller that holds a private auction
(I can't believe that ebay still allows this practice), and the second is
avoid buying from a seller with no feedback. As it happens, this seller is
holding a private auction and also has no feedback.

Al


"cepheuskappa" wrote in message
om...
Ok, here's the story:

To start off with, take a look at this listing on Ebay,

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tegory=31 745

I contacted an Ebay seller, topsalles, last week about the exact same
listing to purchase of Nexstar 11, Ebay #3151688507,
and received a response to purchase the item outside of Ebay.

If you check for item #3151688507 you'll notice that it
doesn't exist anymore leading one to believe that Ebay has taken
some action. This is an assumption that cannot be verified.

The e-mail from topsalless originated from a UK based company
whose website, www.wtrade-shop.com, was created on Oct.24,2003.
This is based on the Whois internet database
(http://www.networksolutions.com/en_US/whois/index.jhtml).
It looked really suspicious and I started to investigate it
further. As I dug deeper, it was looking more and more like a sham.

First, the Whois revealed the following about the website this
seller was associated with:

1.Registrant:
2.Mr sattam al noaim
3.17800 E Colima RD
4.Rowland Heights
5.CA
6.91748
7.US
8.
9.Domain Name: WTRADE-SHOP.COM
10.
11.Administrative Contact, Billing Contact:
12."Mr sattam al noaim"
13.Phone: 6267808183
14.Fax:
15.Technical Contact, Registrar:
16."Mr Easyspace Hostmaster"
17.Phone: +44 1932 350 097
18.Fax: +44 1932 350 222
19.
20.Record last updated on 2003-10-23.
21.Record expires on 2004-10-23.
22.Record created on 2003-10-23.

Ok, so we have a company in the UK, according to the website,
that was registered by someone in the US on Oct. 23, 2003.
Next, the contact for this fellow is through a yahoo account,
line #12, which makes it terribly difficult to track down
the individual. Lastly, on line #2, it shows a highly suspicious
name for the administrator based out of Southern California.

Now let's take a look at the e-mail that was sent to me from the
seller topsalles:

1.Received: from webshield.cihi.ca (smtp.infonex.com
[168.143.114.4]) by mailtor.cihi.ca with SMTP (Microsoft Exchange
Internet Mail Service Version 5.5.2655.55)
2. id 40R9DY94; Sun, 26 Oct 2003 13:26:36 -0500
3.Received: from smtp.infonex.com(168.143.114.4) by
webshield.cihi.ca via csmap
4. id 5b0e07d4_07c0_11d8_898f_003048245df9_6133;
5. Sun, 26 Oct 2003 14:26:15 +0000 (UTC)
6.Received: from localhost (rigel2.cyberpass.net [168.143.113.102])
7. by smtp.infonex.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id C28EC34804F
8. for ; Sun, 26 Oct 2003 10:25:10 -0800 (PST)
9.Date: Sun, 26 Oct 2003 20:24:58 +0200
10.From:
11.Reply-To:
12.X-Priority: 3 (Normal)
13.Message-ID:
14.To:
15.Subject: Question for seller -- Item #3151688507
16.In-Reply-To:
17.References:
18.Mime-Version: 1.0
19.Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
20.Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
21.X-NAI-Spam-Sco 2.5
22.X-NAI-Spam-Level: **
23.X-NAI-Spam-Rules: 5 Rules triggered
24. PRIORITY_NO_NAME=1.2, MAILTO_LINK=1.2, NO_REAL_NAME=0.6,
25. EMAIL_ATTRIBUTION=-0.5, SIGNATURE_LONG_SPARSE=-0
16.X-NA
17.Hello rcabrita,
18.
19.Would you be interested in buying this new item now ? My prices
are
20.fair and I am willing to negotiate.
21.
22.You can do that instead of all bidding process which takes time
and
23.give you no reassurance you will win the item.
24.
25.Let me know at your earliest convenience, sir/madam.
16.
17.--
18.Best regards,
19.
20.Wtrade Ltd.
21.
22.Offices in Europe
23.Phone: 0034661051283, 00447747715980
24.E-mail:
25.Web: http://www.wtrade-shop.com

16.Friday, October 24, 2003, 10:49:54 PM, you wrote:
17.
18.rcc Need info on your sale of this item.
19.
20.rcc Cheers!
21.rcc scabrita
22.rcc --------------------
23.
24.
25.rcc Question from: scabrita
16.rcc Title of item: New Celestron Nexstar-11 GPS
Telescope
17.rcc Seller: topsalless
18.rcc Starts: Oct-24-03 02:41:14 PDT
19.rcc Ends: Oct-29-03 01:41:14 PST
20.rcc Price: Currently $102.50
21.rcc To view the item, go to:
22.rcc http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=3151688507

Look closely and you'll see that this e-mail originated from
rigel2.cyberpass.net e-mail server on line #6. The domain name
"cyberpass.net" is owned by Anonymizer,
http://www.anonymizer.com/docs/faqs/sshfaq.shtml, and used by
those who do not want to be found.

At his point it was enough for me conclude that this whole thing
was a scam. What's scary is that there are some unsuspecting buyers
that are going to get fleeced big time. I've contacted Ebay and
hopefully this listing will be taken down before the bidding closes.

As I was finishing this message I was alerted to two additional
listings of the exactly the same but with different seller id's
based out of Europe.

Let's get the word out and prevent some innocent folks from
getting taken in.

Cheers!
RC

PS: Check out this link on an Ebay antiques scam that is similiar
to this one:
http://www.maineantiquedigest.com/ar...3/indo0603.htm

At his point it was enough for me conclude that this whole thing
was a scam. What's scary is that there are some unsuspecting buyers
that are going to get fleeced big time. I've contacted Ebay and
hopefully this listing will be taken down before the bidding closes.

Nice work but note that the seller's feedback rating is *zero*. This
should raise enough of a red flag to dissuade 90% of potential buyers
from bidding. As for the remaining 10% who are naive enough to hazard
sending big money to a total stranger with no established reputation,
maybe it's best to let them learn a painful lesson so that they won't
be so innocent in the future.

Ritesh

Looks like, he has more N-11 scopes for sale, under different names.
Item number: 3153028245
Item number: 3153032842
Item number: 3153084878

A year ago I bid on one of these N-11, for $1500, Buy-it-now. Seller want it
me to send the money to Russia, with Western Union, to an address, than he
would ship me the new N-11 from New Jersey. After emailing him, he claimed,
he's a licensed telescope dealer from Texas.
Wow, what a RED flag. Talking about GLOBALIZATIONS.
After sending him more email with question, he disappeared, hehe. He never
got my money, but he may easily fool some younger heart.

Julius

"cepheuskappa" wrote in message
om...
Ok, here's the story:

To start off with, take a look at this listing on Ebay,

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tegory=31 745

I contacted an Ebay seller, topsalles, last week about the exact same
listing to purchase of Nexstar 11, Ebay #3151688507,
and received a response to purchase the item outside of Ebay.

If you check for item #3151688507 you'll notice that it
doesn't exist anymore leading one to believe that Ebay has taken
some action. This is an assumption that cannot be verified.

The e-mail from topsalless originated from a UK based company
whose website, www.wtrade-shop.com, was created on Oct.24,2003.
This is based on the Whois internet database
(http://www.networksolutions.com/en_US/whois/index.jhtml).
It looked really suspicious and I started to investigate it
further. As I dug deeper, it was looking more and more like a sham.

First, the Whois revealed the following about the website this
seller was associated with:

1.Registrant:
2.Mr sattam al noaim
3.17800 E Colima RD
4.Rowland Heights
5.CA
6.91748
7.US
8.
9.Domain Name: WTRADE-SHOP.COM
10.
11.Administrative Contact, Billing Contact:
12."Mr sattam al noaim"
13.Phone: 6267808183
14.Fax:
15.Technical Contact, Registrar:
16."Mr Easyspace Hostmaster"
17.Phone: +44 1932 350 097
18.Fax: +44 1932 350 222
19.
20.Record last updated on 2003-10-23.
21.Record expires on 2004-10-23.
22.Record created on 2003-10-23.

Ok, so we have a company in the UK, according to the website,
that was registered by someone in the US on Oct. 23, 2003.
Next, the contact for this fellow is through a yahoo account,
line #12, which makes it terribly difficult to track down
the individual. Lastly, on line #2, it shows a highly suspicious
name for the administrator based out of Southern California.

Now let's take a look at the e-mail that was sent to me from the
seller topsalles:

1.Received: from webshield.cihi.ca (smtp.infonex.com
[168.143.114.4]) by mailtor.cihi.ca with SMTP (Microsoft Exchange
Internet Mail Service Version 5.5.2655.55)
2. id 40R9DY94; Sun, 26 Oct 2003 13:26:36 -0500
3.Received: from smtp.infonex.com(168.143.114.4) by
webshield.cihi.ca via csmap
4. id 5b0e07d4_07c0_11d8_898f_003048245df9_6133;
5. Sun, 26 Oct 2003 14:26:15 +0000 (UTC)
6.Received: from localhost (rigel2.cyberpass.net [168.143.113.102])
7. by smtp.infonex.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id C28EC34804F
8. for ; Sun, 26 Oct 2003 10:25:10 -0800 (PST)
9.Date: Sun, 26 Oct 2003 20:24:58 +0200
10.From:
11.Reply-To:
12.X-Priority: 3 (Normal)
13.Message-ID:
14.To:
15.Subject: Question for seller -- Item #3151688507
16.In-Reply-To:
17.References:
18.Mime-Version: 1.0
19.Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
20.Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
21.X-NAI-Spam-Sco 2.5
22.X-NAI-Spam-Level: **
23.X-NAI-Spam-Rules: 5 Rules triggered
24. PRIORITY_NO_NAME=1.2, MAILTO_LINK=1.2, NO_REAL_NAME=0.6,
25. EMAIL_ATTRIBUTION=-0.5, SIGNATURE_LONG_SPARSE=-0
16.X-NA
17.Hello rcabrita,
18.
19.Would you be interested in buying this new item now ? My prices
are
20.fair and I am willing to negotiate.
21.
22.You can do that instead of all bidding process which takes time
and
23.give you no reassurance you will win the item.
24.
25.Let me know at your earliest convenience, sir/madam.
16.
17.--
18.Best regards,
19.
20.Wtrade Ltd.
21.
22.Offices in Europe
23.Phone: 0034661051283, 00447747715980
24.E-mail:
25.Web: http://www.wtrade-shop.com

16.Friday, October 24, 2003, 10:49:54 PM, you wrote:
17.
18.rcc Need info on your sale of this item.
19.
20.rcc Cheers!
21.rcc scabrita
22.rcc --------------------
23.
24.
25.rcc Question from: scabrita
16.rcc Title of item: New Celestron Nexstar-11 GPS
Telescope
17.rcc Seller: topsalless
18.rcc Starts: Oct-24-03 02:41:14 PDT
19.rcc Ends: Oct-29-03 01:41:14 PST
20.rcc Price: Currently $102.50
21.rcc To view the item, go to:
22.rcc http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=3151688507

Look closely and you'll see that this e-mail originated from
rigel2.cyberpass.net e-mail server on line #6. The domain name
"cyberpass.net" is owned by Anonymizer,
http://www.anonymizer.com/docs/faqs/sshfaq.shtml, and used by
those who do not want to be found.

At his point it was enough for me conclude that this whole thing
was a scam. What's scary is that there are some unsuspecting buyers
that are going to get fleeced big time. I've contacted Ebay and
hopefully this listing will be taken down before the bidding closes.

As I was finishing this message I was alerted to two additional
listings of the exactly the same but with different seller id's
based out of Europe.

Let's get the word out and prevent some innocent folks from
getting taken in.

Cheers!
RC

PS: Check out this link on an Ebay antiques scam that is similiar
to this one:
http://www.maineantiquedigest.com/ar...3/indo0603.htm