# Anybody know how to report a scam listing on eBay? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 23, 2021, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569 "2021-02-23T17:34:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2021, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/1 "2021-02-23T17:34:54Z")
I was unable to find such a link to report this listing > **[100 Pcs Seeds Japanese Monkey Face Orchid Bonsai Garden Plants Pot Flowers Q...](https://www.ebay.com/p/25041861500?iid=233753985187)** > > Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 100 Pcs Seeds Japanese Monkey Face Orchid Bonsai Garden Plants Pot Flowers Q at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products! ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2021, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/3 "2021-02-23T17:43:33Z")
There’s a Report Item link right above the description on desktop. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2021, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/4 "2021-02-23T18:06:49Z")
Hmmm. No such link shows on my Amazon fire tablet. My laptop doesn’t connect to WiFi, I’ll try again after get it fixed. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2021, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/5 "2021-02-23T19:34:26Z")
Well that is a terrifying looking flower. Here is the direct link to report the item, maybe this will work for you: [https://ocswf.ebay.com/rti/compose?items=233753985187&seller=proku-68&rt=nc&\_trksid=p2047675.l2566](https://ocswf.ebay.com/rti/compose?items=233753985187&seller=proku-68&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2566) ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2021, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/6 "2021-02-23T20:28:40Z")
I love how all of the other suggested items on the page are also obvious fake plants - including luffas painted to look like human breasts, a mauve tomato, ‘rainbow’ chrysanthemums (each flower being like the standard colour wheel), an ‘egret orchid’ which just has the neck and head of an actual bird clumsily pasted into the image, more monkey orchids with supposedly very realistic monkey faces and a watermelon with navy blue flesh. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2021, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/7 "2021-03-15T01:42:03Z")
I have reported obviously fraudulent plant and seed listings to eBay on the site and through their Facebook page. They won’t do anything about them. eBay evidently values profit from listings way more than protecting customers from scammers. As a general rule, avoid sellers of such material from China and adjacent nations, Russia and former Soviet republics. Even in the rare event such items are genuine, they could be confiscated by government inspectors in the recipients’ countries. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2021, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/8 "2021-03-15T02:54:45Z")
A seller sent me obviously fake Gummi Bears; I had ordered the genuine article & the listing had pictures of the genuine article. When I complained to E-Bay, the seller accused me of committing fraud. E-Bay didn’t do a whole lot of anything. I completely agree with this comment in the OP: > [@Jackmannii](#): > > eBay evidently values profit from listings way more than protecting customers from scammers. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2021, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/9 "2021-03-15T03:01:26Z")
Why do you say that is a scam? Googling Purple Giant Allium Giganteum dozens of similar pictures. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2021, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/10 "2021-03-15T03:52:09Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Why do you say that is a scam? Googling Purple Giant Allium Giganteum dozens of similar pictures He is talking about the Japanese Monkey Face Orchid Bonsai Garden Plants, I believe. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2021, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/11 "2021-03-15T03:53:44Z")
Yeah, those do look fake, fer sure. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2021, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/12 "2021-03-15T21:15:31Z")
Update: I submitted reports on all their fake stuff daily for a week. Zero results. I just feel sorry for the hortinoobs who are being scammed and discouraged ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2021, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/13 "2021-03-17T15:46:00Z")
Technically this may not count as a scam, but eBay has long had listings for bloodroot salves and powders. These are promoted by various alt med websites as a do-it-yourself means of removing warts and moles, since bloodroot is a caustic substance capable of burning through skin lesions. The problem is that despite claims made for it, the stuff is incapable of distinguishing between neoplastic and healthy tissue and can cause severe and disfiguring burns, as well as potentially leaving behind microscopic bits of the lesion, which if you misdiagnosed it as benign, could come back and kill you. Awhile back I complained to eBay about these sellers and got a response saying they were going to pull the listing I reported. I checked yesterday and there are still plenty of such listings, only the vast majority now are coy about what the product’s intended for and merely suggest that potential buyers check the Internet for uses. eBay in the interest of public health should just ban all such sales, but again, they don’t seem to care about the consequences. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2021, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/14 "2021-03-17T22:14:29Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > A seller sent me obviously fake Gummi Bears; I had ordered the genuine article & the listing had pictures of the genuine article. When I complained to E-Bay, the seller accused me of committing fraud. E-Bay didn’t do a whole lot of anything. I completely agree with this comment in the OP: Now that is unexpected. They have that whole money back guarantee situation. And it’s supposed to very much favor the buyer, essentially being automatic if the seller won’t work it out. It’s why sellers do a lot to try and keep the buyer happy. It doesn’t surprise me too much that eBay lets sellers get away with selling fake items—I’ve heard the stories about the fake graphics cards, and I remember buying Photoshop CS2 back in the day and only getting a cracked copy on CD. But the buyer protection is supposed to be quite good there, to the point that sellers will complain about how eBay automatically sides with the buyer. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2021, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/15 "2021-03-18T00:51:46Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Now that is unexpected. They have that whole money back guarantee situation. And it’s supposed to very much favor the buyer, essentially being automatic if the seller won’t work it out. It’s why sellers do a lot to try and keep the buyer happy. > > It doesn’t surprise me too much that eBay lets sellers get away with selling fake items—I’ve heard the stories about the fake graphics cards, and I remember buying Photoshop CS2 back in the day and only getting a cracked copy on CD. But the buyer protection is supposed to be quite good there, to the point that sellers will complain about how eBay automatically sides with the buyer. To Hell with the sellers whining about how unfair it is to them. The buyer protection, in my experience, was a joke. A decent person is a decent seller. A decent seller doesn’t pull scams. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2021, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/16 "2021-03-18T20:34:07Z")
which items did you think were fake and why? ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2021, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/17 "2021-03-19T19:11:51Z")
They list several flowering plants that don’t exist outside the land of Photoshoppia. Because I’ve been involved with plants, personally and professionally, for about 50 years. To the point where it annoys me when I’m watching a period movie and the set is dressed with cultivars that didn’t exist back then 😅 ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2021, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/18 "2021-03-20T13:57:34Z")
There must be hundreds if not thousands of such listings. For example, color me skeptical that the fantastic Plumerias on eBay actually exist. I’ve grown Plumerias and seen plenty of legit catalog listings, but none remotely like this. [https://www.ebay.com/itm/5-Blue-Green-Plumeria-Seeds-Plants-Flower-Flowers-Perennial-Seed-196-US-SELLER-/184010132068](https://www.ebay.com/itm/5-Blue-Green-Plumeria-Seeds-Plants-Flower-Flowers-Perennial-Seed-196-US-SELLER-/184010132068) ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2021, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/19 "2021-03-20T17:25:45Z")
Yes they are targeted at noobies because anyone with a lick of knowhow will recognize them as fake ---
**Author:** ![mordecaiB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mordecaib/32/7725_2.png) [@mordecaiB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mordecaiB)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2021, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/20 "2021-03-22T06:53:28Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > For example, color me skeptical that the fantastic Plumerias on eBay actually exist. I’ve grown Plumerias and seen plenty of legit catalog listings, but none remotely like this. But it’s from the US! Surely a fellow American would not list a fake plant! ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-know-how-to-report-a-scam-listing-on-ebay/933569/21 "2021-05-23T19:56:42Z")
> **[Dangerous eBay listings can be removed by regulators](https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-57021383)** > > A new set of tools will let some regulators pull items from sale on eBay without company approval. Now if they could do something about obvious scams…