# Gameest paypal scam, how can paypal let this go on?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [May 15, 2015, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140 "2015-05-15T22:30:04Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 10\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\
**Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140/1 "2015-05-15T22:30:04Z")

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> **[Dofus Kamas, Buy Mabinogi Gold, Cheap Vindictus Gold for Sale](https://www.gameim.com/)**
>
> Gameim provides players' needs. For examples: Dofus Kamas, Mabinogi Gold, RuneScape Gold. Gameim will provide you game gold, money farming, or power leveling services at a competitive price. Buying from us will be enjoyable.

[paypal@gameest.com](mailto:paypal@gameest.com)

Tried to buy credits for IMVU online game for a young relative through paypal, they said they knew this site was legit.:smack:\<me=idiot Should have googled!

Yup total scam, all over the damn internet going back to 2012, they jerk you around in chat and even asked me for the login and password to my account WTF?

AND here is the crazy part people who have filed paypal disputes all say paypal ruled against them citing they do not do charge backs for digital goods. I’m still doing it but so I can collect money for a digital good, never deliver shit and paypal won’t rule in your favor?

Sequence of events is pay for credits and enter game username info with promise they come instantly. They don’t, go to live chat and play jerk me around for a couple days still with no credits.

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**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\
**Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140/2 "2015-05-15T22:38:33Z")

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Just one scam site on them:

[http://www.scambook.com/company/reports/45198/Gameest-Intl-Network/p/4](http://www.scambook.com/company/reports/45198/Gameest-Intl-Network/p/4)

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**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2015, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140/3 "2015-05-16T01:06:32Z")

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**Moderator Action**

I don’t see a question here, and this is far too mild for the Pit.

Moving thread from General Questions to Mundane Pointless Stuff I Must Share.

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**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2015, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140/4 "2015-05-16T06:32:17Z")

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> [@grude](#):
>
> [http://www.gameim.com/](http://www.gameim.com/)
> 
> [paypal@gameest.com](mailto:paypal@gameest.com)
> 
> Tried to buy credits for IMVU online game for a young relative through paypal, they said they knew this site was legit.:smack:\<me=idiot Should have googled!
> 
> Yup total scam, all over the damn internet going back to 2012, they jerk you around in chat and even asked me for the login and password to my account WTF?
> 
> AND here is the crazy part people who have filed paypal disputes all say paypal ruled against them citing they do not do charge backs for digital goods. I’m still doing it but so I can collect money for a digital good, never deliver shit and paypal won’t rule in your favor?
> 
> Sequence of events is pay for credits and enter game username info with promise they come instantly. They don’t, go to live chat and play jerk me around for a couple days still with no credits.

Not quite getting it. You have to PAY to play games online?

Aren’t there any free games to play?

Off topic, is there any way to get your relative to absorb the loss?

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**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\
**Post date:** [May 16, 2015, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140/5 "2015-05-16T17:42:21Z")

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> [@kaylasdad99](#):
>
> Not quite getting it. You have to PAY to play games online?
> 
> Aren’t there any free games to play?
> 
> Off topic, is there any way to get your relative to absorb the loss?

Oh definitely! Its on them.

But what floors me is how paypal simply says no refunds on digital goods,even when they aren’t even provided! Hell of a loophole scammers can exploit.

Create website selling app that makes your tablet twice as fast etc.

Collect paypal, send nothing.

PROFIT!

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**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2015, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140/6 "2015-05-17T00:50:57Z")

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PayPal was probably losing money hand-over-fist from scammers. There was nothing they could do to stop it - people were still falling for scams. So they finally said “You’re on your own, people. If you fall for a scam, your money is gone, not ours.”

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**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2015, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140/7 "2015-05-17T01:10:04Z")

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Is buying credits in this way against the terms of service for the game in question?

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**Author:** ![LurkerInNJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@LurkerInNJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkerInNJ)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2015, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140/8 "2015-05-17T22:54:06Z")

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Digital goods are not covered by Purchase Protection, but if you use a credit card to fund the purchase your credit card will let you do a chargeback.

Any time I use my PayPal debit card or PayPal account for an ineligible purchase under the Purchase Protection section of the User Agreement, I make sure I am using a credit card as my funding source and not my checking account or cash in my PayPal account just in case I have a problem.

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**Author:** ![LurkerInNJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@LurkerInNJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkerInNJ)\
**Post date:** [May 17, 2015, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140/9 "2015-05-17T23:04:34Z")

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> [@grude](#):
>
> But what floors me is how paypal simply says no refunds on digital goods,even when they aren’t even provided! Hell of a loophole scammers can exploit.

Hell of a loophole buyers can exploit also.

Buy digital goods, download, open a claim with PayPal and get your money back.

They are really clear in their TOS about digital goods having no protection for purchasers.

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**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\
**Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gameest-paypal-scam-how-can-paypal-let-this-go-on/720140/10 "2015-05-18T02:30:31Z")

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> [@grude](#):
>
> But what floors me is how paypal simply says no refunds on digital goods,even when they aren’t even provided! Hell of a loophole scammers can exploit.

There’s not much more they can do. There’s no effective way to verify whether a digital good was delivered, and Paypal really doesn’t want to be in the business of adjudicating disputes. So they either say there are no refunds, or they say no sales. Obviously, the latter results in a lot less money for Paypal.

And, as you note, it’s tough to pull this scam effectively for very long, since the internet provides a pretty good reputation system.