Fake autographed memorabilia

[stockton-no.1]

It's clear there's a lot of scammers on Ebay selling fake autographed memorabilia but I've noticed one person in particular who sells at least 150 items a time then disappears, then reappears under a new account selling the same (but different) items all over again. I've reported these items many times, even messaged the person but nothing happens. He's robbing hundreds if not thousands of pounds off innocent people. What can I do to stop this cause Ebay are clearly not bothered?

[tsmgmd]

If anybody is daft enough to by these items by just seeing a picture and without any way of having the item authenticated by a expert they might as well go outside and stick there money down the drain. 

The eBay MBG scheme is there but if you don't buy these high risk items you don't need it. 

[stockton-no.1]

Totally agree but people still do buy them. It's no good Ebay having a link to a policy that no one is going to look for. People just see the item and want it because they take it as being genuine. Warnings on all these items should be in place. These scammers are making thousands and Ebay take their cut aswell. Where's the duty of care?

[plpmr]

As eBay never see the items it's impossible for them to make a decision.

Possibly the only way would be for eBay to only allow accredited dealers/sellers to sell on eBay?

It's really impossible, even for an expert, to tell from a picture – unless it's an impossibility as listed last year, a signed postcard that was only issued after the person in question was dead.

“authenticated by a expert” can also be very wrong and for criminal reasons. [https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1985-09-30-8503070069-story.html#:~:text=The%20investigat...]

[red_magpie]

Have you read eBay's policy on autographed items? If not, see: https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/prohibited-restricted-items/autographed-items?id=4283&st=12&pos...

This is one of the very few cases where even eBay admits that autographs are easily faked, and urges buyers to be careful.

The mistake you're making is to imagine that it's your role to protecting other buyers. It isn't. EBay is famously reluctant to remove items just on the say-so of other members. However, they do give very clear guidance to buyers about buying autographs, and if an item isn't as described the buyer can use eBay's money back guarantee.

[stockton-no.1]

And this makes it all ok??. It might not be my role but it breaks my heart when innocent people are paying their hard earned money for **bleep**. Ebay should have more in place to stop this.

[*vyolla*]

Just to play Devil's Advocate here, if the buyer thinks that they've got the autograph they wanted, what does it matter?

If anyone buys an autograph and they've not seen the person sign it or there's no provenance, it's a chance they take. Anyone with a sharpie can forge a signature. There must be over thousand Bowie signatures out there that myself and various other record label personnel hastily scribbled for a competition that went a bit wrong.

[rusticrye]

Ebay can't take your word for it - you could be a competitor trying to bring the seller down, or simply a vindictive buyer.

If the seller is a UK business seller, or a business illegally trading on private accounts, report your suspicions to Trading Standards. TS will investigate and advise Ebay accordingly.

In any case, every buyer is protected by Ebay's Money Back Guarantee or PayPal's buyer protection should they discover they've been sold a fake.

[stockton-no.1]

Thanks for the reply. I'm not a competitor, just a collector which is how I've noticed this person. The money back guarantee doesn't stop him selling in the first place and how many of his items are actually going to be found out. Not everyone is in the know about fake autographs. He does have a fair bit of negative feedback about it but only on his old account's which is not helpful when he's setting up new ones each time he has a run of selling.