What is Digg?126 Comments
- synthesist, on 10/12/2007, -13/+45how will digging this stop scammers
heck, the thought of being put in jail doesn't stop them.... - Takteek, on 10/12/2007, -4/+30Well, it won't stop them, but it will get the information out so less people will be tricked.
- andreo, on 10/12/2007, -5/+28Well, I took a look on Ebay and they are being sold. However when looking at 3 of the seller descriptions they all mention that the drive may not work. One even said that when they tested the drive it didn't work and all the files that were copied was empty. That however didn't stop one person from bidding the drive up to $107. What's that saying about a fool and his money?
- Takteek, on 10/12/2007, -1/+16I did read everything carefully, and I was still tricked. The flash drive that I purchased was advertised as a new, unopened 1 GB Sony Micro-vault. The seller had 100% positive feedback and everything looked legitimate. I didn't even doubt the product for 1 second when it arrived. The package looked exactly like a package that Sony would make and the drive even came with a lanyard that had "SONY" stamped all over it.
I only first started to question the drive when it stopped working 1 week after I bought it. I inspected the package closely and realized that it looked slightly unprofessional. There were spaces missing between words in a few places, and the picture of the drive itself looked blurry. This is when I checked the memory chip inside the drive, and it was indeed a 64 MB chip. - Takteek, on 10/12/2007, -3/+17If it looks like any of the pictures on this page, then it is most likely fake:
http://reviews.ebay.com.au/Beware-of-FAKE-1GB-2GB-4GB-8GB-USB-Flash-Drives-on-eBay_W0QQugidZ10000000000706427 - Vill4no, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10As a former Sandisk employee counterfeit flash drives is a very prevalent issue when purchasing on ebay, especially w/ the 4 gig and 8 gig flash drives, people would get flash drives w/ decreased capacity or corrupted data that can't be deleted even w/ formatting.
Signs for a counterfeit Sandisk flash drive are serial numbers starting w/ numbers instead of letters, unable to install Cruzer Lock2 encryption software (available on sandisk.com), and if your paying $20 for a 8 gig flash drive. - hater2win, on 10/12/2007, -2/+12To add to it, this is happening with all sorts of memory. I bought a 2 Gigabyte Sandisk Memory Stick Pro Duo on ebay, broke on me 15 minutes later. It was the same as these flashdrives, fake and unusable.
- BritOverseas, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9That is not the only way, nor the best. The best way is to buy from a reputable seller. If you buy from somebody who has "Incredible" deals at 50% less than anybody else and they only have 4 feedback then you deserve to lose your money, that is just stupid.
I try to buy from people that at least have good feedback in the hundreds, if not thousands. Feedback on Ebay is much harder to fake than the ***** ratings system you see on pricegrabber or any of those other comparison sites.
But, there will always be fools and people who think it is possible to get something that is worth $200 for $20.
(psssttt, it IS possible, just find your local crack whore and get her to steal one for a rock) - throwaway18, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9You can help by reporting counterfeit items like this to ebay.
help->contact us->listing violations->Breach of counterfeits and copyright[SIC]->potential trademark infringement->other counterfeit items->paste in the item numbers
You can also report junk like the "free link don't bid" autions that want you to pay money outside ebay to join a pyramid scheme where in theory when 10000 other people have joined you will get an ipod/plasma tv/etc but in practise the scammer runs off with your money. - pmr12002, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Interesting Read. Synthesist digging this will make people more aware of the scam and therefore less likely to buy the counterfeit drives.
- TargetDigg, on 10/12/2007, -3/+11If you've ever had to use their "insurance" (note sarcastic quotes) you know that you are virtually without protection. You're much better off buying off another site.
- acariquara, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7other fake drives... please report them too
http://cgi.ebay.com/SONY-8-GB-USB-2-0-FLASH-DRIVE-8-GIG-8G-8GB-MEMORY-STICK_W0QQitemZ8775991462QQcategoryZ99247QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
http://cgi.ebay.com/SONY-8-GB-USB-2-0-FLASH-DRIVE-8-GIG-8G-8GB-MEMORY-STICK_W0QQitemZ8776766842QQcategoryZ99247QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7People are afraid to give negative feedback, because they will get revenge feedback. I got ripped off once, and left him a negative comment, then he left one for me saying I was a liar and impatient. Thats contradicting! I think a month of him not answering emails or returning the money to my paypal is pretty patient! He ended up deleting his account, proving me and a few other recent purchasers were right about him. But the negative is still on my account, and I was the good guy. He now has my money, the returned item, and a tarnish on my record. Sigh.
- zyphbear, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8I still Dugg the story due to the usefulness, but PLEASE make a note in the title to say that it is a PDF file, just like many people make a note saying when there is a video or large file. Example: [PDF] or [Video] or [100MB File], etc
- BusyME, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6A agree. The PDF file is more than a little messed up....I'd rather go to a blog to read about it, even if it was just the one article on blogger. Jeez.
- aquax, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8I wonder what happens when you plug these fake drives in to a Mac. Do they report the faked size, or the actual size?
- bitt3n, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7you mean diggnity?
- ZMerlin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Yeah, that PDF business killed my FireFox =(
Ok, so why hasn't anyone mentioned the feedback system? Can't you just get your flash drive, and after a week, when it fails, give them bad feedback? I have found that people will do anything on eBay to avoid bad feedback ... It "kills" their perfect profile, and often they feel like they need to start from scratch again. And all for a lousy $20 or whatever on a Flash drive. - antdude, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5For those who hates PDF, use HTML version with Google (no images): http://72.14.207.104/search?q=cache:XYvDIwSDCNUJ:www.seoulcc.org/consumer-alert-sony/Report_on_Sony_Thumb_Drives.pdf+&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=1
- KineticFlow, on 10/12/2007, -4/+9Digg for accuracy. I had experiences.. 512mb my ass, mine overheated in 5 seconds and failed. Good waste of $30... But WHY PDF? T_T
- KayMan2k, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6I'm sorry, but if you win an auction from eBay and the item you recieved isn't as described then contact eBay and inform them of the problem. At least eBay will realize the user is a probably scammer and might cancel his account in the near future. If you payed by credit card, place a stop payment. If you payed by PayPal then submit a claim with them. If you payed by some other means, you should know better than to pay with cash or a cash equivalent. You can also report the scammer to the FBI's eCommerce fraud department at IC3 http://www.ic3.gov/.
As others have mentioned, if the articles describes the product "as is" or "for parts" or "is broken" then just don't bid. Remember kids, friends don't let friends bid without reading the description. - weiran, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4When I go on eBay, I always think: "If it's too good to be true, it probably is."
- acariquara, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Catch the scammer!
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/SONY-USB-Mini-Pen-Drive-8-GIG-NOT-YET-IN-AUS_W0QQitemZ8775770825QQcategoryZ111503QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem - Googled, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Aw! Dude please warn of PDF files. There evil and love to crash FF..
+digg anyway - Kev585, on 10/12/2007, -7/+10Shill Bidding
- torindkflt, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I bought my very first USB ThumbDrive off of eBay a few years ago. It was small, only 32MB, so it was cheap ($15 if I remember correctly). Although I have since gotten a larger 256MB one from NewEgg, the one I bought from eBay still works. Check the seller reviews and ratings, and do your homework before buying.
As for what good digging this story will do...remember PriceRitePhoto? The initiative that got them shut down started with a single entry posted on here. - n3tfury, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3try the foxit pdf reader : http://www.foxitsoftware.com/pdf/rd_intro.php
super light and ultra quick. - dlichteman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3We actually had a few of these at my work(computergeeks). When we got them in they were a REALLY good deal and we were like no way, and then one of the purchasers ran in said that he thought they were counterfit. Turns out that they were.....they were supposedly 2gb....didnt hold any data.... Also the name was "ScanDisk" not "SanDisk"......
So be careful and make sure you know what you are buying!!!!!! - Googled, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Everyone report these scammers and get the listings taken off
http://pages.ebay.com.au/help/contact_us/_base/index_4.html?tier0=report_listing.js&item=8775770825 - serra, on 10/12/2007, -9/+12Bad commenter, no all caps!
- ToadX, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5My friend bought a 4 GB Sony flash drive in China for like $20. Gee. I wonder if it could be fake.
- serra, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Hmm, one guy has his feedback marked as private. The other guy has hid bidders ids marked as private. That should tell everyone something. I don't bid on anything when it's all shady like that.
- lalindsey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I think the ebay rating system needs to be modified. For one, they will let you leave feedback, and the other person and the rest of the world can see it immediately. So this leads to revenge feedback like the other person mentioned. It should work as it does on some freelancing sites -- where once the project (auction) is completed the seller/buyer both leave feedback, but the feedback isn't made available until BOTH parties do so. This would kill revenge feedback, encourage buyers and sellers to immediately leave feedback ,etc. I've bought tons of things off of ebay and always left immediate feedback for my sellers. Unfortunately, not nearly enough have returned that favor.
PS. I think that people should not be scared to use ebay. Not everyone is scammers. You just need to make educated bids.
Andthe friggin' newbs need to stop bidding things up so much. If everyone waited to bid the last few moments things would go for a hell of a lot cheaper. - MaSC, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2That first link on your second post is the best. The guy even says he is convinced that the drive is fake, yet he sells it as a 8gig and gets 11 diggs?!!? If you are going to pay that much money surely you would scan the text of the posting, geez.
and the second:
...Iam selling it for my friend and dont know if it works or not. Absolutely no warranty no returns, its up to you to place a bid . ...
I don't understand these people... - jonesin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Who would buy a flash drive off ebay? That seems like a really dumb idea.
- xLiKx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2why on earth would you feel the need to buy a flash drive on ebay? their prices have dropped significantly in retail stores. if you do go on ebay, check their feedback to make sure you're not getting scammed. people should also do some research before they bid on non-existent products.
- GeniusCube, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I bet they dont install invasive DRM software though :p
- fiend.lord, on 10/12/2007, -6/+8pdf....OUCH
- DanThe1Man, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3I bought a 4GB MMCplus card on eBay a week ago, and I'm glad I DIDN'T see this story when it came by ups. On windows it only formatted to less then 1GB, but I figured it was just the card reader didn't accept the plus type. I ordered a reader that said it worked with MMCplus not just MMC and it worked perfectly. Make sure that doesn't happen to you before you call out some Innocent eBay seller because you have unsupported hardware.
- EmmEff, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Thanks again for their contribution to the global economy. You guys should be proud!
- paulius, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Digging it will make people more and more aware of this issue maybe up to a point that they will stop selling such counterfeit products.
Information is power, and you can indirectly help to solve a problem by making more people aware of it and take action. - jaderobbins, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2i wonder that as well, whenever i get free USB drives from microsoft or dell i always plug them into my linux box before the windows one :D
- guimonkey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I tell my wife when she is buying a purse on eBay, would you buy this on Yonge Street for this price? Same goes for the flash drives, if you saw some guy on the street selling these drives for this price would you buy them?
It's been said many times already but you get what you pay for. Personally I would never trust any of my data on knock-off of anything just as I would never put a cheap compact flash card in my camera for fear of losing my photos. Is it really worth saving a few bucks? - JakeMcMahon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2digg++ for good cause
digg-- for .pdf
meh - sqrlproductions, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2There are organized, scam rings that "inflate" feedback scores. Positive feedback are traded/sold for as little US$0.01/feedback. A couple of US$10, and a scammer can have a "reputable" feedback record -- heck maybe even a "powerseller."
- BritOverseas, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2There is a physical limitation to the amount of single files you can put in one directory, try splitting up your files into folders, that should work.
- wendyalison, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3As a Chinese myself, I am saddened (even a bit angry) by the fact that people from my country need to resolve to such dishonesty to make a living. The fact is, as long as poverty and censorship ensues in China, there's going to be fake products proliferating from their factories. I'm sure a lot of us have heard of fake foodstuff (even fake eggs before), so it does not surprise me they find a way to make fake USB flash drives. Yet, not only ebayers or Americans get cheated, even people in the mainland are duped by their own people...and it's all for an extra bowl of rice to feed their family.
Anyway, if you're a constant ebayer, I think you should know how to protect yourself. I never trust getting things from China even if the price is a whopping good deal. For one, shipping takes either a huge fee or takes forever. Another reason is that most of those seller ratings are low, they don't speak very well English and they don't bother to keep their reputation by offering any customer service whatsoever. And then, if you need to refund your item (i.e. if they offer you any refund options), you're only pulling more money out of your pockets for shipping abroad. So in a nutshell, when shopping on eBay, follow these simple rules (if they're not obvious already)
1. Check seller's feedback (I never trade with somebody below 97% positive rating)
2 Always sift through their negative feedback and see how they respond, a generic/automated response for all neutral/negative feedback means that seller most likely didn't even care to remedy the situation.
3. Ask questions before you buy, if they don't answer it, then you can move on to other sellers/auctions. Most of the time, I don't even bother with too good to be true auctions or listings that barely spell out all the necessary information for buyers (that includes (but not limited to) shipping info, refund policy, contact numbers should something go wrong, whether there's going to be hidden charges)
4. Never buy from a seller with fuzzy pictures or no pictures at all.
5. Take time to research the item, see if there's actually one from the manufacturer and if there's been any issues or constant complaints from buyers who bought the same thing.
6. If it's something you need and cannot do without, don't get it from ebay. Newegg, in my opinion, is a reputable online store for computer stuff you can try as an alternative to eBay
AND IF THIS HASN'T SLAPPED RIGHT IN YOUR FACE ALREADY, DO NOT BID FROM EBAYERS FROM CHINA OR SE ASIA UNLESS THEIR FEEDBACK SCORE IS 99% OR ABOVE. - irrision, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Has anyone ever heard of feedback? If you actually verify the person you are purchasing from before you send them money you wouldn't run into these problems... Its the same with anything else on ebay. This article probably could have easily been writen about the number of scammers selling "ipods" that they don't even have in large quantities for a week then skipping town. I've known people that have been caught by that scam too. The scammers tend to use stolen accounts in those instances (Maybe with these flashdrives too). The telltale sign is they will have maybe 10-50 feedback all of which is pretty old and 10+ auctions going at the moment. Most people just don't sell on ebay for a half a year then suddenly decide to sell a pile of "wholesale" ipods or anything for that matter.
- lalindsey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2He obviously didn't read the listing. I can't believe the amount of people who look at the pictures, glance over the listing and bid hundreds of dollards. It's like the Xbox 360 box scam all over again.
- AltDelete, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Ugh. Alright, I admit - I was one of those idiots who bought a "4 Gig" Flash Drive, only to have it die days later. I know it seems silly to digg a story to "Stop the Spammers", but honestly if I would have seen a Digg article about this before I bought, I would have done my homework and discovered the fraud.
Digg this story and save a sucker like me ^_^ -
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