Hijackers Impersonating iSoldIt Franchisees' Drop Off Stores on eBay

Over the past 6 months we have found many iSoldIt franchisees' eBay accounts repeatedly hijacked by the usual eBay thieves. The iSoldIt franchisees are eBay trading assistants with drop off stores throughout the United States; there are approximately 100 of them.

Trading assistants do not own the merchandise that they are listing; they are listing items for others for a fee. Trading assistants like iSoldIt have possession of the item when they list it and complete transactions just like most eBay sellers do. They get paid by the winning bidder, do the shipping, resolve all customer service issues and leave feedback. The difference is that once the iSoldIt franchisees get paid, they then pay the sellers, less any fees and commissions that are incurred.

The commonality amongst all of these iSoldIt franchisees is that they use the same listing template on eBay with the iSoldIt logo.

eBay account names are similar and look like "isoldit." followed by a two character abbreviation for the state and a numeric store number.

Within each listing is quite a bit of boilerplate information regarding "Shipping", "Payment", "Frequently Asked Questions", and "About Us". There is also a physical store address, telephone number and email address for contact.

However, what is new and quite alarming is that the hijackers are now registering bogus domains and creating email addresses with the newly registered bogus domains to legitimize themselves so they can send out fake iSoldIt invoices via email. We have already seen fake iSoldIt invoices sent out to unsuspecting eBay members that unfortunately and unknowingly entered into off-eBay transactions.

The good news is that the hijackers have only registered fake domains for email purposes, and all of the fake domains, although still active, remain under construction. The bad news is that the domains are still active, and fake iSoldIt invoices are being emailed to unsuspecting eBay members who believe they have entered into legitimate transactions with iSoldIt franchisees. Until the fake domains are shut down by the registrar or host, the email addresses will remain viable, and will be used to deceive any eBay member that thinks the transaction he entered into is legitimate.

Below are the messages that were exchanged between an eBay member that was scammed and a hijacker who was posing as the owner of the item and the fake iSoldIt franchisee. Note the grammatical and spelling errors in the messages. Remember, iSoldIt franchisees are only located in the United States. Based on the scammer's poor grammar, it does not appear that he is from the United States.

From the victim:

Hello,

I am not really to much into embroidery, but for the price I can't beat it. No Reserve price and only $3.00 for ship that is great. I hope you bought insurance for the posting because it looks to have been posted wrong and I will not loose out on a deal like this for this machine even if it is a mistake in posting. It looks great.

From the hijacker:

Hello,

Thank you for your email. The reason i have asked to be contacted before bidding is that i want to sell it faster and i want to find a buyer immediately. You don`t have to bid and win the auction so you can buy it....if you are really interested i reserve the right to end the auction and make the transaction with you. Right now i am gone in my honeymoon in Hawaii but i hope that`s not going to be a prblem because i can still handle the transaction. When i left in my honeymoon, i left the item along with several other items in the custody of iSOLD It because i wanted to sell them when i get back, but something came up back home, something wrong with my mom and i decided to sell this one before i get back. So if you are still interested let me know because i can make the transaction immediately. Just let me know...

The price i am looking for is $1500 with shipping and handling included. If this is a reasonable price please let me know and i can make the transaction with you through eBay and i SOLD It, so the deal will be very legit and safe and will not be outside eBay. You will also have a 10 days return policy. If you have other questions please email me ASAP. I will also want you to reply either way so i will know what to do.

Regards,
Jeremy

From the fake iSoldIt franchisee:

Dear INTENTIONALLY DELETED,

Here is the invoice for your payment!.

The following is a notice from iSOLD It Trust & Safety regarding item: Renaissance 12 needle Commercial Embroidery Machine (200096896874)

This is an auto acknowledgement that has been sent to inform you that we have received your email message.

This email confirm that you, INTENTIONALLY DELETED, have paid the amount of US $1,500.00 using Western Union.

MTCN: INTENTIONALLY DELETED US $1,500.00

Sender's name and address:

INTENTIONALLY DELETED

Receiver's name:
Daniel Derolent

The payment's details are verified and confirmed and we will immediately proceed with the shipping. You will be contacted in maximum 24 hours with the shipping details. The shipping taxes are already paid.

Thank you for using iSOLD It.

For any further assistance please contact our trust and Safety Department at:
customer-support@isoldit-service.com
isoldit.info@isoldit-service.com

Thank you again for your time, we look forward to hear from you !

Sincerely,
iSOLD It

Please allow 24 hours for a reply. Emailing us prior to receiving our reply will result in an additional delay.

This message may contain confidential information. If you have received this communication in error, please understand that any dissemination or copying of this information is strictly prohibited!

From the fake iSoldIt franchisee:

Dear INTENTIONALLY DELETED,

Thank you for contacting i SOLD It.

The following is a notice from i SOLD It Trust & Safety regarding item: Renaissance 12 needle Commercial Embroidery Machine (200096896874)

We have received your payment information but unfortunately we wore unable to verify the payment details due the fact that the MTCN # is misspelled. Please double check the MTCN # from your Western Union receipt and resend the payment information.

Sincerely,

Lee Feldman
Director Franchise Support
iSold It, LLC
www.i-soldit.com
401 E. Huntington Dr..
Monrovia, CA 91016

Email: customer-support@isoldit-service.com
isoldit.info@isoldit-service.com

Privacy Notice:
This email and any attachments thereto are intended only for the parties indicated above. If you have received this email in error, please do not copy or forward the information contained here.

If this listing had been legitimate there would not have been any communication between the bidder and the seller, it would have been between the bidder and the iSoldIt franchisee, who is acting as a trading assistant on behalf of the owner of the item. The owner of the item is never disclosed within the eBay listing. We found it extremely odd that the hijacker decided to play two roles, and in his role as the owner of the embroidery machine, he stated that shipping and insurance were included, however, the boilerplate information provides a shipping and handling calculator.

Unfortunately, the eBay victim knew in advance and mentioned in her email message that the item was listed in the wrong category. The item listed in the wrong category with a low-ball opening bid, mention of "Buy It Now" without the actual "Buy It Now" button in the listing, the boilerplate information that contradicts the hijacker's email message, fake invoice, eBay member not bidding on the item, and payment requirement by Western Union, should have been sufficient red flags for the eBay member to recognize a scam and not complete the transaction. Unfortunately, she was impressed with the price and thought she was getting herself a bargain.

With some help from the administrator of the Company Exposed website, the following fake domains were located and can be found here. The fake iSoldIt domains are:

http://i-soldit-customer.com
http://i-soldit-customers.com
http://i-soldit-department.com
http://isoldit-department.com
http://i-soldit-online.com
http://isoldit-payments.com
http://isoldit-selling-department.com
http://i-soldit-service.com
http://isoldit-service.com
http://i-soldit-services.com
http://isoldit-services.com
http://i-soldit-store.com
http://i-soldit-stores.com
http://i-soldit-support.com
http://isolditebayauction.com
http://isolditebayauctions.com
There very well maybe more fake domains than what we are reporting, and if we find them we will update this blog entry. There are also at least 2 email addresses associated with each fake domain, and they can also be found on this blog.

We are alerting you to this information because we believe that this scam is just rolling out. Each legitimate iSoldIt franchisee has its own domain, and it looks like "www.isolditstore.com/###". After the slash mark ("/") is a store number.

Please use extreme caution if you are considering entering into a transaction with an iSoldIt franchisee. As we mentioned earlier, many of the franchisees have had their eBay accounts hijacked more than once. If you do bid on and win or use the "Buy It Now" feature on an eBay listing from an iSoldIt franchisee or anyone else, make sure that you receive an eBay end of auction notification message, and that it shows in your My eBay "Won" column and My Messages inbox. Do not just rely on the email messages that arrive in your registered email account's inbox. Verify that the contact information is correct on the eBay end of auction notification by locating the iSoldIt franchisee on iSoldIt's corporate website. If you are at all apprehensive, call the store to confirm the transaction; all of the store telephone numbers are on iSoldIt's corporate website.

All iSoldIt franchisees accept PayPal and credit cards. iSoldIt franchisees do not accept money orders, personal checks or money wires. Make sure that you pay for the listing with PayPal and only with a credit card for maximum protection. NEVER pay for eBay transactions via instant money transfer services such as Western Union or Moneygram.

Note: the iSoldIt logo is the property of iSoldIt.

****
On a side note, within the past 6 months, the writer of this blog has had the opportunity to contact 4 iSoldIt franchisees to inform each of them that their eBay accounts were hijacked. Prior experience has shown us that if we can contact the true eBay account holders by alternative means, that it can be faster to secure the hijacked accounts and take down the bogus eBay listings through direct member contact instead of through eBay's reporting mechanisms for hijacked accounts. Unfortunately, although the writer of this blog had the best of intentions, not all of the iSoldIt franchisees were receptive to receiving the unsolicited telephone calls. The opinion of this writer is that the franchisees were not aware that there are eBay members that voluntarily search for hijacked accounts in an effort to keep the eBay platforms free from fraud.

In one instance, the manager of a store accused the writer of this blog of being the hijacker. In two instances, both managers were panicked, but were already aware that their accounts were hijacked and were in contact with eBay's Live Help for Fraud group to rectify the problems. And, in the last instance, the owner of the store was more than willing to accept assistance, and stated that her eBay account was getting hijacked approximately once every two weeks, but didn't know why. The owner of this particular franchised store had very little computer experience and did not know about anti-virus and spyware protection programs.

We believe that the numerous iSoldIt account hijackings were because the franchisees' computers were infected with keyloggers from spyware or people were clicking on links in phishing ASQs or email messages, and entering their user IDs and passwords into fake eBay log-on pages. Under these scenarios, the hijackers were repetitively gaining access to iSoldIt franchisees' eBay passwords.

It appears that some, if not all of the iSoldIt franchisees lack the necessary computer knowledge to keep their computers safe and will continue to be prone to having their eBay accounts hijacked until they receive the proper computer education.

***UPDATE***
Here's another email message posted on a message board where the eBay member was in contact with an iSoldIt scammer regarding a trombone. The eBay member was unsure as to the legitimacy of the email message and luckily was convinced by others not to enter into the transaction. The email message is a complete lie and the intent is to bait someone naive to enter into the transaction.

Hello,

As i said in my first email i will explain how iSOLD it works because i want you to be clear on every aspect of this transaction. They are the number one selling service on eBay. You simply drop an item to one of their stores,you find a buyer and they will take care of the rest. When i left in my honeymoon i left 12 items for sale in their custody, they picked them up from my home so don`t ask at what store, or where the item is exactly because i don`t know...as long as they are handling the shipping and handling i don`t care where they are. I forgot to mention that the shipping is included in the price of sale. They offered me a discount on shipping because i am selling a large number of items and i can afford that.

So basically they have the item insured and ready for shipping. As soon as i will have your shipping details i will send it to them and they will start the transaction. They will email you with an invoice and payment instructions. You will have to send the payment to one of their agents by following the payment instructions. Then you will send the payment details to them, they will validate the transaction and will start the shipping ASAP. If you will have questions you can ask them directly.

Unfortunately the pick up is not possible because this is an urgent sale (like i said before i intended to sell this on eBay when i should have returned from my honeymoon but due to some recent problems back home i am forced to sell it now). iSOLD It suggested to offer a return policy because my offers would substantially increase so i am offering a 10 day guarantee. This eliminates the pick up option but you will have the time to inspect it and decide if you want it or not. If for any reason you decide not to keep it, they will give you a full refund and will return the item on my expense.

So if you agree with this terms and decide to proceed, then i will need your full name and shipping address in order to start the transaction.

Thank you

***AND ANOTHER ONE***
These email messages were just forwarded to the blog by another eBay member, that luckily did not get scammed. The scammer email messages all sound eerily similar. This scammer is also on his honeymoon, but this time he says he is in the United Kingdom.

Sat, 5 May 2007
From: "Gregory Chalmers"
Subject: Re: Question about shipping for item #260114191233 - EZGO GOLF CART
To: INTENTIONALLY DELETED

Hello,

Thank you for your email. The reason i have asked to be contacted before bidding is that i want to sell it faster and i want to find a buyer immediately. You don`t have to bid and win the auction so you can buy it....if you are really interested i reserve the right to end the auction and make the transaction with you. I am not in the country, right now i am in UK in my honeymoon but i will handle everything from over here so that will not be a problem. The price i am looking for is $2500 with shipping and handling included. If this is a reasonable price please let me know and i can make the transaction with you through eBay and i SOLD It, so the deal will be very legit and safe and will not be outside eBay. You will also have a 10 days return policy. If you have other questions please email me ASAP. I will also want you to reply either way so i will know what to do.

Regards,

Gregory

Sat, 5 May 2007
From: INTENTIONALLY DELETED
Subject: Re: Question about shipping for item #260114191233 - EZGO GOLF CART
To: gregorychalmers1@yahoo.com

Hello,

Very nice but this is too much for me. Thx for your answer.... Good luck for your auktion.

Sat, 5 May 2007
From: "Gregory Chalmers"
Subject: Re: Question about shipping for item #260114191233 - EZGO GOLF CART
To: INTENTIONALLY DELETED

How much you can offer me?

Sincerely,

Gregory

Sat, 5 May 2007
From: INTENTIONALLY DELETED
Subject: Re: Question about shipping for item #260114191233 - EZGO GOLF CART
To: gregorychalmers1@yahoo.com

Hello,

I only have about 1200€ to use; i dont think thats enough for the cart and the shipping. But thank you for answering me!

Mon, 7 May 2007
From: "Gregory Chalmers"
Subject: Re: Question about shipping for item #260114191233 - EZGO GOLF CART
To: INTENTIONALLY DELETED

Hi,

Let`s make the deal at 1200 Euros. Please let me know if you are ready to start the deal.

Sincerely,

Gregory

Mon, 7 May 2007
From: INTENTIONALLY DELETED
Subject: Re: Question about shipping for item #260114191233 - EZGO GOLF CART
To: gregorychalmers1@yahoo.com

Hi,

Wow ......are you serious? Thats great! Really enough for the cart and the shipping?

Tue, 8 May 2007
From: "Gregory Chalmers"
Subject: Re: Question about shipping for item #260114191233 - EZGO GOLF CART
To: INTENTIONALLY DELETED

Hi,

I will make the transaction using i SOLD It services...i SOLD It is the best selling service on eBay. They are guaranteed and recommended by eBay because they verify the sellers that are members with them and you will also have a 10 day return policy.

If you haven`t used i SOLD It before I will explain how they work:

They already have the item in their custody packed, insured and ready for shipping. They will contact you with all the details of this sale (they will send you an invoice ) and with the payment instructions. You will send the payment to one of their agents that is handling our transaction and after that you will send them the payment information so they can verify It. I will have to make you aware of the fact that i don`t know the agent name because they change it in every transaction for security reasons. As soon as they do that the shipping process will start. After you receive the item you will have a 10 day return policy, in this time you will have to decide if you accept it or not. If you do then you will notify them that you accept it so they can send me the payment. If not, they will give you a complete refund and return the item on my expense. We will also be able to leave feedback for each other after the transaction like it`s done on any genuine sale on eBay.

So please give me your full name and shipping address so i can have them contact you regarding the transaction.

Sincerely,

Gregory

Wed, 9 May 2007
From: INTENTIONALLY DELETED
Subject: Re: Question about shipping for item #260114191233 - EZGO GOLF CART
To: gregorychalmers1@yahoo.com

Hi,

My adress: INTENTIONALLY DELETED

Wed, 9 May 2007
From: "Gregory Chalmers"
Subject: Re: Question about shipping for item #260114191233 - EZGO GOLF CART
To: INTENTIONALLY DELETED

Hi,

i have received your information and i will forward them to i SOLD It right now and they will contact you with the payment instructions and your invoice so please let me know when have they contacted you so i will know that everything is in order.

Sincerely,

Gregory

We want to remind you again, if you are interested in an eBay listing from an iSoldIt store, you will NEVER have any contact with the person that actually owns the item. You will only be in contact with iSoldIt. iSoldIt does not disclose the identity of the owner of the item to potential buyers, and vice versa. iSoldIt franchisees are eBay trading assistants and only list on eBay, and NOT on any other Internet auction sites. If you find listings on Craigslist, Gumtree, Yahoo, etc. the listings are all scams and you should report them. Most importantly, if you do bid on an iSoldIt listing on eBay and you win it, the iSoldIt franchisees only accept PayPal and credit cards; iSoldIt franchisees do not accept any other forms of payment.