Why is Amazon even selling new iPhones from sources other than Apple? That's eBay's job.
Looking on Amazon, I'm not seeing any iPhone 6 sellers other than Apple.
Scammers Game Amazon A-Z Policy By Replacing iPhones With Clay
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Re: Scammers Game Amazon A-Z Policy By Replacing iPhones With Clay
#12I can't believe that this works at all. I imagine that between an established seller and a brand new buyer, Amazon would be on the side of the seller. In the cases where the buyer wins, who pays the cost of the device (the seller or Amazon)?
It's difficult to have a policy or heuristic here. If you side with "trusted" sellers, then it all hinges on what your definition of "trusted" is. Scammers will behave themselves until they are considered to be trustworthy, and then start to cash out by shipping clay iPhones.
Re: Scammers Game Amazon A-Z Policy By Replacing iPhones With Clay
#13It is also possible that the buyer is a seller of iPhones and is trying to get rid of competition.
Re: Scammers Game Amazon A-Z Policy By Replacing iPhones With Clay
#14The only solution is a verifying third party. Postal service could offer this for a fee to make some easy money.
Re: Scammers Game Amazon A-Z Policy By Replacing iPhones With Clay
#15I wonder if the postal services could create an additional service which calculates a heat map of the weight distribution for the package. You could then very accurately I imagine determine if there is actually an iPhone in there, and if someone shows a photo of clay it will be obvious they are scamming if the weight distribution passed as an iPhone distribution during transit.
Re: Scammers Game Amazon A-Z Policy By Replacing iPhones With Clay
#16I'm going to guess this only works with sellers that aren't fulfilled by Amazon? It's an annoyingly effective scam: How can sellers protect themselves?
Some shipper has to provide verified shipment as a service: you packaged will be opened, a photo will be taken of the content and it will be packed and sealed by the shipper.
Re: Scammers Game Amazon A-Z Policy By Replacing iPhones With Clay
#17I've had a similar thing happened to me a few years back when I sold a no longer needed but still unopened Windows Vista DVD that I purchased directly from MS Store (on Microsoft campus). The buyer returned the package, but the returned merchandize was clearly counterfeit. The box was of a light material, missing holograms, faded colors etc. The buyer's history was full of similar purchases.
I've been careful about documenting shipments since. Overall, I am reluctant to sell on Amazon these days because of the A-Z guarantee, which is only sustainable for large sellers.
Fraud is a sticky problem at scale. A few bad actors poison the well for everyone. As a buyer I appreciate Amazon's policies, but as an occasional seller I find them completely draconian. There is very little you can do to contest a decision against you.
Re: Scammers Game Amazon A-Z Policy By Replacing iPhones With Clay
#18There are a couple hypotheses the author hasn't considered. It's possible the buyer stole the phone, yes, but it's also possible that it was a warehouse company employee, a shipping company employee, or a previous buyer who made a return.
It's true, there are other possibilities. I found the given explanation most likely though: iPhones are all sold by 3rd party sellers on Amazon, so the alternatives you suggest likely wouldn't present as several buyers reporting on a single product that has multiple seller locations.
Re: Scammers Game Amazon A-Z Policy By Replacing iPhones With Clay
#19I wonder if the postal services could create an additional service which calculates a heat map of the weight distribution for the package. You could then very accurately I imagine determine if there is actually an iPhone in there, and if someone shows a photo of clay it will be obvious they are scamming if the weight distribution passed as an iPhone distribution during transit.
One could then return broken iPhones. There needs to be stronger verification.
Re: Scammers Game Amazon A-Z Policy By Replacing iPhones With Clay
#20I remember this being big on ebay days. How can retailers like Amazon/Ebay verify neither sellers nor buyers are not getting scammed? I cant think of any solution except intercept all packages and make sure the actual product is there.
Third party escrow / verification for extra pay.