Fake (SD/SSD/ect) Memory on eBay

dmc900 on 27/09/2010 - 16:00

Regarding posted bargain "32GB Sandisk MicroSD Card $15.77" @ http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/31531 (see my post at the bottom).

I purchased my memory from a different seller at an earlier date, cost me $17.99.
Received it a couple of days ago run "H2testw" a free accurate/reliable memory card testing software.
Available at http://download.heise.de/software/8d7387766f8fc44d8f8bdf85b0…

I tested the Kingston 32GB Class 6 SD Memory card and got the following results.

TEST RESULTS FROM H2TESTW

Warning: Only 31986 of 31987 MByte tested.
The media is likely to be defective.
1.8 GByte OK (3919744 sectors)
29.3 GByte DATA LOST (61587584 sectors)
Details: 29.3 GByte overwritten (61587520 sectors)
0 KByte slightly changed (< 8 bit/sector, 0 sectors)
32 KByte corrupted (64 sectors)
2 MByte aliased memory (4096 sectors)
First error at offset: 0x0000000032f12000
Expected: 0x0000000032f12000
Found: 0x0000000032f10100
H2testw version 1.3
Writing speed: 2.91 MByte/s
Reading speed: 4.88 MByte/s
H2testw v1.4

Clearly stating it as a FAKE.

Physically the card was made of cheap plastic, the label on the front looks stuck on incorrectly proportioned.

The results confirm it's a fake imitation.
While the speeds are slower than a Class 2 and it's labeled as a Class 6.
The data is labeled as a 32gb but only 1.8GB is writable.

Relieved that I had Paypal on my side I made a complaint and got the following message.

============================================

You can get a refund

Transaction ID: 8Y097404UX26XXXX
Hello,

We're investigating the following claim:

Seller's Name:
Seller's Email: [email protected]
Seller's Transaction ID: 8Y097404UX2680642

Transaction Date: 11 Sep 2010
Transaction Amount: -$17.99 AUD
Your Transaction ID: 0PR20145MD85XXXXX
Case Number: PP-001-080-258-XXX

Buyer's Transaction ID: 0PR20145MD8546XXX

We have determined that you are eligible for a return of your funds for
this PayPal transaction.

However, in order for us to return those funds, you must:
- send back the purchased item (within ten calendar days of receiving this
email) to the seller at your expense; and
- the purchased item must be received by the seller in the same condition
as you received it.

The amount you are eligible for is based on the terms of PayPal's Buyer
Protection Policy. We may not be able to repay the full amount of your
transaction in certain circumstances where the amount of your transaction
exceeds the maximum amount covered under the Buyer Protection Policy.
Please review the Buyer Protection Policy in our User Agreement before
sending the item back to the seller.

You are responsible for the postage and packing costs of returning the
purchased item to the seller and these are not covered by PayPal's Buyer
Protection.

Next steps:

Step 1 -
Return the item to the seller, at the following address:

1dong-312 bandaoyuan bujizhen
shenzhen
Guangdong Province, 518112
China

PayPal requires you to use an approved postal or delivery service that
provides online proof of posting or delivery. Acceptable forms of proof of
posting or delivery include:- A copy of the postage receipt that includes
the buyer's delivery address. You can get this from Australia Post's
Registered Post and Australia Post's Registered Post International, or
- A postage code that PayPal can use online to view the postal status and
the buyer's delivery address. You can get this from TNT, DHL, FedEx and
other carriers, or
- A receipt issued by the carrier that is signed by the recipient
acknowledging delivery.

This documentation you provide must also include:1. The date the item was
sent.
2. An official acceptance by the carrier, such as a postmark or online
status. A status that shows the item was delivered is also acceptable.

Step 2 -
Once you have returned the item, please log in to your PayPal account
within ten calendar days of receiving this email and provide proof of
posting that can be confirmed online by PayPal.

If we do not receive this information within ten calendar days, your claim
will be closed and cannot be reopened.

Once we confirm that the item has been sent to the seller, we will return
the disputed funds to your account.

Step 3 -
After we confirm that the item has been shipped to the seller, we'll
provide a refund based on our Buyer Protection programmess.

If you wish to work directly with the seller to resolve this issue, you can
cancel this claim at any time, however you will not be able to reopen this

claim

So PayPal are expecting me to return it using registered post? That'd cost a fortune all the way back to China. The card is clearly a fake and the seller had been removed from eBay obviously for selling fake memory.

This is stupid, when I thought paypal would be helpful. This seller should be taken to jail or sued for fraud. They had over 1000 SD memory items listed and sold 88 of them and then there was all the other memory they had in their store.

Well I will do anything to get my refund without sending the item back. I will ring PayPal a million times until they can help me. I won't back down until something is done.

I WILL NOT resort to sending this item back to the seller via. Registered. To china that would cost over $10 (I'm sure) and all my time and effort isn't worth it.

General Discussion

Comments

Trance N Dance on 27/09/2010 - 16:08

+1

I think someone has mentioned somewhere before that you have the right not to send comething fake/counterfeit through the mail as it breaks some sort of law or something (like distributing illicit goods or something).
Hopefully someone reads this and it jogs their memory or something and can adivse you further on getting your money back.

I'm also pretty sure that class 2 SD standards are for a minimum write speed of 2MB/s which this card is faster than. In other words this IS a Class 2 card.
acidburn02 on 27/09/2010 - 16:21

+2

Whirlpool forums have endless threads on this, you should be able to find all the information there. It's illegal for you to send counterfeit goods through the post.
- dmc900 on 27/09/2010 - 16:30
  
  Thanks!!! I'll use that in my defense to paypal (:
  - voter1 on 28/09/2010 - 00:52
    
    edit nvm
    - dmc900 on 28/09/2010 - 01:20
      
      It didn't even have a serial number.
      The Kingston label looked stuck on un-proportioned.
cwongtech on 28/09/2010 - 02:37

Yeah, as someone mentioned, dig up the law that says it's illegal to send a counterfeit item.
Orgazmo on 28/09/2010 - 12:27

i had a similar paypal claim but with a defective item not worth returning to HK and paypal ended up refunding the payment in full after I called them
fish on 28/09/2010 - 18:24

+1

Try to ask for a refund firmly first to the seller. They , my experience, usually refund back to you right away to keep their scam running, and you can keep that 2G stick too. I bought two 8G b4, both have only 2G, got refunded right away, then gave a big negative to the sellers.
- dmc900 on 02/10/2010 - 13:48
  
  Ebay told me the seller shut their own account down.
  
  But I was watching the sellers feedback decrease every day. Reached 93% or something and disappeared.
  
  Either way, the seller won't be keeping their own scam running. Just my luck with this seller.
  They had 100% feedback for over 100 items sold and decided to start listing fake memory.
  
  I thought I might be lucky and score some cheap memory since the seller had positive feedback.
Cheeper on 02/10/2010 - 10:03

+1

Ebay/Paypal have been supporting this scam for 6 or more years. They are making a fortune out of it along with the scum selling them.

When my friend was told by PayPal to return his fake at his cost (yada yada yada) he lodged a complaint with the Aust Banking Ombudsman and he had his money in 2 days! Never rely on ScamPal to back you up, you may be lucky but mostly they will do anything to fob you off.
[Deactivated] on 02/10/2010 - 12:47

Xywolap: I got scammed on this about 3 weeks ago for a microsd for my phone. Ebay shut down a seller with 5000 feedback, notified me by mail to lodge a paypal claim, then creditted the amount to my paypal account within 48 hours.

they must be getting better at it.
- dmc900 on 02/10/2010 - 13:50
  
  Damn, that was lucky.
  I sent them an email just after posting this thread and they said they forward it to their Resolution Center Department and no response. It's been over 48 hours. Cannot call them until Telstra fixes the damn line. Otherwise I'll have to look for a payphone they probably tore down.
[Deactivated] on 02/10/2010 - 13:53

my main lesson was that if it looks to good to be true, it probably is, unless its from china, then it definately is.
gmail92 on 02/10/2010 - 19:32

I sell memory cards on ebay, would never touch any kind of memory card from China, and if something goes wrong its not worth the effort. Dealextreme is a bit safer, but still from China lol. The only other thing that bugs me is the buyers from Nigeria who waste my time buying my items.
dmc900 on 04/10/2010 - 18:49
==========Response from PayPal==========
To continue, we need documentation supporting your claim that the item is
not authentic.

Here’s what you need to do.

Obtain a document from an unbiased third-party, such as a dealer,
appraiser, or an organization that is qualified in the area of the item in
question (other than you). This document should contain the following:
• Detailed description as to why the item is not authentic (i.e., how the
item differs from an authentic item, how the person evaluating the item
determined that it is not authentic, etc.).
• If possible, the document should include a serial number and must be on
letterhead that includes the name, address, and phone number of the
authenticating party so that we can contact them directly, if necessary.

Fax the documents to PayPal at (02) 8223-9509. Please include a cover
sheet with your fax that includes the email address registered to your
PayPal account and the ID number of your claim PP-001-080-258-713. That way
we can attach the documents to your claim as quickly as possible.

We need to receive your fax by October 14, 2010 in order to proceed with
the investigation of your claim. If we don’t receive your fax by October
14, 2010, your claim will be canceled and no further action will be taken
on our part.

Please note that PayPal is unable to reimburse you for any costs or fees
that may be incurred in obtaining the requested documents. Any documents
you provide may also be supplied to the seller if necessary.
==========Response from PayPal==========

I cannot believe how ignorant PayPal can be.
I have all the evidence, it would cost me more than the item is worth to find someone to test it.
I'll be ringing PayPal tomorrow, it's a free call after all.