Internet Shopping: Convenient or Hazard?
The Internet is a great way to find the rarest of things. Not only is it an information source, but it’s also source for shopping. Even after the crash of 2000, Internet shopping is still as popular as ever, with exciting shopping sites, such as Amazon and Ebay, where you can buy/bid on items, get good deals or sell used items for extra cash. Internet shopping may be an efficient way to get new or used items for a cheap price, but with a cheap price comes cheap sellers and expensive shipping out to rip you off or even steal your identity.
Let me start with the most commonly used shopping site of all, and the number one place for scammers, Ebay. Ebay is a haven for collectors, a money tree for pack rats, and an open safe for scammers. Ebay was never a safe place, it was only known as safe when scammers weren’t discovered. There are many types of Ebay scammers: type A, also known as "ambushers"(Lewis), who sell fake knock-offs for the about 60% of the price of the real thing making people think they’re getting the deal of the century when they win the bidding on an item that’s really junk, type B, the most common, are the one who sell the real thing but as soon as someone bids on their item, they bid against them with their alternate identity and increase the price by making the bidder feel competitive pressure to bid higher, and last type C are the ones who sell a legit item for less than a dollar but have an outrageously pricey shipping cost that the bidder isn’t aware of till it’s too late. I won many great items on Ebay, but along the way I ran into all three types. Ebay does have some protection called feedback. Feedback is what all members get/and have to fill out after they buy or sell an item. Feedback is means a lot to members and defines what kind of buyer or seller they are and can either lose or win them business.
Then there’s Amazon, a non-auction shopping site. Like Ebay they allow members to sell items on their site. I prefer Amazon to Ebay because Ebay is too competitive and complicated in getting the item shipped. Amazon is where I’d go to get incredibly cheap books and DVDs, most for a low price of two dollars or less. They also have an option called One Click Buying, where if you’re a member with your credit card information stored in your account, all you’ll have to do to buy an item is click on that button and instantly the item is shipped and you’d be charged for it. However there are drawbacks from one click buying here and there, resulting in me getting high bills from clicking and forgetting about buying tons of five cents books and DVD with a five dollar shipping price each, which I had no awareness of due to the fastness of a click of a mouse. I also had a huge problem with the sellers; I’d buy an item and it would never get shipped to me on time or other times never. Most of the sellers on Amazon are small companies and bookstores that sell so many items, that they forget your order and all you can do about it is report the seller and hope to get a refund.
The number one danger on Internet shopping isn’t scammers, but identity theft. Identity theft is becoming an epidemic on the internet through programs such as Spyware that infest computers and gets personal information that you type on the internet. And since the internet doesn’t require identification, stolen credit cards are often used in Internet shopping (Willey). Some modern sites are creating new ways to stop theft “ Stores’ Web sites has a system to prevent customers from buying their products with the stolen cards. It requires the billing address of the card to be entered in along with the card number. If the two don't match, the card will not be accepted” (Willey).
Internet shopping can be convenient if you’re safe and cautious about what you buy, knowing the exact worth and quality of the item. "Part of the responsibility, lies with the buyer to actually read the listing before they bid on it. We don't think that is too much to ask for." (Lewis) an Ebay “Ambusher” states. On Ebay, if someone has more than 40% negative feedback, don’t buy from them, period. If you do get ripped off, threaten to give negative feedback and you’ll definitely get a refund, for positive feedback is as good as money to sellers. Niceness is always the best policy on Ebay. On Amazon don’t enable One Click Buying and store you’re credit card information on your account unless you want to over spend. And at all costs, double check the shipping price and money sign (Euros equals twice the price) To prevent Identity theft, don’t type your credit card number on non-encrypted sites (Willey), print out all receipts after purchasing, and make sure your computer has firewall protection against programs such as Spyware.
Work Cited
Lewis, Mark. “eBay Wholesale List Scams: Buyer Beware” AuctionBytes.com 19 April
2005; <http://auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y05/m04/i19/s04>.
Willey, Elisabeth.“Web of Thieves” The Albany Herald 27 March 2005;
<http://www.albanyherald.com/frontsarchive/0305/front032705.html>.
Bibliography
Lewis, Mark. “eBay Wholesale List Scams: Buyer Beware” AuctionBytes.com 19 April
2005; <http://auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y05/m04/i19/s04> 23 April 2005.
Truman, Dave “U.S. Consumers Should Guard against Dangers in Online
Shopping”The News-Herald 22 Nov 2003
<http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&an=2W63957395779> 23 April 2005.
Willey, Elisabeth.“Web of Thieves” The Albany Herald 27 March 2005;
<http://www.albanyherald.com/frontsarchive/0305/front032705.html> 23 April 2005.
