PayPal provides "Fraud Prevention Tips" that it would pay to become familiar with.  Add some good old common sense too.  Some wise moves when dealing with PayPal include:

 -  Check the seller's feedback.  If there is a strong history of negative feedbacks, do think carefully before placing a bid.  Although I want to be fair to new users because everyone needs to start somewhere  -- do use caution  with new sellers with few feedback comments. 

 -  Look tfor your seller to be a "Verified" member of PayPal and that they have been a PayPal member for at least a few months.  To check a seller's status, go to the "Send Money" tab and start a payment to the seller.  On the "Check the details of your payment" page, (and before the payment is sent), click on the seller's reputation link.  Look for something like, "Verified Premier Member."  Click on the link to find more information on the seller's current membership status.

 -  Do not ever send PayPal payments to any seller who claims to be "having problems."  Avoid anyone who claims their PayPal account is not working and wants you to send payment through "a friend's" PayPal account or via an alternate form of payment, especially Western Union or electronic funds transfer through a bank is bad news.  Do not complete any such transaction.  Report the seller to eBay SafeHarbor.

 -  Do not pay sellers with greatly delayed shipment dates.  PayPal rules prohibit sellers from shipping 20 or more days after receiving payment.  In fact, if a shipment is to be delayed more than a week after payment is received, the seller should have a reasonable explanation.

 -  It has been said before and bears repeating - If it seems too good to be true, you can bet it is.  Be very wary of sellers who offer low, far below market prices on hard-to-find items, or who seem to have many of the same scarce items.

 -  Extra caution and vigilance is very necessary on high-ticket, popular items. These are the favorites of scammers and thieves.  When in doubt, it is wise to e-mail questions to a seller before placing a bid, make sure you are completely comfortable with payment and shipment terms and they involve a real escrow company. 

 -  If a seller is offering multiples of popular or difficult-to-find items, ask for and check the legitimacy of the supplier.  If the seller refuses to answer or gets belligerent --do not do business with this seller. 

Please remember that as quickly as security measures are out in place, the thieves work diligently to overcome them.  In regard to Phishing emails this means they will stoop to no low in order to get your attention and to do as the email requires.  They are more clever with each approach.  As with eBay, the only sure way to defend yourself against Phishers is to absolutely never click on a hyperlink in a PayPal or eBay e-mail.  Instead, open a new browser and type in the PayPal URL or use your Favorites to access the sites.

A more direct threat to eBay sellers are thieves who pay for goods with hijacked PayPal accounts.  A first precaution is to double check PayPal e-mail payment notifications on the PayPal site — particularly with buyers who show few eBay feedbacks.  Then check the buyer's PayPal registration history and status.  If anything appears amiss, contact PayPal.  This approach is not foolproof, because the victim may not yet know their account has been compromised.  However, it is a good first line of defense.

Secure your Wi-Fi connection.  Most Wi-Fi or wireless Internet connection problems stem from errors of omission.  Nearly all Wi-Fi routers come with security features that change the systems default settings, conceal the connection from others, require passwords for network access and encrypt the data sent over it.  The problem is not that the security is not available but that many Wi-Fi users fail to secure the system with these features.

To some degree, as consumers we are often intimidated by the technology.  Some major DSL providers send their routers out to customers with encryption turned on by default.  Unfortunately these count for about 10 percent of routers in use.  Failure to secure them allows anyone with a Wi-Fi-enabled computer to tap into an unsuspecting user's base station from within 200 feet, (with advanced antennas, up to a quarter-mile away).  It is wise to work through the procedures necessary to activate any Wi-Fi system's security features before using it.

Even with a secured home system, there are Wi-Fi perils.  Wi-Fi connections are widely offered in coffee shops across the nation.  Large national fast food and coffee chains take steps to protect their networks, but smaller coffee shops often leave their connections wide open.  It is best to ask about security before using a Wi-Fi connections in a retail setting or a hotel.  Also, use caution at academic institutions where use is poorly monitored. 

Use a reputable, well established escrow service when buying or selling expensive items.  EBay recommends that you use an escrow service for all purchases above $500.  Buyers seldom ask sellers who have good feedback for an escrow transaction, even into four-figure purchases.  However, if you are purchasing a vehicle or any other high-ticket item, particularly from a seller with limited feedback, it is strongly suggested that you use an escrow service.  Escrow works by the buyer depositing money in an escrow account.  Once done, the seller then ships the item.  The money is not released until the buyer receives, and is satisfied with, the item.  Using an escrow service recommended by the seller is asking for trouble.  In any given year there are more than
500 fraudulent escrow service sites on the web with more added daily.  Always determine that the service you choose iis bonded and licensed by a state.  Assure there is a valid customer service phone number, address and customer service. 

If you keep sensitive data on your computer or conduct commerce of any kind on the Internet, you should protect your computers with a firewall to block intruders.  This holds doubly true for broadband users — their PCs are constantly online, and thus, vulnerable to intrusion by hijackers.  The major anti-virus software companies offer a firewall with  security software.  Many large Web sites place tracking cookies or spyware in the registry and files of visitor's PCs in order to monitor and harvest a user's surfing and buying patterns — this is information that is often sold to interested third parties. 

Thieves and malicious hackers plant spyware for more nefarious reasons.  Today some thieves have been loading keystroke-logging programs onto the PCs of website visitors in an attempt to catch bank account numbers and other sensitive data.  It is advisable to download software that can find and root out these cookies from your computer — if not for your privacy, then certainly for increased security. 

Yes, there are payment methods to always avoid.  Phishers, escrow fraudsters and general Internet hijackers try to herd buyers into several payment methods, all of which you should avoid.  Never:

 -  pay for an auction purchase with cash. If the seller demands cash payment, turn away from the deal and don't look back.

 -  pay for any auction purchases with Western Union cash transfers. Your money will vanish — the thief, untraceable.

 -  send payment into E-Gold, or E-Bullion Networks, or Evo-Cash or 'E-dinar' type international currency transfers.

 -  make a wire transfer from your bank account to what you believe (but cannot verify), to be the account of a legitimate escrow service.

If your eBay name or user ID is your e-mail address, change it.  Hijackers use robots to search auction sites for e-mail addresses to 'scam and spam.'

Be wary of auctions that require "bidder pre-approval."  A note at the top of the auction will read, "This auction is restricted to pre-approved bidders or buyers only.  E-mail the seller to be put on the pre-approved bidder buyer list."  To often, this is a ploy to get the potential victim out of the eBay system where they will be advised to purchase and pay by Western Union or a bogus escrow service.

If you become a victim of identity theft scams, including those involving credit cards, bank account numbers as well as eBay and PayPal account hijacking, don't panic -- pick up the phone and call PayPal and eBay, your bank and/or your credit card companies.  The FTC also recommends that victims contact the police as well as the fraud departments at any one of the three major credit bureaus — Equifax, TransUnion or Experia — to place a fraud alert on all your credit files.  Then, monitor your credit rating regularly.

These remedies will almost never be necessary for those eBayers who exercise common sense and the preventive measures discussed here.  To remain secure helps to keep your store and auctions safe, profitable and fun.

I wish you tons of luck with your endeavor and a profitable and happy eBaying experience with your store. 

I sure would appreciate if  you would drop by my store (The Write Place) where you name your price.  Please also visit my Auctions for some of the greatest value in clothing on the web.

Thanks for stopping by...  Pepper120851