You see a great deal on truly rare  seed on eBay - is it too good to be true?  Yes!  How can you be sure?  Know the facts about how to spot a fraudulent seller:

1.  Seed from rare plants is not cheap.  If the parent plant is rare, or a known named cultivar, the seed is not going to sell for some "way below market value" price.  The seller who claims he has a large source of rare seeds can not be trusted, especially if they're only using photos that are taken from other websites (which is illegal).  Know what you're looking at - photos may be showing seeds that are not even of that species, or the species you're shopping for has seeds with very short viability time and germination rate dimishes to nothing after storage and travel.

2.  Check the sellers feedback from BUYERS - not from other sellers.  If the seller has very little or no feedback, has changed their user name, or negative feedback - BEWARE! It would also be bizarre if the buyer posted positive feedback for items that in no way could have arrived yet via international post!  Also, if there are already multiple bids, check to see if they're mostly bids by other users with little or no feedback.  It's a way to build a positive feedback score and inflate the price by frauds.  They may also send a couple envelopes of seed so someone will post feedback saying they received something.  However, if a seller has LOTS of completed listings, and not a comparable amount of feedback, you should be suspicious. Also, check their feedback as a buyer, some are now buying up $.01 listings so as to build a feedback without actually partaking in substantial transactions.

3.  A seller that claims to be able to send any rare seed from an overseas location for only $1 is lying.  They probably have no intention of sending you that seed because they don't actually have it.  Plus, many countries require a seed permit and/or a phytosanitary certificate and certainly require a declarations form - these usually cost the seller money.  If they don't charge something for it, they don't have it.

4.  Ask other rare plant lovers.  Check the search feature of  houseplant groups at gardenweb, davesgarden, or Yahoo!  There are discussions on fraudulent sellers both past and present.

REMEMBER:  A seller can sell hundreds of items on eBay and receive payment for many weeks before eBay finally catches up to them and bars them from selling.  By then, they've already made a LOT of money and can just resurface in a few weeks under a new name using the same tactics.