I Need Help!!!!

nikkk · #1 02-05-2007

HI Aspkin,

I have read all your info, found it very helpfull, however i have opened 4 accounts since then all without any succes at all, they suspend me within hours of listing my first item. Is there anything i should do any differently?? Please advise!

Thanks Nick

**aspkin** · #2 02-06-2007

I was thinking the same thing earlier today Modee, I was like, "geez at least give me some details, lol". But I forgot to actually write it down, until now!

DETAILS! We need DETAILS

nikkk · #3 02-07-2007

Sorry for the lack of details!
Basically i have opened 4 new accounts all with different names, all differentadresss never always created from a new computer or different computer. Usually if i just buy i am fine the minute i sell gone within 3 hours. I am selling tickets tried selling all kinds, changed the listing style, just dont now what i can do to sell??? What do you think is the possible cause of my suspension. I am thinking of creating like 10 accounts let them mature like 1 year before selling then start to sell, what do you think? Also what would be a solution?

ebayaintstupid · #4 02-07-2007

from EBAY or any EBAY emails? And do you delete your cookies before creating your accounts? If you are not doing these two things, changing your IP address ain't gonna help one iota.

Read the thread What's Missing on Aspkins.

**aspkin** · #5 02-08-2007

With your auctions, do you use the same auction titles, and descriptions with each auction.. and have you used these same auctions on past accounts? Images on these auctions? Gallery Images?

Try to be vague about what you're selling.

Is what you're selling permitted by eBay?

If you're being suspended within hours of your listings, it's more then likely what you're selling..

ebayaintstupid · #6 02-08-2007

they are laden with beacons. If he has his cookies sitting there, even with a new IP Address and new account names, new items, new listing titles, new icons, the works, he is toast.

If he follows everything in your guidelines and opens that message with old cookies in place, the account is doomed. And it is instantaneous because they KNOW it is you. Can't be anyone else. Cookies don't lie.

But he hasn't answered, so we are all in suspense.

cliffhanger79 · #7 02-09-2007

I don't believe that's true. All images need is a specific URL and the sender of the email can track who opened the email. This is also how a lot of SPAM senders work -- they attach a small image, and when that image is downloaded, they know that you opened the email, then assume the email is valid, and they send you even more emails, since now your email address has been verified that it's been opened by a real person.

Now if ebay can figure out who you are just based on a specific URL image loading, I don't know. I only use email providers where they block all images. There's a reason providers block the images, and it's to protect their users from SPAM and the like. If a simple image can activate a cookie on a machine, I have no idea.

ebayaintstupid · #8 02-09-2007

all I have to say is read this. If you still don't believe in them, then, well, you are not computer savvy.

Read first this:
What is Web beacon? - A Word Definition From the Webopedia Computer Dictionary

Then this:
Web bug - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Then think again.

**aspkin** · #9 02-10-2007

Now that I think about. When I had my eBay accounts set up, I used the same person in my business to answer each question from the emails. For example, I would forward the eBay emails to one email account. That same person would open them up for me, and respond with each account I've had. And I didn't have any problems if they simply replied to the emails.

And note, they never once changed their IP address, or deleted cookies between eBay accounts. They used the same computer and email address.

There are no cookies in eBay emails, only beacons to tell eBay if you opened an email, or clicked on any of the links.

I believe I wrote this in one of my three guides too.

I need to read them again.. hehe

ebayaintstupid · #10 02-11-2007

in those posted articles how beacons are used and web bugs as well.

And they are trivial to use.

If they aren't beacons, what are those small invisible icons that show up only when you have them blocked? Hmmm?

I got suspended two times after my original suspension on new accounts. I haven't been suspended since I stopped reading their emails. If you were reading them with the images blocked you are likely OK. But think about how simple it would be to catch you with a 2x2 bitmap.

1. You send an email to a user with a beacon.

2. The email is opened. Beacon shines and hits the web site.

3. Your software now has access to that machine's cookies related to your website.

By the way, they also plant beacons in their listings. Very common to copy and paste listings from other ebay users. Then you edit them on your machine. While you are editing, those beacons are shining right in their face saying who you are. I think that is how I got caught with Auctiva. I was using existing EBAY auctions and tweaking them in Auctiva. I was suspended within a day of using Auctiva. There I was thinking I was save using Auctiva on my old IP address system because Auctiva wouldn't broadcast it right? Well, not directly, but the beacons planted did. I took a look at the EBAY ads and there are tons of references to images in the HTML that don't show up in the listing. What is the purpose of these miniscule invisible images? Just for the heck of it?

There can be many instances where you don't get caught (no cookies but beacons for example) but they are hoping for that one slip up, where you log in as Joe, forget and then open an email as Mary. Now Mary and Joe are linked. And they know it.

It is all so easy. They can even use a truthfully targeted beacon. One where they want to know if John is reading Mary's email. They send an ID beacon to Mary. If John reads it on his IP address or with his cookies in places, guess what? He has to be reading Mary's mail.

But EBAY doesn't want to catch everybody at once. They even want to look the other way to a degree. If you don't pay attention to beacons, you will get caught eventually. The use of beacons is just too easy and too commonplace.

If you search for "web beacons" you can even find tons of marketing articles on how to still get users to open their emails etc. If you don't believe they are being used, then why in God's name would Google be blocking images for privacy purposes? Do you really think the leading web software company in the world is stupid?