Buyers Beware! Too Many Scammers on EPICNPC

[NerdMenu]

I like EPICNPC however the selling system is broken on this site. Someone can just make an account on EPICNPC and post an account for sale with no method of verification.

I made this thread because I've gotten scammed 4 times in the last couple of months by users who claim to have accounts for sale only to to have you send them money to a foreign unverified Paypal account.

In my opinion, if the seller does not have a verified account on EPICNPC like mine and others, then you shouldn't buy from them and they shouldn't be allowed to sell anything on the site. When a user is verified on EPICNPC, they have to submit their ID or Drivers License to EPICNPC. This helps because if someone scams you, you can get the authorities involved and EPICNPC must submit the information of the user that scammed you to the authorities.

Be safe on here guys.

 

[Zerokara]

thumbs up

 

[doomedtofail]

"EPICNPC must submit the information of the user that scammed you to the authorities."
only by court order and that court must hold power over epicnpc to do so.
Laws protect all users information in the US and EU, EU being far stricter.

 

[Zoefken]

I agree with the original poster. I don't see why there is a verified status when in the end you can freely scam. As in essence it would cost you more to get a court order for the information of the scammer then just letting the scammer go.

Last time i spoke up about this they would not even send a letter or make a phone call to a canadian dad about a son who stole over 3000 USD. Thats how protected you are.

 

[NerdMenu]

Internet fraud is serious. Yes a subpoena is required which the court will act on immediately. Trust me, I've had two people in the United States prosecuted for it. I personally will spend the initial fees for court paperwork because in the end, I get it back from the perpetrator after they are convicted. That is just me though, most others do not go the extra mile to follow through to the end. I do.

 

[Zoefken]

Let me give you some numbers when we talk about international law.
In belgium you pay a aterny after the first hour of work at a rate of about 150€/ hour (this can be a bit higher or lower depending who you hire). Sending letters wil cost you a minimum of 150€ a letter as the moment they start you pay for the hour, even if it is a standard email and they just need to press print.

The above is for national law. For international law you can multiply that by 2.

That means that just for getting word to a american court you need 300€+ and than you only get his details from this site. There is no guarantee the info is correct. For all we know the person anyone deald with can be from africa where the law is corupt and they show you there middle finger once you try to get your money back.

The question here is if the investment of 300€ is worth it when you don't even know if the persons info is real and correct and or if you wil be able to get the money back.

There are better ways to get this done but i have a feeling epicnpc loves to get money for verified status but in the end hides there heads in the sand when there is a problem.


What they could do
1. When someone wants verified status make a big visible flag that this info wil be freely available for all members to see.
This would mean they choose to freely put there info out there, then there is no reason for epicnpc to even care about it. Because they decided to make it globaly know who they are.
2. You could then add a button to the profile page to request removal of info (wich is mandatory by law) but add to it the status wil be removed instanly but the details wil be removed after 14 working days.
This is all good as you can state there is a que and a moderator or employee needs to verifie the request. It also protects people from people who would possible attempt to scam. There status is removed and only 14 days after the details gets removed. You could keep them in a database just in case.

 

[Akane]

Banned - failed to resolve dispute - https://www.epicnpc.com/threads/1094227-Final-Fantasy-11-account-scammed-by-epicnpc-super-moderator-Akane/page2

I don't see why there is a verified status when in the end you can freely scam.

How many other trading sites do you go to where there's no scammers? They're everywhere, even in real life situations. It's pretty simple to trade here if you're smart about it. Upgraded members have seniority over some random who just made their account yesterday. If they're not willing to use Trade Guardian, Official Middleman, or go first for a upgraded member... you know it's too good to be true.

 

[Zoefken]

Did we ever say other sites don't have scammers? I question the verified status. You pay for something that in the end does not help in scamming situations.

What i see is that many senior members eventualy become scammers. Most of the "biggest scams" on epicnpc the last years where verified members. Don't forget i read most of the scam threads.

 

[Akane]

WARNING! Off-site contact information posted. We do not investigate disputes if you communicate off-site.

Banned - failed to resolve dispute - https://www.epicnpc.com/threads/1094227-Final-Fantasy-11-account-scammed-by-epicnpc-super-moderator-Akane/page2

Some of those biggest scams from verified members were also repaid back whether they were intentional or not. (Aka Rose)

If a user scams with verified status and gets banned, they wouldn't be able to use the same I.D. for verification again. Not only that but you should have some of your own homework done on the subject before you even trade. Face time, Facebook, and even record names/info on payment receipts if available.

 

[Zoefken]

I am not gonna comment on who has scammed who and for how much and why or when or ... . The fact remains that the biggest scams are done by mostly verified people. And when we are talking about scams for 10 - 50$ those mostly are unverified people.

And you think people don't do there homework? Yes there are thos who find it hard to use a search field but i just laugh with them. I got scammed but always got my money back (thank you paypal). And to be frank sometimes you can search as much as you want and stil get no info or wrong info.

But stil no answer on why the verified status should protect us more?

 

[Akane]

Banned - failed to resolve dispute - https://www.epicnpc.com/threads/1094227-Final-Fantasy-11-account-scammed-by-epicnpc-super-moderator-Akane/page2

I don't rely on the verified status to protect me. That's your issue. I do my own research for every transaction that I choose to do. It's not EpicNPCs job to protect my purchase. It's just a gateway for my black market needs. A measily $10-15 for verification helps insure that the user I'm buying from has his creditials registered so if he scams me he will not be back with a verified tag.

I would bet OP was sending money to non reputable people with little to no feedback. That's his own fault.

TLDR; Buy, sell and trade at your own risk.

 

[Zoefken]

I don't rely on the verified status to protect me.

Good for you, i once saw the verified status as a sort of protection (yeah there data is know by the admin) and so do many others.

That's your issue.

No that is the issue for many users on this site. No where do they say they wil not disclose that info if you get scammed.

I do my own research for every transaction that I choose to do. It's not EpicNPCs job to protect my purchase. It's just a gateway for my black market needs.

I agree with your statement yet why do they earn money with a status if they can not, wil not disclose the info if someone gets scammed? That alone is a big nono in my books.

What they could do
1. When someone wants verified status make a big visible flag that this info wil be freely available for all members to see.
This would mean they choose to freely put there info out there, then there is no reason for epicnpc to even care about it. Because they decided to make it globaly know who they are. No LAW can touch them because EpicNpc can not be liable for someone to put his info online.
2. You could then add a button to the profile page to request removal of info (wich is mandatory by law) but add to it the status wil be removed instanly but the details wil be removed after 14 working days.
This is all good as you can state there is a que and a moderator or employee needs to verifie the request. It also protects people, from people who would possible attempt to scam. There status is removed and only 14 days after the details gets removed. You could keep them in a database just in case. And in when they request it send a notice to all the people who dealt with them in the past. Just so they can backup that info if the need arises.​

A measily $10-15 for verification helps insure that the user I'm buying from has his creditials registered so if he scams me he will not be back with a verified tag.

Yay he can only scam once with a verified tag? What a logic!

I would bet OP was sending money to non reputable people with little to no feedback. That's his own fault.

Again great contribution

 

[Tricksterx]

There are scammes all over the world u cant be protected in full in any site

 

[Akane]

Banned - failed to resolve dispute - https://www.epicnpc.com/threads/1094227-Final-Fantasy-11-account-scammed-by-epicnpc-super-moderator-Akane/page2

There are scammes all over the world u cant be protected in full in any site

Some people just need something to whine about.

 

[Zoefken]

Some people just need something to whine about.

Wow amazing contribution from a sup mod. Atleast some people try to find ways to improve things. What i see here is a group that try's to explain themself why they should not improve. I give you ways to improve on a existing platform and instead (like several times before this) you put your head in the sand and ignore the obvious.

You call it whining i call it venting a point and hoping the steam gets in your head.

 

[Akane]

Banned - failed to resolve dispute - https://www.epicnpc.com/threads/1094227-Final-Fantasy-11-account-scammed-by-epicnpc-super-moderator-Akane/page2

Source: "Personal information such as a full name, phone number, address, etc. is not allowed to be posted."

Source: "Please remember that you must edit out any personal information such as a Full Name, phone number, address, or any other personal information. Failure to do this will result in your post being edited or possibly removed. ALL members are entitled to privacy."

I'll just leave this right here. You also don't bother me a bit. I enjoy helping the community.

 

[EpicNPC]

Before a member can create a thread they have to verify a phone number, so there is some requirement before someone can sell something. In the end we're a free marketplace so allowing members to register and communicate for free is important so that won't change in the future.

The easiest way to stay safe is to only deal with upgraded members or members that have been around for a while and have a few positive feedbacks. If you communicate with mainly new members with 0 feedback, you're going to run into a lot of scammer.

That said, we are planning an update to our filter system later this year. The update will include an option to filter threads by upgrades, this way if you only want to see threads from members who are upgraded, you'll be able to do that. We are also going to update our block system so if you don't want to receive messages from certain usergroups, you'll also be able to do that.