An unfortunate purchase
Long story short
I was a victim of well-planned and organized crime. Money was transferred abroad quickly and with no trace. Police couldn't help me in any way.
Taras Y.
Age 36, Germany, specialist
The story
It happened in September 2017 on eBay. I found a good deal for a used DJI drone (for a reasonable price). I went for it and paid using bank transfer method (there was no PayPal option). After several hours, I got a message from eBay security system about suspicious activity on the account I purchased the drone from. I contacted the seller, and it turned out that his account was hacked and he has no connection to the sold item and what happened.
When I contacted my bank the next day to cancel the transaction, they said it was too late. So I went to the police and reported my case. Long story short, I was a victim of well-planned and organized crime.
In addition to hacking eBay accounts and using them to 'sell' popular (and not so cheap) products, the group (it wasn't a single person most likely) created a website where they gathered personal data from people looking for advice on getting bank credit. They used that data to open multiple fake accounts in an online bank, where identity confirmation is simple and obviously can be cheated. Money was transferred abroad quickly and with no trace. Police couldn't help me in any way.
