Do I understand it right that every time I list new item any scammer can pretend buying it and therefore the item will be on hold as "sold" while actually being not? Is there any way I can inform Ebay of receiving a phishing message from such "buyer" so that Ebay can change item's status from "sold" back to active listing?
No.
If a member buys he is sent an invoice. You can send one too, but usually if you get that prompt eBay will then inform you that they have already sent the invoice.
As far as I can tell, you get the prompt when there has been a Best Offer or (on an Auction) a Buy It Now. Those are normal, but a little out of the ordinary.
Shipping is the hardest part of selling by mail order.
I've been selling mail order since the 70s, everything from postagestamps to cast iron woodstoves.
If the member is a scammer, you can do two things .
One is fast and the other is effective.
The fast one is to Cancel the purchase. This ends the transaction immediately.
This is also a VERY BAD IDEA.
Unless you cancel as "Buyer Request" or "Problem with Address", you will get a Defect on your selling account which will basically poison the account.
But it is fast and you can relist immediately. Don't use this.
The effective way is slow.
Sorry but that is life.
You ignore those texts. If you just can't emotionally do that, through eBay Messages tell the scammer (if he is suggesting texting, it is a scam) that you can only communicate through eBay.
If he wants to pay "through Paypal" tell him that is one of the methods of payment eBay accepts* and he just has to click on Pay Now.
When he does not pay for 96hours, you can Cancel his purchase as Unpaid. EBay will do this automatically but you have to opt for that . I apologize here, I did it, and I've forgotten how.
He gets a Strike. He cannot leave feedback. Do NOT leave feedback because no one will ever read it.
Set up your Seller Preferences/Buyer Requirements to automatically Block deadbeats with Strikes.
When you give a deadbeat a Strike, he will also be Blocked by thousands of other sellers who have set up the same Seller Protection. You get a "good citizen" badge.**
The Cancellation and the Strike are how you inform eBay, and more importantly, other sellers that this guy is a deadbeat and a scammer.
If you feel you have to do more, you can use the social media Chats to pass on the information.
https://www.facebook.com/eBayForBusiness/ — Message button in upper right on landing page.
https://twitter.com/askebay?lang=en
But these scammers don't last long under any given ID before they move on.
I've sold on other sites and eBay is actually one of the better ones for protecting sellers.
But remember.
We are expected to be adults about selling here and to take responsibility for our actions.
That includes being aware that there are scammers around and helping others when we spot them.
Selling online can be a fun hobby or a real job, but it does require attention to detail.
*Paypal is one of several ways buyers can send money to eBay's Managed Payments. Sellers must use Managed Payments or eBay cannot transfer that money to our checking accounts.
Do you have your Managed Payments account registered yet?
EBay is dumb enough to allow new and returning sellers to list before they have a way of getting paid. It's been a couple of years and that nitwittery has not been corrected.
** Not really. Just a warm glow from being helpful to others.
