E-bay first closed one of my bitcoin ads and then suspended my account

[Parzival]

I had two bitcoin ads. One auction and one with fixed price. One of them (auction) was closed saying it violates their policy. They said it should be classified ad format in informational products. Which means you cant get access to feedback or reputation. I can also  see there are lots of bitcoin ads there. So what really is  e-bay policy with bitcoin. I find it confusing.

EDIT: And now they suspended my account. I had a couple of bitcoin sales and positive feedback from them all. It is better to stay away from e-bay if you want to sell bitcoins.

[jonanon]

If they say it violates their policy then there is nothing you can do unfortunately.

 

[dc0ded]

Ebay is a bitch, you can't really be sure what they won't do and what they would. Try LocalBitcoins.com to sell BTC. Its a huge market place with far less risk than ebay.

[bitpop]

Guess a scammy mining contract

[kostja]

Guess a scammy mining contract

[hilariousandco]

I had two bitcoin ads. One auction and one with fixed price. One of them (auction) was closed saying it violates their policy. They said it should be classified ad format in informational products. Which means you cant get access to feedback or reputation. I can also  see there are lots of bitcoin ads there. So what really is  e-bay policy with bitcoin. I find it confusing.

What were you selling? And ebay doesn't allow the sale of cryptocurrencies, but this doesn't seem to stop hundreds of listings.

[bitpop]

I had two bitcoin ads. One auction and one with fixed price. One of them (auction) was closed saying it violates their policy. They said it should be classified ad format in informational products. Which means you cant get access to feedback or reputation. I can also  see there are lots of bitcoin ads there. So what really is  e-bay policy with bitcoin. I find it confusing.

What were you selling? And ebay doesn't allow the sale of cryptocurrencies, but this doesn't seem to stop hundreds of listings.

Mining contracts

[Parzival]

Guess a scammy mining contract

I sold bitcoins. There are lots of bitcoins for sale in e-bay. And they only removed one of my two ads. And many other bitcoins seem to be there for sale. So I am confused what is their policy with respect to bitcoin. To me their policy seems to be inconsistent.

[bitpop]

Guess a scammy mining contract

I sold bitcoins. There are lots of bitcoins for sale in e-bay. And they only removed one of my two ads. And many other bitcoins seem to be there for sale. So I am confused what is their policy with respect to bitcoin. To me their policy seems to be inconsistent.

Then possible duplicate ads, you can only have one. Try a variation ad

[ISAWHIM]

Someone reported one of your ads... Might have been competition... Might have been auto-triggered by your key-words.

E-bay is a horrible place to sell bitcoins, or bitcoin contracts. Chances are, you will lose, because the majority of people buying, simply say they never got the item/service. Getting a full refund, and leaving you minus any possible gains.

Best you can hope for, is an honest buyer. (Not many of those buying BTC on e-bay. Oh the irony!)

Try localbitcoins or craigslist or use any of the many exchanges. (FYI, pay-pal/e-bay complies with tax-reporting rules in every country. Just so you are aware... They report your income as income, since it is a violation to purchase your own items, or gift yourself.)

You could always just buy "something" with bitcoins, and then sell that "something" on e-bay. It offers more buyer/seller protection that way. I hear argyle socks are coming back in fashion!

To get around the "terms"... You can offer 0.1 BTC free, with every purchase of a $100 used-postal-stamp. (Can't legally sell unused stamps, as they are a form of money/currency. Unless they are no longer valid for use as a postal-stamp. Used stamps are "collectors items".)

[carolynwneal25]

i think u sell somthing to trade with ecurrency is agains their TOS

[Parzival]

Now they just reported that my account is suspended. I have gotten positive feedback from all of my bitcoin sales. Maybe better just to forget selling BTC in e-bay. The price was rather good but cant help if they dont allow bitcoins. I just wonder why they let other sellers continue but close my account.

[hilariousandco]

Now they just reported that my account is suspended. I have gotten positive feedback from all of my bitcoin sales. Maybe better just to forget selling BTC in e-bay. The price was rather good but cant help if they dont allow bitcoins. I just wonder why they let other sellers continue but close my account.

Maybe there's a conspiracy. Can you not contact customer support or dispute it?

[Parzival]

Now they just reported that my account is suspended. I have gotten positive feedback from all of my bitcoin sales. Maybe better just to forget selling BTC in e-bay. The price was rather good but cant help if they dont allow bitcoins. I just wonder why they let other sellers continue but close my account.

Maybe there's a conspiracy. Can you not contact customer support or dispute it?

I contacted support but haven't received any answer yet. There seem to be several long time bitcoin sellers there. So I wonder why they can continue. Of course everything is possible but I have no evidence of conspiracy like competing bitcoin seller reporting or first buying and then making false claims about not receiving the item. But of course that is possible...

[bitpop]

I think everyone is reporting everyone

[Raghnar]

Not surprising at all...they have been doing this for months and they will close your acct and your Paypal acct and ban you for life if they feel like it.  They don't like crypto.

[cptdome1]

yeah its rough weeding through the paypal/ebay crap.  at least your account was suspended..

[ProfMac]

I went looking on eBay while reading this thread.  I found an innovative item.  I wonder if it is against the TOS?

[Parzival]

This is the response I got from e-bay customer service

Thank you for contacting eBay Customer Service.

Your account was suspended because it exhibits a risk to eBay and to its community. As eBay is an internet-based business, and its members are our customers, we have to carefully weigh the risks involved with allowing users on our site. From time to time, we find accounts which have a risk that no longer justifies a continuing relationship with eBay. When that happens we suspend these accounts and they are no longer able to be used for buying or selling.

We have determined that it is in our mutual best interest to part ways. We regret any frustration or inconvenience this matter may cause you.

For your account there is no appeal for this decision. From this point forward, in order to conduct business on the internet, you will have to find a different venue.

Sincerely,

Not a word why my account was considered "high risk". Really arrogant response. Bad customer service from e-bay. Avoid e-bay if you want to sell bitcoins.

[ProfMac]

I had two bitcoin ads. One auction and one with fixed price. One of them (auction) was closed saying it violates their policy. They said it should be classified ad format in informational products. Which means you cant get access to feedback or reputation. I can also  see there are lots of bitcoin ads there. So what really is  e-bay policy with bitcoin. I find it confusing.

EDIT: And now they suspended my account. I had a couple of bitcoin sales and positive feedback from them all. It is better to stay away from e-bay if you want to sell bitcoins.

I suspect that eBay and PayPal have a lot of similarity in their policies.
I received this email from PayPal on March 24, 2013:

Code:

Thank you for contacting PayPal.
You are correct. Per our current Acceptable Use Policy for Money Service Businesses, PayPal may not be used to operate an e-currency exchange, bureau de change or check cashing business including the sale of Bitcoins.
If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us again.

Sincerely,
Nan
PayPal Compliance Department
PayPal, an eBay Company

Please do not reply to this email address as it is not monitored and we will not receive your response. You can get in touch with us by clicking "Contact Us" at the bottom of any PayPal page.

Copyright © 1999-2013 PayPal. All rights reserved.
 

Original Message Follows: ------------------------ 
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The Bitcoin community has a persistent idea that PayPal prohibits the purchase or sale of bitcoins with PayPal. &####;I cannot find any PayPal web pages that back up that claim.

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