EBay for Dummies (62 page)
Authors: Marsha Collier
Tags: #Electronic Commerce, #Computers, #General, #E-Commerce, #Internet auctions, #Auctions - Computer network resources, #Internet, #Business & Economics, #EBay (Firm)
The odds are excellent that all the information that eBay knows about you is already in the hands of many other folks, too — your bank, your grocer, the staff of any magazines you subscribe to, clubs you belong to, any airlines you’ve flown, and any insurance agencies you use. That’s life these days. And if you’re thinking, “Just because everybody knows all this stuff about me, that doesn’t make it right,” all I can say is, “You’re right.” But maybe you’ll sleep better knowing that eBay is one place where folks take the privacy issue seriously. See the next section for details.
eBay’s privacy policy
eBay had a privacy policy for all its users before privacy policies were even in vogue. Now eBay maintains the safety standards set forth by the pioneer in online safeguarding: TRUSTe.
TRUSTe (
www.truste.org
) sets a list of standards that its member Web sites have to follow to earn a “seal of approval.” The thousands of Web sites that subscribe to this watchdog group must adhere to its guidelines and set policies to protect privacy. eBay has been a member of TRUSTe since the privacy watchdog group was founded.
Do seals bite back?
Because eBay pays to display the TRUSTe mark, some online critics say that the seal is nothing more than window dressing. These critics wonder whether it would be in the Web watchdog’s best financial interest to bite the hand that feeds it all those display fees. Critics complain that the seal offers a false sense of security — and suggest that you view the seal as nothing more than a disclaimer to be careful in your Internet dealings.
Technically, TRUSTe can pull its seal whenever a Web site becomes careless in its handling of privacy issues. However, the critics make a good point:
Always be careful in your Internet dealings,
no matter how much protection a site has. If you ever feel your personal information has been compromised, file a complaint at the TRUSTe Web site:
www.truste.org/pvr.php?page=complaint
.
To review the policy that’s earned eBay the TRUSTe seal of approval, click the Policies link that appears at the bottom of every eBay page.
Grateful Dead cookie jar
In 1999, an auction description read: “This is one of the grooviest jars I have ever come across — a real find for the die-hard Grateful Dead fan or for the cookie jar collector who has it all. Made by Vandor, this Grateful Dead bus cookie jar looks like something the Dead
would
drive. Beautiful detailing on the peace signs; the roses are running lights. Painted windows. You have just got to see this piece. Only 10,000 made, and I have only seen one other. Comes with box that has Grateful Dead logos on it. Buyer pays all shipping and insurance.”
The cookie jar started at $1.00 and sold on eBay for $102.50. When I updated this book in 2002, it sold on eBay for $125.00; when I updated again in 2004, it went for $150.00. The Grateful Dead’s bus cookie jar is riding the tracks these days; in 2009 an auction closed with the final bid at $125.00. Perhaps the baby boomer Deadheads are feeling the economic crunch. Still, the price of the original has skyrocketed from the original issue price, so much so that Vandor just came out with a 40th anniversary replica. Buy it now for your Deadhead friends — and buy it quick. Only 1,200 were made, and the price is already edging up to the $100.00 mark.
Oh wow, dude — that’s some far-out cookie jar. (Cue the band:
Keep truckin’. . . .
)
In addition to setting and displaying a privacy policy, eBay follows these guidelines as well:
eBay must make its Privacy Policy links easily accessible to users. You can find the logo on eBay’s home page. Click the Policies link. On the eBay Policies page, click the Privacy Policy link and you’re taken to the Privacy Policies page for more information. Take advantage of this opportunity to find out how your data is being protected.
eBay must disclose what personal information it collects and how it’s using the info.
Users must have an easy way to review the personal information that eBay has about them.
Users must have an
opting out
option that lets them decline to share information.
eBay must follow industry standards to make its Web site and database secure so that hackers and nonmembers have no access to the information. eBay uses Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), which is an encryption program that scrambles data until it gets to eBay. Unfortunately, no Web site, including the CIA’s Web site, is completely secure, so you still have to be on your guard while you’re online.
What Does eBay Do with Information about Me, Anyway?
Although eBay knows a good chunk of information about you, it puts the information to good use. The fact that it knows so much about you actually helps you in the long run.
Here’s what eBay uses personal information for:
Upgrading eBay:
Like most e-commerce companies, eBay tracks members’ use and habits to improve the Web site. For instance, if a particular item generates a lot of activity, eBay may add a category or a subcategory.
Clearing the way for transactions:
If eBay didn’t collect personal information such as your e-mail address, your snail-mail address, and your phone number, you couldn’t complete the transaction you started after an auction was over. Bummer.
Billing:
You think it’s important to keep track of your merchandise and money, don’t you? So does eBay. It uses your personal information to keep an eye on your account and your paying habits — and on everybody else’s. (Call it a gentle encouragement of honest trading habits.)
Policing the site:
Never forget that eBay tries to be tough on cybercrime, and that if you break the rules or regulations, eBay will hunt you down and boot you out. Personal information is used to find eBay delinquents, and eBay makes it clear that it cooperates with law enforcement and with third parties whose merchandise you may be selling illegally. For more about this topic, read up on the VeRO program in Chapter 9.
Periodically, eBay runs surveys asking specific questions about your use of the site. It uses your answers to upgrade eBay. In addition, eBay asks whether it can forward your information to a marketing firm. eBay says that it does not forward any personally identifiable information, which means that any info you provide is given to third parties as raw data. However, if you’re nervous about privacy, I suggest that you make it clear that you don’t want your comments to leave eBay should you decide to participate in eBay surveys. If you don’t participate in the surveys, you won’t have any hand in creating new eBay features, though, so you can’t complain if you don’t like how the site looks. Sometimes, eBay advertises surveys that users can take part in on the eBay home page.
What Do Other eBay Members Know about Me?
eBay functions under the premise that eBay’s members are buying, selling, working, and playing in an honest and open way. That means that anyone surfing can immediately find out some limited information about you:
Your user ID and history
Your feedback history
All the auctions and eBay store sales you run
Your current purchases and any you’ve made during a 30-day period
eBay clearly states in its policies and guidelines that e-mail addresses should be used only for eBay business. If you abuse this policy, you can be suspended or even kicked off for good.
eBay provides limited eBay member registration information to its users. If another member involved in a transaction with you wants to know the following facts about you, they’re available:
Your name (and business name if you have provided that information)
Your e-mail address
The city, state, and country that you provided to eBay
The telephone number that you provided to eBay
Following the transaction, buyers and sellers exchange some real-world information. As I explain in Chapters 6 and 12, members initiate the exchange of merchandise and money by e-mail, providing personal addresses for both payments and shipments. Make sure that you’re comfortable giving out your home address. If you’re not, I explain alternatives in this chapter.
Spam — Not Just a Hawaiian Delicacy
Although you can find plenty of places to socialize and have fun on eBay, when it comes to business, eBay is . . . well, all business. eBay’s policy says that requests for registration information can be made only for people with whom you’re transacting business on eBay. The contact information request form requires that you type the item number of the transaction you’re involved in as well as the user ID of the person whose contact info you want. If you’re not involved in a transaction, as a bidder or a seller in the specified item number, you can’t access the user information.
Spam I am
Spam, the unwanted electronic junk mail, is named after Spam, the canned meat product. (Spam collectibles on eBay are another matter entirely.) According to the Spam Web site, more than 6 billion cans of Spam have been consumed worldwide. (By the way, Hawaiians eat more Spam than any other state in the union.) Spam is made from a secret recipe of pork shoulder, ham, and special spices. It was first produced in 1937 and got its name from the
SP
for
spice
and the
AM
from
ham.
It’s widely believed that spam (junk e-mail) got its name from the old
Monty Python
sketch because the refrain “Spam-Spam-Spam-Spam” drowned out all other conversation and one of the participants kept saying, “I don’t want any Spam. I don’t like Spam.” Others say that it came from a bunch of computer geeks at USC who thought that junk e-mail was about as satisfying as a Spam sandwich. Perhaps they’ve never enjoyed a Spam luau in Hawaii under the moonlight — aloha! For more spam fun facts visit
www.spam.com
.