cmulcahy Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 I recieved an email w/ a 2nd chance to buy the nikon 28-70 f/2.8 from cametaauctions. They list it as MINT DEMO from Nikon. I bid on this lens and lostout. New it sells for around $1400. I just bought for $360. How is this possible? I've read the description over5X. They then just sent me another email saying I could buy the same lens for$500 - same description. So obviously I chose the $360 option. What's going on here. If it's too good to be true it is. At least that's whatI've always thought. Any ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark_sirota1 Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 You sure it's not the <a href="http://www.adorama.com/Reviews/pwr/product-reviews/Used/Nikon-Auto-Focus/Zoom-Lenses/Nikon/p/US________261243-Nikon-28-70-3-5-4-5-Af-W-bx.html">28-70 f/3.5-4.5</a>? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmulcahy Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 YEP. The description clearly says 2.8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reiley_mckerracher Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 ive dealt with cameta camera off ebay a number of times, every time was a good experience. in there ads though, demo usually means refurb, still though, it seems to cheap? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmulcahy Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 When I tried to pay for it, I just got an error message from Cameta auctions and it says to call and it gives a phone #. So I called the guy says I have to call tomorrow morning to speak to their customer service person to finish the transaction. He insisted that that transaction will be taken care of then - and said sometimes they get over loaded w/ online transactions and their system crashes so it needs to be entered in manually. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ_konrad Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Zoom lenses that start at 28mm (even f/2.8) are not as popular as they once were with film bodies. Not really very wide on the digital bodies (except for the D3 of course). Demand for these lenses has fallen off a great deal over the past several years. I picked up a Tamron 28-105 f/2.8 in perfect condition for $249 used at a local camera shop a few months ago. (It was also over $1400 new!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmulcahy Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 A little cheap? That lens consistently sells for over $1000 on ebay. I think it has to be an error from cameta. I just hope they honor it. I've got two emails from them now confirming my purchase. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmulcahy Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 So does anyone want to buy a nice MINT condition 28-70mm 2.8? for the low low price of $1100. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juanjo_viagran Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 ohh man, if they actually ship to you a "the beast" you got REALLY LUCKY.. I had that lens and is frikking awesome.. LUUUUKKKKYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmulcahy Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 DOH!! I just talked to cameta. He said someone hacked Ebay's computer system and sent out hundreds of fraudulent auctions. Their phone's are ringing off the hook w/ excited photographers. Pretty impressive hack job I must say. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seandepuydt Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 I doubt this is the real deal. This is a primo lens, if you were lucky enough to land into a deal, good for you. I bought mine last year and it hasn't left my F4s since. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael R Freeman Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 It should have been very obvious from the start that these 2nd chance offers were bogus. If it was not, you need to be very careful about your future eBay purchases. A genuine 2nd chance offer would have been for the exact amount of your losing maximum proxy bid. Never less, and you would never get more than one offer on the same item with two different prices. Furthermore, the offer would have also been in your "My Messages" Inbox on your "My eBay" page if it were genuine. Caveat emptor. There are lots of crooks out there that will be happy to part you from your hard earned cash. "How can I be certain that a seller's Second Chance Offer is legitimate?" -- see this link: http://pages.ebay.com/help/confidence/questions/second-chance-legit.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShunCheung Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Once again, when the price is too good to be true .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mooredriven Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Chad, I would check with your credit card company and make sure your card is not maxed out!! Why would anyone hack a vendor and not try to capture credit card information? I hope this did not happen to you, but I would err on the cautious side if I were you. Dale Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_caietti Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 I received the same Second Chance Offer and it was presented consistent with the link posted by Michael. When reading the message, the format and description do raise some red flags. It was not the typical bogus, assuming this is bogus, second chance offer that comes directly via email as opposed to the eBay website through My Messages. So, will be interested to see what Cameta does with Chad's purchase. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonybeach Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 "He said someone hacked Ebay's computer system and sent out hundreds of fraudulent auctions." > eBay is a haven for thieves; I'm certain Cameta was telling the truth when they said it was a security lapse at eBay and not at Cameta. Anyone who spends anytime at eBay will see these scams and variations of them constantly coming into their inbox. The real world analogy would be going to the sleaziest, most crime ridden neighborhood and perusing pawn shops, dimly lit stores, and street vendors along streets crawling with muggers and no police anywhere in sight. Maybe you will come across an infrequent bargain, maybe you will be buying a stolen item or one that was dropped and has hidden damage, but the cumulative risks to yourself and the costs to society at large (police investigations, charge offs on credit cards, loss of local photography shops, etc.) do not justify this in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sublimeimages Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Damn, and I disliked you for all of 1 minute. It would be great if they honored it but I doubt it. If someone hacked in then maybe the original winner got unfairly bumped. Still that was a great price, I've been looking for that lens in the below $900 mark. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebecker Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 I see one in the PN Classifieds. Why not buy from a member of PN? Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmulcahy Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 Michael - The 2nd chance offer was official and appeared legit in every way. It was sent to my ebay message box. A copy was also sent to my email address. The hackers found a way to actually generate an official 2nd chance offer and a buy now link. Even though the seller had no intention of doing so. The price given was the last price I bid on the item. The 2nd price I got was actually another auction of the same type of lens from cameta - I bid higher on that one before I dropped out. As for loosing my $. I never gave my card # to anyone. When I went to pay for the item I got an error message. On the bottom of the error message I was told to call cameta to complete the transaction. So I called them and that is how I found out Ebay was hacked. I think the only thing the hackers were unable to do was link the payment page to their computers in order to take your money. The scary thing is they came pretty close to completing the whole scam. I highly doubt they would go through that much trouble just to annoy cameta w/ crazy priced sales. This whole thing does bring up some serious questions about Ebay's security. As a buyer or seller I'm not feeling too good about Ebay. As of now I will not buy anything off Ebay. I will call the vendors directly. As a security measure I only use my Amex card on line - it is fraud protected so I'm never liable. In the past I've had two illegal charges on my card equaling thousands of $'s. Luckily I was credited the $ back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmulcahy Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 Michael _ I read that security link from Ebay that you posted. The hackers did it perfectly. All of the security measures Ebay put on the link were present on the "fake 2nd chance" notices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael R Freeman Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 That's a very disturbing and unsettling scenario! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmulcahy Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 Bob - I can tell you what they did w/ my purchase. They said they were hacked and I'm getting nothing. I said how do you know that? He said that lens is worth $2000 - not the $360 you want to pay. I said " that lens is not worth $2000 - it's worth about $1200 - and I got it for $360! He said well call Ebay and they will explain everything to you. I told him I'd like to see proof that they aren't just trying to back out of a deal and he again said contact Ebay ...they were hacked. And that is that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmulcahy Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 I just go an email from Ebay security. They are blocking any transactions involving this seller, removing any listings from this seller (cameta) and they are suspending any trading privileges they have, due to privacy concerns they cannot share further details about this seller. so there you have it. Ebay security is on the ball. It's 8:45pm and I just now get an email telling me not to give anyone my $. lol I've quickly lost any faith in Ebay security. wow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_caietti Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Chad - I wonder if the message you received from ebay security is accurate since this lens is now offered for sale by Cameta. This means Cameta has the lens and has not had its listings removed. This info was available on ebay as of 7:07 pm PST. Hmm, maybe stay away from ebay altogether for awhile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmg5um Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Me too receive such e-mail - for the second offer. I searched on google for any such feedback and got this thread. Incidently I also landed on cametacamera FAQ page on ebay. It says: Do you ever send a Second Chance Offer? No, we do not send Second Chance Offers. I did not look further. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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