Personal Assistant help

MistyEyedWanderer · November 06, 2023, 07:05:29 PM

Ok, this may seem strange and is not intended to be a rant. I have just had a new verified Ebay account suspended for no reason at all and I am furious. I was rudely cut off in the customer chat with no way to appeal and still none the wiser as to what 'risk' I pose buying model choo choo's on the internet

I feel sorry for the seller who had accepted my offer on a spares and repairs model, as their is no way to reach him outside of that awful robotized corporation.
So I guess what I am looking for is a trustworthy N gauge member that is prepared to be a friend to help me out on my behalf with purchases.

I rely on writing for communication and need assistance. It makes simple tasks impossible that would otherwise for most not be an issue.

This could turn into a position to support me in other things that I desperately need help with, such as going to model shows I would otherwise never get to see and general P.A work on an as needed basis.

I am an ambulant wheelchair user with no chair

Being a little aware of scammers.If an Admin would like to PM me I can try to tell a little more detail. I could set up an account with say, wise for transactions.
I need you to Set up a Protonmail email account to work with me.
Obviously cannot go into personal details on a public message board.
I have quirks you need to be ok with, I am a professional introverted misanthropic curmudgeonly hermit with a soft center (so I'm told), that doesn't care about whats on television or the weather.

Does this sound like a job for you?

ChrisGH · November 06, 2023, 07:43:11 PM

I had the same problem when I first opened an account.
I hadn't even tried to buy anything and my account got suspended.
Why? Couldn't find out.
All I did was open a new replacement account in a different name and email and everything (so far anyway)has been ok.
Regards Chris

MistyEyedWanderer · November 06, 2023, 08:22:41 PM

Quote from: ChrisGH on November 06, 2023, 07:43:11 PMI had the same problem when I first opened an account.
I hadn't even tried to buy anything and my account got suspended.
Why? Couldn't find out.
All I did was open a new replacement account in a different name and email and everything (so far anyway)has been ok.
Regards Chris

I got about 24 hours out of before it shut down unexpectedly. I really thought it was ok this time. My intuition is that if you use a VPN (and we all really should do) or some kind of proxy the account is automatically flagged regardless of how clean it is. I have used BIN before with no account, but that can be hit and miss even with a fresh email address. After getting stung for a lot more £'s than hobby priced items it has made me wary of buying anything from ebay. Ebay still owe me for that from months ago. You might not actually get refunded without an account, if the temporary account that is automatically set up for BIN is suspended!

It really looks like you are forced to behave like a scammer to get around the A.I. just to be a legitimate buyer, and of course you can't actually bid that way.
I'm looking at how to get to the financial ombudsmen involved.
Ebay are Still charging a percentage for postage!

Glad to see an association member anyway.

njee20 · November 06, 2023, 10:24:22 PM

They're entirely within their rights to charge fees on postage. Non issue. EBay are not the crooks people seem to think. Good luck with the FOS, you'll have to have gone via eBay's full complaints process if you want a fighting chance.

I'm not clear what you actually want? Is it just someone to help you with eBay? I can't quite reconcile the idea that not using a VPN is risky, but you want a stranger to purchase things on your behalf, presumably giving them your bank/card details...?

joe cassidy · November 07, 2023, 01:21:08 PM

I got a message from Facebook today telling me that if I want to continue to have free access I have to agree to let them sell my personal details to all and sundry.

Otherwise, I have to pay a subscription of 10 euros per month.

mokjumbo · November 07, 2023, 01:45:01 PM

Quote from: joe cassidy on November 07, 2023, 01:21:08 PMI got a message from Facebook today telling me that if I want to continue to have free access I have to agree to let them sell my personal details to all and sundry.

Otherwise, I have to pay a subscription of 10 euros per month.

A great reason to tell them where to go and cancel your account.

steadfast · November 07, 2023, 02:40:52 PM

Quote from: joe cassidy on November 07, 2023, 01:21:08 PMI got a message from Facebook today telling me that if I want to continue to have free access I have to agree to let them sell my personal details to all and sundry.

Otherwise, I have to pay a subscription of 10 euros per month.

They'll have already sold your details left right and centre. The prime reason for social media isn't for communication, but generating ad revenue.
The 10 euro monthly fee makes your account ad free, which it won't have been previously. The fee roughly suggests what your use is probably worth to them each month...

Jo

njee20 · November 07, 2023, 05:39:37 PM

If you're not paying for a service then you are the product.

joe cassidy · November 07, 2023, 10:30:01 PM

If I'm a product I'm not selling very well.

Maybe I'm past my sell-by date ?

joe cassidy · November 08, 2023, 11:24:29 AM

Most of the adverts I get on Facebook are for ladies' underwear

MistyEyedWanderer · November 09, 2023, 01:31:43 AM

Quote from: njee20 on November 06, 2023, 10:24:22 PMThey're entirely within their rights to charge fees on postage. Non issue. EBay are not the crooks people seem to think. Good luck with the FOS, you'll have to have gone via eBay's full complaints process if you want a fighting chance.

I'm not clear what you actually want? Is it just someone to help you with eBay? I can't quite reconcile the idea that not using a VPN is risky, but you want a stranger to purchase things on your behalf, presumably giving them your bank/card details...?

VPN is supposed to be a great defense against hackers and annoyingly some websites wont work without one after the GDPR.
If I ever want my money back that was effectively stolen from me, then I guess I'll go through the process. I would have done so before but the contact detail were horribly obfuscated and the chat wouldn't work. Probably overloaded from complaints. Amazon appears to work and is apparently beating Ebays market share, but the fees are higher and neither can exactly boast of moral superiority when it comes to how customers and staff are treated.

Wise accounts for example are one way to transfer funds securely without disclosing insecure card numbers, then there is crypto. There is an element of trust much the same as making a classified ads purchase by mail. Done it on Gumtree for low value and sold that way too. Both trust that the other will send. Set a limit. Ideally it would be someone nearby that wont stay a stranger for long so it could be collected in person or give help with large objects. Someone to help with buying from Ebay on my behalf and sending to me is only the tip of the iceberg.
The rest is much larger in all. Social coordination and physical effort with the likes of arranging hospital visits and actually getting there and back. I might try a local add again.

njee20 · November 09, 2023, 08:03:22 AM

Quote from: MistyEyedWanderer on November 09, 2023, 01:31:43 AMSomeone to help with buying from Ebay on my behalf and sending to me is only the tip of the iceberg.
The rest is much larger in all. Social coordination and physical effort with the likes of arranging hospital visits and actually getting there and back. I might try a local add again.

This is a paid position I presume? I'm not sure this is the right forum to recruit someone professionally, there must be channels you can go through to find someone suitable. I fear you'll need to be a little more open minded to find someone though. The world is not out to get you. As you rightly observed in your OP who cares that you're buying toy trains on the internet? Putting barriers in place is doing just that. Best of luck with the search.

ntpntpntp · November 09, 2023, 10:06:39 AM

Quote from: MistyEyedWanderer on November 09, 2023, 01:31:43 AMVPN is supposed to be a great defense against hackers and annoyingly some websites wont work without one after the GDPR.

I can't say I've ever encountered a site which requires a VPN other than when I'm working from home and connect to my company.
I've encountered some which don't like you using a VPN, mainly those which want to know your global region from your IP address such as video streaming etc.

TeeCee · November 09, 2023, 03:44:15 PM

Quote from: joe cassidy on November 07, 2023, 10:30:01 PMIf I'm a product I'm not selling very well.

Maybe I'm past my sell-by date ?

I think it is probably your 'use by date' which is more important!

MistyEyedWanderer · November 19, 2023, 09:05:04 PM

Quote from: AndrewPH on November 09, 2023, 03:28:58 AM
Quote from: MistyEyedWanderer on November 09, 2023, 01:31:43 AMsome websites wont work without one

Wow - which ones?

I can't remember exactly but most were American. I deduced that is was not worth the effort for them to set up the GDPR stuff, which is a shame as I had specific interests. I take security seriously and am far from an expert, there is a lot more to learn simply to make things function properly.