Is there anything I can do? Got scammed out of 8k

[chibiusagino]

I know it's probably just a live and learn situation but I still want to ask just in case.

Several days ago, a person who I won't identify due to the forum rules, who has a very active and positively reviewed Marketplace store, we two arranged an agreement to have her commission something for me. I paid 8K upfront. My reasoning was someone with an active store was trustworthy. Naïve, I know. Ever since then they've been ghosting me. When they are online they do not reply or immediately log off. I know I'm probably just up creek without a paddle but I still wanted to ask if there anything a Linden can do? Probably not, I know, it just sucks that I got taken advantage of so badly due to my own stupidity. I guess they saw my noobie self coming a mile away. 😔

[Rolig Loon]

Not a thing.  You made an agreement with another resident.  It's not Linden Lab's responsibility to enforce it for you.

Consider the possibility, though, that you haven't been scammed at all.  If you didn't agree on a specific due date (or even if you did), the creator could have all sorts of other responsibilities ahead of yours, like someone else's job or massive RL obligations.  It would be courteous of them to respond if you have been sending polite "How's it going?" messages, of course, but they may be in Busy mode, not hearing anyone's messages.  I'd suggest sending a notecard to see if you get a better response. 

At least you did the smart thing by only paying a deposit on the work rather than the whole price.  If you have been scammed, you've limited your loss. Better luck next time.

[Scylla Rhiadra]

Again. I agree with Rolig that there is at least the possibility that you aren't being scammed, but that the person is dilatory, or busy, and maybe avoiding you, not because they don't intend to do the work, but because they are embarrassed. You don't say how long you've been waiting, or when this commission was supposed to be completed? I'm not sure how long is too long, but it might be best not to assume the worst, yet?

All of that said . . . if you are being scammed, it's annoying as hell that there is not only no recourse for you, but no valid way to warn off others who in the future might consider following in your footsteps. A nasty post in Virtual Secrets ain't gonna do it, and even naming names here would lack credibility, and reach only a tiny percentage of the SL resident population.

 

[chibiusagino]

6 minutes ago, Rolig Loon said:

Not a thing.  You made an agreement with another resident.  It's not Linden Lab's responsibility to enforce it for you.

Consider the possibility, though, that you haven't been scammed at all.  If you didn't agree on a specific due date (or even if you did), the creator could have all sorts of other responsibilities ahead of yours, like someone else's job or massive RL obligations.  It would be courteous of them to respond if you have been sending polite "How's it going?" messages, of course, but they may be in Busy mode, not hearing anyone's messages.  I'd suggest sending a notecard to see if you get a better response. 

At least you did the smart thing by only paying a deposit on the work rather than the whole price.  If you have been scammed, you've limited your loss. Better luck next time.

As I figured

And the due date was 6 days ago. We did set up a due date, one she gave me by the way, saying it wouldn't take very long at all. The first couple of days I assumed she was just running late and sent her a note saying if real life came up that's okay, just let me know when she can. By the fourth day she was online and ignoring me and my hope was vanishing. Now I'm sure I got scammed. 

[Chic Aeon]

18 minutes ago, chibiusagino said:

who has a very active and positively reviewed Marketplace store, we two arranged an agreement to have her commission something for me.

I definitely agree with Rolig and it may just be a time thing and all will be well BUT wanted to point out since you appear to be new that looking at a Marketplace store isn't a very good way to make a choice when hiring someone. Lots of stores use alts to make it look like their products are good -- or they pay other avatars to rate with five stars.  When I see a ton of rave reviews on a brand new product I am immediately on alert and not a believer.

 

I have products that have sold in the thousands with only a handful of reviews and some that have sold 600 or 700 times with no reviews at all. 

 

So you really can't  tell from the Marketplace. ASK FOR REFERENCES or a  resume at least.  

 

Hope this all works out well for you.  

[chibiusagino]

1 minute ago, Chic Aeon said:

I definitely agree with Rolig and it may just be a time thing and all will be well BUT wanted to point out since you appear to be new that looking at a Marketplace store isn't a very good way to make a choice when hiring someone. Lots of stores use alts to make it look like their products are good -- or they pay other avatars to rate with five stars.  When I see a ton of rave reviews on a brand new product I am immediately on alert and not a believer.

 

I have products that have sold in the thousands with only a handful of reviews and some that have sold 600 or 700 times with no reviews at all. 

 

So you really can't  tell from the Marketplace. ASK FOR REFERENCES or a  resume at least.  

 

Hope this all works out well for you.  

Thank you, this is really solid advice. I had no idea about that. 

[Scylla Rhiadra]

5 minutes ago, Chic Aeon said:

I have products that have sold in the thousands with only a handful of reviews and some that have sold 600 or 700 times with no reviews at all.

Ya know . . . there is one piece I bought from you some time ago that I use literally every time I take a fashion pic . . . that's how useful it is.

/me runs off to the MP to leave a review . . .

ETA: I can't review it, because I bought it in-world, and not on the MP. STUPID

But take my word for it, people, it's good, very good!

Edited September 30, 2020 by Scylla Rhiadra

[Rolig Loon]

At the risk of sounding like a Pollyanna or a gullible naif, I try very hard not to jump quickly to the conclusion that I've been the victim of deliberate evil doing.  It's easier on my tired brain and bruised ego to consider first that the other person was disorganized, forgetful, clumsy, in over her head, distracted by by RL events ( an unruly child, thoughtless boss, ill grandmother, impending IRS audit, CoVid ... ), you name it.  That's not only the kind face to put on things, but it's a reminder that I have had to deal with each of those challenges myself at some point in my life.  There are nasty people out there, but I still like to believe that most people are better than you think.

[Rowan Amore]

10 minutes ago, chibiusagino said:

Thank you, this is really solid advice. I had no idea about that. 

Also, concerning stores on MP, a lot have popped up that are only resellers.  Meaning, they resell gatcha items.  Tons of items and probably more than a few reviews.  I always filter those out unless looking for a specific gatcha item.  So they actually aren't creators necessarily.  There a box to tick on the left side bottom.  Don't show limited quantities.

[Ultima Cloud]

I think the price should have been a clue. Labor generally is in the 50-60usd per hour range. Most would want 2 hours upfront to get started. I worked with a graphic designer that would request 4 hours. I know this is SL but if hiring someone to do something for you, you have to factor in real world time. It's a shame it happened for sure. Someone having a store in SL really doesn't mean a whole lot. Just leave a negative review and see how "professional" most of them are about it. You could file suit  outside of SL but for $34usd (give or take) it's not going to be worth it. 

 

[Seicher Rae]

I totally have no idea about any of the official rules but what Rollig and others have said would have been my guess. I guess my mind works in "any recourse"? Yes, make darn sure that the person isn't just dragging their feet and too embarrassed to talk to you. If they have scammed you, could somebody speak to the Marketplace rules in the reviews? Could the OP purchase something from the "scammer" in order to leave a review and then explain the situation there, where maybe a few people would see it?

I understand the reasoning behind LL's laisez faire approach to such things, but it is frustrating. Many years ago H & I paid several months in advance rent from a land person who had been renting land for 10 years or so, and he chose that time to pull out of SL, taking our money with him. And you just sit there and spew expletives. 

[chibiusagino]

10 minutes ago, Seicher Rae said:

Could the OP purchase something from the "scammer" in order to leave a review and then explain the situation there, where maybe a few people would see it?

 

That's something I can do. But I'll send another note, maybe two. I'll give them one more week, perhaps a week and a half. I do whole heartedly believe I'm being scammed, but some people here with more optimism than myself have convinced me to wait it out just a bit longer. Like I said in one of my previous messages to her, if something came up or if you are having problems, I would prefer if you just tell me. I see that she's online at times, so it's not an issue of not having access to enter SL. I just hate being left in the dark with the feeling of being duped. Still, I will be a bit more patient, but if by October 10th or so there is still nothing from her I'll buy one of her cheaper products that often shows up in searches I do and will let others know. Maybe it's vindictive but I'd feel no pity. She has 8k of my lindens, 49 more won't make or break me, and maybe it will tell others how possibly unethical she is. But again...I'm trying to think positive...and am failing. I'll still wait a week and a half longer though.

[Rowan Amore]

7 minutes ago, chibiusagino said:

That's something I can do. But I'll send another note, maybe two. I'll give them one more week, perhaps a week and a half. I do whole heartedly believe I'm being scammed, but some people here with more optimism than myself have convinced me to wait it out just a bit longer. Like I said in one of my previous messages to her, if something came up or if you are having problems, I would prefer if you just tell me. I see that she's online at times, so it's not an issue of not having access to enter SL. I just hate being left in the dark with the feeling of being duped. Still, I will be a bit more patient, buhave t if by October 10th or so there is still nothing from her I'll buy one of her cheaper products that often shows up in searches I do and will let others know. Maybe it's vindictive but I'd feel no pity. She has 8k of my lindens, 49 more won't make or break me, and maybe it will tell others how possibly unethical she is. But again...I'm trying to think positive...and am failing. I'll still wait a week and a half longer though.

If she hasn't responded to notes or IMs, sadly, you may never hear from her again.  It's not that difficult to take one minute to answer to let you know what's going on.  I have IMs sent to email which I can answer from there if I'm unable to log in.

Sorry you're having a bad experience and I do hope I'm wrong.

Edited September 30, 2020 by RowanMinx

[Sassy Kenin]

7 hours ago, chibiusagino said:

I know it's probably just a live and learn situation but I still want to ask just in case.

😔

Well don't feel alone I was scammed out of 8k myself from a well known photo studio a year ago😪  I got the pictures! Horrible they looked, very poor quality, very little PS work if any.. nothing even close to the quality they showed in advertisements or profiles.

Learned a hard lesson that day. never pay upfront, until at least some kind of final work samples can be shown.

[Amina Sopwith]

I may be mistaken, but I do seem to recall years ago knowing someone who got scammed, submitted an AR and got results. I guess you can try?

[AdminGirl]

I actually heard of something similar to what Amina said as well. A friend got scammed some lindens from some "gift" from a stranger. It was a small amount but he got his lindens back from LL or at least that's what he told me.

[chibiusagino]

Thanks. I just submitted a ticket as I think that's what an AR is, right? Hopefully Linden Labs may help me. I'm not holding out too much hope but it is worth a shot. Good thing all communication was done via Second Life as I think Linden Labs can easily view chatlogs

[AdminGirl]

16 minutes ago, chibiusagino said:

Thanks. I just submitted a ticket as I think that's what an AR is, right? Hopefully Linden Labs may help me. I'm not holding out too much hope but it is worth a shot. Good thing all communication was done via Second Life as I think Linden Labs can easily view chatlogs

Submitting a ticket might be the way. But if you want to submit an Abuse Report as well just in case, when you're inworld, it should be under Help > Report Abuse.

[Lindal Kidd]

Hi @chibiusagino!  @AdminGirl is correct.  There are two ways of contacting Linden Lab.

• You file a Support Case here on this website, using Help > Support > Create Case.  This is used to get technical support, and is often called a support ticket, or just ticket.
• You file an Abuse Report from the viewer when you are logged in world.  This is called a report, or an AR.  It's used to report violations of the Terms of Service, including fraud.  (It's not at all clear that your case IS fraud, though.  But "report 'em all and let LL sort 'em out"!)

(Actually there are some other ways to contact LL, but those are the two main ones, and they're used for different purposes.)

 

Edited September 30, 2020 by Lindal Kidd

[Bree Giffen]

@chibiusagino If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire the A-team.

 

[Rob Huntsman]

Oof I been scammed quite a few times on SL, I've even done a 3kL exchange for a tank that didn't even work. I tried getting my money back, but LL basically blew it off even with photos as evidence. 

I also been ripped off by custom work. However, I can talk about that 10kl failed project another day, What I'm mainly getting at is you're not getting your money back.

Edit: They'll mainly tell you Linden Labs does not help with in world transactions. Only through when you purchase items on marketplace they can assist.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Rob Huntsman

[SpiritSparrow Skydancer]

You will have to notify the accused of your intent to file an AR. If I recall.

[Rolig Loon]

46 minutes ago, Tarina Sewell said:

You will have to notify the accused of your intent to file an AR. If I recall.

Nope.  You never have to tell anyone except Linden Lab.  As far as the "accused" is concerned, an AR was filed anonymously.  You will be notified that LL has received your report but you will never be told what action was taken.

[SpiritSparrow Skydancer]

55 minutes ago, Rolig Loon said:

Nope.  You never have to tell anyone except Linden Lab.  As far as the "accused" is concerned, an AR was filed anonymously.  You will be notified that LL has received your report but you will never be told what action was taken.

If it is filed anonymously how would he specify his account and then the accused account to get his linden back?

[Scylla Rhiadra]

8 minutes ago, Tarina Sewell said:

If it is filed anonymously how would he specify his account and then the accused account to get his linden back?

He doesn't file it anonymously. He simply doesn't need to inform the person being ARed. 

It is literally impossible to file an AR anonymously.