Skip to main content
BobLevine
Community Expert
BobLevineCommunity Expert
Community Expert
February 15, 2008
Question

Thinking of buying from eBay?

  • February 15, 2008
  • 221 replies
  • 323904 views
Edited October 23, 2008

The original article that this post referred to has expired but there's still quite a bit of good information in this thread.

The point is that eBay software is a risky purchase with much of it illegally pirated.

Bob
    This topic has been closed for replies.

    221 replies

    Show previous replies
    P
    philipjdavies
    Participating Frequently
    October 24, 2009

    I have obtained quite a lot of Software from E Bay without any problems ocurring. Its is just CS4 that has falen of the edge due to the illicit copying of this product in Asia and then the idea of making a fast buck by those who sell it as genuine.

    A
    Anonymous
    October 24, 2009

    philipjdavies wrote:

    Its is just CS4 that has falen of the edge due to the illicit copying of this product in Asia and then the idea of making a fast buck by those who sell it as genuine.

    In fact if you read this thread you will see it started on a large scale with CS2.

    P
    philipjdavies
    Participating Frequently
    October 24, 2009

    Well I had no problem getting either of those perhapes I was just lucky

    A
    abdu7295703
    Known Participant
    October 23, 2009

    What if the seller has 1000 feedbacks and only 2 negatives and selling Photoshop CS4 for $100? I read some comments here and no one seems to believe this could be legit. What if it were an unwanted gift and the person has no use for it? Maybe the seller needs the money and wants to sell it fast so he's selling it at a low price point.

    Zeno Bokor
    Zeno Bokor
    Inspiring
    October 23, 2009

    And what if he's lying? what if the gift was a pirated copy? There may be some legit copies of Photoshop sold on ebay but the vast majority are fakes which is why this thread is in place, to warn people of the dangers of buying from eBay and the likes.

    Kelibath
    Kelibath
    Participating Frequently
    October 23, 2009

    Agreed.

    Just to clarify, I didn't know the dangers of eBay software before purchase (as I've bought legitimate software from eBay in the past).

    I bought two copies of Photoshop CS4 and BOTH are fake. Different sellers, different asking prices. Admittedly they didn't have over 1,000 positive feedback, but nor do I, so I thought all would be well.

    M
    Merlin_AZ
    Participant
    October 18, 2009

    The free version at www.malwarebytes.org.

    Also the rootkit scanner from www.f-secure.com/en_EMEA/security/security-lab/tools-and-services/blacklight/.

    If you have Norton Internet Security 2010, the full scan already scans for rootkits.

    F
    Frankconl
    Participant
    October 17, 2009

    This is very confusing about whether or not to buy an Adobe product that is advertised as new and is selling for a lot less from an Ebay or Amazon seller. It seems the first step would be to find out if Adobe sells to resellers. If they do...then the purchase one is considering on Ebay or Amazon may or may not be legitimate considering who you are buying from. But if Adobe doesn't sell to resellers.....then this will end the debate. These new copies are not legitimate.

    Then....can someone resell their used copy of say "Adobe Photo Shop CS"? Does Adobe allow another person to register or even use a used copy bought from another person?

    Someone out there I'm sure is up to speed on this kind of confusion...Help us Please.  Frankconl

    Kelibath
    Kelibath
    Participating Frequently
    October 18, 2009

    Well, now I KNOW my copy is a fake. The colour is wrong, the mouse doesn't work, the registration number is invalid.. there are a few pointers.

    I'd like to know if there's any way you can tell before buying.

    What about the PN number on the bottom? Does that prove anything?

    The registration number is inside the box, maybe resellers won't know it. Also, opening the shrinkwrap gives some grounds for complaint by eBay sellers.

    I very much dislike the way opening a dispute on eBay now takes you straight to PayPal. PayPal take forever.

    As far as I am aware you cannot reregister a product that has already been registered on your own account so you might have no access to tech support. However you can Deactivate a product from your PC and install it on another PC, including the registration process I assume, which would mean that Used copies will work as long as they've been deactivated but may not be eligible for tech support. The seller's responsibility is to deactivate their own product before uninstalling; the buyer should check this with them and test it.

    By the way, what happened to Artsy Woman was a travesty. I'm really sorry for you, if you're still around.

    Kelibath
    Kelibath
    Participating Frequently
    October 18, 2009

    After reading earlier posts, it seems a Change of Registration form from Adobe is also a good idea.

    Anyone know how to remove the adware/spyware/trojan horse that fake copies put on your PC? My desktop hasn't shown any unusual activity as of yet but I am now very scared for my finances if there is a password collator at work here; I use PayPal and don't want my funds to be removed.

    T
    tataozawa
    Participant
    October 15, 2009

    to avoid fraud or illegal transaction at ebay, we must see seller reputation and comments from other buyers. I think it can help us from illegal pirates. I got good experience at ebay, twice buying transaction was successful and not got problems.

    A
    Anonymous
    October 15, 2009

    Feed Back can be faked too. Read the post above you for a prime example.

    O
    Outré
    Participating Frequently
    October 14, 2009

    Interesting comments.

    If a small shop has a valid business license, I assume that Adobe might just enter into an agreement to let them resell the software.

    After all, the big corporations get it in some way. The room for high markup MUST be sufficient enough for large corporate stores to stock them on the shelves at all.

    If the smaller shop chooses to have less of a markup, and profit, what is the trouble?

    I agree that you need to be careful, checking the serial is a good method. So would checking the business license of the individual, or shop. But that would go for a great deal of things and actions.

    Accusing all eBay shops of criminality is a knee-jerk reaction to piracy, and not very intelligent.

    A
    Anonymous
    October 15, 2009

    Outré wrote:

    Accusing all eBay shops of criminality is a knee-jerk reaction to piracy, and not very intelligent.

    nobody is accusing all ebay sellers just the majority of them. that is not knee jerk, its the truth. What is not intelligent, is believing they are all honest.

    A
    Anonymous
    October 16, 2009

    Buko. wrote:

    Outré wrote:

    Accusing all eBay shops of criminality is a knee-jerk reaction to piracy, and not very intelligent.

    nobody is accusing all ebay sellers just the majority of them. that is not knee jerk, its the truth. What is not intelligent, is believing they are all honest.

    Your statement is false considering I never advocated anyone believing "they are all [eBay resellers] honest". Common forum tactic to misrepresent.

    Knee-jerk gratis of askoxford.com "automatic and unthinking".

    In otherwords, "some" people got ripped off so "the majority of them [eBay sellers]" are dishonest.

    Better to look into why people got ripped off. Were they so excited by the perceived price they cast common sense aside?

    Did they think they could game Adobe by getting the perceived price and again, cast common sense and self-preservation aside in the hunt for the "kill"?

    Did they wait too long to begin research into alternatives for getting what they needed, instead jumping after it at the last moment?

    Perhaps. And I will agree that the criminals in all of society bank on those reasons above. But they exist everywhere and the use of common sense is what keeps most of us out of their tricks on a daily basis, Why should it be any different on eBay?


    Outré wrote:

    In otherwords, "some" people got ripped off so "the majority of them [eBay sellers]" are dishonest.

    Most people who buy software from ebay get ripped off. That is a fact.

    previously you wrote:

    If the smaller shop chooses to have less of a markup, and profit, what is the trouble?

    The only people who can give a discount on Adobe products are huge retail sellers and then is maybe $10 or $20, thats it. No legitimate seller can or will give the $600 off that the pirates do. If you really believe most of the sellers on ebay are mom & pop stores just getting by I have a cool bridge I can sell you in the city of your choice for real cheap.

    T
    Thechiddboy
    Participant
    October 5, 2009

    I have just purchased CS4 from Adobe at £539 as an upgrade from Adobe Elements 7,what a great piece of software.Forget ebay save your money and put it towards a genuine copy,with peace of mind.All I need to worry about is upgrading now and again.Now for some fun.My only gripe is"adobe where are the written user manuals" nobody gives written manuals anymore...why!.

    A
    Anonymous
    October 5, 2009

    Thechiddboy wrote:

    My only gripe is"adobe where are the written user manuals" nobody gives written manuals anymore...why!.

    You need to spend a lot of time at http://www.adobe.com/support/photoshop/ and explore the linked articles and videos there.


    I think that most people never opened the printed manuals so it's a sound environmental decision not to include them.


    I think you can still order one.

    C
    CyberxTremer
    Participant
    September 15, 2009

    It depends if the seller is genuine. But why go for ebay if we have adobe's site ? well, many people only know about ebay

    fatbikez
    fatbikez
    Participant
    September 20, 2009

    alot of stuff on ebay is  either stolen or bootlegs.  same with craigslist.

    U
    UpgradeRegrets
    Participant
    September 12, 2009

    I tried a download version direct from Adobe but right now it is not functioning.

    Maybe the answer is another copy from ebay-amazon or similar that hopefully

    does not have the bugs that mine purchased directly from Adobe does...

    Maybe worth a try!

    A
    Anonymous
    September 13, 2009

    I think the problem is with your messed up installation not the Adobe software.


    Trying to load another copy on that system will not help.


    You need to take a deep breath and follow all the instructions already given. If that doesn't help, back up your data, format your hard drive and re-install everything.

    S
    Sofe19530442
    Participant
    September 13, 2009

    While I agree that reformatting the hard drive may be the only answer, I don't agree that the software isn't the problem.  It should have just installed like all of my other software did.  Other software doesn't have this problem.  Even Lightroom 2 installed.  Not only does CS4 not install, but it started screwing up my old CS3 and Bridge.  The pages of instructions can only be done by someone who has very good computer knowledge. I'm a photographer, not an IT pro. I eventually went to pay someone who builds computers for a living and he couldn't get it to load, even using their instructions.

    Going on the web, I see plenty of other people for whom the pages of instructions didn't work.  Even some of the easier instructions are goofy.  An example is how they want to to add a new administrator.  Not only do they do it in the longest, dumbest way possible, but some of those steps won't work, as what they tell you to look for isn't there.   People like Upgrade regrets and myself shouldn't have to pay someone to install this.  Now, because my CS3 won't reinstall (probably because there's some remnant of CS4 that won't uninstall even with thAdobe's CS4 uninstaller), I have to use CS2 until I get this fixed.

    This has been a lot of money to spend and a lot of aggravation for something Adobe knows is giving a huge # of people fits. How Adobe finds this acceptable, I can't even imagine.

    S
    Sofe19530442
    Participant
    September 12, 2009

    Buying on ebay is risky compared to what?  Buying from Adobe?  Pardon my sarcasm,  but I upgraded to CS4 and no matter what, it won't install.  Now that I've unistalled CS3, it too won't correctly reinstall.  I'm back to CS2 or 5.5

    Now, they not only have my money from CS4, but have essentially just repossessed CS3.  Adobe= Bleeeecchhhhh!!!!!

    Show more replies
    Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
    Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices