Table of Contents
Featured Interview: Tyson Wanlass, Doba's Manager of Fraud Protection
Interview By Jake Sabey - Education Specialist, Doba
This month's featured interview is with Tyson Wanlass, Doba's Manager
of Fraud Protection. Because online fraud is a broad topic, this interview
will introduce the basics of online fraud, give warnings and tips of
how to approach online fraud, as well as educate retailers in the fight
of online fraud. A special thanks goes out to Tyson for taking time
away from his schedule to participate in this interview—Thank
you Tyson!
Tyson Wanlass - Manager of Fraud Protection, Doba
Tyson Wanlass is an expert at identifying and combating online fraud.
As Doba's Manager of Fraud Protection, Tyson oversees sophisticated
risk models and advanced proprietary technologies that aid in the company's
fight to eliminate fraudulent transactions. Considered an expert among
his peers, Tyson previously worked in Silicon Valley as a Fraud Analyst
for both eBay and PayPal. In his spare time you can catch Tyson skiing
in the mountains or taking in 18 holes on the golf course.
Jake Sabey: Define online fraud.
Tyson Wanlass: Online fraud is a term that refers
to many types of scams: (formatted list from interview)
- Nigerian lottery emails, or Phishing emails to collect personal information
- Collect funds and never send the merchandise
- Fraudsters using stolen or non existent funds in attempting to purchase goods or services
It is important for retailers to understand that if you sell online, especially
high end products, you're going to experience fraudulent attempts against
your business. The more retailers educate themselves on how to proactively
spot and prevent these attempts, the more profitable their business is
going to be.
JS: Can you give some examples of methods used by
fraudsters, warning signs of possible fraud, and steps to take when
dealing with possible fraud situations?
TW: There are two ways I currently see retailers being defrauded:
- Customers using stolen credit cards through retailers to make
fraudulent purchases.
This is most common for people who sell through a personal website
because the fraudsters believe these type of retailers are the most
susceptible due to their lack of knowledge surrounding online fraud
prevention. Now, the good news is this type of fraud is easily preventable
if you know what to look for. The best way to spot these types of
fraudulent orders is through a mis-match in the billing and ship-to
information. If you think about it, the fraudster obviously doesn't
want to ship the item to the rightful card holder's address so they
will always request shipment to an alternative location. I never suggest
that a retailer fulfills this type of order as doing so increases
the probability of receiving a credit card charge back in the near
future. Now, I understand there are times when a valid customer wants
to ship an item to a location other than the credit card's billing
address, such as gift purchases, and in these instances it is up to
the retailer to make a decision based on the amount of liability they
want to assume to complete the order. If you choose to proceed with
this type of transaction be sure and conduct thorough due diligence
on the order in question.
- Forged payment verification emails appearing to come from payment
processors such as PayPal.
This situation is experienced most commonly by people who sell through
auction outlets such as eBay. The fraudster will purchase a product
through the auction format and then send the retailer a forged email
appearing to be from PayPal. This email will verify that the retailer
has successfully received funds for the purchase and requests the
product is shipped out as quickly as possible. Now, as obvious of
a scam as this sounds, I do see a lot of retailers become victim simply
because they want to provide good customer service and fulfill the
request to expedite shipping. However, before doing so, a retailer
should never rely on an email as a means of verifying payment received.
They should always login to their PayPal account directly from the
PayPal home page and verify that the funds in question have been received
prior to fulfilling the order. This one additional step could potentially
save a retailer thousands in fraud losses.
JS: Give a brief overview of what Doba's Fraud Department
does in experiences such as those mentioned.
TW: Our Fraud Department has two main goals: (formatted
from interview)
- Protecting Doba's payment gateways from fraudulent activity
directly against the company.
This is done through using internal tools and systems that help monitor
and catch all fraudulent activity on site.
- Educate and aid our retailers regarding fraudulent trends and
preventive techniques.
Doba understands the importance of the retailer's success and strongly
believes any assistance we can provide is mutually beneficial for
retailers and Doba. This is why we have created and collected multiple
resources covering all areas of fraud. You can also email fraud@doba.com
with any questions or concerns about fraud.
Lastly, I want to mention that Doba offers a Fraud Protection Program
that's the first of its kind in the product sourcing industry; it can
be viewed as an insurance premium at no extra cost to Doba members.
If a Doba member/retailer is ever defrauded by their end customer, Doba
will cover their losses up to $500 per transaction. This coverage is
dependant on the retailer following standard online safe selling practices
as outlined in the program guidelines. (Click
here to learn more about Doba's Fraud Protection Program)
JS: Thank you Tyson for educating us on Doba's fight
against online fraud.
Please direct any questions or concerns of online fraud to Doba's Fraud
Department by emailing fraud@doba.com.
For more information on topics brought up during this interview or additional
topics of interest, you can search Doba's
Knowledgebase by keyword. Here are a few suggestions to get you
started:
Tune into future issues of the Doba
eNewsletter and Elite
Seller Report for more featured interviews and reference material.
About the Interviewer:
Jake Sabey is an eBay Certified Consultant and an Education Specialist
for Doba. Jake's educational strategies and methodologies help online
retailers meet and exceed their business-related goals. Prior to working
for Doba, Jake was a team leader, supervisor, and trainer for Toys R
Us, Sinclair Oil, SBC, and AT&T.
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 Marketplace Spotlight: What is Intellectual
Property (IP), and what does it have to do with you?
By Jeff Knight, Vice President of Marketplace
IP, or Intellectual Property according to the World Intellectual Property
Organization, “(Intellectual Property) refers to creations of
the mind: inventions, literary and artistic works, and symbols, names,
images, and designs used in commerce. “ There are two categories
of IP: Industrial Property and Copyrights. Industrial Property largely
refers to inventions, or patents, trademarks, designs, and other works
used in commerce. Copyrights are focused on literary and artistic works.
As the Internet has grown and become important part of how information
is disseminated and shared – IP has become an ever-increasing
issue. As an eCommerce retailer, IP and the regulation of IP rights
effects all aspects of your business. For this marketplace spotlight,
I am going to give a very brief and general layman’s overview
of IP issues and how they affect your business.
Before starting, I want to emphasize again that IP is very complicated
and a heavily debated area – and this article will only provide
a general overview. I will provide URLs at the end to assist with gathering
additional information. Second, there is a lot of debate over how to
regulate IP, the value of the regulations, and the motivation behind
IP laws – we will only skim the outsides of the debate. Largely,
for our purposes (i.e. Doba, retailers and suppliers, and IP regulators);
we all share a common goal even if at times we are inconvenienced by
the regulations.
What are examples of IPs in your day-day business?
Most of the images, copy, brand names, MAP policies, channel restrictions
(no eBay, brick and mortar only, etc) – are all examples of IP.
Every item that you list on eBay or place on your website, is subject
to IP regulations. For most retailers, they are only aware of how IP affects
them when they are notified they are in violation. The report is usually
followed by the eBay listing being removed, a legal cease and desist letter
or in most cases, an email explaining whose IP rights are in question
and what you must do to be in compliance. Truthfully, very few retailers
using Doba’s platform have had this experience. Before the product
is added to Doba’s platform – agreements over the supplier’s
rights and responsibilities are in place to help proactively alleviate
questions. Even with the best efforts of Doba and the suppliers, however,
there are still situations that arise. Why does this happen? While Doba
is authorized to provide you with the product information and images –
we couldn't possibly inform every brand/manufacturer of every retailer
on Doba's platform. In addition, within a manufacturer's organization
are different groups selling to different channels and at times, there
can be overlap and even conflicting policies.
Digital Millennium
Copyright Act
In 1998, the United States senate passed the Digital Millennium Copyright
Act (DMCA). The DMCA criminalized the act of using technology to circumvent
access control protecting IP, as well as the creation of technology
or devices that are used to circumvent control. An important aspect
was that the DMCA criminalized the act whether the copyright was infringed
at all. In addition, DMCA steepened the penalties for copyright infringement
on the Internet. DMCA enforcement has ranged from catching pirating
(music, software, etc) to frivolous patent lawsuits of large retailers
over common use technology like shopping cart processes. Criticism has
focused on the concept of a government, albeit briefly, granting a monopoly
over technology thus inhibiting enterprise. Other critics argue that
DMCA discourages research and other non-commercial activities. Finally,
and most important to Doba users, the DMCA has made it extremely easy
for IP rights holders to force websites and retailers to remove content.
If a website receives a notice that it is in violation, the website
can remove the content or link without being held liable. Essentially,
there is no incentive for the website to question the notice, even if
the rights are in question, because the website’s liability is
limited by the removal. From eBay to Google, the largest technology
websites have developed similar polices – if a violation is reported,
remove the content and let the publisher of the content work it out
with the assumed IP rights holder.
What should you do if you are notified?
Chances are that every retailer will face a situation where IP rights
will be in question. What should you do if you are notified? While you
may wish to push back or fight the report – Doba would recommend
suspending the listing while you gather more information. Next, contact
the party and ask for specifics on what content is in violation, how
you can verify it is violation and if it is in violation, how can you
correct the violation. In addition, please let Doba know so we can work
with the supplier to resolve ongoing issues.
Understand that very few IP rights holders will contact you directly.
Larger manufacturers will use a third party enforcement agency or a
legal firm to monitor and protect their IP. One of the largest companies
in the online space is NetEnforcers. Doba has had many positive interactions
with them and we have found them to be a reputable company genuinely
interested in protecting their clients and helping retailers in violation
get back in compliance. There are many other companies and each will
take a different approach. It is important to understand that while
the tone of their correspondence may be very accusatory and cold –
in the end, the company has most likely not singled you out. I think
the positive to take out of a situation is, if a manufacturer cares
enough to protect their brand and retailers to hire a third-party; you
should look into possibly becoming one of their approved dealers. Overall,
getting manufacturer authorization is a good idea for brands you intend
on focusing on - many manufacturers have additional marketing and incentives
for retailers who comply and meet their program requirements.
eBay and IP
If your eBay auction is suddenly canceled or you receive a cease and
desist letter, don’t panic. Look at the global situation; contact
the people reporting the violation and move ahead. eBay created its
VeRO program to help IP rights holders and sellers manage and proactively
solve issues. On the VeRO program pages, eBay gives details of how to
be in compliance and even lists all manufacturers who do not allow their
goods to be sold on the eBay platform.
Here are some places to visit for more information Intellectual Property:
The eBay VeRO program is located at:
http://pages.ebay.com/help/tp/programs-vero-ov.html
Google’s DMCA policy:
http://www.google.com/dmca.html
World Intellectual Property Organization:
http://www.wipo.int/about-ip/en/
NetEnforcers:
http://www.netenforcers.com
About the Author:
As the Vice President of Marketplace, Jeff Knight is responsible for
all aspects of the merchandising strategy, supplier acquisition, and
vertical category management and fulfillment operations of Doba's marketplace.
Prior to Doba, Jeff was Director of Merchandising for Overstock.com
where he developed the growth and management of the Computer and Home
Office category. Jeff's background includes merchandising and technology
leadership roles at DealDeal.com and BCI International. He earned Bachelor
and Masters of Arts degrees in Communication from the University of
Wyoming.
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Member Q&A: "How do I get more product details than what is
on Doba's site?"
By Rick Limon
In this month’s Q&A, I will respond to the many emails we
receive concerning the finding of additional product details for the
purpose of creating product descriptions. A good product description
is important to give your customer an image of what they are buying.
In addition, your product description can convey an image of professionalism,
giving your buyer the impression that you are indeed a serious retailer.
The product information provided by the supplier in Doba’s Product
Catalog is intended for the retailers use, not as the item description
in a listing for the end customer to base their purchase decision off
of. It is up to the retailers to take the information they are given
and conduct further product research to customize product descriptions
for their listings. This way, you can add your own personal business
touch to make your listings different than everyone else’s.
There are many different resources to use when searching for additional
product details. One is the manufacturer’s website. Here you can
find more in depth information regarding a specific product, right from
the company that makes it. Make sure that the SKU/ Model numbers match
the ones in the Doba catalog.
Another resource for finding additional product information is internet
search engines. With most search engines, you can search the entire
web through a general search, or search specifically for products by
clicking on a “Shopping” link (Google.com, Msn.com, Aol.com,
or Yahoo.com). Gathering information for a specific product is easier
than you think, just place the model or SKU number or key words from
the description in search engines to find more information.
You could also place sample orders. As mentioned in "Create
a Purchase Experience with Sample Orders," placing sample orders
is a way to get the actual product in your hands and give you a feel
for the item which will assist in writing custom, creative, and descriptive
product descriptions. You will also be able to take alternate pictures
which will help your listings to stand out compared to other listings.
Warning: Be sure to get permission before copying
any product descriptions or photos from the manufacturer’s or
any other websites. Much of the information is protected by copyright
whether or not a copyright symbol is shown. Violating copyright rules
and regulations could result in your listings being removed, your rights
to sell the product terminated by the supplier/manufacturer, and ability/membership
to list products in that market taken away or suspended. Familiarize
yourself with the rules, regulations, and policies concerning what is
and what is not allowed in the market in which you are listing products.
For more information on product details and writing effective product
descriptions, read:
We Want to Hear from You! Want to see your question
featured in the eNewsletter Member Q&A? Well we want to hear from
you! Please email education@doba.com
if you have any non-account related questions or topics you would like
us to write about. If you have questions concerning your Doba account,
such as billing, product or order questions, please search our knowledgebase
site content or contact our Customer
Support.
About the Author:
Rick Limon is an eBay Certified Consultant and an Account Manager
for Doba. Working directly with new online retailers, Rick assists retailers
in meeting their business specific goals by helping them take full advantage
of the resources and services Doba offers. Rick holds experience as
a Behavior Specialist and Mental Health Worker with Lackland ISD, Southwest
Mental Health Center, and Parent Child Incorporated.
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Supplier Information: New Suppliers Added to the Doba Product
Catalog
Starting an online business is relatively easy. Making it a success
takes hard work and the right mix of products. To help you achieve your
business-related goals, we recently added 7 new wholesale suppliers
and manufacturers to the Doba Catalog, including:
Hayworth
- A leader in design, development, manufacturing and marketing in portable
audio video products.
Ice
- Distributor of hockey and ice rink equipment.
Howlite
- Distributor of collectibles and skill stop slot machines.
Gypsum
- A leading manufacture of innovative consumer products.
Peppermint
- Offers a wide variety of area rugs including a large selection of
children's rugs.
Iron
- Offers retailers a unique range of heirloom quality goods that are
trend setting, functional and authentic.
Helvite
- Leading distributor of presentation equipment including LCD/DLP projectors
and flat panel displays.
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