As I wrote a couple days ago, my eBay buying account has been suspended. Note that my husband's account has not been suspended. Nor has my selling account (which doesn't actually have a seller component attached to it at the moment). Only my BUYING account.

After some detective work and help from third parties, I've worked out the the other user they think is me is actually my brother-in-law, David (who, by the way, still has not contacted me about this, despite the fact that he knows I was suspended; I had to work it out entirely on my own). Until this suspension, I had no clue what his eBay username even was, nor did I care.

What appears to have happened is that six months or so ago, David was visiting our home and he logged on to eBay via our wireless network (with permission, of course). While he was logged on, he posted to the eBay forums. Now, six months or so later, eBay suddenly compared IP addresses or something and decided that he was me and that I had violated my suspension from eBay's boards (which I most certainly have not done).

And in order for eBay to reverse their mistake, they expect me to fax or post them private documents to prove my identity. This is a BUYER account, folks. It is not a seller who needs eBay to make enough money to pay the electricity bill. This is someone who comes to eBay with the intention of BUYING things. You know, the person whose experience eBay is always talking about improving? Yeah. And because my brother-in-law, who did NOT have a suspension, posted to eBay's forums while visiting my home, I now am expected to jump through hoops to prove to eBay that it's really okay to let me buy things on their site.

They deserve to lose a buyer.

I haven't yet decided if I can be bothered to do this. I do NOT agree that I violated any rules, because I did not (it's not against the rules to allow a relative to use your wireless internet, no matter how eBay spins it). There are plenty of other places on the net that I can spend my money (and it's getting close to when I start doing Christmas shopping, actually). Do I care enough to send them in photocopies of my drivers' license and other documents they have no need to see in the first place? Hmmm.... tough call....