There are clues to pick up on when you think the email is spam or phishing: 1) They don't use your name in the posting. It is always Dear eBay Member... eBay will always start with: "Dear Gizmoseller (R. A. Gizmo)," so your name is included to show that it really is eBay sending it. 2) The title line is most likely to hit your fear button. You will see, "Your Account Is Flagged For Closure!" or some other ruse to get you to hit the link and fall for their bologna. Forwarding this to eBay via "spoof(a)ebay.com" will get you a return from eBay stating "thank you for reporting this to eBay we can assure you this was not sent by eBay." 3) When you get the "Notice of Unpaid Item" requiring you to respond immediately, paste the item number they provide into an item search on the REAL eBay. It will invariably come up as something you would never buy such as a motorcycle muffler for a '48 Indian. 4) If you have ever even once hit the link in the spam then you will need to change email addresses to end the deluge because the crooks have your number. However, all is not lost. If the spammers get no responses ever again from that address then they slowly trail off. They are looking for valid addresses and zero feedback does not confirm you still exist. Overall when you consider the service eBay has provided for all of us phonograph collectors, it is a huge positive gain. Just the chance to bid on some rare normally never seen whatchamacallit is a thrill in itself. They really cannot do much to go after the legions of crooks that seek out new avenues of fraudulent gain. Best to everyone, gotta run now, just got an email I've won the Irish Lottery, Al **************Biggest Grammy Award surprises of all time on AOL Music. (http://music.aol.com/grammys/pictures/never-won-a-grammy?NCID=aolcmp003000000025 48)