Wow the latest scam and Amazon are still totally insouciant to the multitude of scams and bot attacks they are acting as a conduit for. Why don’t Amazon push back on these scams? A seller can have perfect metrics but get shut down permanently for one fake IP complaints from a Gmail account… this is totally insane & I thought I’d seen it all! It’s got so bad I’m hoping they bring back alliance@amazon.com @SEAmod

Always has been for patent and trademark trolls. You would be amazed at how these guys can manage to get ahold of IP rights. I’ve heard of them calling up widows in nursing homes right after a spouse has died and convincing some little old lady to sign away her late husbands IP right over a $3 invoice.

First, do a USPTO/TESS search and verify that they are in fact owners of intellectual property. If they are not, then contact the actual rights holder for assistance.

Make sure you get everything in writing (signed/countersigned) prior to making any payment. Utilizing the services of an attorney might be the cheapest method of safe escrow.

While a gmail address is not professional, you must remember that you are dealing with a troll and not a professional. They acquired someone’s intellectual property rights for little or no money and no are shaking down people for as much money as they can get.

I see where Pax @ Amazon moved this to General Selling…perhaps wants a wider audience to see if anyone else is receiving this type of blackmail for IP retractions?

This reminds me of ransomware and would be really easy to do from anywhere in the world with an internet connection. Just open up a bunch of throwaway Gmail accounts and start getting sellers shut down by submitting dozens or hundreds or even thousands of fake IP complaints. When those targeted sellers’ listings have disappeared, send the sellers a message through Amazon demanding ransom money to retract that bogus IP complaints that Amazon has taken seriously – even though they came from generic Gmail accounts. Silly Amazon.

For too long these tech companies have been having their cake and eating it too. They want total control of their platform but then say they aren’t responsible for anything that happens on their platform.

Technically it’s extortion not blackmail, but you are right. Forward this to Amazon – it’s clearly a scam. Frankly it’s so simple I’m surprised no one thought of it sooner.

How are these guys getting brand registry accounts? That would be my question. It seems like we hear about falsified IP complaints like this a lot. Are they buying the brand registry accounts on the black market? Are they being allowed in to brand registry by using fake intellectual property or intellectual property of another entity?

When we registered for our brand registry account, there was an approval process that clearly required either a copyright or trademark to begin… Has that changed?

Unfortunately even if you did pay, and even if they did retract, Amazon is not always willing to pull back the suspension.

This is low and dirty, Sorry it is happening to you. I have no advise, just posting to bump the thread back to the top of the list for attention.

You can call their bluff with a DCMA
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/G202017130

…ask for their lawyers name and address…