Landlord Fraud?

Is the notary service IN SL valid? It is operated by a Linden.

Resident notary service operated by Lindens?

Why should LL do this? It is NOT their responsibility. They operate the system and lease server space. What happens after that is down to individual people. There are some who are honest and some who are dishonest. You seem to think that LL do this and LL should do that. No one would buy land at all if they did. There are plenty of honest people out there, why mess around and reduce their freedoms because of a minority.

It's an issue for Linden Lab in so much as nobody wants to enagage in a scammers paradise. They are not responsible for the scam, you're very much correct but people who have been scammed are going to turn to the people behind the project and if they don't find support, they're going to not have a very good impression of the name behind the project.

This happened to me as well yesterday. Logged in to find that our house and everything had been returned and the whole sim was barren. No warning, no notice. I sent an IM to see if he will refund us but I wont be surprised if we aren't.

I talked with the new owner and he got Concierge to do a rollback. I'll be collecting my things and moving on. I wonder if it's the same sim(s).

I am very sorry to read what happened to you. It is important that you do know and realize there are many many good landlords in SL, and a few not so nice ones.
I always suggest to people that they talk with ppl, do a search in forums on whomever they might think of dealing with.
d'Alliez Estates has been in business for four years and I feel proud of our reputation,
Now to try and help you, if you will contact me in world I will absorb the money you lost if I have any land you might like to live on. Hope this helps you.
I do wish you the best of luck and hope we can help you
Alliez Mysterio

There's another face of the medal (and in most cases, it's what it happens...), when ppl being scammed by these landlords, because of the single bad experience they turns to mainland = good for LL.

I totally disagree, atm they are facilitating these scams, specially when the land was sold to the victims.

*maybe the whole selling part should be disabled for estates ?


.

There I think is the problem.

Land in private estates is never sold, only rented. The Estate owner always has the right of reclaim. All that needs to happen is for that to be made clear.

The idea that LL "just leases server space," is a glorious cop-out.

If I took a piece of real life land and advertised an amusement park created by residents and I leased out pieces of my land to anyone who could pay and told them to create content and said, "everyone has to make nice"and some of these buyers, dig deep holes and cover the holes with camoflaged tarps so anyone walking on them fall in the hole and are trapped and injured or killed and then their wallets and purses and wrist watches and jewelry, taken, I am legally and morally responsible.

The fact that I advertise as a happy little amusement park and I benefit from the money paid to me by the evil doers and I do not do something about that, makes me complicit with the evil doers, especially since the "business model," of these evil doers, becomes more widespread as word of mouth spreads that there is a hot scam here.

Making a little sign of fine print that says, "* Be careful, some of these amusement parcels may have dangers," does not erase my responsibility, legally or morally, to make all efforts to make it safe.

IMO, SL is not like a web host. SL is like a big Website. Even Web hosts can be legally and morally responsible if they are in essence harboring terrorists or catering to illegal behavior.

....and as i said before, LL, being a supposedly high tech, ingenious company, should have little trouble devising and implementing a way to prevent these land rental scams by adding technical steps to prevent land transfers if renters are not paid off.

You may as well close the grid then because it aint gonna happen.

They are NOT legally or morally responsible, they make that totally clear when they say they do not intervene in private disputes.

The only responsibility for LL is to pass on details to the relevant authorities if someone decides to take it to court. Is the government responsible for you losing money if a firm goes bust or scams you? no of course not. The individual or company is responsible and you can sue them. Where is the difference

LL is effectively the government of a virtual world. Your beef is with a private avatar. Go after them.

Wow Alliez that is an amazing offer...

LL is NOT, "the government." in RL. It is a private business that benefits from these scammers since they take their money too.

LL can say "we don't get involved with private disputes," all they want, that does not mean anything legally, any more then a disclaimer, in my example of the amusement park I created, would wash my hands of responsibility, when evil doers, come in and dig pits for others to fall into. As the legal owner, I am responsible. It is me that is advertising, enticing and claiming my land is a wonderful amusement park and I have to live up to that claim.

At any rate. Your opinion will not hold up in the long run.

That is YOUR opinion. And it is unlikely to hold up in the long run.

LL is not in contractual privity with you or another avatar when you make an agreement with another avatar. As a service provider, LL will be obliged to cough up their rl info should you choose to chase down the person behind that avatar. LL is not responsible for the choices you make concerning your dealings with other people. Get that into your head.

If what you say is true then why are My Space and Facebook being forced to take actions to protect innnocent victims of crimes ranging from pedophilia to out and theft? Those, too, are private "businesses" with disclaimers and "be careful" notes....those did not hold up in court at all. LL is responible just as My Space and Facebook are.....they control who enters the "world", they have the responsibility to make sure everyone is safe from the low lifes that naturally gravitate to places so easily entered and used for less than honest and lawful purposes.

No, Linden Lab is NOT a government of SL.....but they have total control Someone must excecise that control to keep the innocents safe. If they don't, then the only choice will be a real government intervening (in this case the United States government since LL is located inside this country).......and we all know how that works. LL needs to take control of their "world".....or relinquish it to someone else. It just cannot be allowed to continue without safeguards with any hope of survival for the company.

I'm really afraid LL will not take the actions necessary to protect their business. And with that we all will suffer............the world might just go away because of it.

"I'm really afraid LL will not take the actions necessary to protect their business. And with that we all will suffer............the world might just go away because of it."

yes it will. there is so many fraud and none ever can count it. infact, everyone can set-up a vendor and there is nothing in than sqare-prim and he can sell ist to ppl for thousends of lindens.

i have found a smal solution for myself.
i will never buy somehing (if it is the smallest thingy ever) from an avatar who do not have a used payment info. in my believe, someone who is in business he have to have that. thats the minimum an avatar who make business can shows up. it isn't a guaratee but it will filters out a lot of asozial crap.

No you.

I'm not impressed.

In response to Peggy: Either way , there is a difference when you are talking about protecting the safety of children, identity theft and consumer swindles. The first is to be expected but the last - not so much. LL can and should prevent against the first two, as they deal with safety and privacy. The last is a judgment call between you and the avatars you interact with. No one forces anyone to do anything here. No one forces anyone to stay. But so long as you do stay, you need to be wary and remember a few common sense things, primarily, don't believe everything you read.

I've never been swindles or scammed in SL. I know how to treat unknown people (each avatar has a person behind it....even the bots). But, many are much more trusting than I am..........I mean many, a lot, vast amount!! It's those that need protection......just like the children. Sort of sad it's that way, but it's a fact. LL is the only intity in SL that can take that role..........and it needs to be filled.

There is no difference at all. Theft is theft, abuse is abuse..........child, middle aged, or senior citizen.

I'm so glad you are not impressed though Eventually, I'm afraid some legal action will prove me correct.

Agreed. It's bad for business when your business has a rep for being shady.

That comment was for Rebecca.

Either way,the framework is there already, based on existing law. Wire fraud, etc. But I think most rational people would realize that the person you go after is not LL but the person with the "shop" or "estate." If I was buying something from eBay and got snookered, I wouldn't think to sue eBay.

Ebay just recently lost in the French courts because of fake items being sold on their site.

It's a trademark case at its heart, not a case of non-delivery.

I believe it was actually a case that dBay did not provide enough protection against fraud.

Still the point is the same. Companies will not be allowed to hide behind their claims that they are "just a venue".