Block & Report: How to Handle a Problem Buyer
When a buyer is causing problems — sending suspicious messages, attempting fraudulent transactions, or otherwise behaving in a way that violates EstateSales.org's terms — you can now address it in one step: block them from contacting and bidding with you, and at the same time report them to our admin review team for platform-wide action.
This article walks through the Block & Report feature, when to use it, and what happens after you submit a report.
You're not alone in this
Before we dive in, a reassurance: EstateSales.org automatically catches the vast majority of phishing and scam attempts before they ever reach you. Our backend continuously scans every incoming message for suspicious URLs, known phishing keywords, impersonation patterns, repeat offenders, and other risk signals — and silently quarantines the bad ones for our review team without you having to do anything.
So you don't need to be on hair-trigger alert. But when something does slip past our automation and lands in your inbox, that's exactly what Block & Report is for — your fastest way to shut a bad actor down and help us tighten our automated defenses against the next one.
If you want a refresher on what phishing tries to look like and the red flags to watch for, read our companion article: How to Identify and Avoid Phishing Scams on EstateSales.org.
Demo
What does Block & Report do?
The Block & Report feature combines two actions that used to be separate:
- Block the user from your business. They can no longer message you, bid on your items, or interact with sales you're running.
- (Optional) Report them to EstateSales.org admins. Our review team is notified immediately, sees a full history of the user's account and devices, and can take broader action — such as banning the user from messaging, buying, or selling across the entire platform, or banning the device they're using altogether.
You're always in control: if you just want to block them quietly for your own protection without escalating, you can — just leave the report toggle off. If you also want our team to take a look, flip it on and describe what happened.
When should I use it?
Use Block & Report any time a buyer's behavior crosses a line you wouldn't tolerate from any customer. A few common examples:
- Phishing — A user impersonating an EstateSales.org staff member or sending phishing links — see How to Identify and Avoid Phishing Scams on EstateSales.org for what these tend to look like
- Chargeback fraud — buyer receives the goods then disputes the charge with their card issuer, falsely claiming non-receipt, "item not as described," or "unauthorized transaction." Called "friendly" because the cardholder is the actual buyer, not a stolen-card thief. From the merchant's perspective there's nothing friendly about it.
- A buyer who has placed bids they have no intention of paying for
- Aggressive, abusive, or threatening language
If you're unsure whether something rises to the level of a report, err on the side of reporting. Our review team takes a holistic view and a single seller's report is just one signal among many.
How to use Block & Report
From a member's profile page
- Open the buyer's member profile (you can get there from any of their messages or from your bidder list).
- Click the Block & Report button on the right side of their profile.
- In the modal that pops up:
- Toggle "Also report this user to platform admins?" on if you want to send a report (leave off to just block).
- When reporting is on, fill in the Reason field. Be specific — what did they say or do, when, and in what context? Order/invoice numbers and screenshots help our team investigate faster.
- If the buyer has active bids on your items, you'll also see an option to Cancel this member's active bids as part of the block. - Click Confirm.
From a message thread
- Open the conversation with the buyer.
- Click the action menu on any of their messages and choose Block & Report.
- The same modal appears with the same options.
That's it. The block takes effect immediately, the report (if you sent one) lands in our admin queue within seconds, and our review team is notified in real time with a link directly to the user's record.
What happens after I report someone?
Several things, depending on what our review team finds:
Your block is permanent (until you choose to unblock the user). They cannot message you, bid on your items, or interact with your sales.
- The user's record now has your report attached to it. Our review team can see who reported them, when, and why.
- A trained reviewer looks at the report. They have visibility into the user's full activity: device fingerprint, past reports, account history, message patterns, and our automated fraud signals.
- Platform-wide action, if warranted. Depending on the severity and the evidence, the admin team may ban the user from messaging, bidding, or selling across the entire site — or ban the device they're using, which prevents them from re-registering under a new alias.
- You'll see your past reports. The next time you visit that user's profile, a "Reports You've Filed" section appears in the Notes & Reports panel, showing each report you've sent against them and your description.
You will not get an automated update on the outcome of each report — that's intentional, because moderation decisions often involve evidence from multiple sources. If a situation warrants follow-up with you, our support team will reach out directly.
Why is this better than just blocking?
A block protects you. A report protects everyone.
A bad actor who is only blocked by one seller is free to do the same thing to the next seller, and the next. When you report them, our team gets a chance to stop the pattern at the source — by warning, restricting, or banning the user platform-wide, or by banning the device they're using so they can't simply make a new account and pick up where they left off.
Every report also feeds back into our automated systems: the patterns reviewers identify in submitted reports help us tighten the filters that catch the next wave of scams before they reach any seller.
Frequently asked questions
Will the user know I reported them?
No. Reports are confidential — the user is not notified that you (or anyone) has reported them.
Can I report someone without blocking them?
The combined action is now Block & Report, so the block is always part of the workflow. If you'd prefer not to block, but still need to flag something concerning, please contact support directly.
What if I changed my mind and want to unblock the user?
You can unblock any user from their member profile at any time. Note that unblocking does not retract a report you previously sent — those records stay with our review team.
The Block & Report button is greyed out. Why?
You've already blocked and reported this user. The button disables itself to prevent duplicate reports against the same user. If you need to add new information about them, contact support.
Will reporting trigger automatic action?
No. Reports are reviewed by a real person on our team. Automation is used to surface signals (suspicious devices, high-volume reports, phishing patterns), but a human always makes the final decision.
I'm seeing a lot of suspicious messages. Are you sure your automation is catching most of them?
Yes — and the ones you do see are typically the trickier, evolving cases that have managed to bypass our current filters. Reporting them helps us catch the same pattern automatically going forward. For more on what to watch for, read How to Identify and Avoid Phishing Scams on EstateSales.org.
Need help?
If you've encountered something that you believe needs immediate attention — for example, a confirmed phishing attempt or a payment fraud incident — please email support@estatesales.org in addition to submitting the report. Including the user ID, the affected sale, and a screenshot will help us prioritize.
