The bad thing is the internet brings the con-man straight into your home and they are faceless. Add the easiness to make money from people who have no clue who you are or where you are and even a person with morals will do it.
I remember reading about 5 years ago that it is estimated that around 40% of the cards out there on sites like ebay are fakes. I thought, dang that is high. People will buy them cards and resale them as real. That is going to happen and that 40% will be over 50% in a heartbeat. Now it's, dang that might be to low.
The old saying of "buyer beware, seller take care" is also sliding to a new meaning. The buyer now has to question themselves even more and the seller does not have to take care of getting called out, when they are just a faceless page on the web and can just start it up with another name if it goes wrong for them. Just look at all them start-ups raking in millions and giving people junk with a no refund policy. From solar road to free water from air. I think we have reached the point where there are more cons on the web selling lies than people selling real things and places like ebay only care about getting a cut from the sale for doing nothing either way.
I myself would never buy a card I could not hold in my hands to look at and when I pull out the jeweler's loupe from my pocket. It puts the seller on the back foot as I look it over. I have never paid the asking price for any card. Yeah, that is a bit of a con, You only have to look like you know what you're doing. After all card prices are not set in stone and it's my way of playing the haggling game. After doing that for some time you do learn and you start spotting the fakes.
What is that behind you!?! Oh, It's me! Looking at the cards you have, That I want. :)
