[Jim VB]

UPDATE:

SIMPLEAUCTIONSITE.COM is in the process of updating their systems. They have notified all of their clients that they are changing their systems. As Bob posted here, some auction houses have had the ability to see passwords. This function will go away shortly. I guess that’s the good news.

The bad news is that some of these guys have, for years, been able to use the passwords and that means they had the ability to see everything you bid in their auctions. Changing passwords did nothing. The guys with password access, including certain auction houses, and SimpleAuctionSite.com, could simply look at anything you bid on and see your max bids!

As always, remember that the honesty of any auction house comes down to the honesty of the auction house owner. Only deal with people you trust.

Bob also told me that he did not “leak” the old Goodwin list to Bill Goodwin. Bob says he was given the data and merely input it to Heartland Auctions.

That means the info could only have come from two sources. Either Beckett’s gave it or sold it back to Bill, or Bill made a copy before he sold his company to Beckett.

Keep that in mind when deciding who the “people you trust” really are!

(During the course of this mess, I emailed questions to Freedman, Goodwin, and Beckett. Only Freedman was nice enough to respond.)