Please help with 'active content' in my listings

I received an email from eBay yesterday explaining 176 of my listings contained active content.
I scanned one listing today via i-ways and it turns out it contains Java.
I can’t identify where this is being used.
I’m using EPS. I’m not using any design template.

Can you help me figure out where to look in editor mode?
(Obviously I’m no HTML expert)

Hi Heather,

GarageSale’s listing design do not make use of “active content” like Javascript. However, maybe you added a cross promotion gallery or something like that from another source?
If you post a link to one of these listing I’ll take a look at the source code.

More details from eBay:
http://pages.ebay.com/sell/itemdescription/bestpractices.html

Regards, Kristian

Can you post the link to one of the listings eBay found offending?

I had one listing that ebay flagged. I looked at it and couldn’t figure out where they thought the offending code would be. I figure, let them delete it, it won’t make any difference to the listing that will affect it negatively.

Brian.

I just attended a listing optimization webinar put on by eBay and asked about it. They are going to review my listings and get back to me later today. I’ll let you know what I find out!

Alright, I know what has been happening, just not WHY it has been happening.

I used to subscribe to inkFrog, but that ended many months ago. Somehow, there is inkFrog javascript at the end of most but not all listings. It is for the ‘gallery showcase’ - that rolling line of images from other listings meant to entice people to click on other active listings.

I’ve gone into eBay preferences and deauthorized inkFrog from the account, and sent a request to inkFrog’s support desk for help in understanding why this is happening.

I got the same message from eBay the other day for all 176 new listings I made with the GarageSale, Universal Pro Design. Here is one of the listing ids they gave me: 221955119460

Looks like whatever the content is the basic listing will still be displayed but hopefully it doesn’t take away from the program as all of us have put a lot of time into using GarageSale to make great listing. Please keep us posted on what you find out.

Seller ID: 34barkley
Store: JMJ Authentic Autographs

Thanks
Jeff

Hi Jeff,

I had a look at that listing:

  1. It seems you didn’t start this listing with GarageSale
  2. It does not make use of a GarageSale listing design.
  3. You’re using javascript in your listing for the grey PayPal banner at the bottom. You might want to remove that.

GarageSale does not add “active content” unless you insert YouTube videos or your own code.

Regards, Kristian

In my case, even though I no longer subscribed to InkFrog and wasn’t creating any listings through them, somehow that gallery showcase script was being added to most - but not all - listings I made via GarageSale. Weird.

So is there a work around to allow videos to be used in eBay listings given that they are disabling active content?

Hello,
I am having the same issue of @heater . Today I received an email from ebay that said to remove the active content from 260 listing on ebay.com. There were some listings given as example… this is one http://www.ebay.it/itm/SVIZZERA-Sempione-Simplonpass-Domodossola-Briga-Antica-foto-lastra-vetro-CBDD125-/282380998465 . I used a tool and find out that in the bottom there is a sort of scrolling advertising bar which uses javascript. To be honest I really don’t understand where it is from. Besides, not all listings have active content, only some. In the past I tried inkfrog and auctiva too, but I should not be still registered and I don’t use those sites to list. The listing above is quite recent, surely earlier than many other that are “closer” to the past use of inkfrog/auctive (and these older listings now don’t have active content!!). Could anyone help me, please? Where is this damned bar from???

Thanks for any help

@fedege96: I used to use inkFrog, too, and it was inkFrog that was adding that javascript.
You may want to contact inkFrog support like I did. They will help remove the active content and disable the account from making changes to future listings.

I also went into account preferences within eBay and revoked inkFrog’s access under ‘third party authorizations’.

Hi - I just received a message from eBay saying all my listings also contained active content. I can’t see how or where?! There are links to my other items and a mailto command for my email, some of my listings also have a link to an image held on my server. Other than that it’s the standard GarageSale Pro Design template.

Here’s one of my listings - can you see what might be causing the problem?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/222455961183

Hi machineage,

I checked the source code of your listing. I didn’t find any Javascript or Flash or other “active content” in your listing.
However, as you already stated out, you’re using a "href=“mailto” attribute which is not allowed due to eBay rules:
http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/listing-links.html
Not sure if that’s why you get that message from eBay though.

There’s a FAQ entry on our support website regarding eBay’s “active content” changes here:

GarageSale’s listing designs never made use of “active content”. However, if you’ve added videos to your listings (e.g. from YouTube or Vimeo) they might no longer work then. Unfortunately, it’s still unclear how eBay will handle these videos: “we’re working with popular sites to provide a solution in early 2017”.

Also, it might happen that links do no longer work under certain circumstances but in general links are still allowed as long as they conform to eBay’s link policy.

You also might want to check if you’ve added custom code to your listings containing Flash or Javascript, e.g. cross promotion galleries. Contact the creators if you’re unsure.

Regards, Kristian

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Hi Kristian

Thanks for checking the listing. So no active content but I’m still being told my listings contain active content. It could be the mailto code as you say - so I will remove that and see if that helps. Seems a bit daft not allowing an email link given that business accounts have all their contact details displayed in their listings, including email addresses?!

@machineage mailto is not a problem (or better, it should be for irrational ebay rules but not concerning the active content), I use it too and it does not give me troubles. I checked your listing here: http://www.i-ways.net/mobile-friendly/it/result/222455961183/EBAY-GB and it says your listing is perfect at all. So maybe the message you received from ebay was about only some items and not all…

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Hello @heather , thanks for your advice. I remove immediately the permission, but what I still don’t understand is if that advertising in the bottom of the listing is from inkfrog, auctiva or any other sites… maybe @kristian could help me??

Thank you

Thanks for the link to the tool for checking active content. I just ran all of my current listings through the tool and they all checked out fine with no active content or other issues. So I have no idea what eBay’s problem with my listings is… I will message them directly to ask.

Welcome. I hope ebay assistance will be more useful with you than with me every time I need to contact them :grimacing:

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I eventually got through to eBay in Ireland. They checked my listings - confirmed they were all free of active content - then told me to ‘ignore the email’. OK - Sorted!