Definitely sounds like BS if you ask me. Seriously, even if the rumour were true, that's only 2 cases so far. Don't you think there'd be a LOT more?
And of course, FTA boxes are perfectly legal. What you do with them is a different matter. I don't think they can charge you with anything just because you bought an FTA box. Just like they can't serve you a piracy lawsuit if you buy a dvd burner and some dvd blanks
The only real problem with buying from ebay is clones.