I know this is a scam - but how

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
Yes, when buying and selling cash or paypal is a must. We sold a ton of stuff this way when my dad passed away. We didn't have any scammers.

I just wasn't expecting this when I am selling a service. With a business I should be able to take a check from someone. However, I should possibly re-think that concept, craigs list or not. Maybe I should accept credit cards and cash. Period. Again, our world!!!!

Several people I know who run small businesses advertise "cash or debit only" (debit card is cheaper than credit card for the vendor); however, for long-term relationships, they do take cheque... it still has a slight risk, but not nearly as much as from a "new" customer. Just don't tell "new" ones that you take cheques - ever - until they meet your comfort level.
 

LittleDudesMom

Well-Known Member
The most effective listings we do for apartments are on cl. It's free and all the young folk use it, which is the majority of our tenant base. Occasionally I get a spam back, but I also use a separate email for my cl stuff. Both google and ebay have free classified - check those out steely.

Sharon
 

klmno

Active Member
Steely, I got the same exact email when I had a few pieces of used furniture for sale on C List. I wasn't even asking $100 for all pieces of furniture together! I figured out it was a scam right away because no fool would buy this furniture and want it shipped to where they are moving- they said they were either moving to or from London or something, but it was basicly the same story you got and was asking me for my name and address so they could send me a check. I couldn't figure out how this would be scamming me either. Just keep in mind, not only would no decent person ever hire someone off C List to take care of their pets without meeting, talking, haviing a reference or something, but no normal person is going to pay for a good or service upfront and sight unseen.

Oh- when lookoing for a place to live, 98% of the ads I responded to were legit. One however, responded with an email a mile long talking about how this man is a preacher out-of-state, has a huge family, helps underpriveleged kids, just wants someone nice to move into his property and rent it, yadda yadda....I have no idea what his scam was but I knew it must be a scam because no normal person would send an email like this over a place for rent, so I just deleted the email and never responded at all.
 

DammitJanet

Well-Known Member
I have no idea if Cory actually blew off a real job or not but we just got a bit suspicious because they hired him sight unseen with no interview. So while he said yes to them originally he got cold feet the next day and decided not to waste his gas and go for something that might be a scam. I did have to laugh though because as Cory was talking to this woman and she was talking to him, he did ask her...you are saying all this, are you sure there will be someone to meet me there since Sams club closes at 9?

He was looking on CL for a job and it said it was for one of those jobs that do the marketing where someone sets up in Sams Club and hands out samples of a food...this one was olives. He called the phone number and a girl answered and said, great, you are the first person to call and I will email you the file of paperwork and you can see how to set up your booth, be here tomorrow night to set it up at Sam's Club at 9 pm. then you work Thursday through Sunday for 10 days for 8 hours a day and get paid $12 an hour. You have to take pictures of your set up and keep paperwork.

Well, the next day he tried to call them and they didnt answer and tried to send a text back to his phone asking for his SSN. He got suspicious and didnt reply to that text. He never did give them his SSN or any of that info. In fact, I didnt have any printer ink at home for that amount of paperwork so I was going to have to take those files out and print them at Fedex or somewhere.

However the afternoon he was supposed to go, the woman did call me to ask me if he was going to meet her. So I dont know.
 

donna723

Well-Known Member
Steely, something else you might check in to is the little community marketplace pages cropping up on Facebook. They go by various names but even our little county has one. If your town doesn't have one, you might even start one. People use them to buy and sell all kinds of things and to advertise their businesses or services and they seem to get a very good response. And it reaches just a local audience, where your customers would be coming from.
 

Steely

Active Member
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh......here is dog ladies scam..........after 5 emails back and forth about her 2 four month old Bull Mastiffes that she loves SO much and needs help with she writes:

Good morning to you my dear good friend, how are you doing with your lovely family ?i just got a delivery confirmation through FEDEX courier service that the payment(Check) got deliver to your contact address that you provided today ,i am sorry for the late update about the delivery of the payment that will bee delivered today , am so excited that our plans are working out as planned concerning my pets and can't wait to meet you soon. Am sorry I couldn't get back to you earlier, its was a very busy schedule trying to get every necessary things in place before leaving for the state.

I will want you to track the package Here is the tracking number (xxxx) through FEDEX package(check) via
Global Homepage, to know when the package got deliver to you door step and I will want you to watch out for it and keep me posted and updated as soon as you receive iti will also like to be there while you doing the service i really want you to understand that as well .....hope you get prepared for the job as well ,i have been trying your telephone number like i told in my email yesterday it only given me engaging tone i decided to text you hope you got my text ?

So,i need you to send/wire $1850 to my flight agent information via western Union for my flight ticket to be booked over to the states Saturday unfailingly .So I need you to do the transaction today via WESTERN UNION

FLIGHT AGENT INFORMATION

Name: X
Address: X
City: Savannah
State: Ga
Zip: 31405


KIndly Email me the western union details as soon as you send the money to the Flight Agent information for the easy pick up of the fund at the western union locationas well

MTCN(CONTROL NUMBER)
SENDER's NAME
AMOUNT SENT

I await Your prompt reply
N.B.....Kindly make an over night Deposit with the Check and wire/send the sum of $1850 to 'My Flight agent Information Shown Above via Western Union
Thanks


The whole email makes no sense - not to mention what a waste of time this has been. We talked about my cost for taking care of the dogs - and then comes up with 1850.00 to go who knows where -
Oh well.
Donna I will look for this townsites on FB - do I just do a search for them?
 

donna723

Well-Known Member
Steely, the community pages are done independently so they can call them whatever they want to but more and more places are starting them. You might just put the name of your town or your community in to the Facebook search box and see what comes up. If there is one, it should come up.

Boy, that email has "SCAM" written all over it! They always say that anytime they want you to send something on Western Union, you KNOW it's a scam! The whole thing makes no sense at all but I guess a few do fall for it or else they wouldn't keep doing it. Even if they only get a response from 1% of the people they send those emails to, that would be enough to keep the money rolling in!
 

Marguerite

Active Member
English is not the first language; in fact, this person's first language is something Asian, not European. Because Australia is considered part of Asia (in some circles) we have a lot of Asian people here, I am accustomed to the way they speak and write.
I'm not expressing prejudice here - only that in the US, a woman such as this person claims to be - independent, living alone (and therefore able to interact with people in her neighbourhood, shopping, working etc) would have better English.

Steely, your correspondent is not in the US at all. Also, other phrases should send out warnings - "my dear good friend" when 'she' has not even answered your questions and is making excuses. Okay, I know it's an obvious scam, but sheesh, if you're gonna scam someone, you'd at least think a worthwhile effort would be a good idea?

Dump all the info on your fraud investigation people. They won't do anything more where you're concerned but they can build a dossier on this sort of activity and perhaps track down the person with help from other countries. In Australia we pass all this sort of info on to Department of Fair Trading.

Marg
 

Malika

Well-Known Member
My dear good friend!
Thank you for your beautiful email. Of course I must pay for your flight! Is there anything else you would like me to buy for you or pay for?
Please send me your full bank details and I will be pleased to make all the payments you require.
So glad we met.
Yours in true friendship
Steely
 
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