I've posted this in the "sunglasses discussion" area, but thought I'd repost it here.
Bear with me. But it's best you read this to protect yourself, especially if you buy from Gumtree (Australia) OR Craigslist. Some of you may be already familiar with this scam...but I was given a painful schooling.
Summary
Scammer sells fake item to you (Sucker #1), provides Sucker #2's PayPal address and then physically picks up Sucker #2's item after Sucker #1 transfers money into Sucker #2's PayPal account. Essentially Sucker #1 pays for Sucker #2's item, and scammer picks up Sucker #2's item in person (or by proxy) and leaves Sucker #1 and #2 left holding the baby to fight it out with each other.
Detail About How it Works
- Scammer offers fake item for sale, Sucker #1 (aka me) negotiates and agrees on price - $X
- Unbeknownst to Sucker #1, Scammer offers to pay for item from Sucker #2 (which is usually about $X)
- Scammer gets Sucker #2's PayPal address for "payment" and passes it to Sucker #1
- Sucker #1 pays $X into Sucker #2's PayPal address thinking it is Scammer's account
- Sucker #2 confirms payment, thinking it is from Scammer, when it's really payment from Sucker #1
- Scammer picks up item in person from Sucker #2 and disappears, disconnecting burnable mobile phone
- 1 month later, the poo hits the fan and Sucker #1 lodges PayPal dispute (which leaves either Sucker #1 or Sucker #2 out of pocket as adjudicated PayPal)
- Scammer has long disappeared
Known Variations
- Scammer sets the honeypot trap. Advertises something at 20% discount on the going rate of a popular item with fake location and stolen/unregistered mobile number. When he gets a promising "bite", he finds an item at the same price and the scam is as above.
- Scammer buys something at $X - $Y. Tells Sucker 2 that he's overpaid accidentally and collects cash as well as the item.
How To Combat It?
- Take photo of person that collects and see driver's licence or car rego
- Always post the item to the PayPal address (not always possible because often they'll buy unshippable items e.g. Desktop computer, washing machine etc).
- Read the notes in the PayPal "notes" comment to make sure it's payment for the correct item, but in my experience, most people don't leave a note there.
- You are probably safer if you buy off eBay because I guess that there is more information that's "trackable"
Bad News For Sellers
- Apparently in PayPal's fine print, sellers ie. Sucker 2 are not protected with direct "pickups" as there is no "registered" mail proof of sending of item.
- It's possible that Sucker 1 may not get their money back if there is no indication of what was actually purchased.
If you have any further information, questions or ways to protect ourselves, leave a comment.
P.S. I'm really starting to get sick of being the lesson that everyone else learns from....
Update - After about 2 months of going back and forth with PayPal, and lodging a report with an Australian watchdog organisation, PayPal gave me my money back after they initially ruled against me.
Bear with me. But it's best you read this to protect yourself, especially if you buy from Gumtree (Australia) OR Craigslist. Some of you may be already familiar with this scam...but I was given a painful schooling.
Summary
Scammer sells fake item to you (Sucker #1), provides Sucker #2's PayPal address and then physically picks up Sucker #2's item after Sucker #1 transfers money into Sucker #2's PayPal account. Essentially Sucker #1 pays for Sucker #2's item, and scammer picks up Sucker #2's item in person (or by proxy) and leaves Sucker #1 and #2 left holding the baby to fight it out with each other.
Detail About How it Works
- Scammer offers fake item for sale, Sucker #1 (aka me) negotiates and agrees on price - $X
- Unbeknownst to Sucker #1, Scammer offers to pay for item from Sucker #2 (which is usually about $X)
- Scammer gets Sucker #2's PayPal address for "payment" and passes it to Sucker #1
- Sucker #1 pays $X into Sucker #2's PayPal address thinking it is Scammer's account
- Sucker #2 confirms payment, thinking it is from Scammer, when it's really payment from Sucker #1
- Scammer picks up item in person from Sucker #2 and disappears, disconnecting burnable mobile phone
- 1 month later, the poo hits the fan and Sucker #1 lodges PayPal dispute (which leaves either Sucker #1 or Sucker #2 out of pocket as adjudicated PayPal)
- Scammer has long disappeared
Known Variations
- Scammer sets the honeypot trap. Advertises something at 20% discount on the going rate of a popular item with fake location and stolen/unregistered mobile number. When he gets a promising "bite", he finds an item at the same price and the scam is as above.
- Scammer buys something at $X - $Y. Tells Sucker 2 that he's overpaid accidentally and collects cash as well as the item.
How To Combat It?
- Take photo of person that collects and see driver's licence or car rego
- Always post the item to the PayPal address (not always possible because often they'll buy unshippable items e.g. Desktop computer, washing machine etc).
- Read the notes in the PayPal "notes" comment to make sure it's payment for the correct item, but in my experience, most people don't leave a note there.
- You are probably safer if you buy off eBay because I guess that there is more information that's "trackable"
Bad News For Sellers
- Apparently in PayPal's fine print, sellers ie. Sucker 2 are not protected with direct "pickups" as there is no "registered" mail proof of sending of item.
- It's possible that Sucker 1 may not get their money back if there is no indication of what was actually purchased.
If you have any further information, questions or ways to protect ourselves, leave a comment.
P.S. I'm really starting to get sick of being the lesson that everyone else learns from....
Update - After about 2 months of going back and forth with PayPal, and lodging a report with an Australian watchdog organisation, PayPal gave me my money back after they initially ruled against me.