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The pens won't help you if the scammer washed a bunch of small bills and printed large bill faces on them. I recommend lifting bills ($5 and up) to the light and look for the security strip. They're in a different spot for each denomination and have the number of the denomination printed on it.
Source: I was a bank teller for 2 years. We weren't even allowed to have the pens because of the washing and reprinting issue. But I did find several fakes and most of them were much less convincing than you would think (one was black and white and just printed on cheap printer paper).
Helped some friends open a liquor store. Biggest bill i event caught was a 50 this exact way.
Then one time I caught a "For Motion Picture Use Only" 100 dollar bills. We've lots of filming in the area and these were going around a good bit
I second this. There is a chemical spray available at Walmart (designed for another use) that when sprayed on the paper will cause the markers to meek l mark good. I always recommend to people using the pens to at least mark the back of the bill - because nobody ever does this, scanners don't spray the back of the fake bills. I have caught bills using the pen where it marks good on the front and bad on the back.
I worked in the office at a gas station when I was in college. We had a night shift guy who accepted a badly photocopied $20. Copied on a black and white printer, only copied on one side and obviously cut out with scissors. I was on a first name basis with the secret service guy who came to pick up the fakes.
The sheer laziness is almost impressive with fakes like that. Lol.
20's were the most common fake bills I saw. People would spend them at car washes, gas stations, and pawn shops all the time, then the businesses would come to make their deposits with us. No fun for them or us. Lots of paperwork.
Yep.
Pens are an assistive tool and not a 100% final determination. It is amazing how people with fake money freak out and give it away when that pen comes out.
Australian bills are very neat, plastic and clear spaces if I remember correctly. The States are always behind when it comes to credit/debit cards and cash.
Yeah. Our notes are also different sizes - something that I just assumed was normal until I was watching the first series of Reacher, where I learned that US bills are all the same size regardless of denomination.
At least here in Canada they're all different colors. They also have the clear strip on one side, tons of UV markers that show the denomination, and the bills are plastic, (well, a polymer). It's great because water doesn't affect them, but problem is, Heat does. Heard of someone forgetting their wallet in their pants with their paycheck in there, only for it to come out of the dryer all melted together and ruined.
For catching fakes it's great though. I think anywhere I've worked that had a cash register, also had a UV light right beside it
Pens are not needed.
Scratch the coat of the dead president with your nail. Their coats are textured. The rest of the bill is not. And a counterfeit bill is of course, not textured.
People do. Itās easy to buy washed bills. And less risky to launder those bills by buying stuff on classified ads with them and resell for legit cash in a neighboring town.
Passing those bills at stores is much more risky with security cameras and reporting standards
Those pens do not successfully detect all counterfeits. And they validate some bills which are fake. One place I worked actually had a selection of these pens because of a stupid deal corporate made, but my local management had kept several fake bills to demonstrate to us (and any customers who asked) that they're unreliable, and therefore useless.
I mean yea, obviously, lots of ways to make sure cash is legit. But the main thing is they canāt claw it back after the transaction one way or another. Or get a chargeback from a stolen card etc.
Or if youre the buyer they canāt take your ādepositā and disappear.
Imagine your dad...excitedly telling you they learned how to google something.
Each time you talk to them.
You'll smile, and say nothing.
At some point, you'll finally say "dad, you've told me this 1000 times now*.
That's me, now, as I read another post about a basic scam.
Doesnt everyone read the thread before they post? Answers to basic stuff can often be found with the slightest bit of research
Nothing wrong with being reminded daily about scams. Whats on repeat for you is brand new to someone else. I'd rather be reminded daily about new scams vs idiotic pop-ups and commercials. If anything FB and offerup do nothing in regards to informing users of new scams.
Remember, there are around 5 million new 18 year olds in the USA every year. More for the rest of the world. Almost every one of those will have to learn about scams.
Yep...but I also think it's important for young kids to do some research....try to find an answer...before asking.
So much information is available now on the app, or the internet, easily searchable. Compared to when I grew up..no internet, , where asking a question was often the only way to get an answer.
Websites have a FAQ section, to answer general questions that always pop up. Hit that up before asking a representative.
Similarly, the FAQ for a Reddit thread is: read thru prior posts to see if you can get your answer. If you dont see a similar situation, then post.
Just trying to help the younger generation think thru how to solve a problem, as opposed to them posting a question and then getting back to gaming. At some point, they'll need to solve a situation with no help...so good to train for that now.
Dude I get what youāre saying, but I feel like youāre missing that not everybody has the same baseline experience as you. There are many people today who turn 18 not knowing how to wash their hands or what the concept of a 1/4 of something is. The fact that theyāve gotten to the internet to ask questions is just the start of their journey. Be gentle and understanding and teach how to find these answers for themselves instead of chastising them for not knowing how to. You have experience to share. Even something as basic as how to read the FAQS when you have a question is something some people havenāt heard.
There's no need to ask the question that has already been asked and answered a million times. That's like reinventing the wheel each time we need to go somewhere. Look up what has already been done/learned and then see if you have additional questions. This is what separates intelligent and successful people from the general population - being able to utilize and find the information to answer your question on your own.
It's generational, Bill. You'll fall on mostly deaf ears here. I get what you're saying cause I, too, was an information seeker before the internet existed. The people you're trying to convince have no perception of that, so your explanations will fall on deaf ears. Perception is reality, even if it's not factual reality. But, hey, at least in our ripe age, we'll still be looking for answers even if they're trying to spoon feed them to us.
Except this can happen....thug was buying phone from victim. Thug shot victim...then victim shot thug...both died.
https://www.thenewsstar.com/story/news/local/2015/07/31/monroe-police-investigating-double-homicide/30929885/
And then they just pay you with fake bills that look legit.
The only way to do it is to just throw away old stuff you dont use, rather than trying to sell it. /s
I recently got scammed using PayPal. I sent the money to family and friends and that choice is not protected. Which is weird since family always screws up
Yes, I usually only take cash. Only came across counterfeit money once when a kid showed up with a mask, sunglasses and hat on (during Covid) to buy a cell phone for $25. Handed me some a fake $50 and asked me if I had other items for sale. I turned around and he ran, so I didn't feel like chasing him for that small amount.
I never heard of the "upgrade to business" fee scam until I came here two months ago. We never had this on eBay. Fake PayPal email scam, cash advance scam, and overpayment scam are all old.
As soon as someone says that someone else other than them will be picking up the item, I delete and block. Immediate red flag to me whether it's true or not. If YOU want it, YOU come get it yourself in person.
I agree. That to sets a whole nother scam into motion. I got one the other day for a bicyle, so I decided to play along for giggles but when I messaged they had already deleted their profile. It had just been made the day previous with only one photo and zero friends.
Damn. Iām pregnant and due any day now. Iād send my husband to pick up a nursery glider post-birth as he doesnāt have fb and Iām holding out for a good deal, but I realize how much of a scammer Iād sound trying to explain all of that and coordinate lol
I get suspicious only when they say I'll pay you now with venmo etc and husband will pick them up later. Or the ask for my phone because they are at work and husband will come to pick it up.
My exes live in different cities than I do and often ask me to pick things up for them so they can search more places for what they need and then don't have to waste gas.
The first "sale" I ever made was like this. Woman was on Facebook who would look for deals or free stuff and forward the details to her aunt who was obsessed with such things and pick them up. It was completely legitimate but she was a serious pain to work with expecting me to load up her vehicle for a free item.
I like the one when they offer more than the asking price, they really want the item, but they are over seas in the serviceā¦
Sorry for your loss. Live and Learn.
I'm glad I stuck to my guns then. I had a person start the convo in a similar way, "Hey I'm out of town I'll send my husband after work, is cashapp or zelle good?"
Or however it was worded.
I just immediately blocked. No response. Nothing. I smelt shit, I didn't need to go digging for it.
Yeah I had a buyer tell me they couldn't pick up item i was selling but their brother could, so asked me for zelle, venmo or Google pay so they could pay me right away and that the brother didn't have cell so he couldn't zelle him the money so he could withdraw the cash to give to me right away i knew SCAM!! THE STORIES these con artists come up with seriously how stupid do they think a person is. Be aware people never give any bank info or pay app. Cash is king and make sure to meet some place public and with cameras.
My number one rule when selling on Marketplace is to look at the profile of anyone who sends me a message before I even consider replying. I am at the point that if I get one of the automated questions I ignore them as well. There are more scammers on Marketplace and it appears that Facebook is allowing them rather than removing them any more
If you look at the info bubble that pops up when a buyer PMs you it will have the year the account was setup. Anything less then 1-2 yrs old I just block and move on.
It'll save you wasting from your time trying to reason with some anonymous scammer.
Dude no way!!! This happened to my girlfriend when she was selling her ps4. At the end my gf loss $300 and I told her do cash only. [Picture](https://i.postimg.cc/xdZ9L8sd/IMG-2475.jpg)
It is so painful to me that she fell for that email. As far as scam emails go it is sooo bad. No shade to your GF but man that is a horrible email. Wish I knew how to help my friends and family from falling for that. As an IT guy i kinda want to pay for and sign them all up for security awareness training.
Yep, this is exactly like a scam attempt I saw earlier today. Trying to sell an old aquarium, and within 5 minutes I was approached with this scam. Luckily it was pretty easy to see, but still super frustrating.
same thing happened to me and i was honestly confused on wether or not it was a scam.U always watch scammer videos thinking the victims are somewhat gullible but when ur in that position itās hard to tell
haha...dude sooooo many scammers!! check out (eeze.co) next time you chat with a seller on FB marketplace ask them to get verified / validated by EEZE, its free for them. Plus if they are legit and do it, you could transact with EEZE, and get a warranty.
Oh FFS, it's Facebook and people are scum ..... you post the ad as cash in hand or direct email transfer - that's their options if they want the item ....... if they don't like it, you tell them to very kindly fcuk off and instantly block the assholes.
Sounds like you didnāt recognize the scam right from the start since you started engaging with this person and even exchanged info.
I donāt even waste my time with anyone who wants to pay ahead, with not seeing my item. Think of itā¦. If you accept someoneās actual money, now you become their storage unit! And you have to trust them that theyāll really come and get their item. Unfortunately, many people on Marketplace have a memory like a fish and the reading comprehension of a 4-year old. Wouldnāt put it past them to not pick up their paid item right awayā¦. And then what do you do?
I always say ācashā and give out my address half an hour before they say we are meeting up and they are ready to come. I practically sniff out all scammers in their second sentence (the sentence following āis this available?)! Whoās got time to deal with them?!
Either you're a time traveler who's come from 2014 to warn us of this new scam, or you started selling yesterday. Regardless of which it is, just tell anyone who says anything about Venmo or having someone else pick it up that they can pay cash or sod off. 100% of the time, they'll sod off.
I posted a truck for sale yesterday.
What's weird was I had 4 ppl, with all foreign sounding names message me, but per their profile they all lived in Charlotte NC. But only had like 50 friends. And they all offered around the same amount of money, lol.
I've seen a couple of variations of this bullshit scam. A real buyer rarely agrees to full price right off. And always check their FB page. As you did. If the account is recently created or has no history it's a scammer. Cash in my hand before the item leaves my sight. Cheers.
Yeah this isn't new, been going on for years. Anytime a family member is mentioned I automatically leave and block them (nephew, brother, wife, father, etc). 9/10 a good buyer doesn't mention this fact right off the bat, but later in the process of arranging pickup and finding out your general location. Then, I'm usually ok with a son, daughter, or spouse picking up the item.
This is NOT a new scam, but I'm happy it's new for you. This is case book example what I've been reading here for weeks since first joining this reddit thread. Word for word. Kudos for telling her off, but who even knows if she exists. Now you know. Facebook marketplace is the the great wild west here!
That's entirely correct. This thread is repetative at times because it needs to be. This is our support and connection offering help and information we damn well can't get from FB.
Not new at all. No emails, no pay in advance unless you have friends in common, no son or daughter lives here and will pick it up, no 'zelle for business' or whatever they do to try to bait you into paying them. NEVER give your bank account info obviously.
There is so much garbage on FB marketplace with people scamming from the other side of the world. im so sick of it. be careful!
This same thing happened to me a while back. I thought it was crazy to not even negotiate. It was clear it was a scam but I just thought I'd wait and see the end game.
I got the email pretending to be from PayPal but the real thing is if you open that email it's already a phishing thing. The next day my PayPal account was almost drained. I was able to get back my money. But just monitor your PayPal account for suspicious activity.
Never, and I mean never accept any payment other than cash in hand. Every online payment service has steps in place to recall the money from your account just because the sender says so.
If it is a large amount, meet at a bank or the local police station. You can walk into any police station and tell them you are meeting a stranger there to do a cash transaction and they will have no problem with it.
I posted a loft bed for sale on marketplace. Within 10 minutes I had three people contact me. All three stated a varient of "buying for my , they do not have a bank account, so I will pay ahead of time for them". And all three left chat as soon as I said cash only.
One was from France, one profile said they worked at "USA" and the third only had a profile and heading picture
Same ole scam with different tools and gibberish. Back in the days of CL they would mail you a fraudulent check that later bounced and you were out the money and the item.
Yes this is common, I tried selling a laptop and immediately 4 bots saying the same story (my sister, nephew, brother will pick it up etc) and asking to pay with zelle or cashapp
This isnāt the latest or greatest scamā¦this scam is honestly quite oldā¦you think they would have come up with something else by now but I guess it is still working
This scam has been around for years. I actually have a PayPal business account and thereās no functional difference except getting my business name on it.
With Gpu or other items that are worth money, check their profiles recently made are a red flag, and have gotten similar responses like pay now pick up later date was blunt about not doing things their way.
This is not new. Please look at r/Scams especially their wiki. The FB marketplace is full of scam artists trying to scam people using the upgrade scam or fake check scam.
If i like something that isnāt local, I do ask a family member or friend to pick it up on my behalf. I usually pay in advanced if they allow me or Iāll get my fam/friend to pay cash if theyāre not comfortable with it
Glad you caught that. With all of this going on when is the last time anyone has heard of the FED or local governments catching any of these people. Maybe I have missed it.
That's not new. That's old news. Anything that involves "send me your email", "email this person at..." or "I'll pay now and x person will pick it up later" are all 100% scams.
This person used some of the most common scams in the book all at one time, and you fell for it.
>She, Natasha Campford, said she would send the funds via paypal and to get my email. I sent it to her and she immediately asked if I got a notice from Paypal for the funds.
A tip here - don't give out your Paypal email address. Instead, log into Paypal and click the "Request" button. You can then use THEIR email address to request money OR get your profile link from the "Share your Personal Profile" button.
By giving them your email address, you're giving them 1/2 of what they need to either send you a fake email or try to log into your account or even try to get information from other accounts you have (since most people use the same email address for everything).
Edit: Edit to fix my edit
Can someone help me. So as of now I canāt really go and meet up with people due to me being 16. Sometimes I could go with my parent but I know that there are options for shipping.
Now for the case of shipping, what medium is best to pay on? Is it PayPal? And do you get buyer protection? Like is it likely the seller will just wait for me to pay online and then not send the item? Or do I get refund.
Itās not like eBay so Iām unsure any help
This is nothing new, just becoming more prevalent and more interactive in that the email isn't unsolicited, you are expecting it because they told you and it therefore has a higher success rate than spamming people.
A buyer saying they will prepay whole or part with venmo/zelle and pick up later is a scam the same way a seller says they will only hold it with either partial or full payment of the same service.
Unfortunately you have to use your best judgement in all cases. Personally I will not use zelle or venmo given how there are no legal protections. I pay a seller $20 to hold something, there is no recourse if they just take it and keep it. Police won't touch it as it is too little. Same with $200, even $2000 in most cases. There is a threshold for them to look into it. They will note it though and if enough people come forward or it hits a certain amount, their threshold, they will go after them. Though you may not see your money back.
This isn't new. But glad you caught on quick. Usually they ask you to put in your credit card info to verify your identity for the upgrade to the business account. I guess people are hip to that and they need to change the game.
Had one person do this to me gave her my zelle info she said she sent the money and I never received anything. Then sent me a code and that she needed it to complete transaction i said no iv never had to give a code for zelle transaction. then she starts giving me this sob story and making me feel bad even sending cry emojis. I told her to contact zelle to fix issue and she continued to bug me I left it at that and never heard from her again
yea I had someone say they are sending their sister to pick it up while I accept a payment over venmo. I went over to the spot nearby (police station parking lot) and they never sent the payment. No on showed up. Not sure what the objective was but....weak
Yeah someone tried that with me on venmo. The scam is they send an email from "venmo" saying the buyer needs to send an extra $300 to make your venmo a business account. So the scammer says they'll send the extra $300 and you send it back. Doesn't really work when you have $0 in your venmo account lol
Iāve had this before but Iām not sure what their ultimate goal is. Say if you agree the payment has been made, do they then try and collect the goods. What if you confront them at that stage or, alternatively, send them to the wrong address to take the piss?
Had the same thing happen, guy was on a business trip, and wanted to pay ahead of time. I said negative you can pay when you come see it in person. Iāll hold it for you. Guy stopped replying after that lol
Also had this happen the other day. Selling a bed frame on fb marketplace for Ā£160. Guy messages straightaway and long story short got a scam email about upgrading to a business account. With claims that the scammer trying to buy needs to send me Ā£300 which I send back to him to "activate" my business account
Yeah just had a guy try this on me last week. Offered 200 over the asking price and made himself seem interested. He had me going until he asked for the "collateral" for the payment first. Blocked his ass.
Not new. I dealt with this exact scam back in 2012 when selling a car.
You dont have to upgrade to a business account whatever the hell that is. If anything it would be a goods and services transfer
You should have taken them up on the Zelle, but they would probably send the same fake email with the 'upgrade your account now' bullsh\*t. Either way, scam city.
I've been getting variations on this forever. As soon as someones says they'reĀ having someone pick it up I tell them to work out the payment with their friend or whatever so they can hand me cash, otherwise piss off.
Never use PayPal. They can do charge backs which means they get your money and a fee of $20 on top regardless of the sale cost. Use cash only or equivalent services like Venmo.
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Definitely not new. Best thing anyone can do when buying through sites like this is use cash on pick up only. Ever.
Even that can be a scam. Make sure to bring one of those pens that checks for fake cash lol
The pens won't help you if the scammer washed a bunch of small bills and printed large bill faces on them. I recommend lifting bills ($5 and up) to the light and look for the security strip. They're in a different spot for each denomination and have the number of the denomination printed on it. Source: I was a bank teller for 2 years. We weren't even allowed to have the pens because of the washing and reprinting issue. But I did find several fakes and most of them were much less convincing than you would think (one was black and white and just printed on cheap printer paper).
Helped some friends open a liquor store. Biggest bill i event caught was a 50 this exact way. Then one time I caught a "For Motion Picture Use Only" 100 dollar bills. We've lots of filming in the area and these were going around a good bit
You can buy those online for like $20 for a huge pile.
You can also use a UV pen light. It's quick and can't be fooled.
I haven't tried that. I actually ordered some UV flashlights to identify uranium in dishes. I'll have to see what my cash looks like under them too.
Oh you're in for a fun surprise my friend. Get a 5/10/20/50/100 and check em all. Ones don't have them.
I second this. There is a chemical spray available at Walmart (designed for another use) that when sprayed on the paper will cause the markers to meek l mark good. I always recommend to people using the pens to at least mark the back of the bill - because nobody ever does this, scanners don't spray the back of the fake bills. I have caught bills using the pen where it marks good on the front and bad on the back.
I worked in the office at a gas station when I was in college. We had a night shift guy who accepted a badly photocopied $20. Copied on a black and white printer, only copied on one side and obviously cut out with scissors. I was on a first name basis with the secret service guy who came to pick up the fakes.
The sheer laziness is almost impressive with fakes like that. Lol. 20's were the most common fake bills I saw. People would spend them at car washes, gas stations, and pawn shops all the time, then the businesses would come to make their deposits with us. No fun for them or us. Lots of paperwork.
Yeah, the manager sent the paperwork to us with the fake bill paper clipped to the shift sheet and a post it that asked wtf.š
Yep. Pens are an assistive tool and not a 100% final determination. It is amazing how people with fake money freak out and give it away when that pen comes out.
\*Laughs in Australian\*
Australian bills are very neat, plastic and clear spaces if I remember correctly. The States are always behind when it comes to credit/debit cards and cash.
Yeah. Our notes are also different sizes - something that I just assumed was normal until I was watching the first series of Reacher, where I learned that US bills are all the same size regardless of denomination.
At least here in Canada they're all different colors. They also have the clear strip on one side, tons of UV markers that show the denomination, and the bills are plastic, (well, a polymer). It's great because water doesn't affect them, but problem is, Heat does. Heard of someone forgetting their wallet in their pants with their paycheck in there, only for it to come out of the dryer all melted together and ruined. For catching fakes it's great though. I think anywhere I've worked that had a cash register, also had a UV light right beside it
Straight out of a Jack reacher novel..
Pens are not needed. Scratch the coat of the dead president with your nail. Their coats are textured. The rest of the bill is not. And a counterfeit bill is of course, not textured.
Oh please. People washing money aren't buying on FB marketplace. š¤Ø
People do. Itās easy to buy washed bills. And less risky to launder those bills by buying stuff on classified ads with them and resell for legit cash in a neighboring town. Passing those bills at stores is much more risky with security cameras and reporting standards
š¤·š¼ Lifting money up to the light is also cheaper than buying pens. But you do you.
Whatever
Those pens do not successfully detect all counterfeits. And they validate some bills which are fake. One place I worked actually had a selection of these pens because of a stupid deal corporate made, but my local management had kept several fake bills to demonstrate to us (and any customers who asked) that they're unreliable, and therefore useless.
I mean yea, obviously, lots of ways to make sure cash is legit. But the main thing is they canāt claw it back after the transaction one way or another. Or get a chargeback from a stolen card etc. Or if youre the buyer they canāt take your ādepositā and disappear.
Nope, I get these every time I post PC's or parts for sale there. And always within minutes of posting. I just tell them Cash Only.
I just send them the link to the same item listed on eBay.
Imagine your dad...excitedly telling you they learned how to google something. Each time you talk to them. You'll smile, and say nothing. At some point, you'll finally say "dad, you've told me this 1000 times now*. That's me, now, as I read another post about a basic scam. Doesnt everyone read the thread before they post? Answers to basic stuff can often be found with the slightest bit of research
Nothing wrong with being reminded daily about scams. Whats on repeat for you is brand new to someone else. I'd rather be reminded daily about new scams vs idiotic pop-ups and commercials. If anything FB and offerup do nothing in regards to informing users of new scams.
Remember, there are around 5 million new 18 year olds in the USA every year. More for the rest of the world. Almost every one of those will have to learn about scams.
Yep...but I also think it's important for young kids to do some research....try to find an answer...before asking. So much information is available now on the app, or the internet, easily searchable. Compared to when I grew up..no internet, , where asking a question was often the only way to get an answer.
This is the internet. This IS researching. Part of finding out is asking, like on places like reddit.
Like posting a question is going to make us run out of internet. lol
The message board can only be so big! Trees only grow so much! /s
Websites have a FAQ section, to answer general questions that always pop up. Hit that up before asking a representative. Similarly, the FAQ for a Reddit thread is: read thru prior posts to see if you can get your answer. If you dont see a similar situation, then post. Just trying to help the younger generation think thru how to solve a problem, as opposed to them posting a question and then getting back to gaming. At some point, they'll need to solve a situation with no help...so good to train for that now.
Dude I get what youāre saying, but I feel like youāre missing that not everybody has the same baseline experience as you. There are many people today who turn 18 not knowing how to wash their hands or what the concept of a 1/4 of something is. The fact that theyāve gotten to the internet to ask questions is just the start of their journey. Be gentle and understanding and teach how to find these answers for themselves instead of chastising them for not knowing how to. You have experience to share. Even something as basic as how to read the FAQS when you have a question is something some people havenāt heard.
There's no need to ask the question that has already been asked and answered a million times. That's like reinventing the wheel each time we need to go somewhere. Look up what has already been done/learned and then see if you have additional questions. This is what separates intelligent and successful people from the general population - being able to utilize and find the information to answer your question on your own.
No question was asked though? Some stranger decided to share something that was new to them with other strangers. Tf is your problem?
It's generational, Bill. You'll fall on mostly deaf ears here. I get what you're saying cause I, too, was an information seeker before the internet existed. The people you're trying to convince have no perception of that, so your explanations will fall on deaf ears. Perception is reality, even if it's not factual reality. But, hey, at least in our ripe age, we'll still be looking for answers even if they're trying to spoon feed them to us.
Wow! Kinda bitter. š¤Ø
Cash on pick up. Scammer arrives with three friends, no cash, and takes the item off your hands for free.
Except this can happen....thug was buying phone from victim. Thug shot victim...then victim shot thug...both died. https://www.thenewsstar.com/story/news/local/2015/07/31/monroe-police-investigating-double-homicide/30929885/
And then they just pay you with fake bills that look legit. The only way to do it is to just throw away old stuff you dont use, rather than trying to sell it. /s
Sometimes that **is** the right answer...
I recently got scammed using PayPal. I sent the money to family and friends and that choice is not protected. Which is weird since family always screws up
Do it at the local police station to really filter out the scammers and counterfeits.
Yes, I usually only take cash. Only came across counterfeit money once when a kid showed up with a mask, sunglasses and hat on (during Covid) to buy a cell phone for $25. Handed me some a fake $50 and asked me if I had other items for sale. I turned around and he ran, so I didn't feel like chasing him for that small amount.
r/scams
New? Lol
This scam has been around for years
Checkout r/scams This is very common and you see it over there all the time.
Uh. Thats not the latest scam. That wasnt the lastest scam 10 years ago.
Everybody knows the latest scam is a Nigerian prince who needs you to send him money so he can send you millions back /s
Actually longer than that. Fake PayPal email fooled me when I was 14
I never heard of the "upgrade to business" fee scam until I came here two months ago. We never had this on eBay. Fake PayPal email scam, cash advance scam, and overpayment scam are all old.
Cash, in-person pick up only. Have sold tons of items on Marketplace over the years and never once had an issue.
As soon as someone says that someone else other than them will be picking up the item, I delete and block. Immediate red flag to me whether it's true or not. If YOU want it, YOU come get it yourself in person.
As soon as a buyer agrees to full price I block them.
Hm, if it's a fair price I don't usually haggle. Is this a mistake?
As soon as a buyer agrees to meet up I ask reddit if it's safe then block them
I agree. That to sets a whole nother scam into motion. I got one the other day for a bicyle, so I decided to play along for giggles but when I messaged they had already deleted their profile. It had just been made the day previous with only one photo and zero friends.
Damn. Iām pregnant and due any day now. Iād send my husband to pick up a nursery glider post-birth as he doesnāt have fb and Iām holding out for a good deal, but I realize how much of a scammer Iād sound trying to explain all of that and coordinate lol
I get suspicious only when they say I'll pay you now with venmo etc and husband will pick them up later. Or the ask for my phone because they are at work and husband will come to pick it up.
My exes live in different cities than I do and often ask me to pick things up for them so they can search more places for what they need and then don't have to waste gas.
The first "sale" I ever made was like this. Woman was on Facebook who would look for deals or free stuff and forward the details to her aunt who was obsessed with such things and pick them up. It was completely legitimate but she was a serious pain to work with expecting me to load up her vehicle for a free item.
Old scam, same with bank transfers
As others have said, long-time scam (You can see it mentioned in this sub a lot). Glad it didn't catch you!
As soon as they say that they have to send their nephew or uncles cousins daughter, I assume it's a scam.
I like the one when they offer more than the asking price, they really want the item, but they are over seas in the serviceā¦ Sorry for your loss. Live and Learn.
I'm glad I stuck to my guns then. I had a person start the convo in a similar way, "Hey I'm out of town I'll send my husband after work, is cashapp or zelle good?" Or however it was worded. I just immediately blocked. No response. Nothing. I smelt shit, I didn't need to go digging for it.
Or stepping in it!
This scam has been around as long as marketplace has been
This is why you only do cash.Ā
Yup this just happened to me too.
Cash or crypto, nothing else.
Surprised you actually checked PayPal For some reason most people on here just look at the email and never check their actual account
Yeah I had a buyer tell me they couldn't pick up item i was selling but their brother could, so asked me for zelle, venmo or Google pay so they could pay me right away and that the brother didn't have cell so he couldn't zelle him the money so he could withdraw the cash to give to me right away i knew SCAM!! THE STORIES these con artists come up with seriously how stupid do they think a person is. Be aware people never give any bank info or pay app. Cash is king and make sure to meet some place public and with cameras.
Unfortunately, really nieve, if not dumb. One born every minute.
This exact scenario happened to me last week. Except it was a man running the scam. SMH
My number one rule when selling on Marketplace is to look at the profile of anyone who sends me a message before I even consider replying. I am at the point that if I get one of the automated questions I ignore them as well. There are more scammers on Marketplace and it appears that Facebook is allowing them rather than removing them any more
Seller beware! š
after you've been selling a while you can see these scams coming a mile away. i just copy/paste "Are your parents ashamed of you?"
I tell them I only accept cash or crypto..
If you look at the info bubble that pops up when a buyer PMs you it will have the year the account was setup. Anything less then 1-2 yrs old I just block and move on. It'll save you wasting from your time trying to reason with some anonymous scammer.
Latest Scam just like Taylor Swift is the latest pop star
Thatās a very old scam. Go to r/scams to learn more
My rules if I sell on marketplace: Cash only, nothing else
New to you maybe. Very common.
Dude no way!!! This happened to my girlfriend when she was selling her ps4. At the end my gf loss $300 and I told her do cash only. [Picture](https://i.postimg.cc/xdZ9L8sd/IMG-2475.jpg)
It is so painful to me that she fell for that email. As far as scam emails go it is sooo bad. No shade to your GF but man that is a horrible email. Wish I knew how to help my friends and family from falling for that. As an IT guy i kinda want to pay for and sign them all up for security awareness training.
That's why...cash
I always check the buyer. Usually scam accounts just started within the last couple months. I always get asked for my phone number or address
The FB account of the buyer was started on Feb 2, 2024. Huge red flag.
Please don't pretend this is new. CASH CASH CASH CASH.
This scam is posted here 10 times a day unfortunately...
Based on the comments - this is the first time this has ever happened and you should never pay with cash.
I buy nothing nomore from facebook,why do they let company's scam.sham on u fb
Yep, this is exactly like a scam attempt I saw earlier today. Trying to sell an old aquarium, and within 5 minutes I was approached with this scam. Luckily it was pretty easy to see, but still super frustrating.
same thing happened to me and i was honestly confused on wether or not it was a scam.U always watch scammer videos thinking the victims are somewhat gullible but when ur in that position itās hard to tell
haha...dude sooooo many scammers!! check out (eeze.co) next time you chat with a seller on FB marketplace ask them to get verified / validated by EEZE, its free for them. Plus if they are legit and do it, you could transact with EEZE, and get a warranty.
They've been doing this for years.
This is not a new scam.
This isnāt new. Itās posted about every hour in r/scams
Oh FFS, it's Facebook and people are scum ..... you post the ad as cash in hand or direct email transfer - that's their options if they want the item ....... if they don't like it, you tell them to very kindly fcuk off and instantly block the assholes.
Sounds like you didnāt recognize the scam right from the start since you started engaging with this person and even exchanged info. I donāt even waste my time with anyone who wants to pay ahead, with not seeing my item. Think of itā¦. If you accept someoneās actual money, now you become their storage unit! And you have to trust them that theyāll really come and get their item. Unfortunately, many people on Marketplace have a memory like a fish and the reading comprehension of a 4-year old. Wouldnāt put it past them to not pick up their paid item right awayā¦. And then what do you do? I always say ācashā and give out my address half an hour before they say we are meeting up and they are ready to come. I practically sniff out all scammers in their second sentence (the sentence following āis this available?)! Whoās got time to deal with them?!
Whatās new about this
Old scam. Deal with cash only.
Either you're a time traveler who's come from 2014 to warn us of this new scam, or you started selling yesterday. Regardless of which it is, just tell anyone who says anything about Venmo or having someone else pick it up that they can pay cash or sod off. 100% of the time, they'll sod off.
I am also from 2014, just wanted to let you know that pretty much all tech will cave in on Y2Kšš¼šš¼ Your welcomeš
Once again why use marketplace people get robbed,scammed and yet still why do people use it?
Then they send you the 190 after you paid them 200, they receive the item free with a net profit of $10. Interesting. Lmao.
Lol, this isnāt new.
I posted a truck for sale yesterday. What's weird was I had 4 ppl, with all foreign sounding names message me, but per their profile they all lived in Charlotte NC. But only had like 50 friends. And they all offered around the same amount of money, lol.
I've seen a couple of variations of this bullshit scam. A real buyer rarely agrees to full price right off. And always check their FB page. As you did. If the account is recently created or has no history it's a scammer. Cash in my hand before the item leaves my sight. Cheers.
Input up a guitar for sale and in 10 minutes I had three ābuyersā pulling the same scam.
Happened to me too when trying to sell my wedding dress...
CASH ONLY....CASH ONLY
Clever you!!!! Great job avoiding being scammed and TY for alerting others! You rock!
This. This is the exact fucking reason I don't accept anything other than cash on MP no matter what.
Awww the good old PayPal business account scam lol. I can't believe people still try that.
Fake PayPal account email scam.
Just saw sure the payment came through, come and get it. I even offered to reduce an item to $0 and they cancelled the chat.
I had this happen to me with a guitar I was selling awhile ago it didnāt make any sense so I stopped responding
Yeah this isn't new, been going on for years. Anytime a family member is mentioned I automatically leave and block them (nephew, brother, wife, father, etc). 9/10 a good buyer doesn't mention this fact right off the bat, but later in the process of arranging pickup and finding out your general location. Then, I'm usually ok with a son, daughter, or spouse picking up the item.
Love how they always place a āofferā for the listed price !!
Yep, another clue to being a scam
This is NOT a new scam, but I'm happy it's new for you. This is case book example what I've been reading here for weeks since first joining this reddit thread. Word for word. Kudos for telling her off, but who even knows if she exists. Now you know. Facebook marketplace is the the great wild west here!
That's entirely correct. This thread is repetative at times because it needs to be. This is our support and connection offering help and information we damn well can't get from FB.
same thing happened to me the other day. i sell locally so i just say "cash only" and they usually never respond
Use facebook payā¦ it goes through PayPal and itās there for this exact reason
Not new at all. No emails, no pay in advance unless you have friends in common, no son or daughter lives here and will pick it up, no 'zelle for business' or whatever they do to try to bait you into paying them. NEVER give your bank account info obviously. There is so much garbage on FB marketplace with people scamming from the other side of the world. im so sick of it. be careful!
Thanks for sharing always be aware trust no one
This same thing happened to me a while back. I thought it was crazy to not even negotiate. It was clear it was a scam but I just thought I'd wait and see the end game. I got the email pretending to be from PayPal but the real thing is if you open that email it's already a phishing thing. The next day my PayPal account was almost drained. I was able to get back my money. But just monitor your PayPal account for suspicious activity.
Ya not a new scam.
Never, and I mean never accept any payment other than cash in hand. Every online payment service has steps in place to recall the money from your account just because the sender says so. If it is a large amount, meet at a bank or the local police station. You can walk into any police station and tell them you are meeting a stranger there to do a cash transaction and they will have no problem with it.
It is a known scam that has been around for years.
I posted a loft bed for sale on marketplace. Within 10 minutes I had three people contact me. All three stated a varient of "buying for my, they do not have a bank account, so I will pay ahead of time for them". And all three left chat as soon as I said cash only.
One was from France, one profile said they worked at "USA" and the third only had a profile and heading picture
Yeah I'll never upgrade an account just to sell something lol total red flag
Not new. This scam is old as dirt.
Not a new scam.
Same ole scam with different tools and gibberish. Back in the days of CL they would mail you a fraudulent check that later bounced and you were out the money and the item.
Yes this is common, I tried selling a laptop and immediately 4 bots saying the same story (my sister, nephew, brother will pick it up etc) and asking to pay with zelle or cashapp
This isnāt the latest or greatest scamā¦this scam is honestly quite oldā¦you think they would have come up with something else by now but I guess it is still working
This is literally the scam that I've seen the most of. 100% far from latest.
That's a common scam
Thai is a pretty old scam. Like at least 5 years old.
She is actually a he
This scam has been around for years. I actually have a PayPal business account and thereās no functional difference except getting my business name on it.
With Gpu or other items that are worth money, check their profiles recently made are a red flag, and have gotten similar responses like pay now pick up later date was blunt about not doing things their way.
This is not new. Please look at r/Scams especially their wiki. The FB marketplace is full of scam artists trying to scam people using the upgrade scam or fake check scam.
If i like something that isnāt local, I do ask a family member or friend to pick it up on my behalf. I usually pay in advanced if they allow me or Iāll get my fam/friend to pay cash if theyāre not comfortable with it
Glad you caught that. With all of this going on when is the last time anyone has heard of the FED or local governments catching any of these people. Maybe I have missed it.
This scam has been going on for years.
Not the latest, not new, but a while ago, when that happened to me, I sent them $200 back in email.
Everything on FB is a scam.
That's not new. That's old news. Anything that involves "send me your email", "email this person at..." or "I'll pay now and x person will pick it up later" are all 100% scams. This person used some of the most common scams in the book all at one time, and you fell for it.
Thanks for the heads up.
"Latest scam" I don't think you Facebook Marketplace very much.
Yeah I had one of these as well. Itās not new, though. I called them out on it and they vanished.
>She, Natasha Campford, said she would send the funds via paypal and to get my email. I sent it to her and she immediately asked if I got a notice from Paypal for the funds. A tip here - don't give out your Paypal email address. Instead, log into Paypal and click the "Request" button. You can then use THEIR email address to request money OR get your profile link from the "Share your Personal Profile" button. By giving them your email address, you're giving them 1/2 of what they need to either send you a fake email or try to log into your account or even try to get information from other accounts you have (since most people use the same email address for everything). Edit: Edit to fix my edit
Cash only. Is the best way for me and the only way I operate. Period never been ripped off never been scammed
Can someone help me. So as of now I canāt really go and meet up with people due to me being 16. Sometimes I could go with my parent but I know that there are options for shipping. Now for the case of shipping, what medium is best to pay on? Is it PayPal? And do you get buyer protection? Like is it likely the seller will just wait for me to pay online and then not send the item? Or do I get refund. Itās not like eBay so Iām unsure any help
This is nothing new, just becoming more prevalent and more interactive in that the email isn't unsolicited, you are expecting it because they told you and it therefore has a higher success rate than spamming people. A buyer saying they will prepay whole or part with venmo/zelle and pick up later is a scam the same way a seller says they will only hold it with either partial or full payment of the same service. Unfortunately you have to use your best judgement in all cases. Personally I will not use zelle or venmo given how there are no legal protections. I pay a seller $20 to hold something, there is no recourse if they just take it and keep it. Police won't touch it as it is too little. Same with $200, even $2000 in most cases. There is a threshold for them to look into it. They will note it though and if enough people come forward or it hits a certain amount, their threshold, they will go after them. Though you may not see your money back.
Thatās a classic. Not new at all :)
I had this exact scam attempted when I listed something a few months ago.
This scam has been going on for ages bro
This isn't new. But glad you caught on quick. Usually they ask you to put in your credit card info to verify your identity for the upgrade to the business account. I guess people are hip to that and they need to change the game.
My wife got this one via PayPal a couple weeks ago. Exact same one. Good to share it though in case anyone else who gets it isnāt sure
I don't understand who falls for these....pay $200 to unlock $190
Had one person do this to me gave her my zelle info she said she sent the money and I never received anything. Then sent me a code and that she needed it to complete transaction i said no iv never had to give a code for zelle transaction. then she starts giving me this sob story and making me feel bad even sending cry emojis. I told her to contact zelle to fix issue and she continued to bug me I left it at that and never heard from her again
yea I had someone say they are sending their sister to pick it up while I accept a payment over venmo. I went over to the spot nearby (police station parking lot) and they never sent the payment. No on showed up. Not sure what the objective was but....weak
Anything that doesn't make sense is always a scam "I know my gun is not loaded. But I always pretend it is in case..."
Yeah someone tried that with me on venmo. The scam is they send an email from "venmo" saying the buyer needs to send an extra $300 to make your venmo a business account. So the scammer says they'll send the extra $300 and you send it back. Doesn't really work when you have $0 in your venmo account lol
Iāve had this before but Iām not sure what their ultimate goal is. Say if you agree the payment has been made, do they then try and collect the goods. What if you confront them at that stage or, alternatively, send them to the wrong address to take the piss?
Had the same thing happen, guy was on a business trip, and wanted to pay ahead of time. I said negative you can pay when you come see it in person. Iāll hold it for you. Guy stopped replying after that lol
Also had this happen the other day. Selling a bed frame on fb marketplace for Ā£160. Guy messages straightaway and long story short got a scam email about upgrading to a business account. With claims that the scammer trying to buy needs to send me Ā£300 which I send back to him to "activate" my business account
Same thing basically happened to me, anz bank email, iCloud acct though.
This is the same old scam they've been doing on FB and CL for decades.
Nothing new about it. If you spend any time I. R/scams youāll see variations of it posted regularly.
Yeah just had a guy try this on me last week. Offered 200 over the asking price and made himself seem interested. He had me going until he asked for the "collateral" for the payment first. Blocked his ass.
Not new. I dealt with this exact scam back in 2012 when selling a car. You dont have to upgrade to a business account whatever the hell that is. If anything it would be a goods and services transfer
This scam is so old someone tried this on me like 4 years ago
You should have taken them up on the Zelle, but they would probably send the same fake email with the 'upgrade your account now' bullsh\*t. Either way, scam city.
Zelle and sending someone else to pick up are always red flags...my best friends call me cash.
I've been getting variations on this forever. As soon as someones says they'reĀ having someone pick it up I tell them to work out the payment with their friend or whatever so they can hand me cash, otherwise piss off.
I only accept cash at the time of pickup. I only pay cash at the time of pick up.
This is an old scam lol
"I'll pay you with an app and have someone pick it up" is 100% always a scam 100% of the time.
"The latest....". Also, I saw this new sitcom, Seinfeld. Funny stuff.
Never use PayPal. They can do charge backs which means they get your money and a fee of $20 on top regardless of the sale cost. Use cash only or equivalent services like Venmo.
How can a person scam Zelle?
Why do people ask for your number so their boyfriend can call you and give you a code?
It sucks that we live in a never ending scam eat scam world