14 DAY TRIAL // It probably doesn’t surprise anyone that Craigslist and other similar e-commerce websites are full of scam artists who try to make a profit by tricking unsuspecting individuals.
Since these schemes seem to be flourishing, we’ve decided to provide a few more examples of how crooks operate in hopes that users will learn how to identify them.
Scambook provides a few great examples of how fraudsters manage to make a profit. In one instance, an individual who sells an iPad for $350 (266 EUR) is approached by a potential buyer.
The buyer’s name is Alpacino Sergio (obviously an Al Pacino fan, or the son of Al Pacino fans), and he insists on paying not $350 (266 EUR) for the device, but $500 (380 EUR), the reason being that it’s meant as a gift for his son who’s apparently residing in Nigeria.
Of course, the crook won’t just come to you and say “Hey, I’m Alpacino Sergio and I want to give you $500 for the iPad because I want to send it to my son in Nigeria,” as that would set off alarm bells. However, these types of clues are the first ones someone should look for when approached by a person who shows interest in what you’re selling.
One other important observation is that con artists always want to pay via PayPal, WesterUnion, Liberty Reserve, or other similar payment methods.
Once the victim agrees to the scammers’ terms, he/she receives an email that appears to be coming from PayPal. A closer inspection, however, reveals that the notification looks nothing like one that comes from the payment processor.
In some cases, the criminals put some effort into the phony messages, but in most situations the design, the text, or the email address is a clear indicator of a plot.
The shady notice informs the seller that the payment has been made by the buyer, but apparently, it will only show up in his PayPal account after the item is delivered.
Basically, at this point the victim sends the item, but the money never actually arrives. Another, even more ugly scenario is the one in which the fraudsters claim to have wired too much money and request the difference to be given back to them.
In this case, the unsuspecting individual loses not only the item, but also an amount of money that can be much larger than what the product is actually worth.
For more scams that revolve around e-commerce sites you can check out Scambook.com.