I hate scammers!









	posted 2/21/05 Scammers! My Powerbook is due to arrive at anytime, and I have been renewing my efforts to sell the excess bikes in my quiver. I reposted my ads on all the major bike forums, and lowered the asking prices, but now I'm being hit with all these emails from possible scammers from overseas. You wouldn't believe some of these messages. They're so shady, you can see them from a mile away. Check this one out that I got this morning: (unedited, straight from the email) Hello, i came accros your 243 racing med $700 and i am really intreted in geting it. So i will want you to pls email me if it is still available. And also tell me its present condition. Also send me the pics if it is available and give me your last price. Also i will want you to know that my mode of payment is with a certified MONEY ORDER which i believe is the best way of payment. If you are ok with that you can get back to me so that we can conclude on payment. Regard... dude, what? It's a custom Dirt Jump Hard tail and you have no questions about the spec, or my current set up? I like the idea that you just want to send me money and all, but yeah right. here's another one. I even emailed her back telling her that I wasn't interested in being ripped off. I like the part where she offers to compensate me for the stress I've gone through. Hello Jason , Thanks for the mail , and i will like to tell you that am a female business woman not a scammer ok, and the price is okay by me and my client ,and am ready to purchase from you immediately, i will offer you $700 for the 243 racing med.. i want you to delete theads from the website, i have a reputable shipper that will take care of shipping from your end i want to let you know i have an associate in the state that is oweing me a sum of $4,000, i will instruct him to issue you a certifie cashier cheque on my behalf and as soon as cheque arrives, you hold out your amount and send the difference to my shipper for the pick up in your place, i hope i can trust you for my balance and also you will be contacting my shipper with all neccesary information needed for pick up in your place i.e the actual weight and exact dimension of the 243 racing med..if this terms are okay by you, do get back to me with the following details like this ............. Home Address... Zipcode... Telephone Number... Mobilephone number... Fax Number... Do get back to me asap with this details for payment to be made out to you mmediately . N.B,i will arrenge foe the pic-up,if you cash the payment plz mail me and deduct your selling price including $50 compensation for the little stress you've gone thruogh ok and send the remining via western union to my shipper,is this clear now, Waiting to hearing from you . kate.... You would think a business woman would know how to use the spell checker on her computer. I guess I'm suppose to take this check and give her back $3300, oops, I forget about the $50 for my "stress", make that $3250.. Here have my bike and three thousand bucks. It just keeps getting better. I could post more of these, but I think I've made my point. Watch out for these people.... They even have this posted on Craig's List; Do people not read? Some of these scams must be working. Maybe they figure half the country is that stupid- after all, they believe Fox News has journalistic integrity, and they voted for Bush, who clearly is looking out for the common man's interests...either way, it's the new Grift. counterfeit cashier's check & money transfer scams 1. distant buyer offers a high-value (but fake) cashier's check in exchange for your item • you receive an odd email (actual examples sent to craigslist sellers below) offering to buy your item site unseen. • cashier's check is offered for your sale item, as a deposit for an apartment, or just about anything else. • value of cashier's check often far exceeds your item - buyer asks you to wire the balance via money transfer service • banks will often cash these fake checks AND THEN HOLD YOU RESPONSIBLE WHEN THE CHECK FAILS TO CLEAR • scam often involves a 3rd party (shipping agent, business associate owing buyer money, etc) 2. distant seller requests payment via Western Union or MoneyGram: • seller often claims that an MTCN or confirmation code is needed before he can withdraw your money - this is FALSE, once you've wired money, it is GONE. • common items currently: laptops, plasma TVs, cell phones, tickets - but could be almost anything • common countries currently include: Nigeria, Romania, Ukraine, Spain, UK, Italy, Netherlands - but could be anywhere • deal often seems too good to be true 3. distant seller offers to send you a cashier's check and then have you wire money: • this is ALWAYS a scam, in our experience - the cashier's check is FAKE • sometimes accompanies an offer of merchandise, sometimes not • scammer often asks for your name, address, etc for printing on the fake check • deal often seems too good to be true 4. distant seller suggests use of an online escrow service. • most online escrow sites are FRAUDULENT, operated by scammers • for more info, do a google search on "fake escrow" or "escrow fraud" • if you must do business with a distant seller, insist on a legitimate service, such as www.escrow.com 5. distant seller asks for a partial payment upfront, after which he will ship goods • he says he trusts you with the partial payment • he may say he has already shipped the goods • deal often sounds too good to be true we've blocked a lot of IP ranges, had numerous scammer accounts shut down, and are working with officials in attempts to curtail these kind of scams .. in the meantime, it's BUYER BEWARE. for local police help, call the non-emergency police number in your local phone book. for governmental assistance, you can contact the Internet Fraud Complaint Center, or call the FTC toll-free at 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357) or use the complaint form at www.ftc.gov, or call the Canadian PhoneBusters hotline toll-free at 1-888-495-8501. if you have evidence of other scam types occuring on craigslist, please email them to abuse@craigslist.org, or let us know in the feedback forum