BE WARY OF SCAMMERS - PROTECT YOURSELF.

[Halcyon]

With the forum becoming increasingly popular, scammers too are getting increasingly more crafty to appear legitimate.

I know not everyone wants to list their items on ebay, however be extremely careful with respect to buying items that are seemingly for sale here. There was a recent instance of a user (with a low post count) claiming to have items for sale, however the images were stolen from an ebay listing. The user claimed to be from the US but his internet provider indicated otherwise. We have also had recent instances of spammers/scammers compromising existing (legitimate) user accounts for nefarious purposes, through leaked credentials.

If you're looking to purchase an item from a forum member, outside of legitimate trading sites and payment platforms, make sure you do your homework and do your own risk assessment first before sending any money to anyone.

Whilst the moderators try to get to reported posts as quickly as possible, we don't review every post that gets made on this forum.
IF YOU LOSE MONEY IN A SCAM, NEITHER DAVE NOR THE MODERATORS CAN HELP YOU, YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN.

Please be careful out there!

[Sarvesaa]

I once almost fell for it.  I posted a topic in this thread, wanted a signal generator, one guy came and said he is interested in giving his away for 28 bucks just for the postage. But his images were from ebay listings. I asked about the image and he went nuts.

I found the image in the web by using google lens, so you can use google lens to check if the image is already in the web used somewhere else.

Beware.

[Rax]

"Steff dushane" is scraping the threads right now trying to peel off some poor souls and sink them into the depths of PayPal or other scamlands.

[Bud]

I use same photos of stuff I sell on ebay and local craigslist and swap shops. What is wrong with that? I do not make unique photos for each market place.

[EEVblog]

Another scammer caught today.
Same modus operandi:
- zero (or low) post account contacts someone via PM offering for sale something they have been looking for.
- Steals photos from Google or existing ebay listing.
- Knows what the going price is and offers below that to entice you into a bargain

We've had so many of these now. BEWARE.
And for those that have asked to ban PM's for zero post accounts, we tried that and had a lot of complaints from legit users. And they got around it anyway by just posting.
These aren't bots, they are legit human scammers that know how to target.

[nigelwright7557]

Best way is to pay via paypal but not as friends or family.
If there is a problem you can then do a paypal claim.

[AVGresponding]

I wouldn't trust a pm like that, full stop. Unless you're a friend, why are you pm-ing me like this? It's obviously a scam.

I'll remind people that mods/admin can't ordinarily see pm's, and even forum posts don't always get noticed, unless you report them.

[bitwelder]

And for those that have asked to ban PM's for zero post accounts, we tried that and had a lot of complaints from legit users. And they got around it anyway by just posting.

Is there some option for the forum software, as script or plugin, to inject a warning header to PMs sent from zero posts account? Like
*** NOTICE: This message is sent by a new account. Be careful if it offers some bargain ***

[nigelwright7557]

I spotted a cheap USB PC oscilloscope on ebay.
It was £12.99 while comparable scopes were over £50.
I warned ebay about it but was ignored.
They went to sell 211 units before the negs started rolling in.
After 15 negs it got pulled.

2 weeks later same scam different username.

[Bicurico]

Hi,

Today my Ebay searches had quite a few amazing hits, but upon a closer inspection, I think it is a scam:

https://www.ebay.de/str/bibliothequeparlenet

This seller only sells books, records and alike - and the last reviews were all for such items. The seller is located in France.

And suddenly, it seems he has test equipment with very low starting prices and the English description (red flag #1, as the store is otherwise in French) only mentions the buy it now price (red flag #2, there is no buy it now option, it is only in the description). Finally, the items are located in California, US, instead of France (red flag #3).

So I thought I should put this here, to prevent someone falling for the trap.

My apologies if this is legit, but it doesn't look like it at all.

[PA0PBZ]

Looks like they are already deleted.

[nigelwright7557]

Best way is to pay via Paypal but not as friends or family.
Then if anything goes wrong you can get a refund.

Tried to buy a pc cpu on Facebook but guy refused paypal so he didnt get a sale.
All sorts of scams on Facebook like having to pay postage upfront via a website.

[RikV]

I got tricked in a scam! Stupid I am!
I was contacted by "Maxcast" who invited me to contact "edwardcolton@gmail.com" saying that he probably had what I wanted.
Indeed, Colton (or whatever his name is) confirmed he had an "option  C" available. We agreed on a price.
Then he proposed to pay with Paypall insisting on the option "family and friends". So I did.
At that time I should have felt something was wrong: I never gave my shipping addres, he didn't ask  for it! Also the money was transferred to a different account: kingsleyjohnyy@gmail.com.
Afterwards I found out that by paying "family and friends" you discard the money back guarantee from Paypal.

So, here I am. A disillusion richer(?) but still no prescaler for my 8640!

[madires]

  for sharing your experience! That was a classic scam. First you're contacted by the 'opener' and then the 'closer' takes over to take your money. The money goes to a money mule, aka havala (Hindi). Sometimes the money mule is an elderly person not aware of being misused or a victim of identity theft, or someone falling for the supposedly lucrative side job. The scammers love Bitcoin, Zelle, gift cards, PayPal Friends and Family without buyer protection, bank transfers to foreign accounts and a few more. If you see anything mentioned above take it as a red flag.

[PlainName]

Yes, no matter how alert we think we are, we only need to have a senior moment once at the wrong time. Had mine today (text from bank about new payee, link to alert them if it wasn't me) but fortunately some fly got in their ointment and nothing happened.

[5U4GB]

And suddenly, it seems he has test equipment with very low starting prices and the English description (red flag #1, as the store is otherwise in French) only mentions the buy it now price (red flag #2, there is no buy it now option, it is only in the description). Finally, the items are located in California, US, instead of France (red flag #3).

That's a common fraud pattern, take over an account with a high positive feedback rating, use it to scam people until you get shut down, lather, rinse, repeat.  So the thing to watch out for is an established account that's sold X in the past and is now selling Y at suspiciously low prices, which is almost always a scammer that's taken over a legit account.

[nigelwright7557]

Even ebay has its scammers despite being on a money back guarantee forum.
The "I received an empty box" scam.
The "I didnt receive anything" on none tracked items scam.
The "sending back different item" scam.

I sold some audio gear on ebay.
Buyer said he wasnt happy with it so I got him to send it back.
Received a lump of wood full of nails sticking out !
He kept original item, got refunded and left me negative feedback.
I got the police involved due to offensive item.
They went to see him and his wife said she had sent it !
So he got off and she got a formal warning.

[Runco990]

It's truly sad scammers are invading absolutely everything.  I am listing a few of my excess test gear now that I'm downsizing, but at the same time it goes BOTH ways.  I am hesitant to accept anything other than Paypal friends and family to protect MYSELF from just giving my stuff away.  I have also been scammed the other way around.

Having said that, I don't post much, I mostly read, so my post count is "low". 
But I have no problem verifying my address, etc. in PM.  Obviously I don't want to post my info on open forums due to data mining... and .... for more scammers to see.

So I hope my posts will be considered and you actually contact me.  I also welcome in-person visits if you live nearby.

It's a shame I have to post this....  but I get it.  Good luck out there.

[W3SLK]

RikV said:

I got tricked in a scam! Stupid I am!
I was contacted by "Maxcast" who invited me to contact "edwardcolton@gmail.com" saying that he probably had what I wanted.
Indeed, Colton (or whatever his name is) confirmed he had an "option  C" available. We agreed on a price.
Then he proposed to pay with Paypall insisting on the option "family and friends". So I did.
At that time I should have felt something was wrong: I never gave my shipping addres, he didn't ask  for it! Also the money was transferred to a different account: kingsleyjohnyy@gmail.com.
Afterwards I found out that by paying "family and friends" you discard the money back guarantee from Paypal.

So, here I am. A disillusion richer(?) but still no prescaler for my 8640!

Don't feel bad! I think I just got taken on the same scam! Schurminater75 shilled for Henry Grout saying he had a part for my HP606A. Same deal Paypal F&F  to lenapillenger@outlook.com The red flags went up at that but I did it anyway. I'm only out $25 but I wish I would have caught your message first! Misery loves company!
Edit: I may have been saved by American Express. They questioned the charge and said when it posts they will go to bat for me with Paypal.

[Halcyon]

RikV said:

I got tricked in a scam! Stupid I am!
I was contacted by "Maxcast" who invited me to contact "edwardcolton@gmail.com" saying that he probably had what I wanted.
Indeed, Colton (or whatever his name is) confirmed he had an "option  C" available. We agreed on a price.
Then he proposed to pay with Paypall insisting on the option "family and friends". So I did.
At that time I should have felt something was wrong: I never gave my shipping addres, he didn't ask  for it! Also the money was transferred to a different account: kingsleyjohnyy@gmail.com.
Afterwards I found out that by paying "family and friends" you discard the money back guarantee from Paypal.

So, here I am. A disillusion richer(?) but still no prescaler for my 8640!

Don't feel bad! I think I just got taken on the same scam! Schurminater75 shilled for Henry Grout saying he had a part for my HP606A. Same deal Paypal F&F  to lenapillenger@outlook.com The red flags went up at that but I did it anyway. I'm only out $25 but I wish I would have caught your message first! Misery loves company!
Edit: I may have been saved by American Express. They questioned the charge and said when it posts they will go to bat for me with Paypal.

The user Schurminater75 has been banned. It probably comes as no surprise that his registered email was edwardcolton75@gmail.com. Clearly complete bullshit and fictitious.

Some very good points to come out of this:

• Don't use the "Friends and Family" option in PayPal if you're buying goods and services (personal payments are not covered under their buyer protection policy).
• If approached by a forum member, check their profile. A zero, or low post count is suspicious. Likewise, if your spidey senses are tingling, contact a moderator and we'll do some additional checks.

[W3SLK]

Halcyon said:

Some very good points to come out of this:

Don't use the "Friends and Family" option in PayPal if you're buying goods and services (personal payments are not covered under their buyer protection policy).
If approached by a forum member, check their profile. A zero, or low post count is suspicious. Likewise, if your spidey senses are tingling, contact a moderator and we'll do some additional checks.

Sage advice to say the least!

[ZGoode]

Good ol' Schurminater75
He also reached out to me regarding the 54901A that I wanted and said Harvey at harveygrout75@gmail.com would have what I wanted.  Just like some of the other posts I noticed here, he sent me pictures directly off an eBay listing.  Even included the serial number in the photos so it would be impossible to lie about it being a different unit.  As soon as I said that I would only pay via PayPal G&S and absolutely refused to use F&F he ghosted me.  Honestly I was expecting a scam, but I was kinda hoping it wouldn't be one.  He even said he was in California when the listing on eBay showed that unit was shipping from New York.  Like at least keep your information straight if you are going to steal info from an eBay listing.

[propellerhead]

I just got a PM from user "toneykane016" regarding something I'd posted that I was looking for:

"You can contact muncho. He posted he has a PM402  for sale Here's his contact +19734867575"

and when I queried him further:

"you can just text him"

There is no user "muncho" here, but if you do a net search for that name and phone number, you
get almost-identical variations on that string regarding Chevy parts, etc.  I don't know what the
nature of the scam is - whether they try to hook you and drag you into something, or whether it's
simpler, e.g. there's a hefty charge for just texting to that number.  I couldn't find out even if I wanted
to, as I don't carry a tracking device.  But I'm certain it's not real.

Actually, now that I look at his initial message, the extra space after "PM402" is interesting, as though
it's an imperfect string insertion.

[madires]

Usually that kind of scam works like this:
- opener: My friend has what you're looking for. Contact him via xyz.
- closer: Send me the money via xyz (some method without buyer protection).
- you pay the money and will never receive anything

[propellerhead]

So it's a simple two-stage hook, rather than an intrinsic single-stage ripoff like a big cell phone charge.

I mean, hard to get caught in that one if you have your wits about you.  If the "seller" isn't going to
engage via email in a discussion about the product, I wouldn't even remotely take him seriously.
And if the guy who PMed me won't even say where he claims he saw this post, well, that's that too.

[nigelwright7557]

I previously bought an item from facebook marketplace and the buy and experience was good.

So more recently I bought another item from facebook marketplace.
The seller gave me his paypal username and I quickly paid for it using goods and services.
A few days later seller sent a message asking if I still wanted the item.
I said yes it was paid for days ago.
He said he couldnt find a record of the paypal transaction.
So I sent him copy of transaction but he said it wasnt him.
So the payment went to another account not his.

I got onto paypal and complained and the paypal seller came up with a hand written receipt for the sale and said he had posted it !
Clearly a scam so I made a claim via paypal giving all the details.
A few days later I got a refund.
I dread to think what would have happened if I had used "family and friends" on paypal.

Its better to buy from online retailers or from ebay as there are far fewer problems.
If the item really has to come from facebook I would go along with cash and check it over before buying it.

[garytoosweet]

The user 'markusvet' attempted to scam me via PM.

PM message attached.

After receiving an email reply, I searched the email address, which is a known scam email.

If his email was normal, it could have been pretty convincing.

[madires]

Payment via gift cards is also an obvious sign of a scam.

[pizzigri]

Just received the following from a 0 post account, user Steinken, which screams SCAAAAM!! all the way.
————-
hello are you still interested in getting this?.
you can contact Christopher he has a 66311 B/D mobile Mobile Communication DC Source  for sale........... PM him @ Christopheraugur16@gmail.com
————-
Mr Steinken cannot receive personal messages- how did he send me one?

[dlebed]

Same guy, he sent similar message to me and suggested contacting the same email Christopheraugur16@gmail.com
Would ordinary American guy introduce himself with full "Christopher" name?

I even chat with the guy over email...

He has no clue about the item, not engaging into discussion about item and refuses to use PayPal ("I don't have PayPal").
Also, pay attention to their time zone (in email replies). He claimed he's in the US, while time zone tells otherwise.

Hopefully that will help others spot scammers.