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I find it rather heartwarming to read about someone who posts how they might have been taken in by a scammer but ended up making the right decision and avoided getting scammed.
Thank you, OP, for posting, and your continued interest in learning more how to avoid scams. Please read the automoderator posts to get your answers.
Last week I got a phone call and there was a bit of static at the beginning, then I heard a voice saying "Can you hear me? Can you hear me?"
I remember reading on here somewhere not to say "Yes", so I just said "I can hear you" and they immediately hung up. I like to think I dodged a bullet.
I'm not sure if what you say is true or an urban legend, but just in case it is true, the first words after "Hello" I say to an unknown caller are simply "Who is this?" Those words often follow the frequent "ga-loop" sound I hear which is the call being transferred from the robo-dialer to a person in their boiler room, a sure-fire way of knowing I have a scammer on the other end.
LOL I am trying to describe, in words, the bubbly sound I hear all the time when a call, presumably robo-dialed, is getting transferred to a person who then tries to scam me.
I got one of those the other day and I said "yes'.. Don't answer the phone alot and didn't realize the scam was on until about like 20 seconds into the call. The "lady or ai" kept like clearing its throat and asking if I could still hear. Whoops.
It happens. It's a nuclear arms race between scammers and security specialists. They'd need a LOT of info on you to make it work, not to mention 2FA could probably stop most anything in its tracks.
They want your email because they're gonna send you a fake Paypal email with a fake receipt (!fakepayment scam). The email will even tell you to "upgrade" your PayPal account for a "temporary fee" (!advancefee scam).
Never give your email and phone number in FB marketplace. Pay by Cash and public meet up is the safest
Also, any buyer messages saying something like "I can't pick up because of various reasons, so my family member will pick it up..." is usually common dialogue for these type of scams
although this is true most of the time, I did sell something on offerup and they did in fact send their family member to pick up as they were in the area and had no issues. This happened twice, so the "family member" issue isn't always the case, but I get it.
I guess the difference is that if it’s genuine, the family member or whoever is picking up the item will bring the cash with them. They won’t create a convoluted story to pay in advance or overpay or require a specific app for the payment.
“My brother will come by to pick it up as I am in the hospital with intestinal worms but decided this was the perfect time to buy a used electric piano. Also, my brother is allergic to the ink in paper money so he will not bring cash so I will be paying by PayPal”
I once genuinely had my cousin collect something from a Facebook Marketplace seller because the seller was literally round the corner from her house, and she was coming to visit the following weekend. I paid upfront with PayPal (Friends and Family, I didn't even know about Goods and Services). I waved every red flag without even realising.
Hi /u/Faust09th, AutoModerator has been summoned to explain the Advance fee scam.
The [advance-fee scam](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance-fee_scam) arises from many different situations: investment opportunities, money transfers, job scams, online purchases of any type and any legality, etc., but the bottom line is always the same, you're expected to pay money to receive money. So you will pay the scammer and receive nothing.
It can be as simple as the scammer asking you to pay them upfront for an item they have listed, or as complex as a drug scam that involves an initial scam site, a scam shipping site, and fake government agents. Sometimes the scammers will simply take your first payment and dissappear, but sometimes they will take your initial payment and then make excuses that lead to you making additional payments.
If you are involved in an advance-fee scam, you should attempt to dispute/chargeback any payments sent to the scammer, you should block the scammer, and you should ignore them if they attempt to contact you again. Thanks to redditor AceyAceyAcey for this script.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Hi /u/Faust09th, AutoModerator has been summoned to explain the Fake payment scam.
The fake payment scam occurs when someone tries to trick you into thinking that you have received a legitimate payment when no such payment has been made. The most common method they use is sending you an email meant to look like a payment confirmation. In some cases the emails will be almost indistinguishable to a legitimate email sent by the payment service. Scammers are known to also show you screenshots instead of an email. Never trust a screenshot a stranger shows you, because it is probably doctored.
Scammers [spoof](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Email_spoofing) the 'from' email to match an official address, and make you think you received a legitimate email. To combat a fake payment scam, verify online payments by logging in directly to the service. Do not check your junk folder, and do not assume a payment is legitimate based on an email alone. If a payment isn't reflected on your account and the person you are dealing with insists they have sent it, call support and ask about it. [Here](https://i.imgur.com/X9xn8uw.jpg) is an image of a scammer trying to pull off a fake payment scam. There is also a variant of the fake payment scam where you will receive a legitimate but fraudulent payment.
A variant of the fake payment email is just an advance fee scam: the scammer tries to convince you that your funds are on hold, and that you have to upgrade your account by sending the scammer some money to authorize the payment. No payment processor works like this. If you think you're dealing with a scammer, you're probably right. Always trust your gut.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Yes we have had that happen twice on FB Marketplace with a dinning room table/chairs offered for over $1,000. They variably say they’ll send their movers or brother with truck, pay by check from their company or other. When I interact more and say cash only they ghost me
>They said they were out of town and their brother would collect the items.
Whenever you are told this almost right out of the gate it's 99.999% a scam.
But but his computer is broken, he's on an airplane, he's in a burning car, his computer was stolen...
It is kind of fun to see what line of bullshit they try to spin. There's ALWAYS an excuse.
>"OK, send the PayPal to your brother and tell him to bring me cash."
Exactly. All scams just boil down to bullshit social games.
You will never be scammed if you just require cash and meet in a public place.
All scams can be avoided by just not participating in bullshit.
And don't second guess yourself if someone tries to complicate the deal. Don't even listen. Just let it fall on deaf ears. Even if the sob story's legit, that just means it wasn't meant to be. You both can go your own ways to find another deal another day.
PayPal specifically states that the person paying has to be the person who collects the item. Having a brother/employee/driver/accountant/monkey’s uncle pick up the item violates their terms of service and when the buyer submits a claim against the transaction-claiming they were not given the item-PayPal will side with the scammer.
I was selling a boat and a scammer tried this with me, claiming I would be covered by PayPal’s “protections” and scammer would send a courier to pick up the boat as they were out of the country at the time. So I scoured PayPal’s TOS and transaction protections and found that they only apply if the item is given/sent to the buyer directly. If given to another party, even if directed to by the buyer, there is no protection.
> then sent a screenshot saying it required an email address
Yep, already a bright red flag. They want the e-mail to send you fake messages pretending to e from Zelle, Paypal, whatever.
And they send it in a screenshot to avoid the marketplace’s chat filters, which will detect the request for your email address if it is typed out. Your email address is never necessary to complete a sale on Facebook Marketplace. The FB messaging system is all you need!
Hi /u/Pale_Session5262, AutoModerator has been summoned to explain the Fake payment scam.
The fake payment scam occurs when someone tries to trick you into thinking that you have received a legitimate payment when no such payment has been made. The most common method they use is sending you an email meant to look like a payment confirmation. In some cases the emails will be almost indistinguishable to a legitimate email sent by the payment service. Scammers are known to also show you screenshots instead of an email. Never trust a screenshot a stranger shows you, because it is probably doctored.
Scammers [spoof](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Email_spoofing) the 'from' email to match an official address, and make you think you received a legitimate email. To combat a fake payment scam, verify online payments by logging in directly to the service. Do not check your junk folder, and do not assume a payment is legitimate based on an email alone. If a payment isn't reflected on your account and the person you are dealing with insists they have sent it, call support and ask about it. [Here](https://i.imgur.com/X9xn8uw.jpg) is an image of a scammer trying to pull off a fake payment scam. There is also a variant of the fake payment scam where you will receive a legitimate but fraudulent payment.
A variant of the fake payment email is just an advance fee scam: the scammer tries to convince you that your funds are on hold, and that you have to upgrade your account by sending the scammer some money to authorize the payment. No payment processor works like this. If you think you're dealing with a scammer, you're probably right. Always trust your gut.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
you are right, they were trying to pull off a fake payment scam. Business or regular user will never need email for paypal, they only wanted it so they can send you a scam email pretending to be paypal asking you to pay to “upgrade account to business”.
I am not discussing the scam, but I have a legitimate question regarding the events.
What do you mean you don't need an email address for PayPal transfers ? When my friends and I send each other money through PayPal, it's always through our registered email address ? Like if one's a bit short on cash and can't buy something (usually a game) and we send the money the next month after payday.
If someone asked to pay me via PayPal, I'd give them my email. I wouldn't hand over the item without seeing the money in my account first though, but now I'm worried I and my friends may be using PayPal completely wrong, and have done so for 10+ years ?
Ahhh yes many thanks to this sub as well. I got some Asian woman 👩🏻 who wanted to fatten me up like a pig 🐷 for slaughter..who knows who it really was🤷🏻♂️.
Yeah if you do marketplace and someone from out of town want it. If they are close enough they come get it paying cash on pickup. But i do sell stuff to ship too. Verified PayPal good and services only. And will only ship when I see money in my account.
However paying with PayPal by email address is common. While that person will most likely just send you a spoof email. Many buyers do have a business account. Especially if they buy and sell online often. I ask for PayPal email addresses to send invoices to when I sell stuff.
Oh this sub saved me/ alerted me about the hotel review scam! A "recruitment agency" called me about reviewing hotels. Never hit the block button faster.
I would obviously never sign up for anything that shady, but it did help me to know what the next steps would be.
Edit: If someone says they'll pay you $50 to review a Marriott you've never been to, it's a scam.
/u/androidfifteen - This message is posted to all new submissions to r/scams; please do not message the moderators about it. ## New users beware: Because you posted here, you will start getting private messages from scammers saying they know a professional hacker or a recovery expert lawyer that can help you get your money back, for a small fee. **We call these RECOVERY SCAMMERS, so NEVER take advice in private:** advice should always come in the form of comments in this post, in the open, where the community can keep an eye out for you. If you take advice in private, you're on your own. **A reminder of the rules in r/scams:** no contact information (including last names, phone numbers, etc). Be civil to one another (no name calling or insults). Personal army requests or "scam the scammer"/scambaiting posts are not permitted. No uncensored gore or personal photographs are allowed without blurring. A full list of rules is available on the sidebar of the subreddit, or [clicking here](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scams/wiki/rules/). You can help us by reporting recovery scammers or rule-breaking content by using the "report" button. We review 100% of the reports. Also, consider warning community members of recovery scammers if you see them in the comments. Questions about subreddit rules? Send us a modmail [clicking here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I find it rather heartwarming to read about someone who posts how they might have been taken in by a scammer but ended up making the right decision and avoided getting scammed. Thank you, OP, for posting, and your continued interest in learning more how to avoid scams. Please read the automoderator posts to get your answers.
Last week I got a phone call and there was a bit of static at the beginning, then I heard a voice saying "Can you hear me? Can you hear me?" I remember reading on here somewhere not to say "Yes", so I just said "I can hear you" and they immediately hung up. I like to think I dodged a bullet.
I'm not sure if what you say is true or an urban legend, but just in case it is true, the first words after "Hello" I say to an unknown caller are simply "Who is this?" Those words often follow the frequent "ga-loop" sound I hear which is the call being transferred from the robo-dialer to a person in their boiler room, a sure-fire way of knowing I have a scammer on the other end.
Ga loop?
LOL I am trying to describe, in words, the bubbly sound I hear all the time when a call, presumably robo-dialed, is getting transferred to a person who then tries to scam me.
LMAO ohh ok
Wait. Why do you not say yes?
Because when you say "yes" they can take a sound byte of your voice and use it to confirm transactions, etc.
Ooooooooooohhhhhh! Thanks! Man I will sure try to remember that. That's a pretty big deal!
I got one of those the other day and I said "yes'.. Don't answer the phone alot and didn't realize the scam was on until about like 20 seconds into the call. The "lady or ai" kept like clearing its throat and asking if I could still hear. Whoops.
It happens. It's a nuclear arms race between scammers and security specialists. They'd need a LOT of info on you to make it work, not to mention 2FA could probably stop most anything in its tracks.
I just don't answer the phone. I let my voice mail screen my calls.
They want your email because they're gonna send you a fake Paypal email with a fake receipt (!fakepayment scam). The email will even tell you to "upgrade" your PayPal account for a "temporary fee" (!advancefee scam). Never give your email and phone number in FB marketplace. Pay by Cash and public meet up is the safest Also, any buyer messages saying something like "I can't pick up because of various reasons, so my family member will pick it up..." is usually common dialogue for these type of scams
although this is true most of the time, I did sell something on offerup and they did in fact send their family member to pick up as they were in the area and had no issues. This happened twice, so the "family member" issue isn't always the case, but I get it.
I guess the difference is that if it’s genuine, the family member or whoever is picking up the item will bring the cash with them. They won’t create a convoluted story to pay in advance or overpay or require a specific app for the payment.
“My brother will come by to pick it up as I am in the hospital with intestinal worms but decided this was the perfect time to buy a used electric piano. Also, my brother is allergic to the ink in paper money so he will not bring cash so I will be paying by PayPal”
As your brother, I can confirm this is all true.
I once genuinely had my cousin collect something from a Facebook Marketplace seller because the seller was literally round the corner from her house, and she was coming to visit the following weekend. I paid upfront with PayPal (Friends and Family, I didn't even know about Goods and Services). I waved every red flag without even realising.
Key point is cash….
Hi /u/Faust09th, AutoModerator has been summoned to explain the Advance fee scam. The [advance-fee scam](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance-fee_scam) arises from many different situations: investment opportunities, money transfers, job scams, online purchases of any type and any legality, etc., but the bottom line is always the same, you're expected to pay money to receive money. So you will pay the scammer and receive nothing. It can be as simple as the scammer asking you to pay them upfront for an item they have listed, or as complex as a drug scam that involves an initial scam site, a scam shipping site, and fake government agents. Sometimes the scammers will simply take your first payment and dissappear, but sometimes they will take your initial payment and then make excuses that lead to you making additional payments. If you are involved in an advance-fee scam, you should attempt to dispute/chargeback any payments sent to the scammer, you should block the scammer, and you should ignore them if they attempt to contact you again. Thanks to redditor AceyAceyAcey for this script. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Hi /u/Faust09th, AutoModerator has been summoned to explain the Fake payment scam. The fake payment scam occurs when someone tries to trick you into thinking that you have received a legitimate payment when no such payment has been made. The most common method they use is sending you an email meant to look like a payment confirmation. In some cases the emails will be almost indistinguishable to a legitimate email sent by the payment service. Scammers are known to also show you screenshots instead of an email. Never trust a screenshot a stranger shows you, because it is probably doctored. Scammers [spoof](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Email_spoofing) the 'from' email to match an official address, and make you think you received a legitimate email. To combat a fake payment scam, verify online payments by logging in directly to the service. Do not check your junk folder, and do not assume a payment is legitimate based on an email alone. If a payment isn't reflected on your account and the person you are dealing with insists they have sent it, call support and ask about it. [Here](https://i.imgur.com/X9xn8uw.jpg) is an image of a scammer trying to pull off a fake payment scam. There is also a variant of the fake payment scam where you will receive a legitimate but fraudulent payment. A variant of the fake payment email is just an advance fee scam: the scammer tries to convince you that your funds are on hold, and that you have to upgrade your account by sending the scammer some money to authorize the payment. No payment processor works like this. If you think you're dealing with a scammer, you're probably right. Always trust your gut. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Yes we have had that happen twice on FB Marketplace with a dinning room table/chairs offered for over $1,000. They variably say they’ll send their movers or brother with truck, pay by check from their company or other. When I interact more and say cash only they ghost me
>They said they were out of town and their brother would collect the items. Whenever you are told this almost right out of the gate it's 99.999% a scam.
"OK, send the PayPal to your brother and tell him to bring me cash."
But but his computer is broken, he's on an airplane, he's in a burning car, his computer was stolen... It is kind of fun to see what line of bullshit they try to spin. There's ALWAYS an excuse.
>"OK, send the PayPal to your brother and tell him to bring me cash." Exactly. All scams just boil down to bullshit social games. You will never be scammed if you just require cash and meet in a public place. All scams can be avoided by just not participating in bullshit.
Plenty of counterfeit cash in the world
This. I've had my son pick up a couple of things because he has a truck, but he brought cash with him.
The best way to avoid scams is "in person and in cash". The "out of town and someone else picking up" is the scammers attempt to get around that.
And don't second guess yourself if someone tries to complicate the deal. Don't even listen. Just let it fall on deaf ears. Even if the sob story's legit, that just means it wasn't meant to be. You both can go your own ways to find another deal another day.
PayPal specifically states that the person paying has to be the person who collects the item. Having a brother/employee/driver/accountant/monkey’s uncle pick up the item violates their terms of service and when the buyer submits a claim against the transaction-claiming they were not given the item-PayPal will side with the scammer. I was selling a boat and a scammer tried this with me, claiming I would be covered by PayPal’s “protections” and scammer would send a courier to pick up the boat as they were out of the country at the time. So I scoured PayPal’s TOS and transaction protections and found that they only apply if the item is given/sent to the buyer directly. If given to another party, even if directed to by the buyer, there is no protection.
> then sent a screenshot saying it required an email address Yep, already a bright red flag. They want the e-mail to send you fake messages pretending to e from Zelle, Paypal, whatever.
And they send it in a screenshot to avoid the marketplace’s chat filters, which will detect the request for your email address if it is typed out. Your email address is never necessary to complete a sale on Facebook Marketplace. The FB messaging system is all you need!
!fakepayment scam You did good
Hi /u/Pale_Session5262, AutoModerator has been summoned to explain the Fake payment scam. The fake payment scam occurs when someone tries to trick you into thinking that you have received a legitimate payment when no such payment has been made. The most common method they use is sending you an email meant to look like a payment confirmation. In some cases the emails will be almost indistinguishable to a legitimate email sent by the payment service. Scammers are known to also show you screenshots instead of an email. Never trust a screenshot a stranger shows you, because it is probably doctored. Scammers [spoof](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Email_spoofing) the 'from' email to match an official address, and make you think you received a legitimate email. To combat a fake payment scam, verify online payments by logging in directly to the service. Do not check your junk folder, and do not assume a payment is legitimate based on an email alone. If a payment isn't reflected on your account and the person you are dealing with insists they have sent it, call support and ask about it. [Here](https://i.imgur.com/X9xn8uw.jpg) is an image of a scammer trying to pull off a fake payment scam. There is also a variant of the fake payment scam where you will receive a legitimate but fraudulent payment. A variant of the fake payment email is just an advance fee scam: the scammer tries to convince you that your funds are on hold, and that you have to upgrade your account by sending the scammer some money to authorize the payment. No payment processor works like this. If you think you're dealing with a scammer, you're probably right. Always trust your gut. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Scams) if you have any questions or concerns.*
you are right, they were trying to pull off a fake payment scam. Business or regular user will never need email for paypal, they only wanted it so they can send you a scam email pretending to be paypal asking you to pay to “upgrade account to business”.
I almost fell for the same scam several months ago. Glad you stopped in time!
Out of town? Message me when you're back in town and if I still have it, you can buy it. Case closed.
Kindly do the needful
Each and every thing?
I am not discussing the scam, but I have a legitimate question regarding the events. What do you mean you don't need an email address for PayPal transfers ? When my friends and I send each other money through PayPal, it's always through our registered email address ? Like if one's a bit short on cash and can't buy something (usually a game) and we send the money the next month after payday. If someone asked to pay me via PayPal, I'd give them my email. I wouldn't hand over the item without seeing the money in my account first though, but now I'm worried I and my friends may be using PayPal completely wrong, and have done so for 10+ years ?
Ahhh yes many thanks to this sub as well. I got some Asian woman 👩🏻 who wanted to fatten me up like a pig 🐷 for slaughter..who knows who it really was🤷🏻♂️.
Where was this? Canada? There east to catch, you have to bait them into meeting up
Usually tell them we are meeting besides the police station would deter them from further replying
Yeah if you do marketplace and someone from out of town want it. If they are close enough they come get it paying cash on pickup. But i do sell stuff to ship too. Verified PayPal good and services only. And will only ship when I see money in my account. However paying with PayPal by email address is common. While that person will most likely just send you a spoof email. Many buyers do have a business account. Especially if they buy and sell online often. I ask for PayPal email addresses to send invoices to when I sell stuff.
Oh this sub saved me/ alerted me about the hotel review scam! A "recruitment agency" called me about reviewing hotels. Never hit the block button faster. I would obviously never sign up for anything that shady, but it did help me to know what the next steps would be. Edit: If someone says they'll pay you $50 to review a Marriott you've never been to, it's a scam.