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kman42 · Jun 29, 2009, 11:14 AM

I am trying to sell my old iPhone on Craigslist and I had someone offer to pay me via paypal. I have an old paypal account, but haven't used it in a long time, so I'm not familiar with all of their recent procedures. I got some emails from "paypal" saying that his payment was confirmed, but that I had to send them the shipment confirmation in order to receive the funds. This seems suspicious to me. The emails had lots of fancy paypal graphics in them, but the biggest telltale in my mind is that he wanted me to ship the item to Nigeria!

Dear [email protected],
PayPal would like to inform you that funds have been deducted from our client Scott Bonnie account but can only be credited into your PayPal account once the shipment tracking number has been sent to our database administrator for verification at [email protected]

This action is not a request from our client but a security measure we are taking to ensure and protect both parties involved in this transaction.

We would want you to have the item mailed as requested and email us with the shipment tracking number and we can verify it so that your account can be credited.

PayPal is sorry for any inconvenience this might have caused you.

Phileas · Jun 29, 2009, 11:15 AM

Dude. You have to ask? Seriously.

Of course it's a freaking scam.

Mrjinglesusa · Jun 29, 2009, 11:17 AM

Duh. That email address they gave you should be your first clue. Do you really think PayPal would request that you send the shipment notification to [email protected]?

You can't be that gullible to even think this is legit.

BTW, www.mail2consultant.com takes you to http://www.mail2world.com/, a FREE email service provider.

SpaceMonkey · Jun 29, 2009, 11:18 AM

I know Scott Bonnie. And you, sir, are no Scott Bonnie.

turtle777 · Jun 29, 2009, 11:24 AM

Seriously, kman42

-t

kman42 · Jun 29, 2009, 11:26 AM

Fair enough. I deserve your mockery and I will accept it for the day so that you can all get a good laugh. Give me your best shot.

turtle777 · Jun 29, 2009, 11:29 AM

In case others are confused:

The only reason to even use Craigslist is to find a LOCAL buyer, who can pay CASH.
Otherwise, you might as well sell on eBay from the get go, and have a 75% chance of being scammed.

-t

andi*pandi · Jun 29, 2009, 11:58 AM

exactly.

starman · Jun 29, 2009, 12:10 PM

I have yet to sell anything on cl. I don't want these creeps coming to my house.

andi*pandi · Jun 29, 2009, 12:15 PM

Meet at work, starbucks, or a dark alley.

kman42 · Jun 29, 2009, 12:27 PM

Originally Posted by turtle777

In case others are confused:

The only reason to even use Craigslist is to find a LOCAL buyer, who can pay CASH.
Otherwise, you might as well sell on eBay from the get go, and have a 75% chance of being scammed.

-t

This is true, and in my defense, this was my intention. He emailed asking if it was still available and offering to pay my requested amount. I responded yes, it was available, and that I would only be accepting cash. He responded that he'd like to pay via paypal, which seemed a reasonable request as I understand someone not wanting to carry around hundreds of dollars, especially when meeting a stranger. I responded that we could meet after his payment was confirmed. He then sent me all these emails which contained the first mention of shipping the item and made me question his authenticity.

It all seemed legit up to this point and perhaps it was the numerous email exchanges that led me to lower my guard against what is, on further review, a clear scam. It seems like an awful lot of trouble to go to for a scam.

Big Mac · Jun 29, 2009, 03:02 PM

I fear a bit for you that you weren't able to recognize such a blatant PayPal scam, kman.

Chuckit · Jun 29, 2009, 04:00 PM

Originally Posted by andi*pandi

Meet at work, starbucks, or a dark alley.

Yeah, no need to do it at your house. The one time I've bought something off Craigslist, we met at a local public park.

SpaceMonkey · Jun 29, 2009, 04:03 PM

I send a minion.

Chuckit · Jun 29, 2009, 04:08 PM

He did too, actually — his fiancee.

Phileas · Jun 29, 2009, 10:27 PM

Just sold a MBP, a base station and some other stuff on CL. Nary a problem. I find that adding in a line that reads something like "cash only, local pickup only, goods can be tested before sale" sorts out the serious buyers from the scammers and low ballers.

I get people to come to my work address. A public space that's safe for both. I also use my work email address, so people can see that my company is legit.

phantomdragonz · Jun 29, 2009, 11:43 PM

you can ALWAYS log into paypal.com (type it in manually, MANY MANY phishing scams come from links in e-mails) and check your account balance, if it shows a balance then you can weed out a lot a bad scams... still paypal is not perfect.

-Zach

turtle777 · Jun 30, 2009, 01:28 AM

Originally Posted by phantomdragonz

you can ALWAYS log into paypal.com (type it in manually, MANY MANY phishing scams come from links in e-mails) and check your account balance, if it shows a balance then you can weed out a lot a bad scams... still paypal is not perfect.

-Zach

That's no good. Paypal can at any time w/o any reason freeze your account and claw back the money.

-t

kman42 · Jun 30, 2009, 08:47 AM

The guy is still at it. This is the second email since yesterday.

Hello Mate....why the delay of the shipment, i want to know if the
item has been shipped out cos the payment has been made and deducted
from my account but pending in your account for security purpose until
the shipment is made, So kindly get back to me if the item has been
shipped out with the shipment tracking number and make sure you also
sent to PayPal customer care for verification and confirmation so that
the funds can be credited to your account immediately...

Here is the shipping address below...

Samuel Babatunde
#3 tiamiyu Street Anfani,
Off Ring Road,
Oyo State,Ibadan
Nigeria,23402
+2348074808081

Thanks

Doofy · Jun 30, 2009, 08:57 AM

Originally Posted by turtle777

That's no good. Paypal can at any time w/o any reason freeze your account and claw back the money.

Is there an alternative to these barstewards yet?

Phileas · Jun 30, 2009, 09:29 AM

Originally Posted by Doofy

Is there an alternative to these barstewards yet?

Google checkout

Doofy · Jun 30, 2009, 10:36 AM

Originally Posted by Phileas

Google checkout

...Preferably that doesn't involve the other barstewards.

ThinkInsane · Jun 30, 2009, 11:03 AM

Paypal constantly says that all communications from paypal will address you by your full name, never an email address or sir or madame. Tell him to screw off, this has scam written all over it.

harbinger75 · Jun 30, 2009, 11:19 AM

Originally Posted by turtle777

in case others are confused:

The only reason to even use craigslist is to find a local buyer, who can pay cash.
Otherwise, you might as well sell on ebay from the get go, and have a 75% chance of being scammed.

-t

qft

Big Mac · Jun 30, 2009, 01:33 PM

Originally Posted by kman42

The guy is still at it. This is the second email since yesterday.

Hello Mate....why the delay of the shipment, i want to know if the
item has been shipped out cos the payment has been made and deducted
from my account but pending in your account for security purpose until
the shipment is made, So kindly get back to me if the item has been
shipped out with the shipment tracking number and make sure you also
sent to PayPal customer care for verification and confirmation so that
the funds can be credited to your account immediately...

Here is the shipping address below...

Samuel Babatunde
#3 tiamiyu Street Anfani,
Off Ring Road,
Oyo State,Ibadan
Nigeria,23402
+2348074808081

Thanks

LOL, a classic Nigerian scammer. He's supposed to say that he'll cut you in on an inheritance if you send some good faith funds.

Watch out for other fake PayPal emails with phishing site links. They think you're an easy target.

turtle777 · Jun 30, 2009, 01:39 PM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

LOL, a classic Nigerian scammer. He's supposed to say that he'll cut you in on an inheritance if you send some good faith funds.

Watch out for other fake PayPal emails with phishing site links. They think you're an easy target.

So, isn't the scam that the funds never really get transfered via Paypal, but only show up on a fake scam site, and they try to fish for your password with it ?

If he OP logs in to paypal directly at www.paypal.com, then the funds should not be in there.

However, there is also the possibility that the funds were indeed transfered to OPs paypal account, but paid with a stolen credit card. That might lead to the money being clawed back and your account frozen.

Bottom line: when in doubt, RUN AWAY from the transaction.

Lastly, I think Paypal should be renamed into ScamBuddy.

-t

Big Mac · Jun 30, 2009, 01:53 PM

The first poorly done PayPal forgery the OP received was designed to make a gullible person think funds were waiting to be cleared pending shipment of the item. No funds were ever going to be transferred. I don't think a scammer would go to the trouble of using a stolen card or account for just one transaction, although it's a possibility.

Also, I don't think it's fair to PayPal to call it that, turtle. It enables a lot of legitimate electronic commerce and transactions, it takes very little time and effort to set up an account, it's fee free for non-business accounts, and I've never had a security or financial problem with the service as either an individual or a business. I know some people have experienced problems, but given my personal experiences with it I'm a fan.

turtle777 · Jun 30, 2009, 01:58 PM

The only reason why I still use Paypal at times is because I know that Amex is awesome when it comes to customer services. So should anything go wrong, Amex is my safety net.

God help you if you use Paypal and a debit card. You are toast if something goes wrong.

-t

Laminar · Jun 30, 2009, 02:13 PM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

Also, I don't think it's fair to PayPal to call it that, turtle. It enables a lot of legitimate electronic commerce and transactions, it takes very little time and effort to set up an account, it's fee free for non-business accounts, and I've never had a security or financial problem with the service as either an individual or a business. I know some people have experienced problems, but given my personal experiences with it I'm a fan.

I've only had one problem - when I moved earlier this year, I had just gotten a job and subsequently bought a lot of nice, new things (after not using PayPal for a month or three), all of which were shipped to my new address. I'll admit that would look suspicious. The problem came when they froze all of my pending payments and required me to verify my new address. That meant either having them call me on a landline (who TF uses a landline?) or mailing me a letter with a verification code. I chose letter and waited seven or eight days, and still didn't receive it. At this point the eBay sellers are getting pissed because they don't have their money. I finally called PayPal and they cleared it all up right away.

turtle777 · Jun 30, 2009, 03:04 PM

Originally Posted by Laminar

That meant either having them call me on a landline (who TF uses a landline?

Just curious: how do they know that your number is a landline ?
Does a cell phone register as a cell phone ?

-t

Laminar · Jun 30, 2009, 03:08 PM

Originally Posted by turtle777

Just curious: how do they know that your number is a landline ?
Does a cell phone register as a cell phone ?

-t

Doing a reverse lookup will tell you if a number is land-based (and its associated address) or a cell number (and its provider). I don't know if they use something similar to this or not.

turtle777 · Jun 30, 2009, 03:19 PM

Ha, LOL, my Google Voice number shows up as a landline.

-t

amikwil · Sep 30, 2009, 12:09 PM

So I had the same thing happen.....selling my engagement ring on craigslist. Was offered 2200 through paypal and then I have to send the tracking number to paypal so they can release the funds into the account. and blah blah blah......so i was thinking. can i not easily just scam them back? Use a prepaid card to have the funds deposited. This way it is not attached to any sort of bank account so they cant come after me. Then ship something completely random and send the tracking number to paypal....and "IF" the funds get deposited, withdraw the money right away at an atm and not ship my ring...

turtle777 · Sep 30, 2009, 12:18 PM

Essentially, yes.

I don't know why this is still not clear:

Anyone selling on Craigslist and accepting Paypal as a payment is a f***ing moron.

-t

Rumor · Oct 1, 2009, 02:25 AM

Originally Posted by turtle777

Ha, LOL, my Google Voice number shows up as a landline.

-t

It also says my cell is a landline.