Is this a scam?

[macrlz9]

I am selling a laptop on ebay (see link) http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6737364192 i wanted my friends here at mac rumors to give me an honest opinion. Today i received an email from a gentelman in the UK offering me 2900 for the laptop to ship it to the uk and to use www.safeweb-transactions.net for escrow service.... now i've never heard of them, i went to contact info and there isnt' much there, no number, no address or anything. i was wondering if you guys thought this was safe or not?

[clayj]

Total scam. Do NOT use an escrow service. If you must use something like this, stick with PayPal.

EDIT: Especially since these guys have their domain name registered from ARGENTINA. Click here (http://www.networksolutions.com/en_US/whois/results.jhtml;jsessionid=FXUJSROMVT4SKCWKEAQSFFA?whoistoken=0&_requestid=837612) to see their Whois info. Avoid these folks like the plague.

[Sun Baked]

Looks a lot like one of the escrow sites that is a scam in a can...www.SafeWeb-Transactions.net was incorporated in 2000 by Micro General Corp. (NASDAQ: MGEN), a subsidiary of Fidelity National Financial, Inc. (NYSE: FNF), the world's largest escrow and title insurance company. Micro General Corp., Fidelity's technology subsidiary, is a leader in trust accounting technology and e-commerce solutions.

Our background
The trust accounting engine supporting www.SafeWeb-Transactions.net's technology was developed by Micro General Corp. in 1985. Since then, the platform has been used to manage over $1 trillion in escrow transactions at Fidelity. Re-engineered for the new demands of e-business, it is a highly secure and reliable settlement engine that automates all components needed to complete an online transaction.Sort of like saying you're part of Apple because your server is an XServe.

And the previous paragraph is a lie, this scam in a can keeps changing the name -- but the spelling mistakes elsewhere on the site never gets fixed.

[macrlz9]

ok ok so by using pay pal, how does that work exactly. how is that guaranteed that no one will get screwed over? would he send me the money via pay pal and then i send the machine out? i know how that is safe for me but what about for him?

[Bob_Barker]

I would not deal with this guy in any way, shape, or form. It is almost always a red flag when someone suggests using an escrow service that is not escrow.com On paypal, there is a limit to what you can recover. The most I have ever recovered from a paypal transaction gone bad is $300. I am not saying that is the limit, but that is my best experience.

[Sun Baked]

ok ok so by using pay pal, how does that work exactly. how is that guaranteed that no one will get screwed over? would he send me the money via pay pal and then i send the machine out? i know how that is safe for me but what about for him?You are still willing to go through with a sale after they tried to scam you with a fake escrow site.

These are usually organized crime rings, why go through with it? :confused:

[macrlz9]

I would not deal with this guy in any way, shape, or form. It is almost always a red flag when someone suggests using an escrow service that is not escrow.com On paypal, there is a limit to what you can recover. The most I have ever recovered from a paypal transaction gone bad is $300. I am not saying that is the limit, but that is my best experience.

well i understand that but if this guy is for real trading over pay pal is harmless because i instantly get the money so i have nothing to worry about then right? there is a chance that this guy is legitimate.

[clayj]

ok ok so by using pay pal, how does that work exactly. how is that guaranteed that no one will get screwed over? would he send me the money via pay pal and then i send the machine out? i know how that is safe for me but what about for him?I agree with the others... this guy's more than likely trying to scam you, so I'd blow him off.

The point of mentioning PayPal is that they are a reputable service that everyone's heard of... so you can expect that they aren't part of some scheme to try to rip you off. THAT'S why you shouldn't use an escrow service... there is no level of trust already in place.

Oh, and the other reason to use PayPal is that you get paid BEFORE you send off the merchandise. NEVER, EVER send the goods before you get the money, unless you know the person with whom you're dealing and trust them.

[QCassidy352]

If you have to ask, then it's a scam. People ususally know the truth about these "deals," but just want to believe that it's true...

[Mechcozmo]

STEP AWAY FROM THE SCAM. PUT DOWN THE MERCHANDISE.

Do not trade with this guy. Better to loose a sale than be scammed.

That is what you should do. Do otherwise, and you have no sympathy from me. But if you don't trade with this guy, I'm right behind you.