Tell me how I would get scammed...

[tMac85]

Now hear me out...

I am selling something..a computer, on craigslist. I got one of those crazy i live here ...out of country...buying for a friend..blah blah blah ect.. emails.

Since Iam selling the computer, and I can wait to send it until i get the money, tell me how i would get scammed.

She is using paypal. If i dont get the money, i aint gonna send the computer.
So, here is the email. Please tell me how i would get scammed.

There is no way for her to get my information, and i have no money in my paypal account.

Thanks guys!

Hello Tim,

Sorry for my tardy response, I have been pretty busy, i am presently out of the country on a national assignment here in the middle east and will need your atmost assistance in sending it to my brother who works in west africa. I want to get it for him as his Xmas gift. I will provide the shipping information as soon as possible, and i am also willing to pay an additional $200 usd to cover the shipping fee by usps express mail. I have an online PayPal account that i can use to pay you.
Let me know if it can be arranged or you can send a money request to my PayPal account (sweeteve101@gmail.com) for the payment. I will be waiting to hear from you so that we can work on how best to send it...Thanks for your time

Evelyn

I know its probably a scam, i guess i am just curious as to how she would scam me.

 

[yg17]

They're likely using a stolen PayPal account, so once you get it, the real account owner will file a dispute and 99.9% of the time, PayPal sides with the buyer in disputes.

 

[bruinsrme]

Well first off is thatcomputer allowed to be exported?

Secondly it has scam written all over it.
Overseas on national assignment and brother is in Africa, for some reason that sets off the alarm. As things move overseas it becomes EXTREMELY difficult to track if the person acutally receives the item. It becomes their word against yours in the Paypal dispute. if there is no documentation that they actually received the item you will most likely have to refund their money.

thirdly (if that is a word) the shipping, and fees is going to be outrageous.

Stick to a local sale or at least something within the country.

 

[Blue Velvet]

Only deal with a verified and registered Paypal customer and ship to the registered name and address on their Paypal account. You also have to send it with trackable proof of shipping with a signature required. That's the only way Paypal will cover you. Read Paypal's terms and conditions very carefully.

This is how the scam works: You ship the Mac. They use a stolen credit card number to pay the Paypal charge; you think the funds are safe. The owner of the credit card queries the charges with their bank and then goes back to PayPal who then has the right to withdraw the money from your account.

Or: They claim that the computer never arrived or the box was full of stones. Same difference. They put a chargeback on the Paypal account and get their money back.

 

[bananabar]

If you don't send the computer via recorded/signed for delivery (as it is here in the UK) then you will have no real proof of sending it.

That way they have the computer, tell PP it didn't arrive, you can't prove that you sent it and they get their money back. You lose. Twice.

It happened to me. The *****.

 

[tMac85]

now dont get me wrong, i know its a scam. I have been scammed before, being the buyer!

____I sent the guy money, he said it didnt work right. ( fees) refunded me back half the amount, and then never heard from him again. PP didnt get my money back either, because he withdrew the amount instantly. Ill never do that again!____,

I think paypal has a thing now anyway that you cant withdrawal amounts over 100 dollars for a month right?


anyway i was just curious as to how this could get turned around.

thanks!

time to send a nasty email full of @&#^$&#* to the buyer! always a great stress reliever! haha.

 

[Macky-Mac]

as you can see from the replies above, there are a number of scams that can be pulled on you in this situation. Here's yet another scam scenario I've read about recently.......the "buyer" will email you that the money is on the way to your PayPal account so please hurry hurry hurry with the shipment so it will get there in time, and you'll receive a convincing looking but fake email from "PayPal" telling you payment has been received and that you should ship the computer immediately, and then a second fake email from "PayPal" shows up right away saying that you've received payment in your account but since you haven't shipped the item you're about to be penalized unless you go out and ship the computer right away, and maybe the "buyer" emails again wanting to know why you haven't shipped it yet........of course the whole idea is to rush you into sending off the computer before you find out the "payment" never actually existed

 

[gmecca2]

Out of the country. Willing to pay extra money if you meet their demands. SCAM SCAM SCAM.

Anyways, like other said only send to verified buyers and when you get paid immediately withdraw the money to prevent have paypal retract it.

I have sold many things either on ebay or craigslist using paypal but I am very careful with who I deal with. Too many dishonest people out there.

 

[tMac85]

Out of the country. Willing to pay extra money if you meet their demands. SCAM SCAM SCAM.

Anyways, like other said only send to verified buyers and when you get paid immediately withdraw the money to prevent have paypal retract it.

I have sold many things either on ebay or craigslist using paypal but I am very careful with who I deal with. Too many dishonest people out there.

paypal will not let you withdrawal immediately any more if over 100 bucks.

you have to wait 30 days.
tell me that doesnt suck!

 

[grandmachar2002]

paypal will not let you withdrawal immediately any more if over 100 bucks.

you have to wait 30 days.
tell me that doesnt suck!

if you verify your account with a bank account you can withdraw immediately I believe

I just read your initial post,

how can you not know thats a scam?

 

[tMac85]

if you verify your account with a bank account you can withdraw immediately I believe

I just read your initial post,

how can you not know thats a scam?

not true. it is effective as of about a month ago. its to help situations like this.

and...i said twice. "i know this is a scam"

i was just curious as to HOW they would scam me.

 

[JW8725]

you are a mug if u sell a laptop and take paypal. They'll charge u heaps in fees and you'll prolly get done over for sure and lose the cash and laptop.

I never take paypal for anything over £100

 

[Blue Velvet]

^ I sold my BlackBook for £650 over eBay with Paypal.

No problems at all; you just have to know what to watch out for and how Paypal works to cover yourself from any potential losses. Beats waiting around for undocumented cheques to clear and any other problems involving meet-ups.

:shrug:

 

[JW8725]

^ I sold my BlackBook for £650 over eBay with Paypal.

:shrug:

How much you pay in fees on that? I'm a powerseller, you have no idea how many times Paypal has done me over. You as a seller have NO protection, if Paypal can worm their way out of a situation they will. Make no mistake!

 

[Blue Velvet]

You as a seller have NO protection, if Paypal can worm their way out of a situation they will. Make no mistake!

Incorrect. As a verified seller, you have complete protection under Paypal Seller Protection if you follow their rules for shipping and dispatch to the letter. Any fees were worth the convenience and security.

 

[JW8725]

Incorrect. As a verified seller, you have complete protection under Paypal Seller Protection if you follow their rules for shipping and dispatch to the letter. Any fees were worth the convenience and security.

Ok I'll hold you to that. Maybe you should read the small print. Especially about chargebacks. Paypal dont give a damn about sellers. I would recommend people use a conventional method of payment acceptance such as cold hard cash or a cheque. I've got 4000 plus feedback over 4 accounts.

 

[grandmachar2002]

Ok I'll hold you to that. Maybe you should read the small print. Especially about chargebacks. Paypal dont give a damn about sellers. I would recommend people use a conventional method of payment acceptance such as cold hard cash or a cheque. I've got 4000 plus feedback over 4 accounts.

this is true. if a scam is even suspected make sure to get cash

 

[Tenorsaw]

Once you send it to an unconfirmed address, Paypal is no longer responsible for that item. The receiver will say they never received it.

Ask the person to send you a check and that she has to wait for it to clear before shipping it. I bet she won't go for it.

You need to set rules for your auction:

No paypal to unconfirmed addresses (checks only and it must clear first).
Cash only if picking up in person.

 

[Blue Velvet]

Ok I'll hold you to that. Maybe you should read the small print. Especially about chargebacks.

Do you think I was born yesterday? I've got a Premier account. I read all the small print very carefully, ensured the transaction and item was eligible, ensured it was dispatched exactly as stipulated, followed every line in detail and double-checked by email with Paypal. Maybe you should too.

I think a lot of people don't know how to use PayPal properly and what exactly they're covered for.

 

[rs7]

Oo I got something just like this. Woman in the military whose brother is at some embassy in Africa! They offered to give me extra money for shipping too. (I was selling something on craigslist). I told them I was uncomfortable because of the scamming that often comes from there. They replied with something trying convince me to go through with the deal. Yeah sure...you can scam me out of $200...

 

[JW8725]

Do you think I was born yesterday? I've got a Premier account. I read all the small print very carefully, ensured the transaction and item was eligible, ensured it was dispatched exactly as stipulated, followed every line in detail and double-checked by email with Paypal. Maybe you should too.

I think a lot of people don't know how to use PayPal properly and what exactly they're covered for.

I urge people NOT TO LISTEN to you. Someone is gonna get hurt using paypal. Stick to the conventional method guys! Paypal twist things and disputes go on for weeks and weeks. They then "may" decide to release your funds back to you if your lucky. I have a verified Business account. Oh and I dont know when you were born.

 

[phiberglass]

LOL that doesn't have scam written all over it.

 

[Blue Velvet]

I urge people NOT TO LISTEN to you.

Why? Because you don't know how the Seller Protection Policy works and who it's designed for? Maybe your transactions don't meet the requirements, because they're not valuable enough.

It seems to me that you don't comprehend how the system works and how to ensure you meet those requirements. Fair enough, but don't tell everyone to not listen to me because you don't have a clue.

 

[bananabar]

You as a seller have NO protection, if Paypal can worm their way out of a situation they will. Make no mistake!

I utterly agree - except I don't think you really have any protection as a seller OR a buyer (I've been done over as both).

I no longer accept PayPal at all. They couldn't care less about their customers which makes their fees simply extortionate - what are you paying for? It's certainly not customer service, fast transfers between your PayPal account and your bank account, or their in-depth fraud investigations.

When you read their T&Cs, the only person it really and truly protects is PayPal. It should be a really useful service, but the way they can simply extract money from your bank account with no warning and no chance to put your side across is awful.

I closed my PayPal account just over a year ago and have no intention of re-opening it!

 

[greg555]

I think a seller can follow the rules 100% and still get hit with a chargeback from a stolen credit card.

The Paypal page says this

"Two common reasons for reversals or chargebacks are:

A buyer’s credit card number is stolen and used fraudulently.
A buyer makes a purchase, but believes that the seller failed to fulfill their side of the agreement (for example, they did not ship the item, shipped an item that was very different from the seller's description, or the item was damaged when the buyer received it).
​

All sellers who accept credit card payments run the risk of being liable for chargebacks. Chargebacks are among the unfortunate costs of doing business. Many sellers factor this cost into their business risk model."​

(from here https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=xpt/Marketing/securitycenter/sell/ChargebackFAQ-outside)

Greg