OT: Anybody try to scam you with this one?

Check this out: I'd like to know if anyone's had someone try this on them, and to tip you off to this scam: I've been selling two items on Recycler.com- it's a local SoCal classified ad paper with free ads, and it has a web page,and requires email addresses for internet ad placement. The items I'm selling area

12 spd road bike, and a vintage 6" telescope. So, I get a few phone calls, and several emails from guys from overseas, saying they're real interested and after I send photos, want to buy the bike and telescope, and will I accept a large cashier's check, for about 10 times the asking price? They supposedly have shippers here, who are going to include the items in a shipment which is going out right away. They need me to immediately send them the difference of the large overpayment, from my own account of course, via Western Union back to them to cover shipping. And this will occur before the cashier's check will have time to clear, or be declared bogus. What a joke. At first, it looked like I'd sold both item easily, but of course, it was too good to be true. It's alrght, they'll sell, but what's the real give-away is that the m.o. is the same in both cases, from two unrelated parties. I wonder how many times people bite on this one. Antone heard of this one besides me? Paul
Reply to
Paul Ryan
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New twist on an old scam.

Reply to
Chuck Jones

Classic scam, although this is the first I've heard of it being applied to small items. You deposit the check, send them the difference (and probably the item), and when your bank informs you the check is worthless, you are out of the money you sent and probably the item.

John

Reply to
John T

Mar 31, 2005 8:53 am US/Central (WCCO) The U.S. Postal Service is warning about a scam that has cheated people out of millions of dollars.

It starts with what sounds like an offer of easy money from overseas.

"It's embarrassing, because I fell for it," said one victim of the scam, who didn't want his identity revealed, but wants to share his story. We'll call him Roger for storytelling purposes.

While chatting online, Roger said a Nigerian model contacted him.

The model told Roger she sent him $20,000 in Postal Money Orders and asked him to cash them for her. She said Roger could keep 10 percent of the money.

He did.

"Now, I'm told by the bank that they were counterfeit and I have to take out a loan to pay the bank back," Roger said.

The money orders are a new twist on an old scam. For 20 years, Nigerian thieves would ask you to front the money to them. Now, they front the money to you, or so you would think.

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Tips for Recognizing and Avoiding Fake Check Scams

If someone you don't know wants to pay you by check but wants you to wire some of the money back, beware! It's a scam that could cost you thousands of dollars.

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In a typical swindle, a seller is sent counterfeit postal money orders in excess of the cost of the item being ordered. The seller is then asked to keep the cost of the purchase and ship back the balance in cash, along with the merchandise.

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Reply to
boomersint

I keep waiting for somebody to do this to me as I'd like to have the

send me the Money order just so I could see it

-- BrunswickO

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Reply to
BrunswickOH

I got scammed on ebay by accepting a 'second chance offer'. The item was never shipped and the seller disappeared. Apparently the scammers are targeting items that don't sell (don't meet the reserve normally) and if you had bid on it previously, they'll come back and say the buyer backed out and you can still have it for what you bid. Welll.... my bid was $200 less than the winning one. I was suckered.

Reply to
Jim Slaughter

I had an opportunity to 'refund' the difference between the shippin

fee ($15) and ($2500). Played with him a bit.....called the loca police dept and they didn't even care! Now I'm getting 3-4 'offers from Nigera and South America a day....not to mention I am the 'winner of a lottery in Great Britian :)

Jerr

-- tailskid

Been modeling since '49 - which makes me an Old Fart

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Reply to
tailskid2

Might be fun to email that guy and tell him you are happy to send him the balance in cash tomorrow, but your bank wants $50 cash up front today to cash the order - ask him to send you the $50 in cash urgently so you can send him the $2485 tomorrow

David - th> I had an opportunity to 'refund' the difference between the shipping

Reply to
quietguy

Let us not forget all these banks doing software upgrades!

Never realized how many accounts I have out there! :)

Reply to
Chuck Jones

day....not to mention I am the 'winner'

Congrats!

But really, It's sad that so many ppl fall for this stuff. mk

Reply to
MK

Here's a little update- The guy actually sent me a check, from England, he actually invested the price of a stamp in the scam. It was a $3000 cashier's check, looking none too official, drawn a bank in Michigan. When I contacted the bank, they informed me that they do not issue cashier's checks, and the item is fraudulent... It's a jungle out there. -Paul

Reply to
Paul Ryan

OY! Those of are who *are* in Great Britain have enough difficulty winning the lottery without people from overseas trying to win it too. ;-)

I get emails claiming I've won a lottery in Holland, plus loads from banks that I've never heard of asking me to update my account details. I suppose enough people must fall for it for it to be worth their while.....

Reply to
John Privett

John Privett wrote: > I get emails claiming I've won a lottery in Holland, plus loads from banks

As long as blasting out the second million of the same spam is free, it's worth their while even if the return is one in a million.

I could really go for a penny-a-message email subsystem on the net, letting the free email remain, but those who wished to could stay on the "pay" side. And if that's not effective, make it 2 cents with half of that going to the recipient.

All we need now is for someone to figure out how to do the infrastructure for less than 1 cent/message.

Reply to
Noah Little

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