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  • Geebo 8:00 am on June 6, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , , Facebook Marketplace, ,   

    Fake check scam costs victim $50K and muscle car 

    Fake check scam costs victim $50K and muscle car

    By Greg Collier

    The fake check scam has been around for so long, and happens so often because it continues to find victims. In this instance, we’re discussing the fake check scam as it affects online sellers. Typically, scammers will pose as buyers and send a fraudulent check to sellers for more than the seller’s asking price. The seller is told to deposit the check, then send the difference back to the buyer. Banks will make that money available to the seller before it actually clears the bank. By the time the bank realizes the check is fraudulent, the money has been sent back to the buyer. Meanwhile, the seller is left paying the bank the full amount of the fake check along with any penalties. Usually, that results in a loss of a few hundred dollars to the seller. That is, as long as you’re not selling a high-end sports car.

    A man from Georgia was selling his 2018 Chevy Camaro on Facebook Marketplace. A buyer sent him a check by phone for $49,000. This was enough to pay off the loan he had on the vehicle. The credit union who lent him the money even sent him confirmation that the loan had been paid in full. The man drove the car to South Carolina to deliver it to the supposed buyer. It wasn’t until days later, he was notified that the check he wrote to his credit union to pay off the loan bounced. That was because the check he received was fraudulent. Now, the man is stuck paying his monthly loan payment for a car that isn’t even in his possession currently.

    When selling high-dollar items such as a sports car, you can never be too careful when it comes to accepting payment. If you receive a check, whether electronically or physically, ask your bank to verify the authenticity of the check before you deposit it. Even if the bank says the check is legitimate, you’ll probably want to wait a few business days to make sure the deposit isn’t reversed.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on March 25, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , Facebook Marketplace, , ,   

    Used car scam finds new home on popular platform 

    Used car scam finds new home on popular platform

    By Greg Collier

    In the time since Facebook Marketplace launched, it has dethroned other platforms like Craigslist and OfferUp. By sheer popularity, many consider Facebook Marketplace the king of classifieds online. However, just because something is popular, that doesn’t necessarily make it good. McDonald’s has sold billions of burgers, but no one calls it fine dining.

    Facebook Marketplace has attracted a new demographic who may have been hesitant to use Craigslist due to its sketchy reputation. Since Facebook provides a single destination for many people, the convenience of Marketplace lends it a sense of legitimacy. And now that Facebook Marketplace stands at the top of the mountain, its users are experiencing the same pitfalls that befell Craigslist users before them.

    For example, a very common used car scam has found its way to Facebook Marketplace. A woman from Nashville found a used car for sale on Marketplace. However, the seller said they couldn’t bring the car to the Nashville woman. The seller allegedly said that her husband had recently died, and she was getting ready to deploy with the military. The buyer was told that the seller had arranged for ‘eBay Services’ to deliver the car. According to the seller, once the car is delivered, the buyer has five days to inspect the car before the money is released to the seller. The buyer paid the seller $1000 for the car, but later, the seller asked for an additional $1000 for delivery insurance to be paid in gift cards. It was then the buyer realized she was being scammed.

    Even if someone is buying a car through eBay Motors, eBay does not deliver the vehicle. They’re definitely not going to deliver a vehicle that wasn’t listed on their platform. Anyone who tries to tell you that a vehicle will be delivered through eBay is trying to scam you.

    This scammer also went all in with their sob story. Typically, the story is that a spouse died, and it was their car, or they’re being deployed and need to sell the car quickly. In this instance, the scammer used both stories to attempt to pull on the buyer’s heartstrings, and it worked. Always be wary of an emotional story attached to a too good to be true deal.

    Lastly, just because an online marketplace has a slick appearance, that doesn’t make it safer than a platform that doesn’t. In our opinion, Facebook Marketplace with their modern interface is just as problematic as Craigslist, whose interface still stuck in the 1990s.

    We’d also be remiss if we didn’t mention that both of those platforms are also mostly unmoderated, while Geebo.com moderates every ad to try to mitigate the chances of a scam.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on March 9, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: Facebook Marketplace, , , Rochester,   

    Used iPhone scam targets online buyers 

    Used iPhone scam targets online buyers

    By Greg Collier

    Whenever someone tries to buy a used high-end phone online, like an iPhone, there’s always a risk of being scammed. The most common scam is they’re trying to sell you a stolen phone. If a phone is reported stolen, the buyer wouldn’t be able to activate the phone on their network, or any network for that matter. Depending on what platform a buyer uses, they could also end up with a counterfeit iPhone that’s not an iPhone at all. However, a new scam has the buyer show up at the exchange before the scam even takes place.

    A couple in Rochester, Minnesota, recently found themselves out of almost $400 after attempting to buy an iPhone 13 through Facebook Marketplace. They met in public, and the couple gave the seller $375 for the iPhone. That’s when the phone started to ring. The seller’s mother was supposedly the caller and told the seller that she left her personal information on the phone and needed to delete it. The seller told the couple he was going to his home and that he’d be right back. The seller never returned. The Rochester Police have said that this has been an ongoing scam in their area.

    When using an unmoderated platform like Facebook Marketplace, assume everything is a scam. This is especially true when you find a better than average deal. As always, we recommend to our readers that if you’re meeting in public to make an exchange, meet the other party at your local police department. While it’s not a guarantee that you won’t be scammed, it will go a long way in discouraging scammers from meeting with you. We also recommend never getting into the other party’s vehicle or going to a private residence for the meet up, as this can put you in great danger.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on February 16, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: Facebook Marketplace, , , ,   

    Face-to-face meeting still leads to rental scam 

    By Greg Collier

    Since the advent of online marketplaces, the rental scam has been a thorn in the side for tenants searching for new homes. For those who may not be aware, the rental scam is essentially when a scammer rents out a property they don’t own to an unwitting victim. The scammer takes the victim’s money while leaving the victim thinking they just rented a new home. Meanwhile, the scammer makes off with the victim’s money, while the victim could potentially be left without a home. These fake rental properties are often copied from legitimate real estate listings but listed at below-market rents to lure in victims. One of the warnings we typically give our readers is to be suspicious if a potential landlord gives excuses about meeting in person. But what can you do if a scammer agrees to meet you?

    That’s exactly what happened to a woman in Kansas City. She found a rental property listed on Facebook Marketplace that seemed perfect for her. She messaged the landlord about the property before talking to the landlord on the phone. The two finally met in person before the victim paid the landlord $1000 as a deposit and first month’s rent. However, the day before the victim was supposed to move into her new home, the landlord started giving excuses to the victim about meeting up to give the victim the keys. The victim went to the new home to wait for the landlord, but they never appeared. The victim had paid the landlord through the Venmo app, which basically meant the money was gone and couldn’t be recovered.

    Of course, when you first speak to a prospective landlord, you’re not going to know if they’re a scammer right off the bat. If they ask for payment in non-traditional means like a payment app or money transfer, that could be a good indicator that they’re trying to scam you. But before you even get to that stage, any potential renter should research the property first. Something as simple as a web search of the property’s address could reveal a scam in the making. If the address turns up for sale or has a higher rent, the odds are that the listing you found is part of a scam.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on January 10, 2022 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , Facebook Marketplace, , , , ,   

    FBI warns about Google Voice scam 

    By Greg Collier

    Google Voice is a pretty cool service as it allows you to have a second phone number for free. One of the benefits of having a Google Voice number is that you can give it to stores and retailers who constantly ask for your phone number instead of giving out your primary phone number. Or, if you have multiple numbers such as work and home, you can have your Google Voice number ring both numbers. You can also put your Google Voice account on do not disturb, so any call to your Google Voice number will go straight to a voicemail message. However, as with many beneficial technology tools, scammers are using Google Voice to perpetuate more scams.

    The Google Voice scam tends to target people who are selling items online, especially through Facebook Marketplace. The supposed buyer will tell you that they want to verify that you’re not a scammer. To achieve this, a text message will be sent to your phone number with a six digit verification code. The scammer will then ask you to provide them with that code. What the scammers are really doing is setting up a Google Voice account for themselves that is attached to your number. They’ll then use that Google Voice number to perpetuate more scams, while that number can be traced back to you. It’s gotten so bad, not only has the FBI issued a warning about the scam, but the scammers are also targeting people who have posted about lost pets on social media.

    If someone you don’t know asks for a code that was sent to your phone, there’s a good chance that it’s an authorization code that scammers can use to wreak all sorts of havoc. They can be trying to get you to turn your bank account over to them, or you could be giving them access to any one of your online accounts.

    If you think you’ve fallen victim to this scam, Google has instructions on how to reclaim the number.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 31, 2021 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: Facebook Marketplace, , retail theft ring, , ,   

    Where do shoplifting rings sell their stolen goods? 

    Where do shoplifting rings sell their stolen goods?

    By Greg Collier

    You may have seen some stores in the news lately about shoplifting rings. In these recent stories, a large number of people enter a store all at once and grab as much stuff as they can. The reasoning behind this kind of theft is that the store security can’t possibly stop everyone. While these incidents have been largely successful for the thieves, this is not how retail theft rings normally operate.

    In most cases, there is a ringleader who will employ a team of shoplifters. Often these shoplifters are people with substance abuse issues who are paid in drugs. They’ll walk into a big box store like Walmart or Home Depot and walk out with high dollar items like it was child’s play. The ringleader will then sell the stolen merchandise at below-market value and still make a handsome profit.

    In the pre-digital world, these goods would be sold out of the back of a truck, or a back alley, or even the back of a store. The problem then was that you had to be in the know to be able to buy the stolen goods. Now, these stolen goods are sold on several digital platforms, but one platform seems to attract more stolen goods than the others. While eBay and craigslist used to be popular for selling stolen goods, they’ve both fallen out of favor. According to a report from NBC News, Facebook Marketplace is now the go-to place for stolen goods to be sold.

    The reason behind Marketplace’s popularity among retail theft rings is that Facebook is slow to respond to law enforcement requests, if they respond at all. This has caused investigations into these rings to come to a grinding halt while police wait on a response from Facebook. Since many retail theft rings travel around the country, time is often of the essence for law enforcement.

    Industry experts seem to think that Facebook isn’t responding in a timely manner because Marketplace’s oversight hasn’t kept up with its growth.

    Many think that this is a victimless crime. They think that the retailers are insured against this kind of loss, so who is it hurting? For one, the shoplifters themselves as the ringleaders are keeping them in a cycle of substance abuse. The people buying the stolen goods can also be held criminally responsible. It some jurisdictions, even if you buy stolen merchandise unknowingly, you could still face criminal charges. If prosecutors believe that if the buyer should have had reasonable suspicion that the goods were stolen, the buyer could face legal repercussions.

    Just because Marketplace is owned by a multi-billion dollar corporation, if it’s not being monitored, it’s no safer than craigslist.

     

  • Geebo 9:00 am on December 21, 2021 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , Facebook Marketplace, , ,   

    Couple loses $28K in RV scam 

    Couple loses $28K in RV scam

    By Greg Collier

    RVs are great if you really want to see parts of the country you’ve never been before. While flying is faster, when travelling in an RV, you get to see all of the places between you and your destination up close. While flying, you just see unidentifiable squares from a tiny window. Even though you’ll spend hours on the road, the RV makes it much more convenient than travelling by car. Everything you need is right there with you, and you don’t have to worry about looking for a clean bathroom to use, as one is always with you. These are just some of the reasons why retired couples often purchase an RV. However, RVs aren’t cheap. Some can be as expensive as a small home, and scammers know this.

    A retired couple from Wisconsin recently found this out when they thought they found their dream RV at a reasonable price. They were said to have been looking for an RV on Facebook Marketplace when they saw an ad for an auction site. When they went to the auction site, they found the RV they were looking for and the supposed bidding started at $23,000 which is well below market value for this model of RV. The couple bid $28,000 for the RV and received an email that their bid had won, so they wired the money to the auction site. While waiting to hear back from the auction site, the couple found the exact picture of the RV they thought they just bought on the website of an RV dealership in New York. The RV in the picture had been sold years ago. The couple tried to stop the wire transfer through their bank, but it was too late.

    The auction site turned out to be a fake. When local media investigated, they found that not only had the site been created in 2021, but they were also not at the address they listed. They even had scammed a woman in Maryland who thought she was working for a legitimate company, transferring cash to cryptocurrency.

    A lot of ads on social media are shady at best and a scam at worst. When making a major purchase like an RV, don’t let a good price lure you in to a trap. If you’re not familiar with the website or platform, do a web search for reviews and complaints. It’s also best to do a check with the Better Business Bureau. A reverse image search never hurts either. If you find the exact same picture being used on another website, the odds are you’re being scammed.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on November 1, 2021 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , Facebook Marketplace, , ,   

    Scammers stealing phone numbers from online sellers 

    Scammers stealing phone numbers from online sellers

    By Greg Collier

    When you use an unmoderated online marketplace like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace, there’s a better than average chance that you’ll be dealing with at least one scammer. It doesn’t matter if you’re buying or selling, but today we’re going to focus on the latest scam that’s been plaguing sellers in recent months. While it’s not a new scam, online security experts say that they’ve seen a resurgence of the scam since August. It goes by a few names, like the verification code scam or the Google Voice scam, but it’s still a scam that everyone should be aware of.

    Scammers are approaching online sellers as if they’re interested in the item being sold. The scammers will ironically tell the seller that they’re concerned about scams and that they have a way to verify that the seller is a real person. The seller will then receive a text message with a verification code on it, and the scammers will ask for this code. Once the scammers have the code, they’ll use it to open a Google Voice account using the seller’s phone number. This is done so the scammers can have a legitimate US phone number that can be used in future scams. Meanwhile, the seller is completely unaware that a Google Voice account has been opened in their name. And if someone complains to Google that the number is being used in a scam, it will trace back to the seller’s phone number and not the scammers’.

    There are a couple of ways to avoid falling victim to this scam. The first way is that if you receive one of these verification texts, the text will say not to share the number with anyone. Verification code texts are also used by scammers to bypass two-factor authentication. So no matter who sent the text, never share any verification codes. The second way to help avoid this scam is to get your own Google Voice number. They can be very handy, such as giving your Google Voice number to any store or website that asks for a phone number at checkout. Instead of giving them your actual phone number, you can give them the Google Voice number instead.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on October 21, 2021 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: Facebook Marketplace, , , ,   

    Single mother pressured into rental scam 

    Single mother pressured into rental scam

    By Greg Collier

    Sometimes life throws challenges in our way that we’re not ready for. One minor bump in the road can have such a ripple effect that we find ourselves hoping for a miracle, so we can escape a desperate situation. For example, a single mother of three from Virginia need to find a new home immediately for her and her family after recovering from a number of illnesses. However, instead of finding a miracle, she found a scammer waiting to rob her of the little money she had saved for a deposit on a new home.

    She had found an affordable rental on Facebook Marketplace where her kids wouldn’t have to change schools. After filling out an ‘application’ to rent the property, the landlord said that there was another person who was getting ready to rent the property. If she still wanted to rent the property, she would need to pay the landlord right away through gift cards, since she couldn’t get away from her job. Unfortunately, she did end up sending $900 in gift cards to the supposed landlord for a property that wasn’t even being rented.

    As with most rental scams, online listings are copied from ads where homes are for sale instead of being available for rent. Scammers will copy ads off of Zillow and repost them on free platforms like Facebook Marketplace. The fake ads will almost always have the same word for word description used in the Zillow ad. Then the properties are listed for below-market value rent to lure victims into the scam.

    While everyone’s situation is different, no matter how desperate you may be, a rental property should be researched first before handing over any money. A quick web search of the address will usually bring up the original listing that the fake ones are copied from. And as with any scam, gift cards are a red flag in almost every situation. No real landlord or rental agency will ever ask for gift cards as a form of payment.

    In stressful situations like this, are judgement is often clouded. If you can, always try to take a step back and ask yourself if this situation seems off or too good to be true.

     

  • Geebo 8:00 am on September 24, 2021 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , Facebook Marketplace, ProPublica, ,   

    Facebook marketplace is deadly 

    Facebook marketplace is deadly

    By Greg Collier

    Craigslist used to be the poster child for dangerous marketplace platforms. It was a reputation they earned through their unmoderated ad listings which led to countless scams, human trafficking, and a number of high-profile murders. However, within five years of launching, Facebook Marketplace has become the supposed industry leader. The reason Facebook Marketplace became so successful so fast is that Facebook already had a built-in audience of one billion users worldwide and for many of Facebook’s users, Facebook is their internet. And since Facebook doesn’t want their users to wander outside of Facebook’s walled garden, Facebook will implement features to try to keep users engaged. Marketplace is just one of those features.

    ProPublica is a non-profit organization that does investigative journalism. Recently, ProPublica did an extensive investigation into the problems with Facebook Marketplace. ProPublica claims in their report that Facebook Marketplace’s problems pale in comparison to the number of problems Craigslist had. They start off their report with a story about a man who was making a living selling cars on Facebook Marketplace. His Facebook account was hacked and scammers started selling cheap junk through his account. Since the account still has his name on it, he’s in fear for his life that a disgruntled customer will come looking for him. When the man tried to resolve the matter with Facebook, they just banned him from the platform with no answers given.

    But to Facebook, the fact that a Marketplace account is attached to a real person makes it safer for users. Except Facebook neglects to mention the part where just about anyone can open a Facebook account. And much like Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace is awash with stolen goods on their listings. Facebook says that they have precautions in place to prevent scams and stolen items from being listed but according to ProPublica who spoke with past and present Marketplace employees, Facebook only reacts to complaints and does little to prevent fraudulent listings from going live.

    While Facebook Marketplace hasn’t had the number or PR nightmare that Craigslist had, there have been a number of murders committed using Facebook Marketplace. Much like we posted about OfferUp, the majority of these murders come from armed robberies. We’ll spare you the gruesome details, but many of these murders were particularly disturbing.

    Our point is that just because Facebook may be your social network of choice, that doesn’t make Marketplace safe by any stretch of the imagination.

    The even more unfortunate part of this blog post is that a lot of our audience won’t see it, since Facebook would almost assuredly prevent it from being posted on its platform. But they can’t stop you from posting it on Facebook. So please consider sharing this post or the ProPublica article with people you know who use Facebook Marketplace.

     

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