Protecting yourself from scammers - "Bumped" as a reminder to all
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To the person who bought a gun and sent a MO to the wife of the seller who lived somewhere else, as soon as I heard that I would have lost all interest, Why would anyone agree to send a MO to a guys wife living at a different location? Sorry but this is why so many people are getting scammed. Not only did you NOT send it to the person who said he owned the gun you sent it to a different address, come on people wise up, this is a typical scam and if you do not recognize obvious signs like this then don;t buy anything else online! Neil.
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Yep - and I tried to stop it yesterday and a Mod deleted my (and another posters) posts. If you happened to have been subscribed to thread you would see what I had posted and also the scammers reply - calling ME out for implying he was a scammer (getting kinda bold don't ya think. I then requested pics and the guy said he was Robert Medina and linked to his BOI. I got a hold of a friend of Rob's and guess what - Rob is NOT selling any gun."plinker"Looks like it’s unfolding before our eyes in the classifieds as we speak.
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It is very bold, some scum are getting very brave hiding behind their keyboards in their mother's basement smoking up weed...or they must have a pretty big contempt towards us. He is probably running several strings of scams at the same time watching which line will someone bite on. If you do not do your due diligence, you will be reeled in with hook line and sinker...
For those of us who are less savvy on the internet it may be hard to recognize these scams, so buddy up with someone who has some experience and run privately some of these deals through them to help eliminate fraud. You can never be 100% sure, but don't give the scum an easy pass either.
At the same time, please note that there is always a chance that someone innocent gets caught up, so courtesy and respect always goes a long way...do not burn any bridges.
For those of us who are less savvy on the internet it may be hard to recognize these scams, so buddy up with someone who has some experience and run privately some of these deals through them to help eliminate fraud. You can never be 100% sure, but don't give the scum an easy pass either.
At the same time, please note that there is always a chance that someone innocent gets caught up, so courtesy and respect always goes a long way...do not burn any bridges.
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Fortunately, I saw your posts before they were deleted and thought you did a great service calling him out. Poor Rob is another victim in a different way.
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This is all fine and dandy, and now the scammers will know what we are doing to weed them out.
But, what if a scammer actually has a gun and sends a pic with a news paper with todays date or your name?
This happened to me, didn't buy the gun, but It looks as thought the guy was a scammer.
But, what if a scammer actually has a gun and sends a pic with a news paper with todays date or your name?
This happened to me, didn't buy the gun, but It looks as thought the guy was a scammer.
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Let's get back on track to posting typical scams, ways to pick up on them, and ways to avoid them.
Thanks to all of you for the great input so far!
And, a special thanks to all of you that alerted me of the most recent scam.
Thanks to all of you for the great input so far!
And, a special thanks to all of you that alerted me of the most recent scam.
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Escrow service..... Perhaps we could vet a couple of members here that could be the middle men/women. This could work until a more formal service could be developed.
secondly i vote for a minimum post count to post in classifieds, heck a min post to even get into the classifieds and swag areas.
how about a rating system that is displayed near profile that tells the number of transactions and rating. I also feel like the rating system should be linked to an ad here on AGN.
cally
secondly i vote for a minimum post count to post in classifieds, heck a min post to even get into the classifieds and swag areas.
how about a rating system that is displayed near profile that tells the number of transactions and rating. I also feel like the rating system should be linked to an ad here on AGN.
cally
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Looks like someone would establish a good clearinghouse for internet transactions. Maybe that is what the PayPal stuff is, but it sounds like it's not foolproof. A small warehouse, phone, and a computer in the front would be all one would need to set up a bonded, safe, clearinghouse.
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Searching google for the pic and not finding it, doesn't necessarily mean it's ok. All you would need to do is save it under a different name and scammers are always trying the next trick when the old one stops working.
Forget pics. Ask to skype with the person. Get them to show you the gun, see that it holds air, make them fire it to prove it works. If they are posting ads then they have access to a computer, smart phone or iPad. Skype is free so any excuse as to why they can't do that should make you give it a miss.
Make them hold a drivers license and / or passport to the screen so you can confirm their real name. Don't give them notice before asking this as fake drivers licenses are easy to get.
Is there a possibility that the text from previous ads could remain searchable? I happen to have a photographic memory and I have noticed that scammers sometimes use item descriptions that are cut and pasted from old ads from a year ago (or more). I assume that some scammers don't know air guns like we do so pasting old text that most people have forgotten about makes it easier for them to sound credible. I reported someone on another site when I saw the same text with a different seller name...
When you send an air gun, take a photo of it in the box and also some pics to confirm the items condition. Take another pic at the FedEx or UPS office to show the gun before the package is sealed and ask the UPS man to be in the pic as a witness in case the buyer is a scammer. PayPal protection can work the other way if the buyer falsely claims that you sent an empty box or a broken air gun. They might actually have a broken airgun and they'll happily send it to you so PayPal will refund their money. PayPal will issue their refund as soon as they upload a tracking number before you even know about it.
Mark the airgun with invisible ink that becomes visible under UV light. Get a pic of that too in case they "return" a different gun. A pic of the serial number is good but it won't stop them replacing your air cylinder that works with one that doesn't.
Casually and half jokingly mention in conversation that your cousin, the boxer assassin serial killer, happens to live not too far from the person you are dealing with just in case. Maybe drop in something about your vindictive side with an anecdote about how you once drove across 40 states to deal with a scammer and it was worth every year in the big house!
Forget pics. Ask to skype with the person. Get them to show you the gun, see that it holds air, make them fire it to prove it works. If they are posting ads then they have access to a computer, smart phone or iPad. Skype is free so any excuse as to why they can't do that should make you give it a miss.
Make them hold a drivers license and / or passport to the screen so you can confirm their real name. Don't give them notice before asking this as fake drivers licenses are easy to get.
Is there a possibility that the text from previous ads could remain searchable? I happen to have a photographic memory and I have noticed that scammers sometimes use item descriptions that are cut and pasted from old ads from a year ago (or more). I assume that some scammers don't know air guns like we do so pasting old text that most people have forgotten about makes it easier for them to sound credible. I reported someone on another site when I saw the same text with a different seller name...
When you send an air gun, take a photo of it in the box and also some pics to confirm the items condition. Take another pic at the FedEx or UPS office to show the gun before the package is sealed and ask the UPS man to be in the pic as a witness in case the buyer is a scammer. PayPal protection can work the other way if the buyer falsely claims that you sent an empty box or a broken air gun. They might actually have a broken airgun and they'll happily send it to you so PayPal will refund their money. PayPal will issue their refund as soon as they upload a tracking number before you even know about it.
Mark the airgun with invisible ink that becomes visible under UV light. Get a pic of that too in case they "return" a different gun. A pic of the serial number is good but it won't stop them replacing your air cylinder that works with one that doesn't.
Casually and half jokingly mention in conversation that your cousin, the boxer assassin serial killer, happens to live not too far from the person you are dealing with just in case. Maybe drop in something about your vindictive side with an anecdote about how you once drove across 40 states to deal with a scammer and it was worth every year in the big house!
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Do not send any form of payment that cannot be disputed in case of a scam.i have gifted money before for items but I totally trusted whom I was dealing as some folks have a concrete reputation .
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Idea, why don't regular sellers use a very distinct background in which they place their guns on for pics. Use the same background all the time.
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Seems pretty straight forward. Have a guy in Canada who sells a lot of collectible guns and takes pics in a very distinct area of his house. When he lists a new gun, pretty sure it's him.
Does it mean the pic can't be reused, no, but would making ID'ing real sellers a little easier.
Does it mean the pic can't be reused, no, but would making ID'ing real sellers a little easier.
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I'm not sure what the answer would be . But here's what frustrates me ...Thomas Allen is a real dude and its his real name and People know his address, his place of employment, his spouses name , and parents names and addresses . And as far as I know no one has even knocked on this A- holes door !!! He ripped off at the very least 3 members here and no ones done anything .
I'm happy the moderators locked his account , but surely there is a member who lives close by who like most of us have a buddy in law enforcement who could swing by . Or like me , a stepbrother who's built like an NFL lineman who wouldn't mind riding along for a chat .
I'm happy the moderators locked his account , but surely there is a member who lives close by who like most of us have a buddy in law enforcement who could swing by . Or like me , a stepbrother who's built like an NFL lineman who wouldn't mind riding along for a chat .
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Well with the last scammer he had requested .25 Impact pics from a gun that was for sale on the yellow. These are the pics he used, so wouldn't that then LOOK like it was a seller from the Yellow selling the gun? Seems this would actually HELP the scammer.
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