May 12, 2006 - Fraud Attempts on your Classified Advertisements

Lately I have been receiving some interesting fraud attempts in regard to classified ads I have posted on various sites including ThunderBayStuff.com, Postaroo.com and EBay.com. If you are even slightly suspicious that it may be fraud - it more than likely is!

Below are a few examples of inquiries that I have received on various items posted around the Internet:

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Dear seller
Am highly interested in buying this your listed item without no delay ,so do you accept a U.S cashier check as the mode of payment,if you are through with this i will like you to send me your full name and address so that the check can be issue immediately......

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Goodday,
....Well my client says he will need the item. Like you can see, am negociating for this on behalf of my client in USA and as a middleman am based on commission and my clients has aggreed to pay for this item with a certified cashier cheque and he is ready to pay your final price US$ for this item because he need it very urgent. So the Cashiers cheque that will be issued will include the money for the sales of your item + the shipping cost and my commission. Inregards to shipping. I have a shipping agent who would take good care of the shipment. You are required deposit the cashiers cheque in your bank account immedaitely you recieve it and wait till it clears or cash it immediately in a check cash point and deduct the funds for the sales of your item and have the excess funds sent to the shipper in order to come for the pick up of the item. All neccesary transfer papers will be dully signed by the shipper on behalf of my client when the shipping agents comes for the pick up of the item.

I will be willing to entertain more of your questions that might arise and If you really show willingness and would really want to sell this item to my client,please provide your CONTACT NAME,ADDRESS AND PHONE NUMBER so that I can have it forwarded to my client for immedaite payment.
Best reagrds.

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Hello,
May i know if this item is still available for sale
wedding gown,am a broker sourcing the item for
a client of mine.but first i will like to let you know
that he will be paying in Cashier Check or Money
Order.so if you're ok with mode of payment pls get
back to me with your full name,address and also the
final item price.Please note that the payment for
shipping and insurance is also included in this draft,
and should be forwarded to the shipping company, after
deducting your own agreed final price.Consequently,
i'll appreciate it so much if i could have some
pictures of the item.pls do get back to me asap so
that the check can be mail out to you.i hope to read
from you soon.

Thanks...

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A few sure signs to tell that these are fraud:
• Poor spelling and grammar
• Wanting to use cashier's cheques
• Not really caring about the item but more about the payment
• The person behind them is from oversea Countries like Nigeria - or claim they are from the UK

How they work:
1. An email like one of the above will be sent to you
2. They will then send a US Cashier's Cheque to you for the amount + shipping + an extra amount
Usually the banks will accept a Cashier's Cheque and make the value available to you immediately. It is only later that they find out it is fraud and adjust your balance accordingly. This is why these scammers want you to send them the difference immediately.
3. They will say they overpaid you and want you to pay back the difference
4. They take your money
5. The Cashier's Cheque bounces
6. You loose your money and if you shipped them the item, they've got that too!

Unfortunately, the law enforcement in the originating countries will not take much action to stop this from happening so reporting it is not going see any action done. If it sounds suspicious, it probably is. Never send money or items anywhere until you receive and confirm complete payment. Use a third party service like PayPal to ensure you have the money in your account.

• See more examples and learn more about this type of fraud...