Scam advice

[harley0711]

Looking for advice

Got scammed from the WTB area. Long story short, 100% my fault. That was yesterday, moved on and trying to be much wiser

Here is my question, Am I asking too much when I have a member here offering to sell me an item, Since I just lost $500 on a deal by me being stupid. I ask the member here if they would take a picture of the item he was selling, wanted to at least confirm he really had it, my first request was denied, he said he didn't want his picture out there /// Good point, Understand. I then ask if he could hold the item in his had, take a picture, just a way to confirm. Was told that if his review's were not enough, NO picture would be taken. Go buy somewhere else

Was I really that out of line here?? Fully agree a picture of the seller holding the item could be too much, but a picture of their hand??

This member seems to be in good standing but I did piss him off.

Item for sale $40. ONLY payment accepted was a personal check mail to him first.

LOVE this forum, learned a lot

As said in the WARNING sticky Do NOT deal with anyone saying "A friend said you are looking for xxxxxx" Its a scam. Live and learn My scammer was posing as a LEO & was very good. I even called that PD /// talked to a shift supervisor who confirmed seller….. this was BEFORE that PD learned the officer's Identication had been stolen. My expensive lesson

 

[sophie]

No, you weren't expecting too much by asking for pictures. If a seller is not willing to send you pictures of the item he wants to sell, then he is hiding something. I won't do business with him regardless of his reputation.

 

[YeshuaIsa53]

If someone using this forum scams you out of $500, please let us all know who it was. It is one of our ways of watching out for each other. If you need an advocate with someone here, please contact an administrator.
Not knowing the circumstances, I do not know anyone on this forum who would take advantage of another member for $500 or $50. Reminds me of a parable of the man's enemies sowing tares among his seeds, but we don't want to wait on the harvest. Just my opinion. Be cautious, yes.

 

[s&wchad]

I sent you a PM.
If you were truly scammed out of $500 yesterday, we need to know the crooks username. I suspect this actually occurred months ago and the scammer has already been banned and exposed in a scam alert.

Established members are almost never a threat. Most of the criminal scammers we encounter join and immediately send PM's or emails to members running WTB ads. Pay attention to their join date, post count and membership status. Check the WTB section for "scam alerts". Search the Feedback forum for their username and see if they have positive or negative feedback. Having said that, YOU need to be comfortable with any transaction.

REPORT suspicious PM's and ad's by using the at top right of all PM's and all posts. Your reports are often how we catch this scum!!


If you have not read this, READ it-
Sticky: How to NOT get Scammed

 

[harley0711]

This scam happen about 6 weeks ago, had I read the 'stickies' I wuld not have been so stupid. Not a member here that I know of,
The ole ' a friend saw my post here' Ya, stupid me. Done deal. Now I ask for more pictures but was refused by a member here. He has that right, I was just wondering if I was asking too much.
I have bought & sold MANY items & Guns on the internet over the years, this was a first for me. When I sell, esp a gun. I pm my home number or cell, talk to the buyer, take all kinds of picture. MY goal has always been /// help make the buyer feel very comfortable and good about dealing with me.

 

[mtgianni]

When you ask for a picture, you also need to check and be sure it didn't originate somewhere else on the internet. I just right click on it for search image. If it comes as a text I usually don't bother.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Who is the member and what is the item being sold.
Sorry, But I gots to know!!
Just loves me some forum intrigue.

 

[Onomea]

My guess is the seller who doesn't want to take a picture, if he is a member of some years and has good reviews as a seller here, is just prickly, that he's taking offense at being asked for the picture because he thinks his seniority on the forum and his published reviews should be sufficient to establish that he is a good guy.

We all have our quirks. Being asked for a pic sets him off, is my guess.

Where to take it from there is your option. Were it me, I'd evaluate his time on the forum and the published reviews and if I found the result reassuring, I'd proceed without insisting on the pic. If I did not feel sufficiently reassured, I'd just let it go.

 

[wood714]

When you ask for a picture, you also need to check and be sure it didn't originate somewhere else on the internet. I just right click on it for search image. If it comes as a text I usually don't bother.

Another forum I'm on, people send pics like this to prove they have the item, and it's their picture of it.

 

[bruce5781]

I belong to several cowboy boot collector groups on FB and lots of boots are bought and sold. Scamers are plentiful. It has become commonplace to ask for a photo like Wood714 posted above.
Also, I don't think many scammers are going to ask for a personal check mailed to them. Most will want immediate payment via electronic means.

Sent from my SM-G781U1 using Tapatalk

 

[djohns6]

No picture . No thanks . Moving on ...

 

[Tom S.]

OP: Color me confused.

Before making your post here, you messaged us that you had been scammed on this forum for a WTB ad. I looked at your record and during the time frame you mentioned, I found one WTB ad by you for a pair of Model 66 RB grips. Up to that time, it was the first WTB ad you had ever posted here. Because it was your first WTB ad, I immediately sent you a warning about scammers answering such ads and ripping people off. Two days later, you requested the ad be closed and it was.

What confuses me is no one in their right mind would pay $500 for a pair of RB Model 66 grips, so I wonder if the WTB ad you got ripped off on was even on this forum? We try to do everything in our power to prevent this kind of event, but it still happens occasionally. The point is however, if this wasn't the place you got ripped off from, we would like to know. Reports like this cause us to spend a lot of time backtracking posts and running down user's ID's. In legitimate cases, we do not mind in the least, but if you confused this forum with another, it meant a lot of time was wasted trying to find something that doesn't exist.

 

[Beemerguy53]

Having gotten snookered a couple of times over the years (never on here), I look out for certain red flags in any ad, on any website...

1. New member with little or no history.

2. No photos posted with the ad.

3. Out of focus photos.

4. Vague or brief description.

5. "The pictures tell the story." (No, they don't; describe your item honestly.)

6. Inviting buyers to evade the law or PayPal rules.

7. Any hint that the seller is willing to circumvent the law.

If I see any of the above characteristics, I won't even respond to that ad...