Classifieds and Untrustworthy Users
Classified ads websites are a target for scammers trying to get you to pay for goods or services by advertising false goods or services that they have no intention of sending to you or carrying out. It is important that you be aware of these people and report suspected scammers to the relevant website administration.
So how do you know if someone is trying to scam you?
Well fortunately there are signs that you can pick up on. Firstly they will try and get you to pay for an item or service upfront and for some unknown reason they will not accept cash on collection or payment means by paypal, but instead ask you to pay by other means such as bank transfer or cheque. Other tell tale signs is that they want a deposit before you go and see or view the items. There was also one recently that offered a flat for sale and would not let the potential buyer view the property until they had money upfront. Generally this is not how people and business work.
What to do If you have been scammed or suspect a scam?
First of all you must contact the police and tell them about what has happened, they will investigate the matter and take it from there. You must also contact the classified website admin and let them know, so that they can take the relevant action to prevent others from falling into the same trap.
What to do if you are not sure?
Take relevant actions to ensure your safety. This could be meeting in a public place to exchange. Make sure you do not hand over any money until you have the item in your hand or any services have been undertaken. It may be that you have to pay for something upfront, if this is the case use well known and protected money transfer sites such as Paypal, Paza etc... Using these websites to handle the transfer of money allows you to challenge and retrieve your money if the goods or services do not arrive.
What are the Classified Ads websites doing to prevent this?
Most classified ads websites do what they can to prevent any scammers from using their website by monitoring posts put on the site. They may also make you register before you use the website, this allows them to automatically warn or ban scammers from using the website. Classified ads websites also work in collaboration with the police and alert them to the scammers trying to use the website. Police can use various methods to track the scammer, the best being the IP address used.
Please use common sense and be safe when using classified ads websites and don't let this article put you off as the majority of people who use classified websites are genuine and just want to sell or buy from the site.
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