Sharing PayPal email address with Craiglist sellers

[vigilant1]

Hi everyone. I wish to buy amusempark tickets from a Craiglist seller that says I can pay him via PayPal after I get into the park as assurance the tickets are genuine (I know that are many scams). All he requested is my PayPal address (not sure why though, since I need his to pay). Is there anything with what to be concerned by sharing my PayPal email? If his tickets turn out to be fake, I won't pay. I'm always skeptical, though. Any concerns?

[DPCreations]

If you are skeptical why are you even considering buying amusement park tickets from Craig's List?  It just doesn't fit.

Many Craig's List sellers are extremely smart, savvy, and knoledgable about PayPal and they are looking for new and inexperienced PayPal buyers.

PayPal will not protect you against bad buyer judgement.

Think about the logic of the offer to get into the park before paying.  A seller would not do that unless there was going to be a scam for something later.  Giving your PayPal email gives the seller all that is needed to give you another offer for something desirable and then you're hooked on a big scam.

[vigilant1]

Thank you DPCreations for your reply!

The reason I'm considering the offer, which I believe is the reason all people consider Craigslist offers, is the $aving$. Ticket prices to amusement parks these days for a group of decent size can be prohibitive. Savings may be inversly proportiate to risk, but unless I am doing something foolish, I am willing to explore with skepticism and caution. 

From your answer, there does not seem to be inherent harm with merely sharing the email address, the primary focus of my question. I appreciate your guidance to avoid being lured into something down the line, but I want to know about the risk involved with sharing the email. If neglible or none, it may be worthwhile for me to assess the risk of dealing with someone unknown, which as I said, is the nature of Craigslist.

[DPCreations]

Ticket sellers on Craig's List rely on the emotional appeal of cheap as it impacts deparate buyers willing to take the high risk of loss for savings.  The bigging the savings, the higher the risk.

eMail addresses aren't very private.  On the other hand, your PayPal email in the hands of an unscrupulous Craig's list seller exposes you to much higher risk of scams targeted to those who get emotional satisfaction over "cheap".  

There is no need to give your PayPal email address to a PayPal seller.

You should provide the seller with a non-PayPal email address only.  Ask the seller to send you a PayPal invoice which includes all conditions and details, including shipping information.  The seller would send the invoice to your non-PayPal email address.  The email has a link whereby you pay with your PayPal account.  My guess is that this seller will refuse as there is too much risk and not enough gain for the seller.  It would also give you an indication of the sellerl's real intention.

[vigilant1]

Much appreicated advice! Don't get me wrong, I am cognizant of the dark side of Craiglist. My feeling is though all scammers post on Craiglist, not all Craiglists posts are scams. I will do as you suggest and keep you posted!

[DPCreations]

I understand.  But also believe that Craig's  List ticket seller are more likely to be scammers than Craig's List bicycle sellers.  

Another way to help in verification is make a phone call to the seller.  You can also ask the seller for a physical address.

FaceBook is another place to find scammers.  

You need to really understand PayPal polices for buyer protection:

Very good for non-delivery.

Essentially useless for not as described.

I sell on FaceBook.  I do not allow a buyer pickup until after the buyer phones me or I phone the buyer.  It's protection for both parties.  After intial messages with a potential buyer I give the buyer my phnone number and ask the buyer to call;  it gives me chance to view caller ID and also talke to the buyer.  It works very well.  Part of the having conficence in your own knowledge of how the system works.  You need to be the expert and the one in charge; after all it's your money.

[vigilant1]

DPCreations,

Thank you! Putting everything mentioned aside, regarding the pure question, is there any risk involved with sharing my PayPal email address? I mean privacy and security risks, not just future scamming lures?