scam

[assh]

Please help me determine if I'm being scammed I've been waiting to hear back from PayPal this guy text messages me about a car I'm selling on Craigslist he doesn't tell me tho that I would have to send 750.00 $ for HIS MOVERS to come get it but I'd get that money back plus the amount I wanted for the car like 2,600$ he then lied to me about his phone situation and tells me he is at work he can not talk but continues to text me only so I call the 2 numbers he Te the me only from and they are not working phones they are app numbers for text only so I then told him I wasn't going through with the deal because he began to curse me and yell and act foolish via text message and I told him his money was refundable he told me it is not and that's another lie he told me but now he is telling me he is turnin me into the FBI I'm very scared and do not no what ta do please help

[kernowlass · Accepted solution]

THIS IS A SCAM.

They encourage you to use paypal and often ask you to send the item as a gift to a relative somewhere often Nigeria.

You will get/got a "fake" email that looks as though it is from paypal.....it isn't.

It will say the buyer has paid ...you won't have been paid.

They will tell you that the payment is released when you provide paypal with a tracking/shipping number......this won't happen.

Or if the item requires shipping they will tell you that they will pay you extra and you must pay the agent via western union / moneygram BEFORE the funds are released to you. They are not interested in the item, they just want the western union etc funds and you will never see money in your paypal balance.

They also threaten legal action...have a laugh at that one and ignore it as its rubbish.

Paypal NEVER tell you to send trackable, they advise it for seller protection etc but it is not compulsory.

Paypal NEVER tell you to send an item before the payment is showing in your paypal account.

Paypal NEVER expect you to use a rival money transfer service.

Delete any emails and ignore the scammers.

[Zylarjade]

Hi folks,

I just wanted to share a scam story, which, thankfully I sussed out before losing £100's.

I received a reply to an add on Gumtree for an expensive bike I was selling. The reply was sent within 15 minutes of it being posted for sale and I was offered the full asking price, which I was really pleased about.

However, the buyer stated she was based in France and that the bike was a present for her nephew. She said that she had made a payment of £1,560 into my Paypal account and that Paypal should have sent me a confirmation e-mail.

Sure enough I had received a confirmation e-mail, but it had been sent from an individual 'on behalf of' then a Paypal service helpdesk 2 e-mail address.

This is what it looked like:-

                                                                                    ,       

Hello ***** ******,

You have received a PayPal payment of £1,560.00 GBP sent from [Personal information removed]

Transaction ID: ****************

Purchased from :   Status : Pending      98% complete  (AWAITING MONEYGRAM PAYMENT)

                                         Description                                                    

Quantity

Unit Price   

Amount     

Bike

1

£1,200.00

£1,200.00

Shipping/handling

£320.00

MoneyGram Charges

£40.00

Total

£1,560.00 GBP

Note from Merchant

The merchant hasn't sent a note.

For brand new bike as per photos you confirmed you were happy

PayPal Policy

The total sum of £1,560.00 GBP has been deducted from the buyer's account and has been "APPROVED" but it will not be credited into your account (for security purpose) until you send the requested sum of £320.00 GBP via MoneyGram 

 Issues with this transaction ?  Email our customer care/helpdesk department at : *a spoof helpdesk e-mail address and a representative will attend to you immediately.

See below for the information on how to send the funds via MoneyGram.

                             Information On How To Complete Your Transaction

          As mentioned in the payment receipt and as per the new PayPal payment policy, we have fully deducted the total sum of £1,560.00 GBP from the buyer's account and it cannot be refunded to her due to the terms and conditions for this transaction. Your money is safe and secure with us but it has been put on hold for security purpose and will not be credited into your account until we receive the necessary details from you.

   What do I need to do?

        Kindly go to the nearest MoneyGram shop/your local post office and ask for the MoneyGram section, fill in the transfer form with the appropriate details.

    Send the sum of £320.00 GBP (cash) to the details below.

        [Personal information removed]

   A Reference Number would be given to you by MoneyGram. Kindly send the below information to us as soon as you have completed the MoneyGram transfer so that we can credit your account instantly:

     - Sender's Name and Address

     - Reference Number

     - Total Amount Sent

     - Test question and Answer (if applicable)

   Send the above information to us at : *a spoof helpdesk e-mail address  . You will receive a confirmation email from us as soon as we receive the requested information from you.

   Security Tips

   Do not give out your password or any information related to your account to a third party.

   Send all question regarding this transaction to our customer care via email at : *a spoof helpdesk e-mail address 

 Issues with this transaction ?  Email our customer care/helpdesk department at : *a spoof helpdesk e-mail address  and a representative will attend to you immediately.

  Copyright © 1999-2015 PayPal. All rights reserved.    PayPal (Europe) S.à r.l. et Cie, S.C.A., Société en Commandite par Actions.    Registered office: 22-24 Boulevard Royal, L-2449

  PayPal Email ID PP1573

The 'buyer' stated that she had encountered a slight problem with the shipping agent and that they could only arrange a pick up date and time after they had received their pick up fee at their headqurter office via Moneygram, but due to her being in a wheelchair, she was unable to get to a moneygram shop to send it.

She said she had added £320 for the pick up fee and £40 for the moneygram charges, to the cost of the purchase of the bike. She then told me to send the shipping agent £320 via moneygram today. However, the recipient of the £320 she wanted me to send to, was an individual, not a company, which raised suspicions further.

When I checked my Paypal account there were no pending transactions and no payment form the buyer at all. I messaged the buyer back to let her know and she insisted that the payment had left her account and asked if I received the confirmation e-mail from Paypal.

I told her that the payment had not been made into my Paypal account and she did not respond. When I tried to call and text again, no calls would connect and no texts would send to the number we had been messaging through.

Please be careful folks:-)

[Station_Garage]

Hi the following was received by us after someone using the email [Personal information removed] in reply to an advert placed on UK Gumtree. I would like to thank any one who posted notifying that this was a scam so that we avoided losing any money and only wasted our time

thanks for the heads up     

Paul                                                                  

Information On How To Complete Your Transaction   Please be aware that this transaction is completed but awaiting the courier payment ( i.e. Awaiting MoneyGram Payment ) .    This new security measure is done to protect both Seller and Buyer from fraudulent activities, also to make PayPal a safer way for buying and selling. Complying with PayPal's protection programs and following the trading guidelines, in our helps to protect from fraudulent activities.    Therefore, the total sum of £1,700.00 GBP will be credited to your PayPal account as soon as you send the sum of £370.00 GBP to the courier as requested. The payment will be pending until you send the requested amount and send use the transaction details   What do I need to do?   Visit a MoneyGram outlet nearest to you with cash, fill a transfer form with your details as Sender and the below details as Receiver.   ·         [Personal information removed]      Ok to send   You will be given a Transfer Reference Number there after paying the £370.00 GBP in cash at the MoneyGram outlet      ·         Transfer Reference Number ·         Receiver's Name and Address ·         Sender's Name and Address ·         Total Amount Sent   Submit the MoneyGram Transfer information to us for confirmation via: confirmation at mail2helpdesk.com   You will receive a confirmation email from us as soon as we receive the requested information from you.    Security Tips    Do not give out your password or any information related to your account to a third party.      Send all question regarding this transaction to our customer care via email at : confirmation at mail2helpdesk.com     Issues with this transaction ?  Email our customer care/helpdesk department at : confirmation at mail2helpdesk.com or and a representative will attend to you immediately.         Copyright © 2015 PayPal. All rights reserved.    PayPal (Europe) S.à r.l. et Cie, S.C.A., Société en Commandite par Actions.    Registered office: 22-24 Boulevard Royal, L-2449

[Androy]

Hi guys, Same thing happened for me these days. Just posted my car on Gumtree UK and in couple of hours I've received a massage from someone apparently "disabled " who wants to buy the car and she will pay me straight into my PayPal account. I will attach below the story. After I've asked to send me an ID photocopy in order to complete the MoneyGram transaction, she didn't reply. Enjoy the story and be aware!! P.S. Be aware about all these scammers also of some guys who are calling you saying that you had an incident with your car and you have to pay an amount of money for some third party company. [Personal information removed] wrote: PayPal said that they have sent you a confirmation email with instructions on what you need to do??I am sure that you have received the confirmation email from PayPal? Kindly read it and follow their instructions carefully. On Thu, Jun 23, 2016 at 1:21 PM, [Personal information removed] wrote: I have already sent the money and it has been totally deducted from my account,i dont even have access to the money again because the transaction has been secured by PayPal and it cannot be reversed!..I also received an email from PayPal and it stated that they would be holding the funds for security reasons,they said that they have sent you some instructions, so you will need to send the £360 personally via moneygram so that PayPal can credit the £995 into your account as soon as you have emailed the moneygram details to them. I am out of pocket already..please follow their instructions carefully! "You have received a PayPal payment of £995.00 GBP sent from [Personal information removed] Transaction ID: 72W56358RF799193C Status : Pending 98% complete (AWAITING MONEYGRAM PAYMENT) Description Amount Goods £595.00 Shipping/handling £360.00 MoneyGram Charges £40.00 Total £995.00 GBP PayPal Policy The total sum of £995.00 GBP has been deducted from the buyer's account and has been "APPROVED" but it will not be credited into your account (for security purpose) until you send the requested sum of £360.00 GBP via MoneyGram. **Please note that we have deducted the total funds from the buyer's account so the buyer did not hold the money but it has been secured with us** Issues with this transaction ? Email our customer care/helpdesk department at : paypaIservice(at)mail2helpdesk.com and a representative will attend to you immediately. See below for the information on how to send the funds via MoneyGram. Information On How To Complete Your Transaction As mentioned in the payment receipt and as per the new PayPal payment policy, we have fully deducted the total sum of £995.00 GBP from the buyer's account and it cannot be refunded to her due to the terms and conditions for this transaction. Your money is safe and secure with us but it has been put on hold for security purpose and will not be credited into your account until we receive the necessary details from you. What do I need to do? Kindly go to the nearest MoneyGram shop(Tesco or Thomas Cook)/any Post Office with cash and ask for the "Send Money" form, fill in the transfer form with the appropriate details. i.e Fill in your details as the Sender and the one below as the Receiver : [Personal information removed] Please note that you are not allowed to do the MoneyGram transfer online as it is complicated and may cause problems. Send the sum of £360.00 GBP (cash) to the details above. A Reference Number would be given to you by MoneyGram. Kindly send the below information to us as soon as you have completed the MoneyGram transfer so that we can credit your account instantly: - Sender's Name and Address - Reference Number - Telephone number - Total Amount Sent - Test question and Answer (if applicable) Send the above information to us at : paypaIservice(at)mail2helpdesk.com . You will receive a confirmation email from us as soon as we receive the requested information from you. Security Tips Do not give out your password or any information related to your account to a third party. Send all question regarding this transaction to our customer care via email at : paypaIservice(at)mail2helpdesk.com Issues with this transaction ? Email our customer care/helpdesk department at : paypaIservice(at)mail2helpdesk.com and a representative will attend to you immediately. Copyright © 1999-2016 PayPal. All rights reserved. PayPal (Europe) S.à r.l. et Cie, S.C.A. Société en Commandite par Actions Registered Office: 22-24 Boulevard Royal L-2449, Luxembourg RCS Luxembourg B 118 349 PayPal PPC 000365 : 48e9ebae1964d"

[DPCreations]

Don't have time to read your story, but the first few lines are all that's necessary to tell it is a big time SCAM.

If you provided funds to make a sale, the funds are GONE.  The end.

[Jeanette11]

Thanks for this I had the replica emails today from a wheelchair user and money going to a single person She said I had to pay agent fees out if my pocket and not PayPal funds. When I opened email from PayPal it said a gmail account and I knew it was a scam After reading this it’s the same person! Thanks

[JStu]

New scam on mobile phones.  Contact responds to an online ad, like Craigslist, wants to purchase item based only on picture, no name provided, uses text only, does not respond with request to speak on telephone with seller.  Uses phone # 405-294-6816, claims to be at an Air Force base in another state, so not local.   Wants to use PAYPAL and will send a mover once PAYPAL payment clears.  THIS IS A SCAM!   I checked on scam websites online; it is full of reports on this scam. Scammers sometimes claim they are disabled and cannot come pick up the item so will send someone else. They use fake PAYPAL site if you don't have one. However,  they may also be trying to obtain your PAYPAL or personal information.    BEWARE! 

[Tnrivergirl]

We are thinking someone is trying to scam us via a car we are selling on Craigs List.

Be aware people answering ad out of state.Answering ad never speaking in person only text,wanting to pay to open you a paypal acct.Offering full price extra money for shipping and your trouble.BeWARE! I Think I smell a Rat!

phone # used is (480)400-4093

[kgdgsales]

Just had a person by the name of <removed> try to purchase an item I had listed on Craig's list.  I received texts and then three emails from intl.paypal.com claiming "Notification of Instant Payment Received" then another "Instruction on how to complete your recent transaction" and finally "Issue with our call service" with a link.  The instruction on how to complete the transaction requested me to pay via Western Union a Transport Agent $500.  After investigating, I determined this is most likely an elaborate scam.  I suggested they pay for the transport agent directly.