# Craigslist "Overpayment" Scam



## cjtoombs (Apr 10, 2017)

I posted a machine on Craigslist last night, and a woman (maybe, maybe not, but the name was Elizabeth) contacted me right away to ask if it was still available.  I replied that it was (it had only been posted minutes earlier).  She said the price I had was fine for her and that she would send me the money on Paypal and asked for my Paypal email and my name.  My Spidey sense was already going off, first a woman wants to buy a metal shaper, she agrees to the price of the shaper based on only the pictures (it's CL, I presume people mostly buy stuff on there within driving range and someone would want to look at it before they bought) and she asked for my name.  You don't need a name to send money on Paypal, only the email address.  I gave my name (not full) and email address, she came back and said she was going to send an extra 520 dollars for me to pay the movers when they got here.  At this point I am sure it is a scam, so I did a bit of searching.  I sent back an email for her to just send the asking price, she would need to take care of the movers herself and that if she needed it delivered, I would do it for a fee.  Haven't heard back.  Apparently, they get your email address and name and send you a fake Paypal email that the money has been deposited (that's why they need your name).  Then they send someone to pick it up and you give them the 520, the stuff you are selling and you are left without your item and short the money you gave the movers.  If something sounds too good to be true, it's easy enough to check this stuff out with a Google search.  Don't get burned.


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## wawoodman (Apr 10, 2017)

That scam has been going on forever.

You did the right thing.


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## rgray (Apr 10, 2017)

My son still has a check written from G.E capital. Very legit looking for $6000.00 for a car he was selling for $3000.00 on craigslist.
Obviously the old scam is not working as well now days so their trying for lesser sums.
I told him to frame it and hang it on the wall....got it all shut down before he lost anything.


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## cjtoombs (Apr 10, 2017)

Glad he didn't lose anything, but if it didn't work on some people, they wouldn't still be doing it.  Speaking of which, I haven't heard from the plethora of Nigerian princes I used to.  The royal family there must be thinning down.


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## ACHiPo (Apr 10, 2017)

cjtoombs said:


> Glad he didn't lose anything, but if it didn't work on some people, they wouldn't still be doing it.  Speaking of which, I haven't heard from the plethora of Nigerian princes I used to.  The royal family there must be thinning down.


Funny you should mention that, because in the past few months the number of obvious scam emails I've received have gone way up.  Granted, not Nigerian princes, but similar "unclaimed inheritance", etc.


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## dlane (Apr 11, 2017)

Welcome to the new world


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## Ulma Doctor (Apr 11, 2017)

i once had an email scammer try to get me ...
he send an email telling me that i won the Australian Lottery by proxy.
he said that i have 160,000,000 AUD in a secured account, just waiting for me to claim it , 
ALL he wanted was 750 USD to fill out the required forms !!!! ( i wonder if the forms were in Strine???)
i assured him, in a return email ,  that i would give him 200,000 AUD,  just to handle the whole transaction for me because,
I'm a Australian MILLIONARE now and had to plan for my new estate.
i also went as far as to offer the scammer a lifetime job as my financial consultant, if he'd handle the small task.

I'm still waiting for the return email....


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## mcostello (Apr 11, 2017)

Same scam to Me several times with different names each time.  Some one was going to drive from Floridia to nowhere Central Ohio for a lathe.


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## JPigg55 (Apr 11, 2017)

I'd love to be able to set these type people up and have the cops standing by to haul they off to prison where they belong.
With our wonderful justice system, they don't want to be "Bothered" unless it's over $10,000 (as if the scumbags don't know this).
So I just tell them "That's fine with me, but your payment will clear before I release the item and I won't pay shippers, that's up to them" just in case it's legitimate.
Never hear from them again if it's a scam.


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## chips&more (Apr 11, 2017)

How come this is happening? Does crime pay??? Why are there so many scammers? And those annoying phone calls with nothing to say to but crap. 95% of my land line calls are from people full of crap. And now my cell phone is getting them!


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## cjtoombs (Apr 11, 2017)

chips&more said:


> How come this is happening? Does crime pay??? Why are there so many scammers? And those annoying phone calls with nothing to say to but crap. 95% of my land line calls are from people full of crap. And now my cell phone is getting them!



I think there are three reasons:  1.  It's way easier to reach people anonomously.  With the internet, smart phones, robocallers, bots, etc, it is easy because for a lot of this you don't even need a person, it is all automated.  2.  Global reach.  Just because some scammer says they are from New Jersey doesn't mean they are not in Africa, South America or Central Europe.  What better targets than in the US?  I expect poorly educated people in many other countries think we are all rich, so we are a target rich environment in their minds.  3.  Lack of enforcement of laws against this.  Even if you just take the scammers and spammers here in the US, I expect the amount of resources spent by all US law enforcement combined to combat these guys proactively and send them to jail is probably miniscule compared to what is spent on counter-terrorism, drug interdiction or even prostitution enforcement.  So, it's the wild west for scammers.  That's my opinion, at least.


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## Dave Smith (Apr 11, 2017)

JPigg55 said:


> I'd love to be able to set these type people up and have the cops standing by to haul
> they off to prison where they belong.



most of these people are already in prison and doing this just for their entertainment to mess with us---I don't think prisoners should have access to computers and cell phones---I find that unless replies about your item mention the name of what you are selling then it is just a scammer---most scammers just say they are interested in your ITEM--not the lathe or mill or drill press or shaper or whatever you are selling---all you have to do is ask what ITEM are you asking about---they can't answer that-----Dave


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## JPigg55 (Apr 11, 2017)

Dave Smith said:


> most of these people are already in prison and doing this just for their entertainment to mess with us---I don't think prisoners should have access to computers and cell phones---Dave



Not internet, no phone, no a/c, no gymnasiums, .....
They built a medium security prison about 20 miles from where I live some years back. They gave a tour of local people before it opened, one of which was a high school PE teacher. When asked what he thought, he replied "I wish we our school had half the weight training equipment you have here". Leave it to the government to treat prisoners better than our kids.
Add this to the fact that a lot of the prisoners families moved to the local area (mostly at tax payer expense) to be close to their incarcerated family member and the local crime rate went through the roof.
I'm tired of hearing about the criminal who says "I was just trying to provide for my family" after being arrested for robbing a liquor store with a gun.
If you're trying to provide for your family, get arrested for trying to shoplift from the store, I'd be okay helping you out if that was your only choice.
Threaten another human being with a gun...I want to see you strung up right after convicted.
If the only downfall to crime is a cushy prison that has better living conditions than they had on the outside, where's the deterrent ???


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## eugene13 (Apr 12, 2017)

Bring back the chain gang, whack weeds all day and fresh roadkill for supper, and think what an impression it makes on the kids when you drive by.  I saw one in Alabama in '96.


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## Finster (Apr 13, 2017)

A few years ago, I got a call from a scammer that was trying to get my SS number. I managed to trace the number to a house in Georgia, I had the house number and even looked up a picture of it on Google earth. I could have driven to their front door. I called the local police department down there and they could have cared less. They didn't even entertain the thought of looking into it. Yea, for the most part, you are alone in this world and have to use your wits.


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## Finster (Apr 13, 2017)

eugene13 said:


> Bring back the chain gang, whack weeds all day and fresh roadkill for supper, and think what an impression it makes on the kids when you drive by.  I saw one in Alabama in '96.


I think kids should be put on a chain gang for a week when they do something wrong enough. Maybe it would straighten some of them out. Instead, they go to "juvenile detention" where they are coddled. It doesn't help and just makes things worse.


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## mcostello (Apr 13, 2017)

Years ago We were traveling through Georgia and stopped to eat. While We were there a chain Gang came through with all the perps chained together, They had a extremely nasty Deputy holding a shot gun at the ready riding on a horse behind them. The Sheriff went through the drive in and left. No one else got anything not even shade and it was extremely hot. Deputy looked like He would do the deed and not even miss a beat. Learned quickly not to screw up in Georgia, That's the way it should be.


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## eugene13 (Apr 13, 2017)

In Georgia they  put  their DUI convicts to work picking up trash along the highway, makes sense to me.


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## Silverbullet (Apr 13, 2017)

They tried one on me on Facebook , said they were a friend of mine who I know , said I was entitled to a free money grant for $90,000 , he said my name was on the list he got his from. This came in on there messenger site . My body the gunsmith whose name he stole trying to scam me never heard of it. They got a friends name and tried it. Stay on top of all your places you visit on the internet . Cons are always trying new ways


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## Bob Korves (Apr 15, 2017)

My Craigslist ads state "Face to face, cash transaction ONLY."  That keeps all but the most stupid of them from bothering me.


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## echesak (Apr 15, 2017)

Yup...  Even on legit transactions, I always log into my paypal account to see if the money is actually present.  I have had this scam happen once to me.  I knew it was a scam immediately and toyed with the buyer for quite some time.  He was mad that I was wasting his time.  I thought that was funny.  

A similar scam happens when an email comes from paypal indicating some purchase was made.  But when you hover over the paypal links, they are not properly formatted (Paypal.com).  So I never click on links from emails.  I log into my account from Paypal and verify.

ALWAYS log into your paypal account to verify the transaction.  NEVER get to paypal via an email alone.

My 2 cents...

Eric


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## acourtjester (Apr 15, 2017)

Had a similar setup from Craig's list they sent a check for 3 times to price with instruction to for shipping.
check had no water mark told the guy no deal and give me your mail address for return. never answered.
They even send Fed Ex next day from a legit business.
The printers these days can copy a check that look very real. bastards need jail time.


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## dlane (Apr 15, 2017)

bastards need jail time.
X2


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## epanzella (Apr 15, 2017)

These scams seem so obvious to most people but if these dirtbags send out 100,000 emails and find one sucker they're happy. I advertised a room for rent a few years ago and more than half the respondents were female 25 year old fun loving students in a foreign  country looking to move here. They all were going to send a check for too much money so I could pay the movers. I would give them the address of the restaurant in town so they could send the check. I's fun to mess with these people.


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## 12bolts (Apr 15, 2017)

If anyone is interested I have a bridge for sale.


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## Downunder Bob (Apr 15, 2017)

Ulma Doctor said:


> i once had an email scammer try to get me ...
> he send an email telling me that i won the Australian Lottery by proxy.
> he said that i have 160,000,000 AUD in a secured account, just waiting for me to claim it ,
> ALL he wanted was 750 USD to fill out the required forms !!!! ( i wonder if the forms were in Strine???)
> ...



 Funny that, here in downunder we usually get scams saying we have won the British lottery or something unheard of from Las Vegas. I know they are scams because I never buy a lottery ticket. Not ever, not anywhere.


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## Mach89 (Apr 15, 2017)

I've had that happen on several occasions, and not just Craigslist. I have never allowed it to go any further than them saying they would send extra money. That is usually where I stop it if it even gets that far. Sad part is, there are a lot of people who fall for this stuff.


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## Downunder Bob (Apr 15, 2017)

Mach89 said:


> I've had that happen on several occasions, and not just Craigslist. I have never allowed it to go any further than them saying they would send extra money. That is usually where I stop it if it even gets that far. Sad part is, there are a lot of people who fall for this stuff.


I have had similar attempts on eBay. but just ignored them.


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## Rustrp (Apr 16, 2017)

dlane said:


> Welcome to the new world


It's the same as the old world, but now it's just a new way to sell snake oil using a new medium.


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## dkwflight (Apr 16, 2017)

You can google the routing numbers to try to check on the validity of the check.
Most are not good.


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## Round in circles (Apr 16, 2017)

I only ever pass the goods for my  internet sales  two days after the  transaction has cleared Pay Pal & I've taken it out the account , then put the funds  into a separate unconnected with pay pal holding bank account.

 Even then I've had a couple of numpties who have tried to say the goods were faulty a day or so after they have signed for them
  The way I put an end to that was to mark all goods with a UV marking pen with a simple cartoon & do my initials  & postal code plus the date & then photo them under UV light .  The couple of chancer's who have  tried to present their similar faulty goods back to me were sorted out by PayPal & eBay once I showed the pictures with the UV markings & in my defence .
Sometimes you might also need to engrave you security details on the inside of of several parts of an assembly & photo them before parting with them as to be signed for postal packages . It has been known for people to change over internal parts to repair their equipment  & then rebuild your equipment with their faulty bits & try & send it back to you saying it never worked .  Demanding their money back plus all postal charges .  

There was a scam a while ago where a seller gained official proof of posting for sending an empty box to you that you needed to sign for . They then claimed that you were trying to cheat them saying you wanted a refund when you wouldn't send them the goods ( they'd never sent )  back .

Unfortunately at the time Pay Pal & eBay usually took the side of the supposedly honest seller , till folks started taking photos of the packages they had signed for whilst still fully wrapped & then photos of the stages of unwrapping  whilst the delivery guy was present .
 Most delivery services want you to sign for the packet arriving in good order ..  So legally  you are allowed to unpack it in front of the delivery guy to ensure it is in good order .


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## Terrywerm (Apr 16, 2017)

epanzella said:


> These scams seem so obvious to most people but if these dirtbags send out 100,000 emails and find one sucker they're happy. I advertised a room for rent a few years ago and more than half the respondents were female 25 year old fun loving students in a foreign  country looking to move here. They all were going to send a check for too much money so I could pay the movers. I would give them the address of the restaurant in town so they could send the check. I's fun to mess with these people.



Should have used the address for the police department.


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## tq60 (Apr 17, 2017)

We had the PayPal attempt yesterday. 

The first kicker is they seem to respond quickly after posting and ask If still available.

We never post phone number and suggest using email and this person had a profile name that looked common enough and had decent language skills...we are ca raised so ours not the best...;-)

Stated we landed in spam filter so please use regular email...has happened before but hairs on neck tingling.

This guy acting normal interest level so no alarm.

Asks if we have PayPal and explains that easy to create and movers will pick up so on so fourth so alarm goes off.

Simple enough...stated cash only and since this was for a stair lift they were welcome to inspect and ride it then before any action to remove cash would need to be in our hands then we would help load.

No email since...

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337Z using Tapatalk


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## Cadillac STS (Jul 7, 2017)

I always get suspicious when they say they will send something FedEx.  (Private delivery service.)  Because with a scam they avoid wire fraud charges from using US mail if caught.


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