Latest Craigslist Scam

[jaxs]

It appears to me that the majority of those too good to be true ads are fishing for phone numbers and email addresses. I always use CL 2 way relay and response from them if I say I'll take it and have cash,is "send me you email address and I'll send more pictures and information". I haven't come across a shipping,paypal or certified check scam in months. Something I can't put reason to is odd ball prices ($2106).

 

[KennyG]

The scammers include all the obvious tip offs (gmail, odd price, bad english, silly descriptions) so aware people will recognize them and not bother. They are trying to narrow respondents to the most naive and gullible people who are most likely to fall for the scam. That's why many of the scams still claim to be from Nigeria rather than other less obvious countries.

 

[EddieWalker]

On this add, it was an early 1970's Ford tractor with a front loader for $2,500. That seemed too cheap, but otherwise, there where no other indications that it was a scam other then the gmail address. The ad is gone, but in all the other ads that had the same email address, it was similar, but never the same tractor. Kubota and Deere older tractors. Prices where always low, but not absurd. Just a really good deals. And then other items like welders, gates, and other farm related stuff. Just the one item listed, and all in different areas of the country. To me, this is what made it seem like a new scam.

 

[groundcover]

Just sold a boat on Craigslist, it does bring out the crazy. Ended well with a good buyer but ended up with a heap of junk email too.

 

[MJO63]

Was she in the service and wanted to go thru a 3rd party and was not in the State the she was selling in.

 

[California]

The goofy titles and unreasonable prices are obvious giveaways.

Here are a couple more you can catch at a glance:

The photo just doesn't look right. Often bad focus and too green in tone. Or maybe the greenery or terrain doesn't match the season / claimed location.
Doesn't have the CL map for location.
The whole ad including text is a jpeg. (So the text isn't searchable).
The contact is an email shown in the ad instead of using the CL 'reply' feature. When combined with unreasonable price these are *always* fraudulent.
Try a Google search on that make/year/model, or the email as Eddie said. The same ad will pop up all over the country. Even Guam! (yes, really).

And just for fun:
I pursued an ebay offer that would have been local, they told me the tractor had been relocated to Portugal after they put it on ebay.
Hurry and pay now, free delivery in under 5 weeks!

 

[fried1765]

The goofy titles and unreasonable prices are obvious giveaways.

Here are a couple more you can catch at a glance:

The photo just doesn't look right. Often bad focus and too green in tone. Or maybe the greenery or terrain doesn't match the season / claimed location.
Doesn't have the CL map for location.
The whole ad including text is a jpeg. (So the text isn't searchable).
The contact is an email shown in the ad instead of using the CL 'reply' feature. When combined with unreasonable price these are *always* fraudulent.
Try a Google search on that make/year/model, or the email as Eddie said. The same ad will pop up all over the country. Even Guam! (yes, really).

And just for fun:
I pursued an ebay offer that would have been local, they told me the tractor had been relocated to Portugal after they put it on ebay.
Hurry and pay now, free delivery in under 5 weeks!

When I told "her" that I would actually like to see the tractor, "she" told me that the tractor was already loaded on a truck in Kansas City, for delivery to me.
I said: great!
My brother lives in Kansas City, just tell me where the tractor is, and I'll have him come look at it tomorrow.
Never got a response!
I am an only child!

 

[jaxs]

They say the bugger man will get for lying just quick as he will for stealing.:laughing:

 

[greenmojo]

We are in Wenatchee, WA (center of the state), and my neighbor finds those scam ads all of the time. Someone with poor english and of course the tractor ends up being a good distance away.

Off-topic a bit, we were interested in renting a house in Wyoming years ago for a vacation spot, and eventually I got suspicious and looked up the property owner, found a phone number and called the owner. Turns out, it was his vacation home and these craigslist people were taking rental down-payments on homes they didn't own. Great business! ;-)

~Moses

 

[California]

... called the owner. Turns out, it was his vacation home and these craigslist people were taking rental down-payments on homes they didn't own. Great business! ;-)

I've read this is a big problem in NYC and other major cities here and abroad where housing is tight. Worst case an 'agent' gets a key perhaps from the departing tenant by misrepresenting that he is associated with the owner. Then this bogus 'agent' shows the place, takes the normal application fee/first month/last month/cleaning deposit, from several prospective renters at a few thousand dollars each! So long as the place remains vacant and the real owner isn't revealed to the applicants he can keep this up scamming several people. In the big city you'll never find him if he gave a false name and bogus business card, rental contract, etc and only made contact at the rental site.

When my daughter rented in NYC she said you engage an agent representing you to find a rental to avoid scams, and gross misrepresentations that just waste your time going to see.