PROTECT YOURSELF AGAINST SCAMMERS

[mbriant]

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We've recently had a rash of attempted and successful scams perpetrated by the same person who's been re-registering under different names. Those who have been ripped off by this low-life didn't take the time to investigate the seller, not even getting a verifiable phone number or address. They don't even know what city the guy's from.

It's unfortunate that scum like this exist, but they do, so if you intend to buy something of any great value from a member .... especially a brand new member .... it would be prudent to at the very least get a phone number, speak to them in person, get proven references, and if possible pay by credit card through paypal so you at least have some sort of protection.

While it would add 2 or 3 days to the transaction, a good method to verify a name and address would be to snail mail something to the name/address provided by the seller and ask them to identify something from that snail mail via PM or email once they've received the letter....then, if you're satisfied, proceed with the transaction. It's not 100% foolproof, but it would weed out the majority of these low-lifes. A non-scammer should understand your concerns and be willing to go through this procedure. If not, take a pass. And keep their information on file until at least the transaction is 100% complete.

It's up to you to act prudently and to protect yourself. Don't send off money to someone, especially someone you know nothing about, without having some sort of verified identification from them.

Please report any suspicious For Sale forum activity to the moderating staff immediately.

Thank you.

PS: Be very cautious of any non-For Sale thread posts where someone says something like: "I'm thinking of selling my XXXX . How much do you think I can get for it?" This can often be bait designed to get people to quickly respond via email or PM hoping to be the first to scoop an item before it officially goes up for sale. A scammer can sell the same item many times over to different people this way, without any public posting to tip everyone off.