Fraud and Scams on Craigslist (Part 2) – Avoiding Them

In our first part on scams and fraud that are commonly run in Craigslist, we looked at how to identify them. In Part Two, we will be looking at ways to avoid them. While some of the measures may seem like common sense, it is amazing how many people still may not take them. Many times this can be either because the fraudster puts pressure, either subtle or overt, on the intended victim (as part of the scheme) or maybe they just don’t know what they don’t know.

Use Your Head and Feet

When first conceived, Craigslist was a place meant where local people could place and look for ads. Craigslist takes great strides to ensure, that even though their website is international in nature, that it is local in scope. Keeping this in mind, one of the greatest deterrents to avoiding fraud and scams on Craigslist would be to KEEP IT LOCAL! Craigslist does have FAQs on how to avoid scams that may be perpetrated on their site and the number one thing that they recommend is, surprisingly: “DEAL LOCALLY WITH FOLKS YOU CAN MEET IN PERSON.” They go on to explain that by doing this you can avoid 99% of the scam attempts that are run on their site. Remember, this is not eBay – these are supposed to be local folks advertising to local folks. Insist that the transaction must be local and must be in cash. Above all else this would be the first and foremost thing to keep in mind on ANY Craigslist transaction (as a side note, Craigslist also does offer some personal safety tips on their site as well that are worth a read.

Common Sense

Another common sense rule is that if anyone that you contact or that contacts you wants you to wire money to them (be it for a rental or for a purchase – especially after they “accidently” send you too much money for an item) know that you’d get more out of your money by burning it (at least you get the warmth from the fire it creates). If you wire money to anyone met through Craigslist, you lose. You kissed that money goodbye. Anyone who is asking you to do this is trying to scam YOU out of YOUR money, pure and simple. So, DO NOT, EVER, NEVER, EVER send money to anyone this way… Period! Again, Craigslist, bless their little hearts, states in their avoid scams FAQs: “NEVER WIRE FUNDS VIA WESTERN UNION, MONEYGRAM or any other wire service,” and then they go on to say: “anyone who asks you to do so is a scammer.”

Please do NOT give out financial information about yourself. Identity thieves will have a field day on your dime if you give out your social security number, bank account number, Paypal or eBay account info (legit, LOCAL rental applications being the exception). Craigslist does list some other tips under their scammer FAQs as well. Keeping in line with some of the advice offered there, please be aware that fake cashiers checks and money orders are very common – and you’re the one left hold the bag (unlike credit card fraud, where there is a limit to how much you’re liable, there is no such limit for check fraud.). Also know that Craigslist doesn’t get involved in any type of transactions carried out on their site. They do not offer guarantees, escrow services, handle payments, buyer protection or seller certification. If you get involved in any transaction where a person says that they do, this is an immediate red flag.

In line with keeping it local, AVOID like the plague any deals involving shipping or escrow services – there simply is no way to guarantee such a transaction. The Craigslist scam FAQs goes as far as to actually state: “ONLY A SCAMMER WILL "GUARANTEE" YOUR TRANSACTION.” Keep this especially in mind if you see a car that is being offered out of the area. As a matter of fact, Craigslist actually puts in big bold letters across any page where items are offered for sale: “OFFERS TO SHIP CARS ARE 100% FRAUDULENT.” This goes in line with the advice to keep the transactions local.

Remembering the adage to keep it local that we previously mentioned, if you are considering renting, when you meet personally with the potential landlord, they usually will (as part of the rental process) ask you to fill out a rental application form. Because this (of necessity) will have some of your personal information on it, please be sure to ask potential landlords to see their ID and then record the information found on it. This step will usually weed out scammers having no legit claim to the property. Heads up if they don’t show you the ID or if they just flash it for a second without letting you record the information on it. Another bid red flag goes up if they DON’T want you to fill out a rental application of any kind or ask to check your credit. You may want to also look up the potential rentals property or the landlord's name on the internet and see what comes up (look for the name being connected with the word “scam” or “fraud” and look to see if the property if offered for varying amounts on different sites). It may even be prudent to look up for yourself (in the city or county public records) who exactly is listed as owner for a property and to get a statement (in writing) from the landlord that they are not behind in payments nor is the property in foreclosure. If the person tries to sell you “foreclosure lists” when you are calling about a rental, just hang up, all they want is your money and nothing more. (see: kgw.com and Fraudguides.com)

If you are a potential landlord, again, keep it local. Be wary of persons contacting you via e-mail that are out of the area and interesting in renting the property. Extra red flags go up if the grammar is poor, if they ask you information that is already contained in the ad, if they give an elaborate back story, or if they try to involve third parties. DO NOT EVER let a tenant pay you more than you asked for and then demand a refund – anyone doing this is a scam artist. Be sure to follow up on references and credit checks on your potential renter, and if you rent the property frequently, change the locks between renters.
(see:fraudguides.com/tips, http://www.fraudguides.com/tips2 and http://www.scamalicious.com/)

Final Thoughts

Yes, there are frauds and scams being run on Craigslist, but knowledge is power. Being forewarned is being forearmed. If you keep these Tech Tips in mind, you’re sure to cut down dramatically on your chances of being a victim of a scam or fraud on Craigslist.

(Part 1) – Fraud and Scams on Craigslist –
What Do These Look Like?

You’re looking for new digs – and know just where to find the perfect place; you want to buy another car, and know just where to search for one. Perhaps you have a place you want to rent or a car you want to sell and you know just the place for advertising them – Craigslist! With their goal of keeping online classifieds local, simple and (for the most part) free, there’s no question about it; Craigslist has become quite an online phenomenon. Constantly one of the top 50 websites sites visited, this website, for one offering local ads, has attracted literally a worldwide following. However, along with this following Craigslist has attracted a very unsavory element of scammers as well.

In this Tech Tip, we’ll be looking specifically at some specific areas of fraud that seem to be hitting Craigslist these days in regards to rentals and items offered for sale

While scams and fraud do occur on many websites where buying and selling occur, they seem to be almost epidemic on Craigslist these days. Though some of these scams may seem obvious, criminals still use them again and again (often accompanied with poor grammar) for the simple fact that they continue to work. Without further ado, here are some of the common scams that are appearing on Craigslist.

For people placing an ad for a rental, some common fraudulent activities are:

• A person contacts you from out of the area (usually overseas) and really wants to rent your listing. They send you a check or money order over the total amount due rent and then have you send the amount of overage back to them (usually by Western Union or some other wire service); this is a scam pure and simple. You will be out the amount you send back once the check (or money order) is found to be a fake (it is interesting that they send you a check or money order, but want the money "refunded" to them to be wired).

• A person takes the information from the property you’re listing and relists it as their own. These people are also usually from out of the area. This leads to all sorts of issues as the same property can be “rented” several times – by you (legitimately) and by the scammers.

• A person actually rents your place then turns around and by representing themselves as the owner, re-rent it to several people before skipping town.

For people looking for a home or apartment to rent:

• You contact the person from the ad (usually via e-mail) and they explain that they are out of the area, but the place it still for rent. They may ask for key deposits so you can “look” at the place and then will often try and create a sense of urgency so they can elicit the bigger ticket items such as security deposits and first and last month’s rent. Really, anything else they can think of and have it wired to them. Usually these ads are ones copied from legit ads either on Craigslist or other rental sites – but at lower (but still believable) rental rates. Like all scams, money leaves your pocket never to return.

• You click on an ad for a very good looking and well priced rental only to be directed to call an 800 number. Usually, these end up being scammers that have no intention of renting the property at the price they listed, but want you to buy “foreclosure what is cialis used for lists” instead. Extra bonus for the scammers if they get a good credit card number with a large limit.

• Classic bait and switch, even if you literally watched the ad be placed, when you call the property is not available, but this other one is….

• The person renting the house may be local, but they do not actually own the house. They either just rented it themselves or, worse yet, are advertising a vacant home that someone is trying to sell or that is bank owned. Some may claim that they are renting it on “behalf of the owner” as well. The person “renting” the property collects several deposits, several first and last rents and leaves town. In addition to the money, the scammers now have several key pieces of personal information on the persons scammed.

For people selling or buying an item on Craigslist:

• Sellers: A person contacts you (usually out of the area) and really wants to buy your item. They offer to pay more than it is worth (works great for small, pricey items that are easy to mail) or “accidently” pay you over the amount and look for you to send the difference back to them (sound familiar? Look at item 1 for personal placing ads for rentals above). Even for large items (such as furniture), they’ll ask to pay with check and arrange to have it shipped to them; again, the check will be “accidently” over the amount asked for, and you’re asked for a refund. It may seem strange for you to be sending someone else money when you were the one selling and that’s because IT IS STRANGE!

• Buyers: The item is not just a bargain, but it is a BARGAIN (think of a car that is well below the current Kelly Blue Book price or a laptop computer at a price too good to be true). This bargain is usually out of the area and would need to be shipped to you. An escrow service is perhaps offered to
  help facilitate the purchase (many are also sent up fraudulently just to facilitate such a scam)

  Bottom Line, you send money-you get nothing.

Some scams and fraud and very easy to detect, but others can be difficult as criminals get more and more sophisticated. This list is by no means complete, but can give you a general outline of some common scams that are still used. Knowledge is power, so it is good to be aware of some of these tactics used by scammers before you put down your hard earned money.

Now that you know what to look for, in next week’s Tech Tip, we’ll look at some ways to avoid scams and fraud on Craigslist.