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how does the paypal scam work if I'm selling on craigslist?
OK, I'm selling musical equipment on craigslist. I get a text from someone saying they will do the transaction thru paypal then send someone to pick it up. I've never gone any further, always tell them it's cash and local pick up and to go scam someone else. but I'm curious how they can get into my account if I only give them my user name? can they figure out the password? or is there another way to get money out of my account??
5 Answers
- Robert JLv 76 years ago
They do not need to get in to your account in any way.
The two commonest versions are:
People using stolen credit cards / card numbers to buy things.
The payment goes through and appears properly in your paypal account. However, at any point up to a few weeks later the payment is reversed when the card company gets around to recovering payments made on the stolen card.
You have already seen the money in your account so sent / delivered the item, long before the money vanishes again.
It's another version of a bounced cheque / stolen cheque book scam..
The other, simpler version as mentioned in another answer is just sending a copy of the paypal "payment received" email in the hope that the seller does not actually log in to their paypal account to verify it.
A lot of the so-called "Buyers" are overseas and using local people to collect and send on the bought items. The local people are also often - but not always - innocent victims who think they are doing some form of legitimate work, some form of work from home or shipping agency job.
- KittysueLv 76 years ago
This article from 2008 explains the most common version of the scam but people keep,falling for it http://consumerist.com/2008/10/30/how-a-nigerian-s...
There are other variations - saying you have to send money to a shipping company, paying with a hacked account, having someone pick up from you then filing an Item Not Received dispute with Paypal because as a seller you are only protected if YOU arrange shipping and have proof of delivery to the buyer's verified address, etc.
Also once they know your Paypal address, they use password hacking software to hack your account. It's easy to do. You can google Paypal hacking software and find loads of sites.
Craigslist is ONLY for face to face CASH transactions or you will always get scammed. There are no exceptions. NEVER deal with anyone you can't meet face to face. NEVER give your PayPal details. NEVER give your home address. NEVER ship anything, Luckily you know that but other people are not so smart
You always meet in the public location of YOUR choice and accept cash only of no deal
- Wayne ZLv 76 years ago
The scammer sends you an email that looks like it is from PayPal. The email will state that your money is pending until the tracking number for the shipment is entered.
However, if you log in to your PayPal account directly, you would see that there is nothing pending.
If you are selling anything on Craigslist, you can expect most of the responses to be from scammers.
- 6 years ago
when I sell on craigslist i normally ask for cash. Paypal is very safe and when you send money to someone or recieve money they are not suppose to know your password but they will need your paypal email so they can send the money to you but I prefer to just see them in person when it comes to selling online.
