I posted my computer up for sale on craigslist and i got an email of offer of $400, which is pretty descent. I have copied the email here. Can anyone tell me if it is scam or not?
Hello
Thanks for your prompt reply. I will be paying with
(USPS) United State Postal Money Order payment .
This is how it works, as soon as i make the payment, they will
contact you via our Email and as soon as its approved. Once payment is
approved,it for sure that the seller or whoever thats involve will
definately receive the money order and thats why it takes them hours
to approved I am buying the item for someone this next week and i
intend to take him by surprise this time , to this end, as soon as my
payment is approved by (USPS ) United State Postal Money Order,
i will like to ship the item immediately through My Fed-ex account&
so as to meet up with his date. I will like to offer $400.00
As for the shipping, you dont have to pay a dime for it cos i will be
responsible for the shipping to destination.
Upon approval of payment,
i will send you a fed-ex prepaid shipping label to you which you will
need for the shipping of the package. I will like to read from you if
this is okay by you. Let me have your full name and address so that
i can proceed the payment.
2007-08-06 04:50:17 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous in Business & Finance ➔ Credit
Purchasing laptops with a US Postal Service Money Order is a common scam, and this does sound like one. The urgency about time (needing to "meet up with his date") is a common element of such frauds. Fraudulent USPS Money Orders have become more common, so beware. If the money orders sent are found to be fraudulent, the bank will not credit you (and will debit your account if you had previously been credited). To read a New York Times story of someone that this happened to, see the first link below.
2007-08-06 05:04:03 · answer #1 · answered by texastrinity 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Scam.
1. The Fed Ex Account he gives you will probably be a stolen account number(scammers don't pay for anything). So once it gets shipped and the company that it belongs to finds out, they will have your return address to go after payment.
2. There is a good chance that if they send you a Money Order, you will probably find out that they made a "mistake" and made it out for $4,000, and just to make it easy have you send the difference back to them through Western Union. However, it will eventually come up as a fraud and you will then be out $4,000 and the computer.
3. You will be asked to send it to an address outside of the country and will have no way to track these people down. The big tip off on this is the grammar in the e-mail.
2007-08-06 05:05:33 · answer #2 · answered by OC1999 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Total scam. This is very very common. Notice how the email didn't even mention anything about the computer? The money order will be forged. By the time the bank figures it out, the package is gone and picked up. Do not do it.
2007-08-06 05:08:39 · answer #3 · answered by Jay P 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I give you a lot of credit for asking! Craigslist even says to be aware of scammers. Here's my story: I advertised that I had an apartment for rent. I rec'd many emails from people from the UK that said they were moving to the U.S. for research. Their proposal was that their boss would send me a large money order, supposedly the 'tenant's' paycheck and I was supposed to take the rent money out and send him back the balance. Only problem is it would be a check, not a money order, and it would take over 10 days to clear and I would have already sent his balance to him. You know what? The check would would bounce leaving me short of my own money plus what I sent to him. I just send back emails stating: "I do not deal with scammers and I am reporting you to Craigslist." Bottom line to you: Don't do it or you will be out your computer and no $$$!
2007-08-06 05:11:14 · answer #4 · answered by DPL06351 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Thats kind of confusing, but tell him after you get the physical money order, deposit it and it clears, you will be able to send it out, but only after it clears, and if he has a prepaid shipping label for you, its all good. Whatever you do, don't send anything without the payment clearing into your bank account first
2007-08-06 04:56:35 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would go ahead with it, but MAKE SURE you recieve that USPS Money Order and cash that bad boy right away. If it clears - wait for him to send a shipping label. If it doesn't clear report him to craigslist, at least you'll still have your computer.
I knew of somebody that scammed people on craigslist in CA, he took their money first though and never followed through with the product.
Make sure you keep a copy of that e-mail that was sent to you.
2007-08-06 04:54:54 · answer #6 · answered by operation_toothpaste 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes, this is a scam. DO NOT BELIEVE ANY EMAILS FORMATED LIKE THIS!!!!
This is probably the most common type of scam you will ever encounter. Don't buy into it.
2007-08-06 04:58:19 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You don't have to get a MO approved! SCAM!
2007-08-06 04:54:57 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
is the company your selling to quite reputable? what i mean is are they a big company like pcworld or something or is it just some dodgy little site found on google. i dont think id want to sell to a dodgy little site.
2007-08-06 04:54:45 · answer #9 · answered by OneT 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It doesn't really sound that honest actually. It's just too easy, ya know?
2007-08-06 04:54:03 · answer #10 · answered by vinster82 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋