Number of times you've been approached by scammers online for games,etc?

[IAmTheCheapestGamer]

You know, I really have lost count how many times I've been sent emails from scammers for my stuff. I know I had at least 3-5 scammers try and wrest away a newer PC from me online, offering me twice what I wanted for it, plus some for shipping and the rest of the amount I would 'ship back to them'.

At that last part, I just had to LOL, since that's one dead giveaway. Of course, the doubling of your asking price isn't a common practice for most buyers, especially online on places like Craigslist.

I got two emails in a row from someone named Veronica today, offering me double what I wanted for my semi-broken PS2(needs a motherboard or the clasp fixed and a set of controller ports) and adding at least $15 for my Gamecube bundle(NIB Gamecube, copies of GUN and Donkey Konga which are also new and a used memory card).

Then, on top of that, she offered $150 in shipping in EACH email for each item, wanting it shipping via USPS Global Express Mail, which I'm not even 100% sure the USPS does that.

The thing that stuck out in my mind that made this seem almost legit was that she offered it in a USPS Money Order or Paypal, though I think Paypal can be charged back somehow, right?

Either way, I don't have Paypal and know that MO's from the USPS have serial #'s and a security thread through them.

So, I requested a USPS MO for $450 from her for the items I'm selling. Now, if it actually comes, its legit and the USPS can actually cash it. Well then, this might not be such a scam after all.

But, I don't expect it to be at all legit.

So, how many times have you been approached by scammers online?

[SaraAB]

None at this point, other than the common email phishing scams.

[Callandor]

When I had my old Xbox 360 on craigslist, of the 6 or so replies I got, only one was from a legitimate buyer. Everyone else wanted to pay me to ship to another continent :roll: . I felt bad for the one legit buyer, since I sold it to a friend of a friend.

[Jedi1979]

i dont think i have ever gotten any...and i have had tons of transactions online..

[IAmTheCheapestGamer]

See, it's weird since I received about 5 people who said they'd pay by cashier check for my newer pc and now these 2 emails from someone wanting to send the stuff to West Africa.

Only legit buyers I've had were the guy who bought my DMC 10th Anniv pack and Heroes Of The Pacific for $33 and my one friend who bought Katamari Damacy from me for $15.

The rest have been scammers or severe hagglers or complete no-shows.

And, out of those three, only the end two aggravate me to no end. If I put in a price that says FIRM, it means NO HAGGLING. And, if I plan on staying here to wait for someone who said they'll 'show up between 1-2 pm', I expect someone to at least show up.

I've had too many people mention being able to get xyz item from abc place for cheaper in response to my ads. If you can get it cheaper someplace else, why bother me then?

[Vinny]

I've had too many people mention being able to get xyz item from abc place for cheaper in response to my ads. If you can get it cheaper someplace else, why bother me then?

Heh... that's always been my stance. I always love saying that because that always shuts the other person up.

I haven't received anything like that but I keep getting these emails from some douchebags on eBay who's trying to advertise themselves as a large electronics distributor and would like to do business with me every time I list something electronic.

[Gara]

Bah! Those people ruin it for everyone. I search other areas craigslist sometimes and almost no one wants to deal with paypal or money order buys.

I get them sometimes when selling on craigslist but they are all so obvious it is painful. The sad thing is that you know damn well they wouldn't be sending out these emails if they didn't work at least some of the time. Do people just see dollar signs and race to the post office to ship something international?

[tangytangerine]

I've had too many people mention being able to get xyz item from abc place for cheaper in response to my ads. If you can get it cheaper someplace else, why bother me then?

Same stance I have, it's not going to hurt me if you can find it cheaper. Someone eventually will buy it that can't find it for that price.

As for scamming emails, exactly why I stay away from Ebay. Had one where a fucker stole a LOZ: CE from me on IGN and apparently he's got a criminal record now in Bucyrus, OH due to ripping off more than 20 people. None of us ever got our crap back though.

The only place I'm cautious about still is GameTZ. Had a couple close calls where the trade would be pending, get weird messages afterwords(usually asking for me to send first, when it was agreed they send first), then I'd cancel it for that reason. Saved me recently from user by the name of CrazyEights, where I would've lost $46 but feel sorry for the other trader that accepted the deal from him. The guy's got 6 BTRs right now where he owes a total of $343.

[camoor]

So, I requested a USPS MO for $450 from her for the items I'm selling. Now, if it actually comes, its legit and the USPS can actually cash it. Well then, this might not be such a scam after all.

But, I don't expect it to be at all legit.

So, how many times have you been approached by scammers online?

Don't do it.

I think they can fake those MO's so that USPS cashs it - then USPS tells you they were wrong and you owe them money.

If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. I would walk away while your credit is in tact.

[phear3d]

when i listed a game on craigslist, someone from china emailed me saying he wanted my game and he'd be happy to pay using western union. i could barely understand what he was saying so i replied with "speak to me again when you learn how to write or speak english". his response was "ok". never heard from him again.

also when i was looking for jobs, i updated my resume on hotjobs.com. i received tons of emails from employers that looked legit only to find out that they were phishing.

[tangytangerine]

also when i was looking for jobs, i updated my resume on hotjobs.com. i received tons of emails from employers that looked legit only to find out that they were phishing.
Exactly why I pulled my resume off of hotjobs & monster. All I got was phishing emails from people outside the state. Basically, if I'm going to find something local, it's better to just look in the local papers. It's how I found my last two jobs. I never once got a offer from someone in my area.

[Apossum]

Listed a wii on ebay and got a couple emails asking for me to end the auction early. It was a week long auction and the person emailed me a few days into it before the bids picked up and said that I should sell it to him early for $100 since no one was bidding on it :roll:

[IAmTheCheapestGamer]

I'll laugh if they actually do send me something, but I know the people at my local PO fully check MO's before ever cashing them.

Either way, I will probably just shred the damned MO and say 'oh I never got it'. LOL

Sort of like my way of telling the scammers to fuck off.

UPDATE: LOL The scammers must think people are really fuckin stupid, since I got a semi-official looking email, claiming to be from the Postal Service. The supposed MO was for $710(not the original $450)and it was 'being held until I provided them with tracking info for MY package, which I was to send out prior to being paid.

All I have to say to that is: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

It seemed legit until today, but oh well, I'm glad I'm not as dumb as some people would be.