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Does this sound like a fraud?

S

sir42

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Sep 16, 2003
446
20
NY, NY
I live in New York and I posted an ad on Craigslist this afternoon for my iBook G4. One buyer seemed particularly interested and after a few e-mails going back and forth she sent me the e-mail below. I'm not very trusting and my fraud meter is definitely going off. What do guys think?

If you are really sure thats it's in a perfect working condition i will be very happy to purchase the computer from you but am in florida i dont be able to come down to pick it up but i will make an arrangment by sending you a bank of america money order to your home address and i will wait till you confirm the money order before you shipp out the computer and i will be paying for shipping with my personal account with fedex.....You can just get back to me to me with your name and adress so i can send out the money to you today

Too good to be true?

thanks!
 
sir42 said:
I live in New York and I posted an ad on Craigslist this afternoon for my iBook G4. One buyer seemed particularly interested and after a few e-mails going back and forth she sent me the e-mail below. I'm not very trusting and my fraud meter is definitely going off. What do guys think?

If you are really sure thats it's in a perfect working condition i will be very happy to purchase the computer from you but am in florida i dont be able to come down to pick it up but i will make an arrangment by sending you a bank of america money order to your home address and i will wait till you confirm the money order before you shipp out the computer and i will be paying for shipping with my personal account with fedex.....You can just get back to me to me with your name and adress so i can send out the money to you today

Too good to be true?

thanks!
Click to expand...


Apart of the fact that Bank of America don't issue money orders and assuming that she meant a cashier check, you have nothing to loose. You go to the bank and if you can cash the check then you have the money. Be sure to tell the cashier that you received the check as part of a commercial transaction with someone in Florida and you want to make sure is not a fake (yes cashier checks can be faked) so you don't get in trouble. If it is a fake they maybe thinking you are the culprit. Other than that sound like a good deal. About the Fedex account you can check that onlibe with Fedex
 
I just read that really fast, and I skipped some as the language is I'd say 50% understandable, but it sounds like you get your money before you have to ship it at all. Once you get the check, get the money, make sure everything works fine, and then send it.
 
After the cashier's check is cashed, wait around 5 business days to make sure it's real. I know someone that was able to cash one, and about a week later they recieved a call from that same bank sending them a bill for the amount the cashier's check was written for. In other words, it looked real until the bank processed it.
 
firsttube said:
After the cashier's check is cashed, wait around 5 business days to make sure it's real. I know someone that was able to cash one, and about a week later they recieved a call from that same bank sending them a bill for the amount the cashier's check was written for. In other words, it looked real until the bank processed it.
Click to expand...

Bank of America should be able to contact the branch in Florida and make a security check on the spot. I think actually is what they do anyway with every check.
 
If you actually take it to Bank of America they will confirm it's real for you. Definitely don't ship it out without doing that. Even better to get them to send you a USPS Money Order but whatever...it's probably a scam. Just be careful since it could just be someone who can't speak english very well.
 
I'd ask for a postal money order instead, since the Post Office has an online fraud graphic.

http://www.usps.com/postalinspectors/mofeatur.htm

If they are not willing to buy a postal money order and complete the transaction via US mail, run.

The Postal Inspectors are probably your greatest defense to fraud, since they take Postal Fraud seriously.

And cashiers checks will usually be available before they clear -- which can take up to 3 weeks.
 
Don't do it. Craigslist is for LOCAL BUYERS. Why can't she find a laptop like that in Florida? They aren't THAT hard to find. I;ve heard of fake money orders so forget it. Check the Florida Craigslist to see if I'm correct -- in fact, I know this is a scam. The FedEx personal account gave it away. Look up the powerbook nigerian scam through FedEx -- it is a famous scam. Craigslist is NOT eBay. No safety nets at all.
 
You know my fraud detector was buzzing but I couldn't get a good read. Thanks for the replies. I think I'll just wait for a local buyer!
 
Its really your decision, but I can't find anything wrong with this so far. Just make sure the money order clears adn is not fake. It sounds like the customer is giving you time to do that. Nothing is saying fraud yet.... unless of course you think of any online transaction as fraud. I really don't see how wanting to send a money order makes it automatically a fraud!!!! All you people are really freaking out here...
 
It's the other issues that make it a fraud -- most importantly the out of town buyer. I can't tell you how many scammers I got out of state when I sold an iBook on Craigslist. I just came out and asked them why they would want to pay extra for shipping and insurance when there were iBooks to be had in their town. They probably don't live in Florida, probably out of country, btw.
And you can fake money orders, btw, too. If she's willing to give you thirty days on the money order, fine. Also tell her you want a Post oFfice money order, too. One with the Post Office ID number that is traceable to some extent. You'll never hear from "her" again.
 
dferrara said:
If they don't speak English, don't trade. Good rule.
Click to expand...
If they don't write a decent English sentence ...

You may be waiting a long time for somebody that didn't graduate from a public school in the US.
 
sir42 said:
I live in New York and I posted an ad on Craigslist this afternoon for my iBook G4. One buyer seemed particularly interested and after a few e-mails going back and forth she sent me the e-mail below. I'm not very trusting and my fraud meter is definitely going off. What do guys think?

If you are really sure thats it's in a perfect working condition i will be very happy to purchase the computer from you but am in florida i dont be able to come down to pick it up but i will make an arrangment by sending you a bank of america money order to your home address and i will wait till you confirm the money order before you shipp out the computer and i will be paying for shipping with my personal account with fedex.....You can just get back to me to me with your name and adress so i can send out the money to you today

Too good to be true?

thanks!
Click to expand...


Its a SCAM, they will send you an email saying you are getting the money and then want you to ship the product.. If you want check the FL craiglist they will be a Ibook on there , why dont they buy that one..
 
Jedi128 said:
Its really your decision, but I can't find anything wrong with this so far. Just make sure the money order clears adn is not fake. It sounds like the customer is giving you time to do that. Nothing is saying fraud yet.... unless of course you think of any online transaction as fraud. I really don't see how wanting to send a money order makes it automatically a fraud!!!! All you people are really freaking out here...
Click to expand...

Why would somebody in FL check craiglist in NY. Not sure the price but the seller seems smart (on macrumors) and wont give it away. Craiglist is for local deals only. Maybe not on tickets since somebody might cancel a trip or something but on computers.

Money order on craiglist 100% scam, company check probably not a scam. If you check craiglist and ebay prices are almost the same. Why would somebody just send a random person a money order? Why not just use ebay for a buyer?

Also 5 days to clear but sometime the bank makes a mistake (or the person sent 10+ people the same exact money order so they seem real at first) they will take that money out of your account even after 30 days.

Take only Postal money order cash them at the post office for cash, then ship.
 
I deal with music gear all the time and this is exactly the kind of message I delete right away.

Of course you can always send a really nasty response to check it out. If they're for real they'll be offended. If it's a fraud, they won't reply :D :rolleyes:
 
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