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Scam via Text Message From eBrandon Classifieds

Scam via Text Message From eBrandon Classifieds

JamesC
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 20

JamesC
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 20

Scam via Text Message From eBrandon Classifieds
8/1/2016 at 6:03 PM

Hope this helps prevent some fraud, not sure if it's been reported here before or not, but I just posted a listing to eBrandon classifieds and almost immediately received a message from a scammer.

Here's how it works:
1) You post a message to classifieds and give your cell number
2) You receive a text message asking if you still have the item available
3) They claim they have someone locally who will pick it up and ship it to them
4) They ask for your PayPal email to send you money for payment in full
5) With your email address, they send you a phishing link to a site that looks like PayPal (but it's NOT)

At this point, an unsuspecting user would assume they are on PayPal, provide their user name and password, and essentially give their credentials to the scammers. If you have your CC and bank account tied to PayPal...well, they would have access to that, too.

The phone number used was 1-814-651-7984. They used broken English and claimed not to know how to use the internet (in spite of finding my ad on eBrandon). There are multiple reports of this being a fraudulent phone number online. The domain they were using LOOKED like it was a PayPal site (http://paypal.com.customerservice.some-other-site.cn) but was on an IP address resolving to China and asks you to log in to secure the funds and accept payment. (I'm not posting the actual domain here, no need to spread that around).

I work in internet banking security and see this kind of thing all the time, but I'd never seen this from an eBrandon classified posting before.

My recommendations are:
1) Prefer cash and local pickup: pick a public spot, bring a friend
2) If you agree to use PayPal (which is safe, by the way), make sure you use the http://paypal.me service, where you send the BUYER to a web site to pay you with an amount you specify. You can enable this service through the PayPal app on your phone.
3) Pay attention: email transfers via PayPal do not require you to log in to complete the transfer. You send money, and it's done. If someone does get you to go to a web site to confirm your balance, just log in to https://paypal.com directly and ignore any links they put in their message to you.

Hope this helps prevent someone from getting duped.
Silver22
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 1047

Silver22
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 1047

.
8/1/2016 at 8:52 PM

Good advice, nice writeup. My wife also received a message like this for her vehicle she is selling. The PayPal request set off all sorts of red flags for us. We told them where to go and how to get there without hesitation.

I'd just avoid PayPal altogether. It's ripe for abuse and fraud with chargebacks. There is absolutely no reason it needs to be used in a transaction where a tangible o:bject will need to be exchanged like in a classified ad.

Edited by Opportunities Abound, 2016-08-01 20:53:44
Adam

Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 15663

Adam
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 15663

Scams
8/1/2016 at 9:20 PM

Thanks for taking the time to share an extensive cautionary tale.
Text message is in fact a medium that scammers have tried and will try to use. There are systems in place to limit how en masse they can do it, but its inevitable that some will sneak through. That's why it's important that we have educational posts like this one come up from time to time since education is the #1 weapon against scams.

The main thing that I can never stress enough is that with this intended as a local service, dealings should be local and in-person. Any time someone is asking you to send any form of payment or personal information without having first met in person for item viewing (no matter what emotionally appealing excuse they give) it should be seen as a huge red flag and is not a transaction I would be pursuing.

You can read more on safe practices when using the service at:
https://ebrandon.ca/classifieds_safety.aspx
jollyrancher
Joined: Jul 2016
Posts: 7

jollyrancher
Joined: Jul 2016
Posts: 7

So True
8/2/2016 at 2:08 PM

A friend of mine advertised her dining room set on a popular classified site (not ebrandon) and a guy called, said he was from Montreal but out of the country right now but he would send a check along with an extra $1500 that she was supposed to give to the person picking up the dining set for him. I told her it smelled like a scam so when the check arrived, she called the bank it was written on and they told her it was a fraud scam. She also tried to contact the business name on the check and it to was a scam.
Old saying, if it sounds too good to be true, it more than likely isn't. Adam is right, deal locally and beware of people who just can't get there to look at it but will send their friend as they are out of town, etc. I think the same type of scam was used to trick people into renting an apartment recently here in Brandon. Sad reality we live in nowadays, who to trust and who not to trust.
ReneSt
Joined: Apr 2016
Posts: 11

ReneSt
Joined: Apr 2016
Posts: 11

me2
8/2/2016 at 5:43 PM

Yeah I got one of those texts too.
but I ignored it because the way the text was written was rude as hell. The sender basically ordered me too ship the Ps3 that I was selling to his niece and I have to pay for that shipping and he/they would reimburse me for it.
johnnoon
Joined: Dec 2013
Posts: 123

johnnoon
Joined: Dec 2013
Posts: 123

first hint of trouble
8/2/2016 at 9:03 PM

was the .cn , that is not where Paypal is located.

similar for any link if it ends in .cn, .ru and a few others then 90% plus chance of being a scam.

never click a link without checking properties and ensure all spelling is correct. On occasion I have run into links that swap a couple of letters and would never be noticed under a quick glance.