Scams that target sellers
The overpayment trick sends a forged payment confirmation for more than the asking price, then asks you to refund the difference. The original payment never arrives or is later reversed, so the refund you sent is the entire loss. Screenshots of payment apps and fake transfer emails are trivially produced.
The verification-code request is the other common one. A 'buyer' says they want to check you are real and asks you to read back a code just sent to your phone. That code is a login or account-creation code, and handing it over surrenders an account, often a messaging or authentication account tied to your number.
- An overpayment plus a request to refund the difference
- A payment 'confirmation' email or screenshot instead of money in your account
- A request to read back a code sent to your phone
- A courier the buyer insists on arranging and prepaying
- Pressure to accept a deposit and take the listing down immediately
Scams that target buyers
The classic is an item at a price that is good but not absurd, a seller who cannot meet in person, and a request for a bank transfer or an instant payment app to reserve it. Once sent, that money is gone; consumer payment protections apply to card and platform payments, not to transfers you authorise to a stranger.
Rental and vehicle listings are the high-value versions. A property that cannot be viewed because the owner is abroad, or a car sold through a fake escrow service that mimics a well-known brand, both end in a deposit that buys nothing. Fake shipping-protection pages that mimic the marketplace's own checkout are increasingly common.
- Seller refuses viewing, collection or a video call
- Payment requested by bank transfer, crypto or an instant-payment app
- A 'shipping protection' or escrow site you have never heard of
- Listings copied from elsewhere, findable by reverse image search
- An account created days ago with no history or reviews
The rules that remove most of the risk
Stay on the platform for both conversation and payment. Off-platform chats and payments exist to escape the marketplace's evidence trail and dispute process, which is exactly why the other side wants them.
For local sales, meet in a public place during daylight, ideally a police station's designated exchange spot where one exists, bring someone with you, and check the item works before money moves. For remote sales, pay by card or a platform's protected checkout so a chargeback remains possible.
- Keep chat and payment inside the marketplace
- Never refund an overpayment; cancel the sale instead
- Never read back a code sent to your phone, for any reason
- Confirm money has cleared in your bank, not in a screenshot
- Pay by card or protected checkout, never by transfer to a stranger
Checking a seller or buyer in a minute
Reverse image search the listing photos: stolen images from a retailer or another country's classifieds site are the most reliable single indicator of fraud. Check the account age, the review history and whether the profile has any activity unrelated to selling.
Ask a specific question only a genuine owner could answer, such as a serial number, a detail visible on the underside, or a photo of the item next to today's newspaper or a handwritten note. Scripted scammers deflect or vanish.
If you have already paid
Report it to your bank immediately and to the platform. Card payments can be disputed; instant transfers sometimes can be recalled within minutes; both depend on speed. Keep the listing URL, the profile, the chat and the payment reference, because most platforms remove fraudulent accounts quickly and the evidence disappears with them.
If you gave a verification code, recover the affected account straight away and check which services are tied to that phone number. If you shared identity documents for a supposed rental, treat it as an identity exposure.