Craigslist.org, Bay Area most popular website for classifieds, although not directly involved in such transactions, is a common place to encounter scams. The most familiar schema is someone sending you a check for larger than the agreed amount, then asking you to deposit it and send the "extra" cash via Western Union or other wire services. Beware! I discovered one myself.
A couple of weeks ago I posted an ad for private yoga sessions. Then someone named Lurd Guggard contacted me asking me to tutor his 14-year-old son. He explained in his multiple emails to me that he couldn’t meet in person because he was going on the trip, but that the payment will be arriving soon.
When the check arrived I sensed something wasn't right. First, the check was for larger sum than we agreed on. "Ok," I thought, "why would I be complaining?" Then, the check was written on behalf of Hawkins & Parnell, LLP, which sounded like a law firm. Third, the check was from Suntrust Bank in Atlanta, GA. The rest of it looked like a legitimate check. Oh, one other thing. The sender's name and address did not match anything on the check itself or the name used in the email.
After careful examination of all of the above, I decided to do the following (and recommend to you in case you find yourself in a similar situation):
* Research to see if the company whose name appears on the check exists
* Contact the company whose name is on the check
* Hold off on depositing the check
Meanwhile, I wrote back to Lurd Guggard informing him that I received the check for larger amount and asking him if everything was correct.
Shortly after, I received the following reply.
"I receive an important message from my Son Guardian that they are in need of Urgent found to make some arrangement for their coming over this evening So i want you kindly make arrangement on getting the money to them today because i don't want them to miss their flight today .So i want you to kindly get $2000 to the Guardian through western union money transfer.And deduct your own money for the whole month and keep the ramaning money with you till i come to pay my son a visit in your location .So get back to me with western union information as soon as you have the money sent . Here is the Guardian information in which the money will be sent to through western union
Name......Alina Aguirre
Address......101 W. Manchester Blvd
City.........Inglewood
State........CA
Zip-Code....90301
Thanks and God bless"
At this point I was convinced this was a scam. Again, while still waiting for the law firm to get back to me, I wrote back to Lurd saying that I will not be transferring any money anywhere. To which he replied with this:
"Hello i don understand all what you are saying .all i want you to do is to get the check cashed and in your bank,and deduct your actual amount and get the rest fund send to the information i send to you which is micheal Guardian information cos i don want them to miss there flight on tuesday and get back to me with the westernunion information here is the Guardian information once again
Name......Alina Aguirre
Address......101 W. Manchester Blvd
City.........Inglewood
State........CA
Zip-Code....90301"
"Yeah, right," I thought.
* NEVER WIRE FUNDS VIA WESTERN UNION, MONEYGRAM or any other wire service - anyone who asks you to do so is a scammer.
* FAKE CASHIER CHECKS & MONEY ORDERS ARE COMMON, and BANKS WILL CASH THEM AND THEN HOLD YOU RESPONSIBLE when the fake is discovered weeks later.
* CRAIGSLIST IS NOT INVOLVED IN ANY TRANSACTION, and does not handle payments, guarantee transactions, provide escrow services, or offer "buyer protection" or "seller certification"
* NEVER GIVE OUT FINANCIAL INFORMATION (bank account number, social security number, eBay/PayPal info, etc.)
* AVOID DEALS INVOLVING SHIPPING OR ESCROW SERVICES and know that ONLY A SCAMMER WILL "GUARANTEE" YOUR TRANSACTION.
Also, here is who you can contact to report scam or fraud:
* FTC online complaint form (http://www.ftc.gov)
* Canadian PhoneBusters hotline: 888-495-8501
* Internet Fraud Complaint Center (http://www.ic3.gov)
* Non-emergency number for your local police department.
