Beware of possible FB marketplace fraud.

[MTT3107]

So, I am in the hunt for 2 68-72 beetle rear fenders, to replace the ones on my bug, which has the big tail lights, which I hate.

Found some on FB, from a user called “Beetle Auto Parts”, who posted a set of front & rear fenders, complete with lights, deck lid, and running boards.
He posted in the “VW beetle parts (buying and selling)” group page.

Got in touch via FB messenger, agreed on a price, and I was supposed to se d payment via Zelle, and then send him a screenshot of the transaction.

Long story short, I made several attempts to send the money, but couldn’t get it done, because it always said “e-mail or phone nr. does not match”.

So, in the end I told him to forget about it.

The repeated attempts caused my bank to block my online banking.

So today I got a call from my bank’s fraud monitoring department, and we went over the whole story, and confirmed that in the end no payment was made.

She explained to us that there is quite a lot of fraud, especially from FB marketplace, and that the request for a screenshot of the Zelle transaction is pretty much a dead giveaway.

Just wanted to share this.

[Schepp]

Whenever the seller insists on using Zelle as the transaction method. That's an immediate giveaway its likely to be a scam. Absolutely zero buyer/transaction protection.
Its basically Venmo/PayPal for scammers.

[MTT3107]

I learned that now…

Should have gotten suspicious, when he told me that he doesn’t have Venmo, or PayPal, only Zelle…

Who doesn’t have Venmo or PayPal these days ?

[Bobs67vwagen]

Glad you stopped it before you got taken. I got taken right here on the samba 20 some odd years ago also for fenders. Be careful there are plenty of those types out there.

[Schepp]

I once met a guy for a $20 local sale. The man spoke almost zero English. He handed me a $100 bill. I put it in my pocket and began to walk away. He stopped me and wanted change. I told him this aint 711. Suddenly he spoke real good English.
That afternoon was a giant waste of time and no deal was made.
What I learned that day, was that I hate selling shit and people suck.

[MTT3107]

????

So you made a deal for $20, and were just going to walk away with $80 ???

[scottyrocks]

A good way to (almost) insure that the seller actually has the item(s) is to request that they take photos of the items with, within frame, a hand lettered card with something that you request he writes. At least you'll know the pictures weren't just pulled from anywhere.
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[EverettB]

Good advice.

I've also asked them to send me a specific photo of something when it's a car or part.

Example:
"Send me a photo of your finger pointing to the VIN #."

The scammers will either stop responding at that point or they will send you another photo they have that won't be what you asked for.
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