Stupid Scammers

[crokett]

I posted our old video camera on Craigslist. About an hour later I get an email saying somebody is interested. His (or her) next email says he is near Boston and will pay via Paypal. I am supposed to ship the camera to his buddy who is on a research trip in Africa. My reply to him was cash only and I'd meet him in person for delivery.

[cabinetman]

Sounds like you set the parameters for the sale.
.

[jking]

Maybe his buddy has a few million dollars he needs tranferred to a US account.

[Hellrazor]

I posted our old video camera on Craigslist. About an hour later I get an email saying somebody is interested. His (or her) next email says he is near Boston and will pay via Paypal. I am supposed to ship the camera to his buddy who is on a research trip in Africa. My reply to him was cash only and I'd meet him in person for delivery.

But he is an heir to the thrown....

[LCHIEN]

Maybe I'm really slow today...
Just how is this a scam?
1. Paypal is designed to protect the seller, you, from hazards of dealing with others. If paypal puts money in your account then you have isolated your account from him and received money from a reputable source even if the payers bank is rotten or his credit card is overlimit or his check bounces. Its designed for third-party transactions just like this or eBay.
2. Once you have the money in your account, what does it matter where you send it?

I can't see a way to attack your paypal account - all he knows is your e-mail address which he already has (or is he replying thru CL?)
I suppose he can claim the item never arrived, you can insist on insurance and add it to his amount, also you can add the cost of international shipping. Duties, if any are the responsibility of the recipient.
If his friend is indeed in Africa, having you send it directly will save him double shipping costs and trouble over having him ship it to him. Not altogether unreasonable.
Where in Africa? Nigeria, land of the scam or some other place?

The only thing is
international shipping can be a headache
paypal costs you fees, did you specifically state no paypal, no shipping in your CL ad?

[MilDoc]

Gotta agree with Loring. If you have a PayPal account, why not? Just ber sure to tack on enough for shipment to Africa!

[kevincan]

I think that the scam part of this is that the Paypal account that they are paying you with is not theirs or that it is funded with a stolen credit card. When Paypal finds this out they take back the funds from your account. You would be out the money and the item that you shipped off.

You could pull the money out of Paypal right away but Paypal will want it back and you would not be able to use your account again until it is paid back.

There are a lot of people that have fun messing with these scammers - I think it is easier to just hit the delete key.

Kevin

[jussi]

Did his initial email start by not naming what you were selling. Was the title of your ad used as the subject line and the body said something like "I'm interested in the item above". Those are the ones I frequently get and have learned early on to just move them to the spam folder. Or if I'm in the mood I'll give them the address to my local police station and say it's my home. They usually say they'll pay by check however not paypal. Perhaps with this scam Paypal discovers the payment was fraudulent and refuses to pay you. I haven't used it. Is there something in the toa that allows them to do that?

[Ed62]

1. Paypal is designed to protect the seller, you, from hazards of dealing with others.

They're also supposed to protect a buyer. One of my sons bought a microphone through e-bay. It didn't work when he got it, and it was supposed to be new. Contacting the seller did no good. Paypal told him they'd see what can be done. It's been a month or more, and he didn't get satisfaction yet. I'm beginning to wonder if they really do protect anyone?

Ed

[ragswl4]

Loring's post makes a lot sense and perhaps kevincan's post may be what's happening. As a seller if one doesn't feel comfortable then its probably best to pass on the offer. On craigslist items, whether selling or buying, I like to do it eyeball to eyeball, cash only.

[crokett]

I think that the scam part of this is that the Paypal account that they are paying you with is not theirs or that it is funded with a stolen credit card. When Paypal finds this out they take back the funds from your account. You would be out the money and the item that you shipped off.

That is what I figured. I am not desperate enough to sell it for anything but cash.