# Is everyone on craigslist a scam artist? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 23, 2022, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946 "2022-05-23T17:56:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2022, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/1 "2022-05-23T17:56:10Z")
I posted a piece of furniture for sale yesterday ($300) and got an interesting response: The potential buyer wanted it, but couldn’t get there right away. So he would send me a cashier’s check for the amount plus an extra $50 for my trouble - and would only pick up the furniture after the check cleared. And by the way, he doesn’t respond to craigslist email so please contact him at this email address. Seems foolproof … what could go wrong? But I turned him down just on general principles – cash only. What’s weird is that a few hours later I got another response from a different individual, with the _exact same script_. Cashier’s check, extra $50, “contact me at this email”. It seems like they’re going through an awful lot of trouble just to get stuck with a huge piece of ugly furniture. ---
**Author:** ![Cleophus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e57/32.png) [@Cleophus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cleophus)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2022, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/2 "2022-05-23T18:06:48Z")
All of these are sent by bots. There’s no one individually responding to posts (which is why they use generic words like “the item” when responding). They don’t want the furniture and no one will ever show up at your house because the true purpose is extract real money from a fake check. After you cash the (fake) check they will either ask you to send the “extra” money to their “courier” (actually the scammer using a different contact) or ask you to buy gift cards because they are buying your item as a present for someone else and want to include the gift cards with the “gift”, then later ask you to scratch off the gift card and send the code(s) to the scammer. They may try to claim the transaction is being “handled” by eBay, Amazon, or another well-known brand, which is completely false. These companies only provide transaction support for products sold directly through them. Even if you do cash the check, which you should not, your bank will appear to credit the full amount to your account. This happens because the fake check is in the form of a cashier’s check, which banks are obligated by law to credit immediately. But the fraudulent nature of the check will eventually be discovered over a few days or even weeks, at which point your bank will remove the entire amount of the check from your account, possibly causing an overdraft to boot. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2022, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/3 "2022-05-23T18:10:01Z")
Pure scam, I went through this two years ago or so. But plenty of honest people on craigslist also. Lots of details here: > [@Craig's List Cashier's check Scam, How does it work?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/craigs-list-cashiers-check-scam-how-does-it-work/919157): > > I’m using Craig’s list for the first time and I think I’m being scammed but don’t know how it works. I just received a cashier’s check out of nowhere from a person I don’t know. I think this is related to an item I’m selling as I provided an address & phone number thinking it was real. Though the check is for far more than the discussed amount. So lets say the check was for the amount discussed and I cashed it, how does the scam work? This might be the most important post in that thread: > [@Craig's List Cashier's check Scam, How does it work?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/craigs-list-cashiers-check-scam-how-does-it-work/919157/27): > > Well on the bright side, 4 of the 6 items I listed sold. The piano just went today. > The cheap air hockey table we put out to the road instead and it went for free. > > **I added to the descriptions of my items: _No checks or Cashier’s checks accepted. Already had a scam attempted against me._** > > This seems to help eliminate the scam inquiries. ---
**Author:** ![Cleophus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e57/32.png) [@Cleophus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cleophus)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2022, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/4 "2022-05-23T19:38:00Z")
Also, it’s good to know scammers have found new methods that get away from fake cashier’s checks or requests to ship goods. They will offer payment with common peer to peer payment systems like PayPal or Venmo, but they will not actually send you money. Rather, you will receive a (somewhat) convincing email that appears to be from the payment service, claims your money is being held until shipment, that you must reply with a tracking number to “release” payment, and that you will not see the pending transaction in your account view until it is “released”. Scammers may also falsely claim you must “upgrade” your account to a business account to receive payment and you can do so by sending some fee (several hundred dollars) to “verify” your account, after which you would be refunded the “verification” or “processing” fee. This is common with Venmo or CashApp and takes advantage of general unfamiliarity with these services. Needless to say, this is all completely false. Genuine payments will always appear when you are logged into your account and there is no such thing as a Venmo or CashApp business account. And while PayPal does have business accounts, they aren’t required to receive personal payments and getting one does not involve sending a “verification fee” to anyone. The address you are told to send “verification” is actually controlled by the scammer, after which they will take that money and disappear. Naturally the best defense against these is to stick to the original intent of Craigslist: in-person, cash-only transactions. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2022, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/5 "2022-05-23T21:33:44Z")
We just got a used BBQ grill on Craigslist, listed for $10. It was part of an elderly man’s estate; the son just wanted to get rid of stuff and gave it to us free, but didn’t want to list it as free because he’d gotten burned by Craigslist crazies before. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2022, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/6 "2022-05-23T22:06:00Z")
> [@Cleophus](#): > > Also, it’s good to know scammers have found new methods that get away from fake cashier’s checks or requests to ship goods. They will offer payment with common peer to peer payment systems like PayPal or Venmo, but they will not actually send you money. The responses I got to my posting yesterday consisted of the 2 “cashiers check” people that I now know are scam-bots; and a 3rd that I thought was legit…except that he asked if I take Venmo. Sigh. Needless to say I haven’t heard from him today. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2022, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/7 "2022-05-24T00:35:49Z")
First, I second everything **Cleophus** said. Numero two o, I’ve never sold on Craigslist. I have had good luck selling on Facebook Marketplace. I was never contacted by a scammer. Everything I sold was actually paid for. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2022, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/8 "2022-05-24T01:55:48Z")
I’ve successfully sold stuff like furniture on Craiglist. I’d say about one third of responses are scams, one third are problematic humans, one third are okay humans. A difficulty is that even genuine buyers reply with vague stuff like “Is this still available?” that doesn’t distinguish them from a bot. I reply only via Craigslist email, ignoring any request to use some other method of communication. After answering any questions, agreeing to or rejecting any price negotiation, I always ask specifically “When do you want to pick it up?” without giving my address. You can usually figure out from the second reply if someone is real, and if they are going to be straightfoward to deal with or problematic. Nobody ever gets my phone number, and nobody gets my address until a few emails have gone back and forth and they have passed psychiatric triage. Hard no on any nonsense about “will you hold it for me until…”, hard no on ANY complication. This will be the entirety of our business dealings: you bring money, I give table. With those parameters, I’ve successfully sold a bunch of extra furniture, and met a few nice people. I’ve also used Nextdoor succsessfully. It doesn’t access such a wide market, but much less triage is required. ---
**Author:** ![Cleophus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e57/32.png) [@Cleophus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cleophus)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2022, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/9 "2022-05-24T02:30:39Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > The responses I got to my posting yesterday consisted of the 2 “cashiers check” people that I now know are scam-bots; and a 3rd that I thought was legit…except that he asked if I take Venmo. Sigh. Needless to say I haven’t heard from him today. Perhaps contrary to other advice out there on the Internet, IMO Venmo/CashApp is OK _if_ the person is meeting you face-to-face and sends payment then, where you can confirm receipt before handing over the item and which rules out distant scammers. Up to you, of course. But sticking to “cash only” is still the easiest way to exclude scammers. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2022, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/10 "2022-05-24T02:49:40Z")
> [@Cleophus](#): > > Venmo/CashApp Venmo is not risky in terms of the payment - you see an unconditional and irrevocable payment arrive in real time. But is there any way to avoid giving the payer either the phone number or email associated with your account? ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2022, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/11 "2022-05-24T03:48:15Z")
It’s not all scammers–I’ve bought three of my last four cars off Craigslist and had no problems at all. I’m pretty thorough in my vetting before I ever go see the car and if the seller won’t give up the VIN to run a Carfax report (and to make sure the VIN matches the particulars of the car itself) then I have no need to go see that car. I don’t give a shit if you’re selling a gullwing Mercedes for a hunnert bucks, you don’t give me basic info and VIN and I lose all interest in pursuing the vehicle. Maybe _especially_ if it’s a gullwing for a Benjamin, my mama didn’t raise no stupid kids. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2022, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/12 "2022-05-24T04:00:00Z")
> [@SmartAleq](#): > > gullwing for a Benjamin Band name! ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2022, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/13 "2022-05-24T04:17:14Z")
About 10 years ago when I tried selling a old but still working fine 50 inch TV on Craigslist the scan was people would try to “trade” you with whatever the scam product of the week was. I got so many people wanting to swap “Speakers that retail for $500!” for my $200 HDTV. ---
**Author:** ![gnarator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gnarator/32/8266_2.png) [@gnarator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnarator)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2022, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/14 "2022-05-24T04:30:43Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > I’d say about one third of responses are scams, one third are problematic humans, one third are okay humans. I’d say that’s been my experience as well. The scams I ignore. The flaky sellers and buyers drive me nuts, though. I get really irritated with people who try to haggle through email. Show up when you say you will with cash and then we can deal. Facebook Marketplace seems to have its share of scams, too. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2022, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/15 "2022-05-24T04:43:49Z")
> [@gkster](#): > > We just got a used BBQ grill on Craigslist, listed for $10. It was part of an elderly man’s estate; the son just wanted to get rid of stuff and gave it to us free, but didn’t want to list it as free because he’d gotten burned by Craigslist crazies before. We just bought a used $1200 couch for $250 last week on Craigslist with no issue (damn thing even has two USB ports!) My wife and I have bought probably 10-20 items, and we’ve sold probably a half dozen (including a car), and had no problems. I’m not sure I’ve ever gotten the cashier’s check scam from them (I have from other places), but that’s such an obvious scam (going on over a decade or so by now, maybe two) that if I did, I would have forgotten about it, as that email would instantly been glossed over. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2022, 6:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/16 "2022-05-24T06:47:16Z")
@pulykamell I just went through my emails and see that over the past 6 years we’ve bought at least 10 items on Craigslist with no problems. There was another item that was a scam attempt, but 1 out of 10 or 12 isn’t bad. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2022, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/17 "2022-05-26T21:43:13Z")
I think calling them artists gives them way too much credit. An artist will display a certain amount of imagination and skill plying their trade. These are just generic color by numbers scammers. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2022, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/18 "2022-05-28T21:33:40Z")
I’ve had decent luck on both CL and FB Marketplace. Better luck on the former than the latter. Marketplace seems to be full of people who just like to ask “Is this still available?” and then never respond or follow up. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2022, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/19 "2022-05-28T21:54:27Z")
I’ve been buying and selling on craigslist, nextdoor, and more recently, fb marketplace for years. Everything from beds to chickens. I’ve probably had scammers email me but they are so obvious I delete and forget almost instantly. The rule for these venues is face to face and cash only, and that is widely understood. I’ve never offered a check or been offered one. Long distance stuff I do Paypal. I ship after I get paid. The main problem isn’t scammers, it is flakes. People who make an appointment and then never show. I figure about 50% of people do this. It’s part of doing business that way. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2022, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946/20 "2022-05-28T22:25:16Z")
It’s 9 years ago now but I had very good experiences on Craigslist in the Midwest. Sold a houseful of furniture & accessories to a bunch of very nice folks. Only had one or two flakes, and quickly somebody else showed up and took the goods instead. Here in So FL in 2022 the word on the street is it’s 100% flakes except for the 85% who are conmen to boot. I can’t say from personal experience; haven’t had the guts to try. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-everyone-on-craigslist-a-scam-artist/964946.md?page=2)