Scam alert for all Airstreamers

[Isuzusweet]

Hi all

I would like to warn all of you who are looking for anything on any site but especially this site.

There are people out there that troll this site looking for Airstreamers looking for items, weather it be trailers, motorhomes or specific hardware. They will approach you by e-mail saying that another member referred them to you and that they have what you so desperately want. They will pass themselves off as being in their "golden years" a part of the trustworthy generation and supply you with their phone number and even their cell number. The price will be a great deal and they will be very knowledgable about the product you want and will have pictures of the item you want (easily found with Google images). They will answer all your questions and even offer extra's to sweeten the deal.
They will tell you that they have no Paypal account, Visa or Mastercard and they will only accept cash.

If you send the cash, you can say goodbye to your money. They count on the fact that the amount you have lost usually 500 to maybe 5000 dollars for a down payment is embarrassing to you, that you will eat it and not approach the authorities. The sad thing is that even if you contacted the police, it's your word against theirs that you sent them any money at all. All the police will do is caution you not to send cash ever again.

My suggestion for anyone considering buying anything from someone that you don't know, that is of any value and far away would be for you to get in contact with another Airstreamer that lives close by to the item; explain to them your concern, and ask if they could pick up the item for you, or at least verify that the item exists and the owner is reputable. At least the Airstreamer you have contacted will be a known Airstreamer with a history. The troll trying to sell you the item will probably NOT be registered to the site or will have very little history and posts and will tell you that he or she can't possibly meet the Airstreamer you have contacted due to illness, or out of town commitments.

The best way to protect yourself is not to send cash at all. Cash is not traceable.

This scam does work unfortunately and preys upon your NEED to have that very special part, trailer or motorhome for that great price.

I can't stress this enough….the're TROLLS among us. Be careful.

Cheers
Tony

[92landyacht]

Maybe it just me, but I would never buy an item from anyone for cash when I didn't have the item in hand. That's just being stupid. I would hope that most here wouldn't fall into such a ridiculous scam. I certainly hope that you weren't one of the naive that were taken by this simplistic scam.

[DanB]

Not to be rude, but anyone that would send a cash payment over five bucks to anyone but their Grandma deserves to be scammed!

Thanks for the heads up though. Reminders never hurt!

[Isuzusweet]

I did not mean this to turn into a judgemental thread over anyones lack of foresight. I would certainly hope that in future, posters would refrain from offering any sort of judgement but merely read the thread and take heed.

I was not taken but was approached by an individual that offered to sell me something that I wanted in the manner I have explained. These people are very good at what they do in gaining ones confidence and can be very convincing.

As I stated in my original posting, people that are taken tend NOT to reveal it to anyone! The scammer hopes that they don't talk about it so others can be taken advantage of and the scam continues.

There are a great many of us out there that have been scammed in one way or another at one time in our lifetimes by a salesman, telemarketer or by a classmate or friend and not even know it, including I'd imagine the two previous posters, and I would not presume to call you stupid.

Cheers
Tony

[Stefrobrts]

You only think you're smarter than the con men, until one of them gets you! And they are indeed getting sneakier all the time, and know just how to prey on your trust. So it's a very valid warning, be skeptical, be careful. Unfortunately they can be found on the forums, as well as everywhere else on the internet.

If you are ever scammed by another member of this forum, or believe they are trying to scam you, please report it to the mods, we want to know when stuff like this is going on.

[Jim & Susan]

Maybe I'm missing something.....but........

In order for this particular scam to work, to get your email addr, the scammers have to be members here, right?

Simply report the email address to the boys and girls in the back room (like Steph, aka the Moderator team) and they will kick them off these forums. There are are several ways for the Mods to do that...and they're pretty dang good at it.

Full disclosure, nuttin's 100 %, but the Mods do a great job here.

Jim

[rodsterinfl]

When I bought a used propride hitch from a guy halfway across the country it was somewhat tense. He asked that I send a check or pay up front,I said no but lets figure a way that protects us both. We did it through pay pal and a credit card. Worked great. You do have to be careful.

[Foiled Again]

Originally Posted by Stefrobrts

You only think you're smarter than the con men, until one of them gets you! And they are indeed getting sneakier all the time, and know just how to prey on your trust. So it's a very valid warning, be skeptical, be careful. Unfortunately they can be found on the forums, as well as everywhere else on the internet.

If you are ever scammed by another member of this forum, or believe they are trying to scam you, please report it to the mods, we want to know when stuff like this is going on.

Stef

Thanks for the advice. PLEASE REPORT IT TO THE MODS!
Cash isn't traceable, but perhaps the use of the forums - especially if the Troll tries again under another Avatar - might be.

Paula

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by Isuzusweet

I would certainly hope that in future, posters would refrain from offering any sort of judgement but merely read the thread and take heed.

You're on the same AirForums I am, right? Then you should know for an ironclad certainty that there will always be posters who offer some sort of judgment after reading. Sometimes even just after reading the most recent post rather than the whole thread.

Bear in mind, e-mail scams are considered fraud, and they're investigated by the FBI, if reported to them. If you have reason to believe that you're being targeted by a scammer, contact your local FBI office and provide them copies of the e-mails you received, and then the FBI take it from there.

Reporting to the mods is good; it gets the scammers off the forums. But it doesn't get the scammers prosecuted the way reporting them to the FBI does.

[Isuzusweet]

Originally Posted by Protagonist

You're on the same AirForums I am, right? Then you should know for an ironclad certainty that there will always be posters who offer some sort of judgment after reading. Sometimes even just after reading the most recent post rather than the whole thread.

Bear in mind, e-mail scams are considered fraud, and they're investigated by the FBI, if reported to them. If you have reason to believe that you're being targeted by a scammer, contact your local FBI office and provide them copies of the e-mails you received, and then the FBI take it from there.

Reporting to the mods is good; it gets the scammers off the forums. But it doesn't get the scammers prosecuted the way reporting them to the FBI does.

Yes, I should have known better, my bad, but I thought my smackdown was well put don't you think?

I realize that the NSA, CIA, Dept of Homeland Security and who knows how many other black op Yankee Imperialistic snoops are watching what I type here, but the last time I checked there were no "local" FBI offices in Canada. Not to say that even they don't operate here secretly; you know, just in case us Canucks start selling our oil to the Chinese.

As I stated before, the feds have more "pressing" people to go after, like tree huggers than low money scammers.

Thanks for being non judgemental though in your post and I was being light hearted in my response.

Cheers
Tony

[Frank's Trailer Works]

if the scammer is so knowledgeable of Airstream related items, wouldn't they be a fellow Airstreamer? You gave the gist of how you were scammed but not a lot of detail. Would it be possible to elaborate just a little more? I appreciate that you have share in your bad experience that other might not have the same experience. I have tried to do the same by showing my mistake and been mocked here.
I have numerous times sent parts both fabricated and reclaimed without any deposit or actually knowing the person on the other end. So far it has never been taken advantage of and most really appreciate the old school service.

[92landyacht]

Stupid is as stupid does... Sending $500 in cash in advance for an item is just pain stupid. There are other ways to safely pay for items. Paypal does offer protection. If the seller will only deal in cash, then only deal with the seller in person.

[DanB]

OK, I don't have a reputation of being insulting or aggressive to anyone on Airforums. I fact, I'd happily sit around a campfire with most everyone here.

Isuzusweet - I apologize if I came off that way. I had a hard weekend camping and was tired last night!

I will certainly hold by my statement about sending cash though. Does anyone really even consider that anymore? I mean it, REALLY?

As far a protection for scams, as I said, thank you for the advice to stay vigilant. Also, for those with elderly parents on the net, be sure to keep them extremely aware about the scams. I've unfortunately had to go to the extreme case of almost making them afraid to open emails.

Again, I apologize if my post was out of line. That wasn't my intent.

[perryg114]

I would also look at the number of posts a person has made. If they have only made 10 posts and all of them were related to selling stuff then that is suspect. If they have been a contributing member and they have some technical posts then you will probably come out ok dealing with them. Never send cash to anyone as everyone else has said. Click on a person's handle on the left side, click on view public profile and then click on statistics and you can read all the posts a person has made on these forums.

I have seen some folks post classified adds on here I have never heard of them and they have little or no post history. I think that there should be some restrictions on who can post classified adds on here. Something like being a member for a certain time or having to have a certain number of posts in order to do so. How do we filter the scammers out of the classified adds?

Perry

[SteveSueMac]

Originally Posted by 92landyacht

Stupid is as stupid does... Sending $500 in cash in advance for an item is just pain stupid.

What ever happened to the "be nice" principle?

Reactions like yours are not only offensive and unnecessarily belligerent, but they are primary contributors to the reason fewer people report scams. When scammed, one feels "stupid" enough already. How does piling on help?

If your intent was to help, I don't believe you succeeded. I stopped reading after the snippet I quoted above. Please allow me to suggest you might save your anger and judgment for the scammers who deserve it and adopt a more approachable way to educate others to avoid scams.

[Frank's Trailer Works]

Originally Posted by 92landyacht

Stupid is as stupid does...

you left off the rest of that saying. Why? It is "stupid is as stupid does, but stupid always knows stupid"

BTW, I often send people cash. Cash talks and often gets you better deal. Never once have I been burned. I am probably just stupid however.

[GAStreamin]

Originally Posted by perryg114

I would also look at the number of posts a person has made. If they have only made 10 posts and all of them were related to selling stuff then that is suspect. If they have been a contributing member and they have some technical posts then you will probably come out ok dealing with them. Never send cash to anyone as everyone else has said. Click on a person's handle on the left side, click on view public profile and then click on statistics and you can read all the posts a person has made on these forums.

I have seen some folks post classified adds on here I have never heard of them and they have little or no post history. I think that there should be some restrictions on who can post classified adds on here. Something like being a member for a certain time or having to have a certain number of posts in order to do so. How do we filter the scammers out of the classified adds?

Perry

This is exactly what we did when we recently bought our AS. The forum user was in Texas and we were in Georgia. I could tell from his past posts that he has been a long time Airstream owner and had been posting on the forums for a long time. He also was willing to give character references from the local fire chief, where he used to work, and in return we offered the same. We sent a binder via a cashier's check and then we did have to go on faith as did he. We offered for him to verify funds for our final cashier's check before we met. Everyone did their homework and we had a successful honest sale through the forums. Good luck!

[r carl]

Originally Posted by 92landyacht

Stupid is as stupid does... Sending $500 in cash in advance for an item is just pain stupid. There are other ways to safely pay for items. Paypal does offer protection. If the seller will only deal in cash, then only deal with the seller in person.

Did someone actually do that?

[KCN]

Originally Posted by 92landyacht

Maybe it just me, but I would never buy an item from anyone for cash when I didn't have the item in hand. That's just being stupid. I would hope that most here wouldn't fall into such a ridiculous scam. I certainly hope that you weren't one of the naive that were taken by this simplistic scam.

This post really bothered me....for a minute I thought maybe my father had figured out how to join the forums.


Sadly, I can see how the sense of community this forum fosters (with some exceptions, obviously...) could be used against other members. Good warning.

[mojo]

Originally Posted by perryg114

I would also look at the number of posts a person has made. If they have only made 10 posts and all of them were related to selling stuff then that is suspect.
I have seen some folks post classified adds on here I have never heard of them and they have little or no post history. I think that there should be some restrictions on who can post classified adds on here.

Perry

I bought both of my Airstreams here on the Airforums Classifieds from new posters without any previous posts. I had excellent transactions and feel that I got a great deal on both of them. Perhaps because they were not longtime Forum members, they did not have an inflated view of what their trailers were worth. However, neither requested cash.