I think this is a scam

[ITSNO60]

I replied to it over a week ago and got a reply back asking for my email address so they could send more pictures. I didn't ask for more pictures, I asked where I could see it because the ad says "come see to appreciate". I replied "why can't I just come look at it, is this a scam?" I did not hear back. The ad is still up and has been for 2 weeks, I just don't understand how a scam ad can remain for that long. They must have copied a legitimate ad then changed the price to try and get a sucker. Another clue is the ad appears on Craigslist Tucson but the vegetation does not look like Tucson, we just don't have that many trees and lawns, and not very many old 2 story houses.

I could be wrong but what do you all think?

It's getting harder to weed out the crooks.

https://tucson.craigslist.org/tro/d/...222971163.html

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Some scams go on for years. Others have been running for decades. There are a couple that are still in pretty much the same form they were 100 years ago. Different players running them, but still the same scam.

Craig's List is not known for vigorous policing of what gets posted. If you want to collect the information (you would need much more than you have now) and present it to them, they might take down that specific ad. I'm sure a duplicate would pop up within a few minutes. There are a *lot* of fake ads on Craig's List.

Bob

[ITSNO60]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

Some scams go on for years. Others have been running for decades. There are a couple that are still in pretty much the same form they were 100 years ago. Different players running them, but still the same scam.

Craig's List is not known for vigorous policing of what gets posted. If you want to collect the information (you would need much more than you have now) and present it to them, they might take down that specific ad. I'm sure a duplicate would pop up within a few minutes. There are a *lot* of fake ads on Craig's List.

Bob

I do flag the ones that are obvious but I am not sure how many flags a posting has to receive before it is removed.

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by ITSNO60

I do flag the ones that are obvious but I am not sure how many flags a posting has to receive before it is removed.

Hi

Unless you go past the "flag" stage and submit a full report, not much will happen.

Bob

[OTRA15]

If you think it is a scam, that is enough of a red flag to stop further pursuit IMO.

Will post Tanya Savory's "Reason Enough" cover by Dale Ann Bradley on the OTRA music thread later, about ending a relationship . . .

"If you're thinkin' of leavin', that's reason enough . . . "

Lyrics don't get much better than that!

BAM !!!

[Dan and Liz]

Speling not so gud ether...

[DKB_SATX]

Another craigslist ad containing "Dematic refridgerator" has been flagged for removal in Charleston, WV so odds are it was exactly the same. Peculiar (and mildly interesting) that the photos show a water heater on both the curbside and streetside, both open.

[AlinCal]

Well it's certainly not your typical scam add but it does have some hallmarks like bad spelling as pointed out and it says new hardwood floors when the one interior picture shows carpet and the other is the price is too low unless it has some serious defects they are not mentioning.
The "custom built duel hot water heaters" are interesting, not sure how that would work but maybe one is dedicated to sink/shower and the other to K sink?

[islandtrader]

Originally Posted by ITSNO60

I replied to it over a week ago and got a reply back asking for my email address so they could send more pictures. I didn't ask for more pictures, I asked where I could see it because the ad says "come see to appreciate". I replied "why can't I just come look at it, is this a scam?" I did not hear back. The ad is still up and has been for 2 weeks, I just don't understand how a scam ad can remain for that long. They must have copied a legitimate ad then changed the price to try and get a sucker. Another clue is the ad appears on Craigslist Tucson but the vegetation does not look like Tucson, we just don't have that many trees and lawns, and not very many old 2 story houses.

I could be wrong but what do you all think?

It's getting harder to weed out the crooks.

https://tucson.craigslist.org/tro/d/...222971163.html

If you hit the prohibited button...on craigslist it will be flagged for removal. (I just did that). In my neck of the woods you see bambi advertised for 1600 all day long. I flag them all the time.

[greghoro]

Scams typically use pictures that were found elsewhere on the web.

First thing I do when I suspect a scam is use the Google picture reverse lookup. Provide a link to the picture in question and Google will search to find other instances of the same picture. This feature can be integrated into your browser so you can just right click the picture and select "Search Image on Google"

See this link for more information on this feature:
https://support.google.com/websearch.../1325808?hl=en


Greg

[OTRA15]

Excellent suggestion, Greg.

Search by image is a very useful aspect of Google that is not fully appreciated IMO.

Thanks,

Peter

[dames7]

Not tucson.

[cazual6]

Originally Posted by OTRA15

If you think it is a scam, that is enough of a red flag to stop further pursuit IMO.

I concur

[ITSNO60]

Originally Posted by greghoro

Scams typically use pictures that were found elsewhere on the web.

First thing I do when I suspect a scam is use the Google picture reverse lookup. Provide a link to the picture in question and Google will search to find other instances of the same picture. This feature can be integrated into your browser so you can just right click the picture and select "Search Image on Google"

See this link for more information on this feature:
https://support.google.com/websearch.../1325808?hl=en


Greg

I did that but not sure what the results mean. It does not show where the image was found.

Another great tool is Searchtempest, it will often reveal the same ad in multiple cities across the country.

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by ITSNO60

I did that but not sure what the results mean. It does not show where the image was found.
. . .

On my Mac laptop with Firefox, using a mouse for navigation, when I right-click on any image, various options appear in a drop-down menu. These include Copying the image itself, and also copying its URL, both of which can then be Pasted into a post here.

In general, the move of the computer industry away from using a mouse, to having only touch screens, carries with it the unfortunate loss of many interesting and productive tools IMO.

FWIW

PS -- Thanks for the Searchtempest find.

[greghoro]

The Google picture reverse lookup will show instances of the same picture on other web sites. In using this tool, I've found the same picture on different advertisements to sell that indicated it was not a bonafide sale. Different posters, different contact info, different text, different price, widely different geographic locations, etc.

You don't always find this situation and it was not the case in the ad the OP first directed us to. Just a tool to help with the decision making process, not a definitive yea or nay unto itself.


Greg