Craigslist Scams!!! (From ScamBusters)

<>~<>~<><>~<>~<><>~<>~<><>~<>~<><>~<>~<><>~<>~<>
New Craigslist Scam Uses "Check This Video" Trick
<>~<>~<><>~<>~<><>~<>~<><>~<>~<><>~<>~<><>~<>~<>

A new Craigslist scam that's appeared in the last few months
highlights the need for extra caution when using the renowned
online classifieds site.

With an estimated 50 million users in the US alone, and an
astronomical 20 billion page views of its online ads per
month, it's no surprise that Craigslist has become a popular
site for crooks.

While the vast majority of transactions are perfectly honest
and trustworthy, the sheer scale of the site-use means that
anyone using Craigslist should be extra wary.

In the latest scam, a friend who was moving and selling lots
of his stuff on Craigslist got this message in reply to one of
his ads:

(Begin message extract -- wording exactly as he received it)

I just want to make sure I am going to buy the same which I am
looking for. I can't afford another mistake as i did in the
past. Please check the video and confirm it's the same u have

(end of extract)

The message then provided a link and promised that if the item
was the same as in the video, the sender would buy it.

But when you follow the link, which, happily, our savvy friend
did not, you arrive at a site which then invites you to
download a viewer-type program so you can supposedly watch the
video.

Now you smell a rat, don't you?

The download is really a piece of malware that, according to
Internet security specialists Prevx, hijacks the PC and sends
information back to the scammer.

It also takes over your Internet browser, changing the home
page to one full of ads and a search box that, when you do a
search, takes you to yet another stack of ads.

In fact, it does seem to be just adware, but, theoretically,
could be used for any malicious purpose, including information
theft.

Trying to return everything to normal and uninstall the
program is a messy business. The perpetrator of this scam does
provide details of how to do this on its website but we are
reluctant to point you towards it.

If you're already a victim, you'll know the name of the host
site, so key that in, followed by "/movies/uninstall.html"
(without the quotes).

For everyone else: Just don't fall for this scam.


Leave your number

Another recently witnessed sneaky trick involves a would-be
buyer visiting a website where they're asked to leave their
phone number for a later call back.

Instead, the phone number is used to make premium line calls
that are charged to the owner's phone account.

Most other Craigslist scams are not exclusive to the online
classifieds market -- many of them are either advance payment
or phishing tricks.

With advance payment, or Nigerian scams as they're sometimes
called (because many of them originate in the West African
country), the crook sends out a forged check or money order
for too large a sum to cover an item purchase, home rental, or
even tuition fees.

He then asks for the overpayment to be electronically (and
untraceably) wired back before the original check bounces and
the victim is left owing money to the bank.

This is a subject we've covered many times at Scambusters. You
can read more about it in our earlier issues.

http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=76C...Bm2KBkw2NSYvTg

http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=76C...lgt0DJr17.kAuA

A Craigslist scam that involves phishing simply attempts to
get your personal details, including credit card numbers, for
the purpose of identity theft.


More Craigslist scam tricks

Other Craigslist scams include:

* Bogus house sitters -- they don't so much "sit" as do the
cleaning, as in cleaning you out.

* Crooks who advertise stuff they don't own, from expensive
goods and stolen property, through empty houses and apartments
(advance rent required), to disposing of the entire contents
of a house while the owners were on vacation -- as happened in
Oregon a couple of years back.

* "Mule" jobs where you get paid to receive checks and goods
then forward them to someone else. You may get paid -- but the
job almost certainly will be crooked and you could end up in
jail. See our special issue on this.

http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=76C...K1KRUp6SPRTk2Q

Craigslist publishes a helpful page of information about how
to spot scammers, the most common types of Craigslist scam
tricks, and examples of actual bogus ads and messages.

http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=76C...lWUPlPMks9iFHw

Their basic message is that, where possible, you should deal
with buyers and sellers you can meet in person. Do that, they
say, and you'll bypass 99% of all Craigslist fraud attempts.

Be especially cautious of anyone who claims to be overseas or
otherwise unable to meet you, or who offers to pay for
something sight unseen. An honest person would be highly
unlikely to do that.

Additionally, they warn against advertisers who claim the
transaction is somehow "guaranteed by Craigslist." The company
just doesn't do that type of thing.

Also, never send money wires (e.g., MoneyGram or Western
Union) either to pay for something you bought or to reimburse
a supposed overpayment.

Beware too of buyers or sellers who propose using an escrow
service. These are agencies that hold money pending delivery
of an item, thereby supposedly safeguarding the transaction.

There are many genuine escrow companies but if the other
person suggests a particular escrow company, chances are
he/she has set it up as a phony site, either to steal your
money (if you're buying) or to pretend the money has been
received, thereby prompting you to ship an item you're
selling.

Read more about phony escrow services here.

http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=76C...cQPsdWc5U1gEhw

Two other rules: don't hand over confidential/financial
information and don't believe those too-good-to-be-true prices
-- they're almost certainly Craigslist scams.

In an interview with PC World magazine, Craigslist founder
Craig Newmark said: "Overall, people are pretty trustworthy.
If you give people an environment where they can trust each
other and be fair, for the most part, then people almost
always return that trust."

And that's true. Just make sure you know what the dishonorable
ones are up to and how to spot a potential Craigslist scam.

Time to conclude for today -- have a great week!