Scammers on the shooting wanted forum

CplCurley

Hey lads pretty sure i got scammed this week on the shooting forum.

User name Glennpriest answered a wanted add i had for cz iron sights, struck the deal but he wanted to be paid on paypal friends/family.

Since paying gone radio silent and no proof of shipping.

Heads up, get and call mobile numbers, first time ive seen this trick here.

clivej

Put in a claim on PayPal now

HorseSea

Don't think PayPal will help with Friends and Family option, in a case like that where you think there is any chance, you are better to offer to pay the 3.5% paypal fee and not use F&F option, if the seller is a scammer they won't allow that - sure sign they plan to scam you then.

endacl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122514483#Comment_122514483

PayPal won’t do anything with a friends/family transfer. That’s why scammers ask people to use it.

tonysopprano

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122514483#Comment_122514483

By agreeing to pay using friends/family facility you forego your rights to claim.

Personal Payments

Choose “Sending to a friend” for the everyday exchange of money between you and your friends and family. You can use personal payments when you send money as a gift, split a lunch bill, pay your share of living expenses, or something similar.  

Personal payments aren't covered by PayPal Purchase Protection.

pg339

Sorry to hear that and surprised at it happening on here. Did you check his profile for how long he's been a member and his post history. If just joined that would be an alarm bell. I take it you have reported to the mods. Let's hope something has come up with him to explain the lack of comunication and he does come back to you.

I did see your wanted ad for the iron sights but wasn't sure what you were actually looking as the 3 rifles you listed all have different sights, so don't know what he offered you. Hope it works out.

CplCurley

Aug 5th tgis year, pg339 your right its the 513 really i need, i read on a cz forum the 452 had the same profile barrel but this doesnt relate to the dovetail i need. It is what it is, my mistake and yes feel a tit for falling for it but hopefully save one of ye a couple of pound. Just glad it wasnt a nightforce scope i was looking for 🫣

otmmyboy2

/Mod hat on

Howdy folks, if someone does contact you regarding an advert, there are some warning signs you can be on the lookout for:
- Recent accounts,
- Low/no post counts,
- No posts/discussions within the shooting forums(the vast majority of buyers and sellers are longtime posters in the shooting forums, and this is an excellent way to check someone out, every logged in user can check out other user's posts and discussions via their profile),
- Requesting to pay or get paid using a bank transfer(which has a Friends & Family option) or Paypal's F&F option(does not remove your recourse entirely but does limit it IIRC).

Now none of these are necessarily a red flag but a combination can help to form a better background of a potential buyer/seller.

Do bear in mind also that people who are banned from the shooting forum can still read the forum's threads and PM users about adverts, so if you have any doubts about an individual do please contact either myself or @Cass and we can check the user out.

And in general if you have any concerns about a user, thread or post you can either PM myself or Cass, or hit the "Flag" button on any post and "Report" and type out what is the problem and that sends both of us mods a notification.

The user @glennpriest has been banned from boards now so there should be no further issues from him but do still be aware of any accounts acting in a similar manner(could be a re-registration of the scammer), and if you do have suspicions just let us know and we will deal with it.

tomtucker81

Lads/Ladettes, PayPal is the method mostly used by such scammers. Its a massive red flag to me for the last few years. In fact anyone that has been a scammer that I've come across the last few years had been using PayPal still.

Revolut accounts require phone numbers and verified i.d. and would be normally a way safer option. They are an actual bank account now.

As stated above by otmmyboy2, a few other red flags are new or low post counts. I think from using the forum most of us recognise other people's names on here, a new account that is selling, together with PayPal is a red flag, a big one to be honest.

A lot of buying and selling over the years here I've always met the person in question OR been able to check them out some more via a Revolut account, which in turn could lead you to social media accounts etc as you have a name and number. (Not everyone has these but most do nowadays!) This is another way of seeing the person seems genuine, you'll probably have a picture of the person if you do it right. Most scammers will not go that deep into their story to have created corresponding social media accounts(even if they have, these will be low post count or new enough too)

If in doubt, ask someone else you trust here. Obviously a moderator is good start for checking the accounts here.

Be careful! Golden rule, if something seems too simple and easy, it's most likely wrong.

Richard308

you put the money into your PayPal account using a bank card. Contact the card issuer and raise a disputed transaction. Email them all the information, copy of messages etc. PayPal might not help you but your bank will, email PayPal and open a dispute over the transfer as well. You have 4 months to dispute a transaction. Even if you paid the fees and they didnt send you what you ordered but something completely different or any empty box PayPal won’t refund you.

Cass

+1 to the above, about the card. Was told before that all card transactions are "covered" by the bank. Some banks may argue but a friend that works in a bank role me this and told me banks usually don't broadcast this especially with the large uptake in card usage since COVID.

I don't know if it is the case but what harm can it do to try?

slipperyox

Paypal doesn't cover a lot of items such as vehicles etc…
The only way safe is an escrow account.

I use if buying over 1k