Facebook Marketplace scams are more common than you might think. Let’s have a look at some of the common scamming techniques used through Facebook Marketplace, and what things you should look out for to stay safe.
Common Facebook Marketplace Scams
Scams can happen to both buyers and sellers. Facebook gives advice on their site to help you recognise and avoid scams when buying or selling on Facebook Marketplace.
- Phishing scams – these are aimed at stealing your personal information. For example, you may be prompted to click on a links that initially seem harmless, but actually direct you to fraudulent websites which steal your personal information. Another common type of phishing is sending messages or emails which ask you to provide personal information, such as your email and password, or verification codes that have been sent to your phone or email address for two-factor authentication
- Buyer scams – when a fraudster tries to buy or trade items with you without paying. To do this, they may report their transaction as fraud after already receiving the item from you, claiming they never received the item when they did, or refusing to pay for the item they have received
- Seller scams – when someone tries to sell or trade items with you but then fail to deliver on what was agreed upon. They may send you something very different from what you paid for, claim they sent the item to you when they didn’t, or ask you to send them a deposit for a high-value item before you have confirmed that it’s genuine
- Listing scams – fake or dishonest listings, or ones that encourage the buyer to complete transactions outside of Marketplace
What to Look Out For
- Products listed with suspiciously low prices – if it seems too good to be true, it very well might be!
- Descriptions that encourage you to get in touch with the seller outside of Marketplace – this can make it harder for Facebook to take action against them if you report them
- Being asked for a deposit or payment up front – don’t pay the seller anything until you have been able to see the item
- Suspicious profiles – some sellers will impersonate businesses, piggybacking their good reputation to catch out buyers. Check the seller’s profile and look for the business’ official Facebook page or website to check everything seems right. Even if they aren’t impersonating a business, checking out their profile is still a good idea, as it could alert you to something not being right, such as the account being recently created with very little info on it. This is because many scammers will keep creating new accounts to avoid detection. You should also check their reviews to see if anyone else has had problems with them
- Being pressured or rushed to make decisions – if you feel like you’re being pressured into buying something, take a step back, look at all the details, and block the seller if they are bothering you. If you’re being pressured to act quickly, it could be because a scammer doesn’t want to give you time to actually think about their request
- Unusual payment methods – such as gift cards or cheques