If you place an advertisement online, there are a number of potential problems which you should be aware of. This article discusses the most common ones and simple methods to avoid them.
1) Buyer does not pay
Perhaps the most common issue is buyers not paying. Before sending any product, ensure that you've received full payment, that the payment has cleared, and that it has been deposited in your account. This should be done for any payment type, including credit cards and cheques.
For items which are sent by post, a related issue is buyers who claim that they have not received the item and consequently refuse payment or demand a refund. The vast majority of such claims are false but proving this is difficult unless the goods are sent by registered mail. Consequently, one needs to balance the additional costs of registered post against the risk of fraudulent claims of non-delivery.
2) E-Mail Theft
To place your online advertisement, you will need to provide a contact EMAIL address. Unfortunately, there are various software programmes which collect EMAIL addresses from websites. They may get this direct from your advertisement, or breach the website security and steal it direct from the website databases. Alternatively, some programmes randomly complete the advertisement contact forms and send off messages, so that when you reply your EMAIL address can be collected from your reply.
Your EMAIL address will then be used for SPAM, fraud, or both. To prevent this, do not use your personal or business EMAIL address. Instead, get an address from one of the free EMAIL services and use this for the advertisement. When you no longer need the EMAIL, just delete it.
3) The Over-payment Scam
A 'buyer' will overpay you for an item and then ask you to refund the overpayment. For example, if an item costs $100 he might send $200, and then claim that he overpaid by mistake, requesting you to send him the extra $100 back.
In this scam, the original payment is fraudulent (e.g. counterfeit cheque or stolen credit card). The 'buyer' will simply disappear with any refund and since the payment to you will not clear, you will be out of pocket the amount of the refund. To prevent this, instead of refunding, cancel the original payment and request a new payment. Never ship goods or provide refunds before payments have fully cleared and been deposited in your account.
4) Meeting in Distant City
On very expensive items (e.g. house advertised for sale), the 'buyer' may insist on a private meeting to complete the deal, usually at a distant location (another city or country) and away from the public (e.g. in a hotel room). If you go, there are a number of problems which can occur, from your house been robbed (as they know when you will be away) or a straight-forward scam (e.g. they try to purchase the item in cash, using counterfeit money) or an attempt to get you alone and force you to give them money.
To avoid this scam, ask yourself if the offer is reasonable. Someone who offers to buy your house simply from an online advertisement, without ever seeing it or even trying to negotiate the price, is unrealistic. Further requests, such as meeting in a far away city rather than locally, just add to the unreality of the entire situation. When meeting strangers, always do so in a public place (e.g. a restaurant) and never in an isolated area (e.g. a hotel room). If possible, have a friend with you rather than going alone. Find out who you are dealing with. Ask them their names, where they live and so on. If they are genuine people, they shouldn't mind telling you about themselves.
5) Identity Theft
There are a number of scams which are designed to get your financial details. For example, a bank account number or credit card number, along with sufficient personal information to give them access to the bank account or credit card.
Banks and credit card companies often use personal information as account passwords. For example, when contacting them, they may ask for your birth date or your mother's maiden name. In combination with an account number, such basic information may allow someone to contact your bank or credit card company and pass themselves off as you.
They are a number of reasons which a 'buyer' may give for asking for this information. For example, they may ask your bank details so that they can transfer money to your account and then say they need the personal information for administrative or security reasons.
It is best not to provide either financial information or personal information to strangers. Instead, use a payment method (e.g. cheque or credit card) which does not require that you provide this information. - 31837
1) Buyer does not pay
Perhaps the most common issue is buyers not paying. Before sending any product, ensure that you've received full payment, that the payment has cleared, and that it has been deposited in your account. This should be done for any payment type, including credit cards and cheques.
For items which are sent by post, a related issue is buyers who claim that they have not received the item and consequently refuse payment or demand a refund. The vast majority of such claims are false but proving this is difficult unless the goods are sent by registered mail. Consequently, one needs to balance the additional costs of registered post against the risk of fraudulent claims of non-delivery.
2) E-Mail Theft
To place your online advertisement, you will need to provide a contact EMAIL address. Unfortunately, there are various software programmes which collect EMAIL addresses from websites. They may get this direct from your advertisement, or breach the website security and steal it direct from the website databases. Alternatively, some programmes randomly complete the advertisement contact forms and send off messages, so that when you reply your EMAIL address can be collected from your reply.
Your EMAIL address will then be used for SPAM, fraud, or both. To prevent this, do not use your personal or business EMAIL address. Instead, get an address from one of the free EMAIL services and use this for the advertisement. When you no longer need the EMAIL, just delete it.
3) The Over-payment Scam
A 'buyer' will overpay you for an item and then ask you to refund the overpayment. For example, if an item costs $100 he might send $200, and then claim that he overpaid by mistake, requesting you to send him the extra $100 back.
In this scam, the original payment is fraudulent (e.g. counterfeit cheque or stolen credit card). The 'buyer' will simply disappear with any refund and since the payment to you will not clear, you will be out of pocket the amount of the refund. To prevent this, instead of refunding, cancel the original payment and request a new payment. Never ship goods or provide refunds before payments have fully cleared and been deposited in your account.
4) Meeting in Distant City
On very expensive items (e.g. house advertised for sale), the 'buyer' may insist on a private meeting to complete the deal, usually at a distant location (another city or country) and away from the public (e.g. in a hotel room). If you go, there are a number of problems which can occur, from your house been robbed (as they know when you will be away) or a straight-forward scam (e.g. they try to purchase the item in cash, using counterfeit money) or an attempt to get you alone and force you to give them money.
To avoid this scam, ask yourself if the offer is reasonable. Someone who offers to buy your house simply from an online advertisement, without ever seeing it or even trying to negotiate the price, is unrealistic. Further requests, such as meeting in a far away city rather than locally, just add to the unreality of the entire situation. When meeting strangers, always do so in a public place (e.g. a restaurant) and never in an isolated area (e.g. a hotel room). If possible, have a friend with you rather than going alone. Find out who you are dealing with. Ask them their names, where they live and so on. If they are genuine people, they shouldn't mind telling you about themselves.
5) Identity Theft
There are a number of scams which are designed to get your financial details. For example, a bank account number or credit card number, along with sufficient personal information to give them access to the bank account or credit card.
Banks and credit card companies often use personal information as account passwords. For example, when contacting them, they may ask for your birth date or your mother's maiden name. In combination with an account number, such basic information may allow someone to contact your bank or credit card company and pass themselves off as you.
They are a number of reasons which a 'buyer' may give for asking for this information. For example, they may ask your bank details so that they can transfer money to your account and then say they need the personal information for administrative or security reasons.
It is best not to provide either financial information or personal information to strangers. Instead, use a payment method (e.g. cheque or credit card) which does not require that you provide this information. - 31837
About the Author:
Doug Stewart develops website advertising portals and his latest project is Horses for sale.
