Report the Scammers Correctly

[Lowlight]

Yes, the Site has Scammers and Bots active; we spend a lot of time removing the accounts, but understand these are organized crime, using bots and accounts they control remotely.


This site has a process to report and turn in scammers and spammers that is very Simple to use and effective.

It's called the report button; every single interaction on this site has a report button in the lower left corner of the post. If they send you a message that says, Hey, My Friend has that item for sale, you can email him here.... That is a scammer, so use the report button

When you post publicly that you are interested in an item in the PX, and you say, I am interested, a scammer will most likely send you a message pretending to be the seller. The Account will be slightly different from the person you think. you are talking too. Check the post count and user name carefully as they add in small changes like capitalized lowercase letters or periods in the name. That is a scammer; report them.

The report tool is a complete look at the account it takes me right too the account. Many of you well-meaning idiots who were scammed will often report the true account and not the scammer because you are not using the Report button and you are reading the stuff from the scammer, but you report the member. The accounts look the same, but you have to be careful it's not so simple unless you use the report button

The report button is right there in real-time. If you do it immediate we usually jump on it immediately and nobody is scammed.

They have dozens of accounts, you are not stopping them we are just trying to limit their time on here. So please use the report button if you do not, I will just delete the email and you helped nobody

 

[Makinchips208]

Thanks Frank!

To report someone in the iOS version of app, i have to…
1- tap their name to open that window and see some general info about that account,
2- then on the lower right, tap “more options” to access the report button.

And you keep saying the same thing, and people keep doing the same dumb things. Nobody can say you didn’t warn us a dozen times.

 

[drglock]

@PRDRlVER.

 

[TacosGigante]

How do we report a scam where the scammer never used the site proper but texted a member posing as another member?

I recently had a sale where a potential buyer asked me a question and gave me his cell via PM. I answered the question via PM but unknown to me a scammer texted him, posing as me. The buyer thought I scammed him until I could show him that I was the real me and had not agreed to what he had proposed.

This does seem to indicate that the scammer could read pms.

 

[Downtown]

Someone suggested in another thread that their PMs had been read. Is there really a chance of that? That would seem to be a big deal, as I think of how much information I've given in PMs over the years.

 

[Lowlight]

If you get a message from someone where no posts, but they send you a private message you can still report them

The emails they use, their phone numbers are useless to us, but we can remove the connections and stop them from contacting people

Every interaction on here has a Report button use the report button I can link 10 more scammers for every report you make. Don't report it, instead, more interested in talking about, I am just moving on.

 

[Lowlight]

Nobody can send you a message through our system without being a member,

If you get a member with no posts, sending you a private message, that is a scammer, use the report button

 

[TacosGigante]

Nobody can send you a message through our system without being a member,

If you get a member with no posts, sending you a private message, that is a scammer, use the report button

Apologies for being unclear. All of the PMs on site were by legitimate members. A scammer posing as me texted the buyer, who provided his cell number to me via PM. The scammer didn't appear to use the site at all.

 

[Lowlight]

OMG,

I am going to write this really, really slow for you...

You are exactly correct; the person who sent you a message to Text or call his friend is one of the scammers. One guy stays quiet and only sends people PMs; the others do the scamming when you reach out.

When a person sends you a private message that says, call my friend he is selling one, or email here my friend has it cheaper, he is a scammer pointing you to a scam. How do you people not know this stuff, are you all such babes in the woods you don't know how a scam works? Maybe I grew up in a bad place, I was taught about Scams and Con Artists, but apparently people are all too happy to say, thanks sign me up, here is my money.

One account that technically should never get in trouble is the one sending you a message --- that guy Report him.

He doesn't have to post in public to send a message to someone, he is a scammer if he contacts you via PM before you contacted someone to reach out

 

[Baron23]

Apologies for being unclear. All of the PMs on site were by legitimate members. A scammer posing as me texted the buyer, who provided his cell number to me via PM. The scammer didn't appear to use the site at all.

And how did the scammer get the buyer’s cell number in the first place if it was only sent to you by the buyer via PM. Eh?

Wow

 

[TacosGigante]

Respectfully, that is not what I am describing. The following happened a week or so ago:

I was the seller of a scope. A legit member contacts me via PM and asks if I would be willing to let him try out the scope in exchange for some small amount of money. If he likes it he will buy it. His PM contains his number.

I reply via PM that I can't lend him the scope.

Unbeknownst to me, a scammer texts him via his phone, pretending to be me. The scammer agrees to "rent" the scope. The buyer, a legit member, sends money to the scammer. The buyer thinks I have defrauded him. Fortunately we were able to sort it out but the buyer is still out the "rental fee."

The scammer was not a party to the conversation on site, so the only thing I could report is a pm with a legit member, but somehow the scammer knew the buyer's number.

 

[TacosGigante]

And how did the scammer get the buyer’s cell number in the first place if it was only sent to you by the buyer via PM. Eh?

Wow

Great question.

 

[Midwestside]

@TacosGigante Who is the “legit member asking you for the small amount of money?”

 

[TacosGigante]

@TacosGigante Who is the “legit member asking you for the small amount of money?”

The legit member (@PBWalsh) was willing to pay me a little money to rent the scope I was selling to see if he liked it. A scammer then texted him, took the money, and never sent the scope.

 

[PBWalsh]

How do we report a scam where the scammer never used the site proper but texted a member posing as another member?

I recently had a sale where a potential buyer asked me a question and gave me his cell via PM. I answered the question via PM but unknown to me a scammer texted him, posing as me. The buyer thought I scammed him until I could show him that I was the real me and had not agreed to what he had proposed.

This does seem to indicate that the scammer could read pms.

Hi, @Lowlight I’m the guy that got scammed.

I contacted @TacosGigante regarding renting a VCOG from him to try out. He sent me a PM saying he didn’t want to. Later that day I received a text from the scammer stating they were TacosGigante and offered me the rental. I, assumed TG had changed his mind and would allow me to rent the optic.

Me and the scammer “settled” on a rental price. I sent the scammer the fee and he was never heard from again.

A week/few days later I posted in TG’s ad as a “buyer beware”. TG contacted me and we sorted out the mess and I bought another VCOG he had. VCOG was received, zero’d, and assisted in a 2nd place DMR match finish. Good transaction from TG.

So basically it seems that a scammer/bot/AI was able to see out PMs, get my number, and text me posting as TG. I know it sounds incredibly far fetched, but thats what happened.

I was stupid and didn’t get picture confirmation before “renting” the optic in the first place, thats on me.

 

[Midwestside]

Lowlight isn't going to have time to gumshoe the relentless efforts of the scammers.
He's already stated quite clearly the name variation tactic (adding dots and underscores) is becoming popular.

You've edited the posts in the VCOG sale thread(post #8), but here's likely the scam bait that transpired.

1) you gave some public indication (not in PM)of the desire to "rent scope for small fee"
2) Scammers pounce and searches your username posts with keyword "text" in SH search engine.
-Finds your phone # in about all of 3-seconds worth of effort-not difficult, not sniped out of PM's..... (205.242.XXXX sound right? I don't have access to your PM's )

3) Scammer texts you posing as TG & takes your money in minutes

 

[PBWalsh]

Lowlight isn't going to have time to gumshoe the relentless efforts of the scammers.
He's already stated quite clearly the name variation tactic (adding dots and underscores) is becoming popular.

You've edited the posts in the VCOG sale thread(post #8), but here's likely the scam bait that transpired.

1) you gave some public indication (not in PM)of the desire to "rent scope for small fee"
2) Scammers pounce and searches your username posts with keyword "text" in SH search engine.
-Finds your phone # in about all of 3-seconds worth of effort-not difficult, not sniped out of PM's..... (205.242.XXXX sound right? I don't have access to your PM's )

3) Scammer texts you posing as TG & takes your money in minutes

Yeah, I got duped. Like I said that one was on me. When the actual TG messaged me I learned my lesson and took the necessary precautions before purchase.

Crap happens, I try not to let it happen twice.

 

[Downtown]

Lowlight isn't going to have time to gumshoe the relentless efforts of the scammers.
He's already stated quite clearly the name variation tactic (adding dots and underscores) is becoming popular.

You've edited the posts in the VCOG sale thread(post #8), but here's likely the scam bait that transpired.

1) you gave some public indication (not in PM)of the desire to "rent scope for small fee"
2) Scammers pounce and searches your username posts with keyword "text" in SH search engine.
-Finds your phone # in about all of 3-seconds worth of effort-not difficult, not sniped out of PM's..... (205.242.XXXX sound right? I don't have access to your PM's )

3) Scammer texts you posing as TG & takes your money in minutes

Thank you. This is a reasonable explanation of how a PM is seemingly read, but not. Obviously the issue is worrisome, as over the years PMs hold a lot of info. I just looked thru only a handful of mine, and much personal info would be comprised.

 

[Downtown]

I mean, we've exchanged real names, recipes, phone numbers, I've invited some of you over for BBQ, we've shot together, talked shit behind each other's back, there's been a lot of conversations.

 

[Lowlight]

As I noted, this is organized crime, I am killing about 10 accounts a day,

They know how to use google so protect yourself at all times

 

[larryh128]

Someone has offered products to members under my name.

 

[Redmanss]

Someone has offered products to members under my name.

Best thing is to message those people to report the scammer, or if you know what user name they're using report it yourself.

 

[Lowlight]

Someone has offered products to members under my name.

The problem is, they are reporting you and not them, I can't find them because nobody can give how they are spoofing your account ?

This is why I say, report correctly