Email Scams Through FurBid... even furries aren't safe! D:

[inaliwhitewolf.livejournal.com]

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to let everyone know of something that just happened to me and may happen to you if you sell via FurBid. I woke up this morning and saw that one of my auctions had been bought out for $200 through the Buy-It-Now Feature (which was my asking price). Elated, I began to read the email and quickly began to realize it was a scam. Here is a copy of what the email said:

"Hello [my REAL name],

First of all, I would like to tell you how happy i am to commit myself in buying your item. This is to notify you that i have ended your auction and agreed to pay the final amount for the item. Payment will be made via cashier's check and I am using this medium to notify you that the amount on the cashier's check will be more than your item fees due to the fact that it has already been signed for. I don't really know the exact overage amount because it will be issued by my client so once you receive it, Make sure you deduct your item fees and go to the nearest western union money transfer to send the remainder balance money back to client manager in the United Kingdom, the item is also going to UK. There sure will be no problem about the shipment because my client manager will be personally responsible for it, the same day you receive and cash the cashier's check from the bank after you must have deducted your item fees and western union back the remainder balance money to my client manager in the United Kingdom. However to assure you that i really want to buy the item. I will add an extra $5.00 to your money, if you end the auction for me asap. Email me your FULL NAME, ADDRESS+MOBILE PHONE NUMBER, so that the cashier's check can be mailed out as soon as possible.

Below are the questions i have for you:

1) Are you very sure the item is in good condition?

2) Do you have any western union money transfer location where to send the remainder balance money around you?

3) Can you allow me to send DHL for the pick up and complete the transaction,same day you receive the cashier's check?

4) Do you agree to send the remainder balance money,same day you cash the cashier's check from the bank?

Thanks In Anticipation.

Mr. James Bailey."

What is so odd is that his questions are irrelevant to a DIGITAL COMMISSION. >.< Plus, the whole thing had me on edge the moment I began to read it. I have also informed the FurBid admin about this email. What's more sad is that this auction is now a waste. Moreover, a SECOND person bought the other $200 auction for a digital commission from me today, however, he/she might not be a scammer, although I could pull no user information for this person, and now I am uneasy about it all. I think it's really sick we FURRIES can't even sell our artwork anymore because those stupid scammers are now weaseling their way into our auction sites.

So, if someone buys your auctions on FurBid and the email sounds like this, don't follow their instructions. Check with other people first and let FurBid know. :( I'd hate to see less-suspecting furry artists get scammed.

Comments

[kerstin-orion.livejournal.com]

This is another version (rather creative, at that) of a huge scam going around the internet. Same setup as this: http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/nigeria.asp

The reason he wants you to send the remaining balance RIGHT after you cash the check is that the check is bad, so you will be out any and all money you sent him, plus any fees your bank charges you.

[aaaamory.livejournal.com]

One of the rules that I follow is to never, ever, ever accept an overwritten check. I guess people do or have done that at some places, like when paying for groceries, to get a little cash back in change. But these scams... they're just so rude. They don't even ask, "May I send an overwritten check?" It's more like, "I'm going to send you a check and it's going to be over what you're asking so just take your amount and go out of your way to send me back the rest." How rude is that?? I am not a bank. It's just common sense that it is a scam.

[ayukawataur.livejournal.com]

Hi hi...

It is actually a pretty well known, and accepted, passive aggressive high pressure marketing technique.
You prevent them from saying no, by assuming the answer is yes.

Any telemarketer, insurance salesman, or commission based sales person is trained in it.

[aaaamory.livejournal.com]

I have done commission-based sales, and even if I wasn't selling commission-based, I still had to sell at a rate that was a certain percentage of the average of the whole department. I also had to try to open a certain number of credit accounts. In fact I was put on a sort of "probation" a couple of times because I fell behind. That's how they do it at Macy's. It was very high pressure. During these times I'd ask for help, "How do you succeed at opening as many credit accounts as you do?" The answer was usually, "Ask every customer, not every other." That was the basic gist of my "training".

I also did a little evangelizing-type stuff. What they kept telling us was that no doesn't mean no forever, because you only need one yes. Yeah, that does sound very passive aggressive. To keep asking again and again now and again hoping to get that yes. That's what happens with those kids who try to wash your carpets for you or sell you magazines (and I don't like the way the companies that hire them to do this treat them) so we have to keep closing the door on them when we've said no three times.

[ayukawataur.livejournal.com]

one of my many interests throughout time was the training of individuals to sell something no one wants, everyone needs, but will never see it used.

i taught them, no matter what, you never ask. you always assume the answer is yes. in fact, you never get them a chance to express any negative concept until you have them and their checkbook open in front of you putting the figure you dictate in the little box.

if you asked, you were being too nice.

if they did manage to get a no out, then the proper response was to get them to expound on the objection, then isolate, and eliminate the objection. isolation was the key. if it was not isolated, you could spend all night working to overcome something you did not even know existed.

[avanyu.livejournal.com]

Ugh, I got that Nigeria one from Furbid a year ago. Fun times.

[squeeji.livejournal.com]

That's business, that's life, furry or no, there are a lot of people that will scam you if they think they can get an extra buck. I don't think its right, but being furry shouldn't/wouldn't have anything to do with scammers (who don't care about your/the fandom)

The good thing is though, you recognized a scammer and did alert it to the populace and the administers of the auction site. Which is awesome.

Thanks. ^^

[inaliwhitewolf.livejournal.com]

Oh no, I wasn't saying that being furry had anything to do with it. :) Just that it's sad it is now happening on something like FurBid.

Welcome. :3

[runoratsu.livejournal.com]

Another one like that has just been posted at fursuitlounge.livejournal.com – also a furbid auction, nearly the same thing. Seems the scammers have just found the furry fandom and furbid. :P

Jojo

[runoratsu.livejournal.com]

The link to the post is http://community.livejournal.com/fursuitlounge/336387.html (http://community.livejournal.com/fursuitlounge/336387.html)

FurBid-SF Information

[ayukawataur.livejournal.com]

I made a post about this on the FurBid-SF Discussion Board.

This above is a very good post, and I want to add a bit to it.

The first and most important rule.
If it seems to good to be true, then it most likely is.

Last night, shortly after a bath, it was brought to my attention an auction had a $900 bid on it. I will not explain by whom, or why they found a $900 bid to be odd.
I had a look at the system and noticed a few immediate flags. The first being the user account had some inconsistencies to it. I immediately halted the account.
When I finished that part, I opened the database and saw the system had been flooded with forty-seven different auctions being bid on at $900 each.
It took a couple hours to clean up the system. Mostly because I had to verify each and every single modification was accurate, and would not have a negative impact on the system.
Unfortunately, a small number of these bids were on auctions that closed either before I noticed, or was finished with the cleaning.
Since then, I have received five emails informing me of this happening.

I am working on ideas to strengthen the system and prevent this form of activity from occurring again. Unfortunately, the more restrictive I make things, the more it hurts the other 15,000+ users who are not trying to scam others.

[wyngaed.livejournal.com]

I am so sorry, this totally isn't related to your post... but who made your incredibly awesome mood icons!?

[inaliwhitewolf.livejournal.com]

LOL Sapphire_kun made them for me. :D

I'm actually using them on my door signs for my hotel room at FWA. They're just too adorable not to spread around! :) They were CHEAP too!

[wyngaed.livejournal.com]

That's awesome!

[be-prepared.livejournal.com]

I had some rats up for adoption at petfinder.org and I got an email almost just like that... except it was a vet located in Africa that had a client that wanted to spend thousands on my dumbo rats to import them.

HA HA YEAH RIGHT.

As someone else said, "too good to be true."

[growing-rose.livejournal.com]

No offense, but who would want dumbos when they can get those HUGE African rats! I want one so bad. They're huge and have the most interesting look to them.

somewhat relavent

[hellebore.livejournal.com]

ah, scammers. we loves them, we do. i am not surprised they'd hit a furry place, and then again i wouldn't be surprised if they hit any other... auction site. they don't care.

http://www.419eater.com/

[actonrf.livejournal.com]

I am an Ebay seller as well as a fur (600+ feedbacks)
This is a classic scam. The scammer will send a forged money order or cashiers check. By the time the one cashes the check and send the cash back always via
Western Union the check is reported as forged and the bank does a charge back. Usually the scammer targets high value items. It looks like they are targeting other sites.
One can use PayPal as a guide If the person can use PayPal from their respectivecountries those are the only countries that I will accept payment from. I never accept cashiers check especially from third world countries, Romania or Russia. Never accept third party bidders or payers and never ship to a third party.

[runcoyoterun.livejournal.com]

actually.. i recieved a MUCH less professional email of similar tastes this evening using a BIN on one of my holiday auctions.

the user has bad feedback but i figure i will give them a day to respoind to my "no i will not provide you with my full name, home address and phone number" email before reporting the user to furbid.

i knew it was to good to be true.. i got all excited because something legit buyers DO use the BIN on my auctions. this just makes me sad because the auction was timed specifically to be able to be shipped before the holidays so someone could get a nice gift.

what can we do about this? this same auction account has a bid on my other auction that is up..

[runcoyoterun.livejournal.com]

wow sorry for the 90 typos guys.

[ayukawataur.livejournal.com]

What is the auction number?

Also, who is the bidder?

You can post that here, or use:
Admin Contact Page (http://www.furbid.ws/cgi-bin/auction/contact.pl)

[ayukawataur.livejournal.com]

I assume you mean:
http://www.furbid.ws/cgi-bin/auction/item.pl?item=232339699

Looks like that one slipped by me. Taken care of.

[runcoyoterun.livejournal.com]

THANK YOU.

i emailed you the pertinent information at the furbid email on the site. that should have everything but knowing me i left out something important like the auction number, haha.

[ayukawataur.livejournal.com]

It is okay, I looked at your name here, clicked your link to your LJ page, followed to your user information, went to your Deviant-Art page, pulled your email from there, did a querry on the FurBid-SF Database, and came up with you.

From there, it was easy, just check your auctions. And I thank you for bringing it up, as they had that one, and three others at lower, more stealth amounts.

I will answer your email a little later. I need to think about your questions.

You might want to edit your post.

[arshes.livejournal.com]

I dunno if you noticed or not, but you blanked out the real name in the greeting but then left a name at the end of the letter.

Re: You might want to edit your post.

[lupusetgruis.livejournal.com]

The first one is the poster's real name.

Re: You might want to edit your post.

[aaaamory.livejournal.com]

It's okay. Mr. James Bailey isn't a real person.

Re: You might want to edit your post.

[inaliwhitewolf.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I didn't want MY name being exposed, so I blanked it out. I don't care about his. :P

[leahtaur.livejournal.com]

I got the exact same email, except the name was different and instead of being based in UK, they said they were from the Republic of Benin, lol. At least it was resolved very quickly.

[artslavedotbiz.livejournal.com]

I got the *exact* same email as you did. Republic of Benin and all. I have to go repost my item >,>

[niiku.livejournal.com]

I got the same thing on an auction for one of my fleece hats. I was so happy to have sold one, only to see this email they sent me and I knew they were a scammer. I gave bad feedback, and reported them to the admins.

[jbadger.livejournal.com]

I noticed that the wiki artical on this eBay/furbid type scam is missing references, I would like to confirm that this is the whole e-mail?

[inaliwhitewolf.livejournal.com]

That's the entire email that he sent me. :)