I listed my laptop on Craigslist. Exchange went like this: ================================================================================ "Her": Is the item you advertised on craigslist still up for sale? Please email me back. Am very interested in buying. ================================================================================ Me: Yes it is, you are the first to email! I go to Notre Dame. If you want, you can come take a look at it Saturday, after noon. Then it will take me a couple days to copy all of my files off of it, and you can take it by Monday or Tuesday. Will you be paying cash/check, and do you want just the laptop, or the mouse as well? Thanks ================================================================================ Her: Thanks for your reply. The HP laptop and mouse is for my son who is currently spending time with his father (my dear husband) that works at US Embassy in West Africa. I will love it mailed to them. I will be paying you through paypal. It is %100 secured and easy to sign up via www.paypal.com incase you dont have one. I will be paying you a total of $900 to cover both your cost price and shipping to West Africa. Please get back to me and let me know. ================================================================================ I listed it for $700, $725 with the mouse. Seems reeeeally fishy to me but it's not like any other scam I've seen. The link to paypal actually was a link to paypal and not a phishing website. Could I take her payment, make sure it's deposited to my bank account first, and then ship?
Take the payment wait till you have the money then ship. Does seem really fishy, but that solution kind seems fool proof.
Sounds like a scam to me. Craigslist is infested with people who surf for victims. Anytime the person wants to overpay, pay with Western Union, or ship out of the country it most likely is bogus. Just my .02, but I would delete the email and wait for a legitimate buyer.
I just emailed the Embassy in Africa and was able to obtain a picture of the woman's husband....... Image Unavailable, Please Login
Scam! I had the same contact myself. Apparently this "son who spends time with his father" in West Africa is in need of thousands of laptops..............
It certainly has the trademark of a scam, ask for a money order and tell her that the money order will be at the bank for a couple of weeks, until they check it out. She may try to pressure you into sending it sooner because they "need" it soon but that will be a tactic to get something for nothing. I say keep looking for a local buyer. Computers are everywhere and having to look outside your country is odd, looking across an ocean for a used one is down right weird.
What the Doc says, this is a common scam, me and the Doc are members of 419 eaters and i see this scam on a daily basis, have some fun with them i say
