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Thread: Scam help

  1. #1
    Craftsman
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    Scam help

    I am hoping someone may be able to help me, well my wife but it amounts to the same thing.
    Last week the brother in law asked her to
    advertise his MacBook on Facebook for £1000,
    lots of interest and a ‘lady' messaged to say she
    wanted it. Asked a few questions and offered to
    pay postage. I said it felt too easy as people
    general haggle but all the same if she pays, post
    it. She asked my wife to message and send her a picture of the parcel in the post office on the counter so she could be fairly sure it was being sent and she would pay there and then. She took it and did just that, the buyer said hold on 2 minutes as I pay, then sent a screen shot from her bank showing it had been paid and my wife sent it.
    My wife called me and told me and I said “please tell me you didn’t! Surely you checked your bank balance first?” But no she didn’t. I was raging and said check now. No money! What a shock.
    Wife messaged and the buyer said it’s sent give it ten minutes. Nothing. Messaged again and then a message came from some business bank saying it will take 4 hours to transfer so she was hopeful, I wasn’t. Next the bank ask her to verify her bank account by sending £500 and they would send her £1500 back. Really?!! Messages got heated and we went to the police. They where beyond useless, we may as well have gone to John Lewis to report it, at least they have a cafe. Royal Mail said they could intercept the parcel but the police have to call them, a simple phone call from a Bobbie would do but it was too much trouble for them!!
    I turned up at the address this morning hoping to be there before delivery, in my best of moods! I missed it by 10 minutes the post arrived before 8:30am. Hammered the hell out of the door but no answer. Walked around the house looking in windows and it looks like no one lives there. Nothing inside and it’s a dump.
    So, now I’ve turned up to an empty address I can’t find the so called lady or MacBook. I’ve hit a dead end.
    If anyone sees one on offer in the Shefield area it’s a 2020 Intel version, I’ll post the serial number later today. It’s reported stolen and I’ll send the police if I can find it for sale.

    Luckily the money is not a big deal we are not on the bread line, but the anger is real!

  2. #2
    Master Christian's Avatar
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    Sorry to hear that. I suspect as times get harder, scam rate rises...seem to have been a lot going on recently.

  3. #3
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    Sorry for your loss but I fear they are long gone. If I sell anything now I treat all buyers as if they are scammers. You just have to be so careful nowadays.

  4. #4
    Master
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    It’s a sad state of affairs. Try not to be too hard on the wife, her trusting nature is no doubt an asset most of the time.

  5. #5
    Craftsman DONGinsler's Avatar
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    Curious as to why the BIL didn't do this himself?

    Any way to track it? Got find my iphone/ipad. No tracking?

    DON

  6. #6
    Grand Master JasonM's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DONGinsler View Post
    Curious as to why the BIL didn't do this himself?

    Any way to track it? Got find my iphone/ipad. No tracking?

    DON
    I expect it was wiped and logged out of tracking prior to sale.

    As a aside, I had a iPod touch pinched out of my car some years ago, it pinged up at an address 20 miles away the next day but the cops said it wasn’t accurate enough to warrant action. Ridiculous.

  7. #7
    Master jukeboxs's Avatar
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    Sorry to hear that. I assume it was too late for your wife to intercept at the PO after she posted it? Well done you trying to intercept it at the address.


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  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by jukeboxs View Post
    Sorry to hear that. I assume it was too late for your wife to intercept at the PO after she posted it? Well done you trying to intercept it at the address.


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    Can’t just intercept on word of anyone - as said, would need a request from police.

  9. #9
    Craftsman
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    It was wiped yes. No way to track it.
    I have been nice to my wife she’s upset enough, it’s her upset that I’m angry about not a poxi laptop. She was foolish, in a rush to get to the gym and she just let it go.
    There is no justice that’s the problem. I’m a friendly helpful guy, will do anything for anyone if I can, wouldn’t dream of ripping anyone off. I do hold a grudge tho, If I get my chance I’ll return their favour.
    Last edited by Mrbarry; 8th August 2022 at 20:19.

  10. #10
    Grand Master wileeeeeey's Avatar
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    That must be seriously infuriating. Really sorry to hear you've been scammed and with something so obvious it really must be testing your patience. I would be going mental at home in your shoes but achieving nothing in doing so.

  11. #11
    Master IAmATeaf's Avatar
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    Seems to be quite a common scam, apparently they have some sort of bogus banking app where they fake up a payment.

    Saw something similar on Nextdoor where a family was selling a PS5, showed the payment on his phone and the family believed him and handed over the PS5!

  12. #12
    Master
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    sorry to hear, if I sell anything on gumtree or Facebook market place it’s collection only and even that’s not totally safe as you never know what scrotes are going to turn up at your door

  13. #13
    Grand Master Onelasttime's Avatar
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    It’s easy to say in hindsight but I post nothing until funds are cleared and transferred to my other account. But then I don’t do Facebook either.

    Shitty thing to happen to your wife, but the best of us can be scammed these days.

    Do the scammers get to the postie before he knocks, so they could do it at any address? Or is it an actual dwelling they use? How do people get hold of empty flats?

  14. #14
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    So annoying. It’s a well engineered psychological scam. The pressure to send when actually at the PO must be high. The follow up from the “business bank” is another remarkable piece of cheek. I too am intrigued about how they acquire the goods. But then, a grand’s worth of laptop is worth hanging around for a few hours and intercepting postie.

    I have recently wondered how we might secure remote transactions better. There’s probably room for a blockchain based mediator who validates buyer and seller personal ID details. Clearly, confirming receipt of funds remains critical and PayPal do almost the same but this gives more flexibility on payment options. Idle pondering.

  15. #15
    Master Christian's Avatar
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    It’s sad, but there are such a high number of people in society who think absolutely nothing of ripping someone else off that (outside sites like this that polices itself) you really can’t afford to trust any stranger and have to assume everyone is out to steal.

  16. #16
    Problem is the police don't care and why should they (maybe a little harsh on my part), the item was posted freely by your wife, she was not forced and the item was not stolen from her.

    Why did she not go back into the PO and get the laptop back! It is against PO policy but most offices would give it to you, especially if it was a few mins afterwards and you went back to the same person that took it from you.

    It sucks, and I feel for you wife.

  17. #17
    Master blackal's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by NikGixer750 View Post
    Problem is the police don't care and why should they (maybe a little harsh on my part), the item was posted freely by your wife, she was not forced and the item was not stolen from her.

    Why did she not go back into the PO and get the laptop back! It is against PO policy but most offices would give it to you, especially if it was a few mins afterwards and you went back to the same person that took it from you.

    It sucks, and I feel for you wife.
    Pretty sure it is 'fraud' and therefore a criminal offence. (Poss used to be 'obtaining pecuniary advantage by deception')

  18. #18
    Incredible and saddening to read about. I am very niaive when it comes to anything digital, so would be an easy target for anyone, but as I buy stuff the old fashioned way I am not that worried. What really does concern me though is the way society has degenerated into this state. It is now socially acceptable to be a thief, provided the word is replaced by scammer. Also providing the perpetrator is only ever on the receiving end, they would kick up merry hell if they were the victim.

    I wonder if they use that address on a regular basis? Would it be worth sitting in a car watching for activity at posty arrival time and following the people? Not beyond the wit of DC to do so. Are there any detectives left in the Police force though?

  19. #19
    Was the laptop sent with recorded delivery and therefore has tracking number and to check it delivered or diverted.

  20. #20
    Master Christian's Avatar
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    Might be a criminal offense, but practically speaking there isn't the resource to do anything about it other than log it.

  21. #21
    Master Christian's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kairos View Post
    I wonder if they use that address on a regular basis? Would it be worth sitting in a car watching for activity at posty arrival time and following the people? Not beyond the wit of DC to do so. Are there any detectives left in the Police force though?
    Sorry, but that's got to be fantasy-land to think a detective would stake-out an address for a laptop.

  22. #22
    Master blackal's Avatar
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    Is it possible to register the serial # with apple as stolen? That way it ends up unusable?


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  23. #23
    Master jukeboxs's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kingstepper View Post
    Can’t just intercept on word of anyone - as said, would need a request from police.
    My mistake using "intercept", I was meaning getting the parcel back from the PO worker after they had passed it across the counter (it sounded like she was on the phone in the PO at the time of posting and realised her mistake after passing the parcel across for posting). Anyway, no matter.

  24. #24
    Master Halitosis's Avatar
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    Perhaps a mail forwarding service had been set up with Royal Mail ahead of scamming the OP (and possibly many others). So once the parcel is in the system it automatically gets diverted to a completely different address anyway so the thieving b*****ds don't have to risk coming face to face with the victim.

    Its a sad world out there.

  25. #25
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    AirTag ...

    Well it sounds like they like an Apple product so you could send them another parcel with a book in an old iPad box with an AirTag buried in the packaging so it is not easy to find.

    Then you will find out where they are ... if the address is being forwarded then the parcel will end up with them and the AirTag will report their location.

    If you send it RMSD 9am you can likely track the parcel yourself and the 9am service will save you wasting more time.

    It is likely they have scammed others so when they receive the parcel it is unlikely they will connect it with you ... make sure there is nothing in the box that connects it with you.

    Question is what do you do with the information? I'd advise against attempting your own resolution but if you give the info to the Police will they actually do anything?

    Note: I'd register the AirTag with a PAYG mobile from the supermarket so it can't be tracked back to you ... you are not dealing with nice people here ... your risk is they have your wife's details from Facebook so they know you but you don't know them as they will have been using fake accounts.
    Last edited by Montello; 9th August 2022 at 14:19.

  26. #26
    Master Christian's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Montello View Post
    Well it sounds like they like an Apple product so you could send them another parcel with a book in an old iPad box with an AirTag buried in the packaging so it is not easy to find.

    Then you will find out where they are ... if the address is being forwarded then the parcel will end up with them and the AirTag will report their location.

    If you send it RMSD 9am you can likely track the parcel yourself and the 9am service will save you wasting more time.

    It is likely they have scammed others so when they receive the parcel it is unlikely they will connect it with you ... make sure there is nothing in the box that connects it with you.

    Question is what do you do with the information? I'd advise against attempting your own resolution but if you give the info to the Police will they actually do anything?

    Note: I'd register the AirTag with a PAYG mobile from the supermarket so it can't be tracked back to you ... you are not dealing with nice people here ... your risk is they have your wife's details from Facebook so they know you but you don't know them as they will have been using fake accounts.
    That's a really good suggestion, although as you say, I doubt it leads to any satisfactory resolution. The scammers will just deny any knowledge.

    Airtags seem like a good idea for any high value item being sent. I like the idea that you could include it in the package in a SAE and get the buyer to post it back.
    Last edited by Christian; 9th August 2022 at 14:50.

  27. #27
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    Quote Originally Posted by Christian View Post
    That's a really good suggestion, although as you say, I doubt it leads to any satisfactory resolution. The scammers will just deny any knowledge.

    But, once OP knows where their real letterbox is....

    On the tracing back to you point this page says:

    https://appleinsider.com/articles/21...find-an-airtag

    Tracking down the tracker
    There's no way for you, the user, to readily find the owner of an AirTag unless they've put it in Lost Mode and left you a message — or if you tell law enforcement. If police ask Apple to identify an AirTag serial number, Apple will do it.


  28. #28
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    Quote Originally Posted by Christian View Post
    Airtags seem like a good idea for any high value item being sent. I like the idea that you could include it in the package in a SAE and get the buyer to post it back.
    That is exactly what I'd do with any high value item; I don't see any valid objection from the buyer; if there was an objection then that would be a red flag ...

  29. #29
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    Sorry to hear that. Anyone can be fooled these days. I read about a financial advisor that was scammed out of thousands.


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  30. #30
    Quote Originally Posted by Linc View Post
    Sorry to hear that. Anyone can be fooled these days. I read about a financial advisor that was scammed out of thousands.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    And people trust them, poetic.

  31. #31
    Master blackal's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Montello View Post
    That is exactly what I'd do with any high value item; I don't see any valid objection from the buyer; if there was an objection then that would be a red flag ...
    There is a lot of merit in placing an Airtag or Smartag in a padded sleeve, in an envelope to return to the sender. To be able to tell Royal Mail that it isn't lost - it is in the corner of warehouse A - is definitely worthwhile.

    I try to sell by F2F, but would certainly bung an airtag in - If I was posting a watch to someone.

    My sister has them on her cats, and also places in luggage when flying. Handy for your carkeys/housekeys too
    Last edited by blackal; 9th August 2022 at 17:51.

  32. #32
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    Quote Originally Posted by blackal View Post
    There is a lot of merit in placing an Airtag or Smatag in a padded sleeve, in an envelope to return to the sender. To be able to tell Royal Mail that it isn't lost - it is in the corner of warehouse A - is definitely worthwhile.

    I try to sell by F2F, but would certainly bung an airtag in - If I was posting a watch to someone.

    My sister has them on her cats, and also places in luggage when flying. Handy for your carkeys/housekeys too
    Yep ... I have 8 AirTags on various items inc. cars, boats and bikes and will place in luggage for flights.

    My boat is on the beach in Whitstable and the tag gets updated usually every 30 minutes; impressive.

  33. #33
    Master blackal's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Montello View Post
    Yep ... I have 8 AirTags on various items inc. cars, boats and bikes and will place in luggage for flights.

    My boat is on the beach in Whitstable and the tag gets updated usually every 30 minutes; impressive.
    They can be SO accurate too. If near a (say) iPhone - You can even see that the car has entered the M-Way slip road and not on the main carriageway. My satnavs take longer/more deviation - before they update.

    £100 for 4 - can't go wrong!

  34. #34
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    Whats the battery life on the airtags like?? Or do they not have one (sorry never really looked at them)

  35. #35
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    Quote Originally Posted by kultschar View Post
    Whats the battery life on the airtags like?? Or do they not have one (sorry never really looked at them)
    About a year but I have not had them long enough to know. The are replaceable.

  36. #36
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    It is fraud and the police could arrest, it’s not on their radar and the fraudsters know that.
    It was sent Royal Mail special delivery by 1pm, it was signed for at 8:48 and I arrived 7 minutes too late. I assure you had I been there before the parcel would have come home with me. I’m not in the habit of asking nicely when I’m wronged.

    This forum is a great place. Trust worthy beyond reproach and that’s worth a lot. Well done to everyone here who makes it that way 👍👍

  37. #37
    Master Alansmithee's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by IAmATeaf View Post
    Seems to be quite a common scam, apparently they have some sort of bogus banking app where they fake up a payment.

    Saw something similar on Nextdoor where a family was selling a PS5, showed the payment on his phone and the family believed him and handed over the PS5!

    Yes there is a common app they use - it's always a bank in Northern Ireland or Ireland because that is less familiar to people here.

    Whatever bank account numbers and amounts you put in, it will always say transfer successful.

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