Thread: -.-=*Preventing the Most Common Scam Methods*=-.-

What is a scam?

A dishonest scheme; a fraud; a wrongful or criminal deception intended to result in financial or personal gain.

In short, a scam is the worst possible outcome any buyer/seller/trader can encounter when dealing in any market, for that matter. The intention of this guide is to help† push you to become a safer buyer/seller/trader, and to avoid the little mistakes that can cost you time and money.

† - In the end, you, the user, becomes self-dependent. While there are others that may assist you in any problem that may arise, you are the only one who can prevent these problems from ever arising.

Note: By following the following guidelines, you are not 100% guaranteed risk-free. These tips are simply put forth to assist you in the process.

Table of Contents
I. Common Scam Methods
II. Scam Prevention
III. Google is your Friend!

I. Common Scam Methods
Some of the most common scam methods are listed here:

• Impostor
• E-mail Spoofing
• PayPal (Stolen and Chargebacks)
• Western Union
• Rushing

Impostors

A person who pretends to be someone else in order to deceive others, esp. for fraudulent gain.

The definition alone gives most of the description away. These are not people you want to encounter when you are looking for legitimate offers. Most impostors are very cunning and take advantage of users with illegitimate Instant Messenger addresses to take on the identity of another user. In many cases, it is too late before the person realizes they were cheated by an impostor.

About 99% of the time you may encounter an impostor, it will be someone with an AIM address that is slightly altered to look as though it were that of the user you are trying to get in contact with.

One example:

• Hi@aol.com and Hl@aol,com
  or
• Malicious@aol.com and MaIicious@aol,com

You may be wondering how people fall for this. But I can ensure you that under the right font, even an "I" will look like a lower-case "L".

Example:

I and I (I in Fixedsys font) <- Gotcha, right?

E-mail Spoofing

A term used to describe (usually fraudulent) e-mail activity in which the sender address and other parts of the e-mail header are altered to appear as though the e-mail originated from a different source.

E-mail spoofing is ugly. It's very deceiving and it can really lead to some harmful stuff if someone falls into the trap. Many of us have seen it; whether it's in the form of a gaming administrator trying to reach a user, or someone claiming to be your bank asking for information. E-mail spoofing is simply an activity in which someone takes on the identity of another user by making the e-mail seem to originate from a particular person. Here is an example of a spoofed E-mail I sent to myself.



In many ways, E-mail spoofing is very common to impostors. However, E-mail spoofing generally also has characteristics of phishing:

The activity of defrauding an online account holder of financial information by posting as a legitimate company.

Phishing involves the act of asking a user to disclose personal details (Gaming accounts, Social security numbers, Bank numbers, etc.) which allow the scammer to take advantage of the user. On these forums, it is common to see Gaming-related phishing. However, these types of scams are also used for identity theft. It is important to understand that in most circumstances (Blizzard for instance) will NEVER ask for your personal information via e-mail. If you are sent to a sketchy link such as "hiclickme.php," Do NOT click it, and immediately report it.

PayPal (Stolen and Chargebacks)

PayPal is both a blessing and a curse at the same time. While in many cases it makes for a great tool for quick and easy transactions, it is also one of the biggest venues for fraud over the internet. The biggest problem that most users face when it comes to transactions regarding PayPal is the use of stole PayPal accounts. Yes, that is right stolen. As I have mentioned earlier, there are many ways for people to gain access to another person's information; whether it's phishing or trojan software, it's possible. If a person has access to a stolen PayPal account, they can use registered credit cards and linked bank accounts to make unauthorized transactions. These transactions, usually are ultimately reversed as they are indeed unauthorized.

Chargebacks are also another large problem. While PayPal has an investigative service, they are not very thorough when it comes to processing claims. In many cases, a seller on these forums forfeits their protection because they are selling an "intangible" good, one that cannot be physically touched.

Western Union

Western Union is a very simple method for making legitimate transactions. It is essentially a bank that transfers money from one location to another. The downside is that this money is non-refundable. However, the upside is that information on the identity of the user is required to send the payment, so it is very easy to fish up contact information should any problem arise. The most common Western Union scam involves the "I'm going to the bank, brb - User has Signed Off."

Rushing

I like to call this type of scam "Rushing." And it is the most common technique for scammers to take advantage of a user. Rushing involves the practice of hurrying a victim through a transaction as fast as possible. Pretend you are opening a door with a key. Now pretend you are opening a door with a key while there is a swarm of bees chasing you down. Chances are, when you are pressured into opening the door, you may fiddle with the keys more than if you were calmly walking in. Similarly, scammers try to rush a user through a transaction to keep them offguard. The less time you have to complete the transaction, the less time you have to think and to make a successful one.

I. Scam Prevention
Tips to preventing the following common scams:

• Impostor
• E-mail Spoofing
• PayPal (Stolen and Chargebacks)
• Western Union
• Rushing

Impostor Prevention

These small tips will help prevent most impostors from taking advantage of you:

Tip #1: Copy/Paste. If you are trying to get in contact with a user who has a complicated AIM name (I do this with even the simplest of AIM addresses), always copy/paste their AIM address from their signature to the "Add Buddy" menu. This can prevent you from accidentally misspelling the address and contacting the impostor themself! That just makes their job 10x easier.

Tip #2: Use the new VBForum HTML link. As some of you may have noticed, there is a new button beneath the profile of users who have registered their Instant Messenger addresses to their account. If you click the button and hit the "Send [username] a message," you will be automatically entered into a chat with the user you are trying to talk to. If you are going to use this function, I recommend that you always take a screenshot of the little box for proof in the future that the IM address was registered to the specific user.

Example:


Tip #3: If contacted by a user directly, always verify who they are. My personal methods for doing so are as followed: I first begin by looking up the user's profile on the forums. I then find their IM address associated to it, and do a quick Copy/Paste or click of the IM button, and open a new chat with the user. If the user who contacted me was indeed the real person, a new chat window should not pop up. Regardless if a new chat window pops up, you may wish to use the new chat window, knowing you are in fact speaking with the correct person.

Tip #4: If a user contacts you claiming to be a specific person on the forums, have them verify it via PM or thread post. Ask them to post a *secret word* (I'll explain why in a moment†) such as "Penguin," "Car," "Fruitloop," etc. in a Private Message or a thread post on one of your threads. This is a key and priceless technique to verifying who you are talking to.

† - I added this footnote to explain the reason behind a secret word. This is where impostors become incredibly deceptive, when they are able to successfully prove to the person that they are someone else, when in reality they aren't. The most common example is done via IM to the user being imposed. The impostor will go on a separate IM address and talk to the user they are imposing, asking them to "bump" the thread of a victim. If the user being imposed is careless, and they bump the thread, now the impostor has shown via post that they may be who they say they are. The victim, who is lead to believe that the impostor is actually the person, is then taken advantage of. If you ask for a secret word, it is much harder for an impostor to ask a person to randomly post or PM "Penguin" or any secret word for that matter, other than "Bump," which is standard.

**If you are asked to bump another user's thread, and you have NO idea who the user is, ignore them and report it to the administration team**

Tip #5: Font is your best friend. Let's say MaIicious decided to give you an IM and wants you to believe they are Malicious. They are using a font, such as the one shown above to come out with an AIM address: "MaIicious". But wait... this AIM address is actually "MaIicious," with the "I" altered to look like a lower-case "L". Who would notice such a peculiar little effect? Well, here is the answer to this problem. While font seems to be the tool of deception, it is also the tool of clarity. Copy/Paste the fake address ("MaIicious" in this case) and take it to a word document. Size it up large, make it really visible, and then change the font several times to carefully examine that each letter represents what it looks like. You may end up with this:

"MaIicious"

It is clear that you have encountered an impostor. And by simply using the font tool, you were able to catch what you couldn't see before with the naked eye. My personal favorite font is "Times New Roman" since the letters (especially when sized up) are very clear and easy to differentiate.

E-mail Spoofing Prevention

Tip #1: To my understanding, there is only one way to officially prove whether an e-mail is legitimate or not. This is done by viewing the "Headers." An e-mail header is sort of like a source code, it tells you where the e-mail originated, and what servers it went through. In many cases, e-mail spoofing leaves a trace to a site or domain which was used to create the e-mail. Depending on what e-mail service you use, many will allow you to right click the e-mail, and you should find "View Full Headers," "View Headers," "View Message Source," etc. Here is the header of the spoof e-mail I sent myself.



As seen from the highlighted region, there is an interesting web-based domain that the e-mail was processed through. But why would Blizzard send an e-mail through another site, let alone past my region and back? They wouldn't. A quick google search will show that the domain is used for E-mail spoofing.

Tip #2: Another small way to tell if an E-mail is legitimate or not is to look at the content. Blizzard usually has a very professional manner when it comes to E-mails, and they contain a decent amount of sophisticated vocabulary, as well as structure, and spelling/grammar. You won't see a wall of text "likedis tahts all misspellld" from Blizzard anytime soon.

PayPal (Stolen and Chargebacks) Prevention

Tip #1: When it comes to stolen PayPals, there are two very clear ways to figure it out. The first way is to ask the user to send you an E-mail from their registered PayPal address (remember to check the headers!) to prove they are indeed the holder of the account. The issue with this is that most people who gain access to PayPal accounts will also have the password (which may even be identical) to the E-mail account. Generally, there is a rule of thumb I like to live by when it comes to these circumstances. Get your account quoted by a professional seller to get an "idea" of a range price. If someone is offering you $750 on an account that a legitimate buyer is offering $300, you are looking at a deal that may be "too good to be true." If it's one of these deals, back out immediately.

Tip #2: Chargebacks are tricky to handle. In many cases, it's a comfort issue between both the buyer and the seller, whom don't want to have to go first and don't want to be the last to give the final information/payment. For a seller, by using PayPal for intangible goods, you are signing a suicide note. You forfeit your protection rights as a seller, and are not able to make a claim should a problem arise. There are several ways of avoiding this. You may ask the user to pay you via "Gift" or "Payment Owed" which are non-refundable. You may also create a contract, using the PayPal note to clarify the transaction being made. Two of my favorite ideas are as follows: You can sell the account via PayPal, and mail the SQA via postage mail. This gives PayPal an actual tracking number they can use to give you the rights because you are sending something "tangible." Another method is also the "waiting" method; in which the seller hands over the account information (minus the SQA) and waits until the funds are no longer retrievable (this can be done by securing the funds in a bank account or waiting the 30-45 days* before a chargeback cannot be made) and then sends the SQA to the buyer.

*Number of days may be incorrect. Also, if the transaction is paid via credit card, the person may be able to make a chargeback within a year - so be careful!

Western Union Scam Prevention

Tip #1: There are no great ways at protecting yourself from a Western Union scam. The only advantage is that you have the information required to fill out a police report or get in contact with the user should they scam you. I recommend only using WU if the user is trusted, reputable, and has a very strong business practice. Do not take chances when it comes to Western Union because you may lose your money.

Rushing Prevention

Tip #1: This is the easiest technique of scam to prevent. Just say "NO" and walk away. If someone says, "Can we hurry, I have to leave in 15 minutes for soccer practice," you can respond the following ways: A) Decline the offer. B) Ignore the person completely. C) Tell them you can wait until after their practice to continue the transaction. I've had users tell me that they will be moving within 4 hours of a transaction, and I've never walked away faster from a deal. Do not take excuses and do not allow them to hurry you. Transactions are a process, and they take time to be done correctly. If someone is trying to speed you through it, politely ask them to slow down, or simply decline the offer.

Tip #2: Patience is a virtue. I remember a school nun repeating this to me everyday. But it could never be more true. If you are patient and take your time, you will find that perfect offer. Do not try to convince yourself that you MUST trade away your account today, or sell it within three days. If you are selling your account for rent, it is probably better to spend your time working than managing offers.

III. Google is your Friend!

My last tip of advice is to use the best search engine there is: Google! Google is basically a database full of public information that can hold the key to your successful transaction. It's like those CSI-type TV shows where they search a name on a computer and know everything about them. While it's not as effective, a simple search on an AIM address or a Username may be the key to finding out the person's past reputation or even other transactions with other users, and possibly interactions on various sites. If you find anything suspicious, think twice and walk away: in the end, you save yourself a heartache!

This is one example of how Google helped me:

http://vbforums.mmobay.net/showthrea...WILL-be-Caught

My Final Tip:

As sad as it is: Trust No One. They must prove to you that they are legitimate. Wherever there is one legitimate offer, there are ten others trying to take advantage of you.

Be careful, be informed, and stay in control with some of these tips.

Feel free to correct me and/or comment.

Thanks!

Good thread TJP, everyone who is looking to sell this account should read this. This would avoid a lots of people being defrauded.

Wow this is really helpful! Thumb up!

Good job bro.

Copied this to traders forum and stickied.

Awesome job

Very helpful for us new members thanks alot. Copy and paste came up with a scammer already <3

yeah i think i just got "done" by someone with email pvsurfrdude88@hotmail.com pretending to be username PVSurfrdude88 but not sure yet.