Safety Tips for Avoiding the Most Common Craigslist Scams

As the website gets traction, more and more people come on the website to buy just about anything. Business Insider says it attracts more visitors than Netflix. Pretty shocking!

Generally, all the listings are local to your area, and there are no shipping fees for the user. There is also more freedom to negotiate the price that the buyer is willing to pay if the seller is from his/her area.

The transactions go smoothly most of the time. Still, like any other online place where the buyer and seller don't know each other, the website attracts many scammers. Although it provides a valuable service because of its large viewership, it has also become a hotspot for scammers looking for new victims whether you are a pro making daily deals on Craigslist or a newbie on the website.

These are some of the tricks you can use to avoid the most common scams on the website.

The safety tips can be categorised into:

-Safety of Life (Physical)

-Online Security (Virtual)

Safety of Life tips

Ensuring your physical safety is paramount, especially as you do not know the opposite party. Deal with it using the following advice:

1. 1. Use a people search database Nuwber to check & identify the said person and to validate if he/she is who they are claiming to be. Public databases help users find lost connections or validate someone's input, in our case, by just typing their first and last name. Checking whether the information that comes up on the website matches the one that the person provided will help you stay away from scammers and potential harm, be it physical or financial.
2. 2. Arranging the meeting at a well-lit public place and full of people is another standard tip that even Craigslist recommends. "Deal locally and face-to-face" is Craigslist's top advice to avoid scams. This strategy will ensure your safety and security. For the buyer, it will guarantee that he/she is getting the authentic product as on the website listing.
3. 3. Take someone with you as a backup. It can be any friend or family member. The opposite party is less likely to scam you when you are with a familiar face. You can also send your live location to your close family if you can't take anyone with you.
4. 4. Learn to trust your gut feeling. If you feel that something isn't right, you should walk away from the offer, especially when the seller is selling a product at a price well below the average one.

Online security tips

Ensure not only your real-life safety is dealt with but also your virtual safety with the following:

1) It is advised that you not go ahead with any offer in which the seller is asking you to ship the item or requests for an advance fee as it might indeed be a scam.

2) Always ensure that you do not give more of your personal information than is necessary. It would help if you always opted for a disposable email ID rather than your existing one. You can also bypass giving out your phone number by using Google voice, which provides you with a virtual number.

3) If the seller asks for your CC details so that he can make the transaction, never give that. Always try to deal in cash when you make a transaction through Craigslist. As a seller, you should also ensure that you do not accept any cashier cheques because if they are found to be fake, you might be held responsible.

General tips

Additionally, these are some general tips you can follow:

1. You can always opt to do a reverse image search through Google by copying the image address to ensure that the seller is not faking the product by just attaching a picture from the internet.
2. Never believe any listing where the owner is willing to sell the product for free, as it might attract you, and he/she may later charge you a shipping fee.
3. Do not buy it if the seller tells you an emotional story, so you feel sorry for him/her.
4. Avoid the 'Middleman' scam. If the person you contact says that the product owner is out of town, do not deal with him! You might not even know whose house he is trying to sell/rent. To prevent this, you can always go onto Nuwber and hover on the address search and type the house address to check its owner.
5. If the seller insists that you complete the transaction immediately because someone else is looking at the product or having to sell it in a hurry, take a breath and think twice about proceeding.
6. Don't buy it if it just looks good. Do your study on the product, and ask lots of questions about it. Best practice includes searching "common problems with [name of product]" and then asking the seller about the most often searched problems.

Are you interested in knowing a fun fact about the website? Well, you could apparently once also purchase an $8 million McLaren F1 off the website. In 2014, a private seller put his 1994 McLaren F1 for sale for $7.9 million. And surprisingly, it's not a one-time anomaly.

These are tips that you can follow to ensure that your online buying or selling journey is as issueless as possible. Now, whether you want to buy a house or a phone through Craigslist, you know what steps you should follow to ensure your safety, both physically and virtually.

Craigslist buying and selling can be a fantastic experience. For example, you can get deals you couldn't otherwise locate in your geographical area. As long as you pay heed to the details of each transaction and stay mindful of the signs that warn you of possible scams, you should be fine. If you see a fraud over the website, mark it at the top of the page and email Craigslist at abuse@Craigslist.org.

Happy buying and selling!