Scam Defence
Stop the scammers. Report it.

If you think you've seen or received something suspicious, we want to know about it.

Report a Scam
If you think you have been in contact with a dodgy buyer or seller, we'd like to know about it.

Report your scam here


Report Spam
If you're receiving lots of junk mail we'd like to know about it so we can investigate why.

Report spam here


5 Rules of Online Safety

Don't forget the 5 golden rules of browsing and buying online:

1. Have up-to-date antivirus software
2. Have up-to-date firewall software
3. Choose a secure password
4. Always log off when you're done
5. Most importantly...

If it looks too good to be true, then it probably is!

Buyer Safety

Seller Safety


False Enquiry Scams

False enquiry scams are also known as buyer scams as they often involve fraudsters posing as buyers feigning interest in item(s) for sale.

But they seem so genuine…
Details vary from scam to scam, but typically fraudsters will pose as interstate or overseas buyers keen to buy advertised items sight unseen. They are unlikely to negotiate on price and may even offer to pay more than asking price.

Explanations for overpayment range from banking errors to cheques being from a previous sale that fell through. The buyer may even claim that the ‘extra’ money is for ‘shipping expenses’, ‘insurance’, ‘customs duty’ or ‘agent’s fees’.

The catch is the seller has to refund the excess amount to the buyer, usually through an online money transfer service such as Western Union. The seller will later find they were provided with a false receipt for funds that were never transferred or that the cheque they were provided with was false, but not before they parted with the ‘extra’ money and possibly the item for sale too.

What can you do to avoid these scams?


Buyer scams may not be the most common out there, but there are some simple things you can do to avoid them:
1.

Never complete a transaction based on buyers emailing you ‘proof of payment’ a receipt or a ‘money transfer number (MTN)’.

2.

Independently verify with your bank, PayPal or other account that the funds have been received by personally logging in and checking the account yourself.

3.

Be suspicious of buyers who offer you much more than the item is worth.

4.

Don’t accept international cheques or money orders.

5.

Even if the excuse they give sounds realistic, you should still be wary of requests to refund excess money by instant means like internet banking or wire transfers.

Report it to us. Help us fight scams by alerting us to anything suspicious as soon as possible. If you’ve received an email you believe to be from a false buyer we want to know about it. Contact us.

Important: Never accept “proof” of payment from the buyer. Always independently verify with your bank, PayPal or other account that the funds have been received by personally logging in and checking the account yourself

Recent scams

False carsales Customer Service Team Emails scam

October 2010

Buyers have been targeted by an email scam claiming to be from carsales customer service advising an ad has been "falsely removed".

False PayPal Payment scam

February 2010

Sellers have been targeted in a scam involving false buyers and fake PayPal transactions.