Kijiji Paypal Scam

I had a similar experience on March 17, 2014, following the posting of my truck for sale on Kijiji.

1) I received a text message from a Texas area code (512-253-3106) that said the following:
Is your (truck) still up in in good condition? Please contact me on ([email protected]).. Thanks

2) I e-mailed the following to "Mark":
As per your text message, yes the truck is still listed. We actually just posted it today. The truck has been very well maintained, new breaks in fall 2013. Both sets of tires have lots of tread remaining. Inside has been well maintained, with fabric and carpet in very good condition.

We are selling in order to upgrade to a newer Ford truck. Feel free to e-mail me back with any specific questions. We would be pleased to chat via telephone as well.

3) I received this e-mail in response from "Mark":
Thanks for mailing back please I will like to know the following details

1)Why are you selling ?
2)What's the present condition ?
3)Are you the first owner?
4)Re-confirm asking price?
5) pictures

I await your response...Thanks.

4) I e-mailed the following to "Mark":
1) As indicated in my e-mail, we are selling in order to upgrade to a newer truck (2013 F150 Platinum). We have been very happy with the 2009 truck but are ready for some extra bells and whistles, and more towing power and we plan to start RVing this summer. Previously we only towed a small boat.

2) As indicated in my e-mail, the truck is in excellent working condition, and the interior and exterior are in very good condition. We are not selling due to any condition issues. Truck would be be safetied prior to sale.

3) I am the first owner. Truck was purchased in April 2009 from Ford dealer. Truck had 20 kms on it when we drove it off the lot.

4) Asking price is $24,000 due to relatively low mileage for a 2009 (86,000 kms as of today) and due to very good condition tires (summer and winter each get used for about 6 months at a time, so tires last many years, with very good thread remaining), as well as very durable hard top tonneau cover and spray-in box liner. We are open to all offers however, and therefore asking price is negotiable.

5) There are a few pictures available in the kijiji post. As we have just posted the truck for sale today and are still currently using it as our daily truck, we have not given the truck a final cleaning or taken extensive photos. However prior to closing on a sale, a full interior and exterior detailing would be done.

Thanks for your interest.

5) I received this e-mail in response from "Mark":
Thanks for your response and am glad you answered my questions as requested and i will be very glad to proceed with the purchase,so kindly get back to me with the full name and e-mail address on your paypal account to effect the transfer as soon as possible and also get back to me with your full home contact address so that i can have it forwarded to the agent who will come for the pick up and the signing after the payment has been sorted out...I await your fast response...Thanks

6) I e-mailed the following to "Mark":
Unfortunately I do not use Paypal, and therefore I would require cash, or a certified cheque or money order prepared by a bank for the purchase amount, and would ask that it be handed over at the time of vehicle pickup.

With regard to you having an agent pick the truck up for you, we would like to speak to you or your agent by phone before we close on this deal to discuss the sale price for the truck and what day you would like to pick up the vehicle.

Please note that we are located in XXXXXXX, Canada and I notice that your area code is for Texas (512), so I will admit that we have our concerns over the validity and details of your interest and offer, and therefore a telephone conversation would be helpful to address the specific details of the offer.

Note that we would need a few days to have the vehicle safety certified and cleaned/detailed before it would be ready for pickup.

Thank you again for your interest, and I would be pleased to speak with you to further advance this offer and potential sale. You may call me at XXX-XXX-XXXX, as indicated in the kijiji ad for the truck.

7) I received this e-mail in response from "Mark":
I would have love to come up with cash but i can't due to the nature of my work,I am a marine engineer and i am currently offshore at the moment. The only means of payment here is paypal, if you don't have a paypal account It is easy to get an account,just go to http://www.paypal.com all they need from you is a valid bank account it takes less than 3-4min to register,its reliable and secure to send and receive money online. Please bear with me as i am willing to buy.
Thanks for your understanding

8) I e-mailed the following to "Mark":
Thanks for your interest, however the way I proceed with vehicle sales is to deal in person, locally and with cash. Please note that your inability to deal in this fashion and your insistence on only paying through Paypal is a deal breaker for me, as I am very much aware of the high occurence of Paypal scams in response to Kijiji advertisements. While I trust this is not the same situation you and I have embarked on with our e-mail communication, I am suspicious given that your e-mail language is very similar to what has been posted on the following forum: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=60044.

I will consider our communications closed following this e-mail, and as a result I recommend that you do not respond back to me as I will not be selling my truck to you, dealing with any agent of yours, or making any deals through Paypal.
____________
So, there were many issues that made me suspicious right from the intial text message that had the word (truck) and the e-mail address in brackets, and then the offer to pay full price without any negotiation, and finally the insistence on using Paypal and an agent to proceed with the sale.

Good luck fellow Kijiji sellers, and stay savvy to these types of scammers!

Hi, I've been targeted with this scam as well. Here is the email I received after the text message:

"Collins Andy ([email protected])

Thanks for the prompt response. I'm Okay with the condition as I have
already go through it on the advert but just trying to make little
inquiry from you, I'm ready to buy it now as a gift for my Daughter,
I'm at sea at the moment as I'm a Navy Officer, and due to the nature
of my Job.....phone calls making and visiting of website are
restricted but I squeezed out time to check this advert and send you a
message regarding it. I really want it to be a surprise for my
Daughter I won't let her know anything about it until it gets
delivered to her, I am sure she will be more than happy with it. I
insisted on PayPal because I don't have access to my bank account
online as I don't have internet banking, but I can pay from my PayPal
account, as I have my bank account attached to it, Get back to me with
your PayPal email and the last price you are selling it? so I can
proceed with the payment quickly, and sorry if you don't have an
Account, you sign-up for a PayPal personal account http://www.paypal.com it
is very fast and easy to set up. And there is a shipping company pick
up agent that will come for the pick up after the payment has been
sorted out."

At that point I tried to get into my PayPal account to add my bank account (only had credit card setup) I had a lot of trouble getting in and reset my password ... still can't get in. I replied to the email above telling him I had to wait a couple hours to get into my account and I also offered to deliver the keyboard. He replied with cut and paste instructions to set up a PayPal account. (perfect English) This is when I decided to check for scams. Thank you all for posting.
Now I'll see what his latest reply is, but I won't be responding any more.

Thanks!

Well, you just saved me from a world of troubles. The emails that I receieved were VERBATIM what you showed here!

I was contacted in regards to my jeep I have up on kijiji.

The contacting phone number was 19135832173
Thae name they provided was Barry Craig...
They supplied an email by the likes of
[email protected]
Verbatum in context of discussions previously posted...
I received a second text from another person.
This time by a person with the name Allen Darren. An email within the text went as [email protected]

I did not reply to the latter
Get a little smarter scammers...

Just want to share my story.

I received a text from the number +1 (252) 543-9302

He said "i saw ur ad,Am ready to offer an additional $700 to ur asking price for the vehicle.pls respond by email me ASAP on: [email protected]"

Because I needed to sell the car immediately, I e-mailed him.

I said "Hi. U texted me about the Honda Civic and you said you are willing to pay 8,700 on the car?"

He replied very quickly and said " Hi V*****
just thinking you might have had some buyer's interested in buying your Vehicle and i think the best way to outbid them is by offering you additional 700 to your asking price on the ad, Well am actually purchasing it for my Brother at home to have something to move around with when am not available but i won't be available to come for the inspection my self due to where i am presently . I do have a pick-up agent that will be contacting you on where and when the pick-up will take place after have completed the payment my self .
If you don't mind can you please tell me a little bit more about the present mechanical condition,how often you do the servicing and the history ? I will be waiting for your response then if we come to an agreement i will proceed with the payment immediately.

James"

Then I started searching the about paypal scamming and ended up in here. I saw that they have an exact message. I was almost caught in that. Good thing I read this!

Another thing the I keep getting from the dress that i'm selling is a seaman either texting or emailing me about wanting to pay via paypal to be able to buy the dress for her daughter. I got the message 2 times already and he/she is pretty desperate in scamming people.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH guys!

I too received a text and email from "Andy Collins" word for word what was posted above. His text came from cell number 914-268-2106. When I got the text I checked the number online and it came up as New York. Made me suspicious right away. Then the email came, so i cut and pasted the contents of the email into my browser and i landed on this site. Beware any email from [email protected]. I've alerted kijiji and i haven't responded to his email.

So glad this site is here. Thanks!

Wow "vberriault" correspondence looked exactly like the correspondence i received for my car - however i got to the "take down your Kijiji add" and knew something was up (well originally the $700 over asking made me very suspicious, but hey i want an additional $700 hahahaah)

thank you SO MUCH for letting me know this is spam

This is the number that texted me from NJ (201) 731-8373

email is [email protected]

Edward Beh

if it sounds too good to be true...it ALWAYS is - wish i could sick the feds on these idiots

And they are still at it.

Got this about an hour ago for my item. Notice how the body of the text makes no reference to what I'm selling.
__________________________________________________________________________________
From: "Mary Anamno" <[email protected]>
Date: September 14, 2014 at 20:31:47 MDT
To: "My Address"@gmail.com
Subject: Re: "Item for Sale"


Thanks for your swift response,Due to the nature of my work,phone
calls making and visiting of website are restricted but i squeezed out
time to check this advert and send you an email regarding it.I am offering you additional $200 to the asking price because i am much interested and planning to beat other bidders on the post. I will be paying you with my credit card via my PayPal account,If my offer is accepted please kindly get back to me with the details below:


1) PayPal Account Name:
2) PayPal email address:
3) Mobile Phone Number:
4) Your Pick up Location?


I can pay in right away.I am a sailor and do not have much time around
me.Make sure you get back to me so that we can arrange for pick up as
i will like the it to be picked,so no shipping.I insisted on PayPal
because i don't have access to my bank account online as i don't have
internet banking, but i can pay from my PayPal account, as i have my
bank a/c attached to it, i will need you to give me your papal email
address so i can make the payments as soon as possible and plea if you
don't have PayPal account yet, it is very easy to set up, go to
WWW.PayPal.com and get it set up , after you have set it up.
___________________________________________________________________________

That's the thing about mid-western Canada, we don't have too many sailors.
Fantastic web site by the way. Thanks

He is at it in the US as well. I recieved a text from him today instructing me to contact him privately on [email protected]. The more the emails went on the more I realized it was a scam.

Removed (BW)

Hi
I just received a similar email! I'm trying to sell my dining set. First they sent a text from 1-(770)455-5368 named Felicia that said to correspond with them by email ([email protected]) only due to the nature of their job. Then the email is as follows...

"I appreciate your prompt response, I am buying It ASAP for my cousin
residing in Ontario as a surprise. I wont be available by myself for
inspection due to the nature of my work and present location. I will
like you to email me with some close up shots of it and will arrange
for it to be picked up by a pick up agent who will be coming for the
inspection and pick up at your place once the payment clears, I will
also be paying you through Paypal which i believe is safe and secured
for both of us and I will also be responsible for the charges. All I
need from you now is to get back to me with your Paypal email and name
or send me Paypal invoice so that I can send your payment ASAP. What
is your final asking price?

Just want to be sure about the sale before i proceed and If you need
to reach me, send me an email as i Squeeze time every four-hours to
check correspondence and respond at the same time.

Thanks"

Hi There, this individual is still at it! same exact email to us about our truck for sale.

Email address: [email protected]
I am happy to have found this site. Thanks for everyone's posts!

Hi,

I placed an ad on Kijiji for my car, normal european car that can be you found anywhere on the planet. I am in Montreal, my ad is in French and a couple of hours after my post, i received a text message with an area code from Tennessee ( !!!) asking me to send an email - my email address figures on my ad...

I wonder if there is anything we can do to get those abject people out ...?

The text message is from 865-745-9960 and it says:
Hello Seller Is your Car On Kijiji AD still Up of Sale ?? Me and my husband are interested please Kindly email me back to
([email protected] )Thanks

So I wrote and these are the emails from [email protected]
Thank you for getting back to me. Can you assure me that i will not be disappointed with it. I'm ready to pay your asking price, i'm buying this for my son.I would have love to come for the viewing by the weekend, but My place is way too far from there in which i am located in yukon in canada So i thought of how to make this transaction work between us, which i came to conclusion with my husband to use a courier company to pick up the item from your place but we will send the money to your account first and after you get the money in your account, the pick up company will come to help us carry it As for the payment..i will be paying you via the fastest and secure way to pay online(PayPal)..You can now send me your PayPal email so i can pay in right away and also include your address in your reply.If you don't have a paypal account, you can easily set up one...log on to www.paypal.com and sign up. its very easy.get back to me with all this request information..
1.Your PayPal Full Name
2.Your Paypal E-mail address.
3. Your phone number.
4.remove the item on kijiji.
Best Regards,

I wrote back:
I am reporting you to the authorities - do not contact me again.

I received this answer:
Due to my present location, my choices are limited and not often available by the phone. I am an honorable woman and you will receive your money cash in hand before this is picked up. However, it's easy and free to open a paypal account. Just go to there website www.paypal.com and sign up a personal account there. Paypal is the world leading payment master that protects both buyer/seller interest. You are on a secured transaction with paypal. Above all, it's like instant cash. As soon as you open an account, get back to me with the name and email that you linked with your paypal account and I will have your money sent asap. And due to the nature of my job and having being a paypal customer for the past 6 year with no charge back,I feel more comfortable sending my funds via paypal due to there various security measures at ensuring safe and secured transaction between both buyer/seller. But, if you feel otherwise, I totally understand
Regards

Hey guys,

I'm currently entertaining this person with a guitar that I put on Kijiji last week.

S/he emailed me the same opening email, verbatim.

"She" is going by the name "Felicia Taylor" ([email protected])

Good luck to all that have to deal with this person, and don't be fooled by their politeness. Anyone who is willing to drop large amounts of money without seeing the item first is fake!

My email chain reads:

*Starts with a received text from "Felicia Taylor" insisting that I contact "her" at [email protected]. And I do.*

Me:
"Hello,
Yes, the [ITEM] is still available. Do you have any questions about it and/or would you like to set up a time to meet?
Thank you."

Her:
"I appreciate your prompt response, I am buying It ASAP for my cousin
residing in Ontario as a surprise. I wont be available by myself for
inspection due to the nature of my work and present location. I will
like you to email me with some close up shots of it and will arrange
for it to be picked up by a pick up agent who will be coming for the
inspection and pick up at your place once the payment clears, I will
also be paying you through Paypal which i believe is safe and secured
for both of us and I will also be responsible for the charges. All I
need from you now is to get back to me with your Paypal email and name
or send me Paypal invoice so that I can send your payment ASAP. What
is your final asking price?

Just want to be sure about the sale before i proceed and If you need
to reach me, send me an email as i Squeeze time every four-hours to
check correspondence and respond at the same time.
Thanks"

Me:
"Hello,
I've attached some more pictures of the [ITEM]. A few of the guitar's backside pictures look like it has a large scratch on the instrument body, but it is only the reflection from a lamp that I had moved off to the side. I've included several pictures of each angle to show that there are no damages. Please let me know when you have looked through these, and if there is anything else I can provide.
My final asking price is [DOLLARS].
Thank you very much for your interest"

Her:
"Okay. I would have love to talk to you on phone and explain more
better but Due to the nature of my job,making phone calls and visiting
of website are restricted but i took permission from our IT Admin to
check this advert and sent you Text regarding this and instructing you
to text so I am not allowed to get out of the unit or give calls
whenever I want. I am an honorable person and you will receive your
full money cash in hand before my mover comes for pick up at your
place. And if you dont have a paypal account, It's pretty easy to set
up a PayPal account at http://www.paypal.com . it's just a few minutes away
from signing up. it's safe and secure for both Parties. You are on a
secured transaction with paypal. As soon as you open an account, get
back to me with the name and email that you linked with your paypal
account and I will have your money wired asap. I hope to read from you
asap
Regards"

Me:
"Hello,
I've sent you an invoice for the [ITEM]. My name is [NAME], and my Paypal email address is [EMAIL ADDRESS]. Hopefully you received it with no problems.

Please let me know if you have any more questions, and/or when you have sent payment so we can schedule a pick-up time.
Thank you very much"

Her:
"I have just made the payment and i expect paypal to have sent you a
payment confirmation email at the email associated with your paypal
account by now. Please check your mailbox (spam/junk folder included)
for the transfer confirmation/notification email. The total payment i
sent with the Shipper's fee ($350) and Money Gram transfer charges
($100) inclusive was [DOLLARS] and it has been deducted from my account.
I will need you to go the nearest Money gram office or POST OFFICE
asap and send $350.00 to the pick up agent Head Office where they
normally confirm any commission payment via Money Gram money transfer,
so the Mover can be able to come for the inspection and pick up at
your place. The extra $100 is to cover the Money Gram fee. Due to the
PayPal new Transfer Policy, PayPal will not fully credit the funds
into your account until you email them the Money Gram details of the
excess shipper's fee for verification and also to enable my pick up
agent to come for inspection and pickup. Here is the agent's head
office details where the money will be sent.

Name: Candace Currie
Address: 3834 T kane blvd Trucking Apt,Truro,NS B2N 1L1,Canada

Pls. Kindly email the necessary details to PayPal (Money Gram)re# and
Sender's Name and Address used to send the $350.00 CAD in order for
your funds [DOLLARS] to be fully reimbursed/processed into your
account by paypal after all transaction data is confirmed. Please get
back to me once it's done. Thanks for your usual cooperation"

(I have already caught on that it is a scam so I went to my legit. Paypal account and cancelled the invoice.

Her (Again):
"Oh all good. We learn every day, you ought to have asked now i see you
are very new to PayPal procedures, It does not take long for the money
to go through.....PayPal is instant....The funds will get into your
account Immediately you send them the details you get from Money Gram.
You can go through the payment confirmation email you received from
PayPal in your paypal email account and thoroughly check your
spam/bulk folder for the payment confirmation, they might have said
you should provide the Money Gram details of excess shipper's fund for
verification and process the crediting of your account. So what you
are to do is to go to any Money Gram outlet and send the excess
shipper's fund to the shipper's info from your pocket and make sure
you get back to PayPal with the details from Money Gram by replying to
the Confirmation email you received from them earlier and make sure
you get back to me as soon as this is done and have your account
credited so that i can put you through and notify my Shipper to
schedule and appointment with you for pick up at your place and i hope
this is straight...
Thanks await your swift response...
Regards."

Her (Again again):
"I am still waiting to hear from you and its very surprising you did
not reply back to my last email. I am getting worried over this
transaction as i have already sent my money to your PayPal account
which has been deducted from my account and yet to hear back from you.
Please let me know if you have sent the money via moneygram and
emailed the detail to paypal. Paypal will credit your account upon the
confirmation of the moneygram details of Moving agent fee. Keep me
updated. I await your urgent responds
Yours faithfully"

Me:
"Hello Felicia,
I apologize for my delayed response. I've been carefully considering how I would reply to your requests.
I have not received any payment notifications from any legitimate PayPal email address. There are no pending payments on my account, nor any signs of [DOLLARS] ever being transferred. You may want to contact PayPal and inquire about your payment. I know that the nature of your work prevents you from readily contacting people, so hopefully this won't be too difficult.

As for the MoneyGram payment, this was never mentioned until you had already made your payment to PayPal. I am unfamiliar with new PayPal and MoneyGram procedures, and am not comfortable sending out-of-pocket money through unfamiliar sources. I feel that potential payment transfer problems can be avoided if the transaction is cancelled. I have already sent you an invoice cancellation, and until I am contacted by a legitimate PayPal address regarding your payment, there is nothing I can do for you.

In the future, I suggest purchasing another instrument from a licensed retailer instead. They usually offer several shipping options that may even be free for you.
Best of luck."

Her:
"I can understand you. I ought to have explained to you better and i
hope you receive the payment confirmation mail from paypal in your
spam/junk folder if not in your inbox folder. PayPal protect both
buyer and seller interest so they take charge for the safety of this
transaction. This is one of the paypal policies to ensure safe/secure
transaction between buyer and seller. I have played my part been the
buyer by firstly transferred my money to your account which cannot be
refunded or canceled and will not be visible in your account until you
play your own part of the transaction and act as instructed by having
the excess shipping fee sent via Money Gram from your personal money
and email the Money Gram details for verification. This secured
verification policy was implemented by paypal due to some sellers that
refuses to ship the item which has already been paid for by the buyer
and as well discontinue talking to the buyer. Neither the buyer nor
the seller can cancel this transaction. I implore you to have the
excess shipping fee sent via Money Gram by all means and confirm all
Money Gram transaction details to paypal so that your account can be
fully credited after all details are confirmed and finalize the
transaction."

(I'm still waiting for another reply).

It looks like this is still happening.

I received a text message (from 289-315-2178) after posting my bike for sale. I emailed him and got this response...

(from webbtomson james <[email protected]>)

Good to hear back from you.I will be glad to buy it from you, this what i have been looking for to buy,but i will not be able to come and see it in your place Note that i will be responsible for shipping and handling.My shipping/pickup company will come to your location for the pick up because i will not be able to come and see it due to my work,please provide me with the address where it will be picked up so that i can forward it to the shipping company to calculate the cost of pick up for me.i'll be waiting for the address where the item is so i can send it to my shipping / pick up company for the calculation of there fees and i'm sure they will get back to me soon. So about the payment i will like the payment to be made via paypal online secure payment . So i want you to get back to me with your verified PayPal Account Email Address And your full Name Please include your email address in your reply for effective contact,So that i can Deposit the funds now and if you don't have one you can get one done at http://www.paypal.com and with that i can have a good transaction.
1.Am ok with the asking price
2.Your PayPal Full Name
3.Your Paypal E-mail address.
4. Your phone number.
Best Regards.
...


I replied that I would not accept electronic payment.

I'm not sure he'll reply to that. I'm not the only one experiencing this on Kijiji this month. Here is a current example http://www.kijiji.ca/v-sport-bikes/city ... 1104266130 of a seller experiencing this issue.

Thanks for the great information,
Zeke

[AlanJones]

From: webbtomson james - [email protected]

Good to hear back from you.I will be glad to buy it from you, this what i have been looking for to buy,but i will not be able to come and see it in your place Note that i will be responsible for shipping and handling.My shipping/pickup company will come to your location for the pick up because i will not be able to come and see it due to my work,please provide me with the address where it will be picked up so that i can forward it to the shipping company to calculate the cost of pick up for me.i'll be waiting for the address where the item is so i can send it to my shipping / pick up company for the calculation of there fees and i'm sure they will get back to me soon. So about the payment i will like the payment to be made via paypal online secure payment . So i want you to get back to me with your verified PayPal Account Email Address And your full Name Please include your email address in your reply for effective contact,So that i can Deposit the funds now and if you don't have one you can get one done at www.paypal.com and with that i can have a good transaction.
1.Am ok with the asking price
2.Your PayPal Full Name
3.Your Paypal E-mail address.
4. Your phone number.
Best Regards.

[AlanJones]

I need to inform you about a slight change with the pick up arrangements received an email from my pick agent he said he won't come for the pick up unless i pay him the agent commission fee first in order to be able to schedule a pick up time and date, the Courier Agency Head Quarters is in China and all commission payment made for pick up from anywhere in the world is sent to their Head Quarters and the only form of payment they accept is Western Union Money Transfer.

I will now include the $950.00 CAD they charged to pick it up and take it home (1st Class Cargo) to the payments i will send through PayPal..

After receiving the confirmation email from PayPal after i have made the payments to you and received the whole money, I will need you to send the $950.00 CAD to my pick up agent address via Western Union Money Transfer and will include an additional fee of $50 as western union charges when sending money..

The western union money transfer can be made at any post office or any western union outlet around you. I will be making the payments of $2,250.00 CAD to you shortly and will email you as soon as am done.

Get back to me As soon as possible.