Folks Of Interest Scammers in our midst.

So I want to draw some attention to the current scams going on. As some of you are aware, a lot of traditional hot rod stuff is selling on Instagram. Up until recently it has been a very good media to advertise with....

Mostly the scammers were focusing on the impala and c10 crowd. But have moved on 5o hot rods as well.

I have recently found evidence of people taking pictures from the Hamb classifieds and reposting them to Instagram to sell. Basically getting you to pay for a part that they will never ship, because they don't have it!! They are also using parts posted on Instagram and relisting them. I have confronted many of them. I have been able to track one to Kenya, and another to Michigan.

I'm just posting this to let you know to do your due diligence when purchasing a part. If the account is young, it is highly likely to be a scammer. Also when messaging back and forth, generally the written English is broken. Also when you go to pay with Pay pal. The account is set up for donations only. And as always if the price is to good to be true...it most likely is. Good luck and be safe.

Ps. Please don't turn this into a I'm a tough guy and will kick a scammers ass or anywhere political with it. This is stuff that needs to be seen by everybody.

Thanks!

Matt Field

Proprietor
Seattle Speed Shop &
Wallingford hot rods

 

Say this to yourself over and over "if it seems like too good of a deal, don’t take the bait".

 

Hitchhiker thank you for the heads up. This scamming stuff is making me sick and really taking the fun out of things.

 

thanks for the heads up....

 

Good advice here.

 

Thanks for taking the time to pass this along!

 

Thanks for this .


And like you said , we’re all adults here ( well by age anyways )
That being said the “ tough guy attitude that may have helped you or got you ahead in your younger years simply does not work anymore.

I deal with it at work all the time people freaking out about repairs or cost on there equipment and threatening this and that.
I deal with them like a ballon full of air that’s not knotted . Let them blow and fly around the room until there is nothing left . Then pick them up and say, “ are you done now ? Can we have a conversation and deal with the issues at hand ?”
More often then not, calling them out on there adult sized temper tantrum is enough to calm the situation snd get things done.

but let’s face it, a scammer from another state or country once they have your money it’s long gone .
So let’s all be care full out there.

but a pair of needle nose pliers and a blow torch would be fitting justice for these guys.

 

Thanks, Matt! Buyer Beware is Still relevant, maybe even more so today

 

Seems like all scammers use Gmail.

 

Beware, it’s a wicked wicked world out there

 

Scammers have a pretty free reign out there these days...look at the a-holes that sign up here everyday and flaunt stuff that isn't...it's a friggin full time job...yep be very vigilant...

 

Why ? I’ve heard this in this site for a while myself and a whole bunch of folks have had gmail for years and years

 

Before I retired the Department's IT guys told me that most of the attacks on the system could be traced back to a Gmail account. Not to say that many Gmail users aren't legit just saying to be careful, especially when a Gmail account is involved.

 

This is so true. I sell hot rod parts on my Instagram account (mainly vintage gauges and dash panels). Recently, I listed and sold a gauge panel on my account. A few hours later I received a DM from a fellow Instagram user warning me that someone was trying to sell my panel (that I had just sold)
Here is the scammers Instagram account...
jerry.morgam



Apparently he is from North Dakota and has several other Instagram profiles. I have kept an eye on his account and caught him listing/stealing other Instagrammers ads and posting them on his page. I immediately sent DMs to the guys that had their ad hijacked so they were aware. Literally everything on jerry.morgam's Instagram page is a STOLEN ad.

So yes, be carefull out there. Once you start using Instagram you get to know who is for real and who is full of....

 

Just an idea...
Perhaps there is some technology available to the classified section that could add a water mark to images uploaded there. "Posted to the HAMB classifieds" or similar. Nothing to obtrusive, just enough to prevent casual theft.

Jeff

 

Like @VANDENPLAS I've used Gmail for a very long time and last I checked, I wasn't a scammer.

 

There are no victims, only volunteers.

 

I've bought and sold plenty of stuff on the HAMB classifieds, and I don't use PayPal. I also have a Gmail account. I guess if somebody doesn't want to buy from me or sell to me because of those things, that's their prerogative. Everyone has to watch out for their own interests. I place longevity on the HAMB as a higher asset than how they get paid.

 

It wouldn't be hard to do that on your photo or make a token to set with the item that said something like "Hamber Alchemy". that you placed in a spot in the photos where it would be very obvious and maybe more obvious if it were removed.

It doesn't hurt to ask a potential seller to put a current newspaper in the photo with the item either.
Hell, you can set in front of the laptop with the potential buyers request

 

I guess this is a sign of the times and sad it has come to this. I have seen some tempting stuff on Instagram, but pass on them if I don't know the seller.

 

Back up. Important info.

 

Always pay via a means that has some recourse!

Paypal has its benefits

Either that or do it the Traditional way and rock up at the guys door, if they wont do face to face deals, red flags ahoy!

 

I did not imply that all Gmail users are scammers. I will say that every time I list something on craigslist, I request calls or texts to my number. I list my number in a coded form such as (1one1) 22two, 3thre33. You get the picture. But I will list something and within minutes, I'll get a text requesting me to email a response to some obscure gmail account because " thats the only way I can do this" bull shit. Seriously, have none of you ever seen an ad on Craigslist for something that is ridiculously low priced and the only way to contact them is by emailing to some kathybates@gmail? That person does not exist.
go ahead, email them, see if you get a response. It is somebody phishing for email addresses. I dont know what they do with them once they get them but it is an obvious scam. Never reply to something like that. Gmail accounts are akin to burner phones. Burners are devices that crooks will purchase, use up the allotted minutes, then throw it away. They will just go buy another phone and continue on without being traced. Lots of smart scammers out there. Just be wise about emailing back to some odd gmail address.

 

..........Good advice, but not always easy to do if buyer is on the East Coast and seller is on the West Coast.

 

In my state (Michigan), the east and west coasts are just a couple hours apart....

Be careful online.

 

Not sure if it is regional or what on Craigs List... Metro Phoenix AZ area , I will receive 1 - 7 spam text messages on an ad placed with in 4 minutes. Friends in Kansas or Iowa tell me they receive no such texts. Usual broken - poor English in the text messages. I learned a long time ago the various methods to conceal phone number (1 ate 3 four nine) do not work on spammers here.

Another method I see on Craigs List, the spammers insert a message on the photos: Text: 555-555-..... with a silly low price on the item. 800 dollar price tag on a motorcycle that is easy worth 5 to 7k ..

 

Coincidentally, i have an off topic C10 that has some pretty unique changes, and ive been sent multiple instagram posts listing it for sale with pictures grabbed from either the garagejournal or a c10 forum i was a member of. The ads were mostly broken english and looked like obvious scams to me, but one of them was a domestic person and looked like a legitimate ad if it wasnt for a truck sitting in my garage! Multiple pictures and showing during build pictures since they were taken from a build thread. Their page had a bunch of pictures of other people's work he was trying to pass off as his own to get work i guess. It was reported and i think the page was deleted but it still irritated me that some scumbag was trying to rip people off with something that was mine.
Saying that, i probably would have sold it for their asking price, squarebody c10 prices must be going crazy the last few yrs!

 

The lady with the hat says it all !

 

Scams or prostitution, which came first?

 

Dang, reminds me of that video of a song, “Bullets in the gun”?