On Craigslist, I am selling my Nikon camera. A number texted me in regards of purchasing it. He gave me his address and everything. He says he is a US Military Man in Nigeria and he wants to buy it for his son as a surprise. I gave him my email for PayPal.
He said he paid me and the transaction went through. I got spam email saying that I need the shipment number and when I asked him, he said my money will not be redeemed until I reply to the emails with the shipment number. He said I have to pay for the shipment by myself first.
Is this how you use PayPal when shipping things?
It's a scam. This article from 2008 explains the scam but people keep falling for it http://consumerist.com/2008/10/30/how-a-...
Read the craigslist scam warnings page where they specifically say to ONLY deal with people you meet face to face, NEVER give out Paypal details and AVOID ALL transactions involving shipping.
http://www.craigslist.org/about/scams
Craigslist is ONLY for face to face CASH transactions
Do not send the camera and ignore all future threats. You will be getting more emails pretending to be from Paypal, lawyers, even the FBI threatening you with a lawsuit or arrest if you don't send the camera. Ignore them all, it's all part of the scam
And change your paypal email ASAP. These scammers use password hacking software to hack your account
When listing anything expensive on Craigslist always put something like CASH ONLY, LOCAL BUYERS ONLY, NO SHIPPING, NO EXCEPTIONS and ignore anything else
And NEVER give your home address either. Meet in a public location with lots of people around like a Starbucks, hotel lobby, public library, bank. Etc. You are the seller and YOU set the terms of the sale not the buyer
Do not write back, ingore any other threatening emails and change your paypal email address asap
Do not sell to someone in Nigeria, it's just too likely to be a scam, maybe using a stolen paypal account. Follow craigslist's advice and only sell to locals. There are countless offshore people offering to pay over asking price, who send a counterfeit check, getting you to return some cash for a shipping service. (Nigerian 419 scam)
Some have suggested that fraud is the 3rd biggest national product in Nigeria, there was a pop song glorifying the practice "I Go Chop Your Dollar"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1nKR3gYR...
If the money is not in your account he has NOT paid you. PayPal will NOT send you an email simply stating that you got paid. You will see the money in your account when you LOG IN to PayPal. This is one of the oldest scams in the book.
It is a scam. A tracking number is meaningless since you can ship an empty box. Once shipped you will never hear from them again.
