Be wary of potential scammers

[Dionysis]

Thanks for the alert.

One "protection" I try to use is Paypal purchase protection instead of the "Friends and Family". A number of legit sellers like the F&F but there still is a charge (that the buyer now pays). My last purchase, I picked up the charges for the protection and felt the reassurance was worth it.

And glad no one bought the $20k MB from the new account that refused to post photos.

I never F&F through PayPal. For one thing, it strikes me as a misrepresentation. If the other party suggests it I am immediately a touch more cautious dealing with them. I am probably not friends nor family with someone I’m buying a uke from on here.

For another thing, that protection is dirt cheap and the only thing that makes me ok buying online.

I suggest never buying without purchase protection. If someone is disgruntled when you choose it, they are really out of line. Granted, the expense comes from the seller’s take. So they can build the fee into their asking price. If they didn’t stipulate the price is for F&F they should be ready for the seller to choose the accurate process for a sale rather than a personal monetary gift.

If they can’t get around it and I really wanted the uke I would offer to split the fee, it was only 2.9% last I checked. If they are unaware of it then you’re dealing with an inexperienced seller, another cause for a touch more caution. I once had a seller who agreed to a purchase but reneged when PayPal added sales tax. Unfortunately that is here to stay and we should all be forewarned to calculate added sales tax and PP fees when we strike a deal.

You’re already getting a discounted/ used instrument. If you don’t like it you can probably get most of your money back re-selling it excepting the shipping, sales tax, and PP fees. It is still less of a loss than buying new.

Don’t set yourself up to be scammed, play it safe.

 

[Jag-Stang]

I have been reading posts for a few years but just became a supporting member in the beginning of April of 2022. I used available posts as research by clicking the links when doing Google searches. After enough tries I realized I needed to become a member. I am a member of a few other forums. I support what I believe in and new members have nothing to do with scams. Researching what members post or have to say will tell you what you need to know. First all members should understand how scammers entice you to send them money or purchase items. They take you elsewhere so they can not be tracked.
All schemes start with enticement. If someone as a buyer says “ My dad is interested in your Ukulele I just sent him pictures please contact him at (email) The idea is to take you away from the original person or place to another place. Or if a buyer wants to send you money via an odd source I.e. a “bank check” or a money order” plenty of fake checks are being sent. One of the biggest scams on Reverb involves people offering checks that are fake. As the seller has only 3 days to ship. He gets the check deposits it and 10 days later gets word from his bank (by mail) that the check was a fake. By the time he finds out he has already shipped out the instrument.
Sellers that ask for Venmo are aware there is no protection. I won’t use it to buy or sell. I don’t trust any service that does not cover problems.
I want to use either PayPal or a credit card to make any purchase. Otherwise I buy “in person”. I have sold a few instruments on Reverb and am aware of the scammers and I report them. If you see anything suspicious do exactly what King David has done here. Let everyone know specifically who is suspected of scamming, as well as contacting any site moderator. So to King David we owe our thanks but remember just because a new member is new does not make him a suspect of scamming.

 

[Jag-Stang]

Oh no! I think this scammer just got our beloved member rhiggie. I was just talking to him and he sent a venmo

Type the email rileywilson039@gmail.com in on this website: stopforumspam.com/search . Their email is a direct match!

I’m sorry guys this forum is going to s#%! and apparently there’s no real preventive measures to stop scammers and spammers from flooding us with new accounts. I don’t think anyone cares about UU anymore even though Kanilea just bought it out. The barely present volunteer mod squad isn’t enough. You’ve been warned!​

First of all every website on the planet is being hit by scammers. I will post my comments separately at the end about scammers. . You can not blame our moderators.
It is not all that simple. You need to do exactly what you have done and post the information for everyone to see and report it to the moderators.
It is an impossible task to check every post. Some huge sites use bots which are very easy to fool. The best security is using common sense. Blaming the site will not fix scamming problems. The community of any forum should take on the responsibility of reporting possible scams and members that are scamming. We are a community and we need to monitor our own community. Plenty of members here, even new ones, care about this Community and that is what keeps it going. The responsibility of keeping it safe is ours not the moderators. I have had great experiences with several members here. UU is not going downhill many members do care. Just for the record, I have nothing to do with Kanile’a although I own a baritone Ukulele that was made by them. I welcome the idea that a reputable Ukulele Company wants to support and take the responsibility of keeping the Community alive. We should be grateful that Kanile’a has taken up this task and supports our Community.

 

[Jag-Stang]

Well that would be a matter entirely for you. I’d suggest that with 8 billion people on the planet a real non-scammer-type person like me will occasionally do something perfectly innocently which you or another person finds odd.

If something I actually said causes you any concern of course I’d be happy to explain but it didn’t strike me as something capable of arousing suspicion.

Cheers.

PS - ukuleles!!

I can’t understand why users of any forum don’t bother to go back and read posts. I became a paid member around the time you joined and all one has to do is read posts to get a feel if you are a bot or a real person. The comments users make tell the story of them either Supporting a Community or spamming Or if they are positive or in this case negative. You seem to be taking the time to give advice based on your experience that should be welcomed and not questioned. I used this site for research for some time before I decided I wanted to be a full member I decided to commit the $5 a month to show my support and belief in a Community. I give you a kudos for trying to support the community as your comments are solid and useful.