Classifieds Home

Place an Ad

Beware of Scams

Help Wanted
• Year Round
• Seasonal

Seeking Employment
• Year Round
• Seasonal

Services
• Professional
• Babysitting

For Rent
• Year Round
• Seasonal

Looking for Rental
• Year Round
• Seasonal

Looking for Roomates
• Year Round
• Seasonal

Buying & Selling
• For Sale Items
• Home/Land Sale
• Cars For Sale
• Want To Buy
• Yankee Swap
• Lost and Found

Beware of Scammers

The majority of responses to classified ads are genuine.
However, be aware of the potential for online scams. Classified ad scams frequently involve one or more of the following:

• an inquiry from someone far away, often in another country
• Western Union, Money Gram, cashier's check, money order, or a "guarantee"
• inability or refusal to meet face-to-face before finalizing the transaction
  

Nantucket.net is serious about helping customers avoid online scams
If you post a classified ad, you may receive fraudulent responses.  While receipt of these responses is unavoidable, you can protect yourself by following a few simple, common-sense rules:

• DEAL LOCALLY with customers you meet in person
• DEAL only with cash
• NEVER agree to sell an item for more than the purchase price and refund the overpayment to the seller
• NEVER agree to purchase an item with partial payment
• NEVER agree to cash a check for a stranger
• NEVER WIRE FUNDS – most such requests are fraudulent
• NEVER send money, even if you receive a check. FAKE CASHIER CHECKS & MONEY ORDERS ARE COMMON, and BANKS WILL CASH THEM AND THEN HOLD YOU RESPONSIBLE when the fake is discovered up to 4 weeks later.
• NEVER, NEVER, NEVER GIVE OUT YOUR FINANCIAL INFORMATION (bank account number, social security number)
• DO NOT PARTICIPATE IN DEALS INVOLVING ESCROW SERVICES or A THIRD PARTY
• ONLY A SCAMMER WILL "GUARANTEE" YOUR TRANSACTION.

Nantucket.net IS NOT INVOLVED in any transaction, does not handle payments, does not guarantee transactions, does not provide escrow services, and does not offer "buyer protection" or "seller certification."

If you suspect that an item advertised for sale at Nantucket.net Classifieds may be part of a scam, send an email to help@nantucket.net. Include in your email the full text of the classified ad you are reporting.

A few examples of online classified ad scams

Nigerian (or 419) Scam
The most visible form of advance fee fraud today is the Nigerian Letter or 419 fraud, named after the section of the Nigerian penal code that it violates. Originally sent by mail, and later by fax, the Nigerian Letter is now sent almost exclusively by e-mail. A typical letter includes a header that says something like “Confidential Business Proposal” and claims to come from a person needing to transfer large sums of money out of the country. As the Nigerian letter has become well known to potential targets, the gangs operating the scams have developed other variations. The targets are often told that they are the beneficiaries of an inheritance or are invited to impersonate the beneficiary of an unclaimed estate. The target may be told that a wealthy individual is being held hostage and will reward those who help to transfer the ransom money. Another common related scam is a fake lottery in which the targets are told that they have 'won' a large prize but must pay an 'administrative fee' before they can receive it. After the 'administrative fee' is paid, the scammer vanishes.

Dog for Sale Scam
This scam is relatively new, and is a hard to recognize as actually being a scam at first. In this scam, the scammer posts an online classified ad offering a rare or expensive dog for sale.  The classified ad itself seems pretty normal, and there is nothing overtly suspicious about the way that it is written. But when you contact the seller, he will indicate that he would like you to send them a "shipping fee" or sometimes an "adoption fee" before they will sell the dog to you. Truth is there is no dog at all, and once the "seller" receives your deposit, he will disappear and be untraceable. While the scam is relatively simple, it sometimes works because the buyer is made to feel guilty about not paying "a small fee to ensure the animals health and safety.” Plus, who thinks that a nice dog breeder is going to try and scam them?

Note that not all "pets for sale" ads on this site or elsewhere on the Internet are scams. Just keep in mind that some may be, and exercise caution. If they want you to send money in advance, this should set off alarm bells

Banking Agent Scam
In this scam, the scammer posts an online classified ad which looks something like this:
"Growing international company is looking for a financial/art/sales agent in (your) area."

When you contact the author of this ad, he will inform you that he is part of a new overseas company which is just starting to break into the North American market. Because of "international banking regulations," he cannot accept payments from new North American customers. So he are looking for someone who will act as a "Banking Agent", and who will cash customers checks for them. If you deposit these checks into your own account, and then send them the majority of the funds, the company will give you a generous commission.

This scammer is getting you to deposit counterfeit checks in your own account, keeping some of the cash, and then sending the bulk of the funds off to him. You will probably be able to do this a few times before the bank catches up with you (it can take weeks for some banks to identify fraudulent checks). At that point, you are the one left holding the bag, and the person who sent the checks to you will have disappeared

Accidental Overpayment Scam
This scam is like the scam described above, with a slight twist. The scammer will contact you about your ad, indicating that he wants to purchase your item. When their check arrives in the mail, you notice that the amount on the check is much more than your purchase price.

Once you receive this check, being the nice person that you are, you will email the person telling him of his error. When the scammer responds to your email, he will probably suggest that you just deposit the check and send him back the overpaid amount.  He may even offer you additional money for your honest response.  Just like with the Banking Agent scam, after depositing the check you will find out that it was counterfeit.