Buying & selling scams

Buying or selling online brings out fake listings, fake shops, and payment tricks. These are the tells that a deal isn't what it seems.

5 explainers in this category

The fake rental listing

A scammer poses as a landlord or property manager and tricks you into paying for a rental that doesn't actually belong to them or doesn't exist.

Scammers pose as pet sellers online, take your money for a puppy or pet, and never deliver—or send a sick animal.

A scammer buys something from you online, sends more money than agreed, then asks you to refund the difference—but the payment never actually clears.

Scammers pose as resale specialists promising to quickly sell your timeshare, but they're really after an upfront fee you'll never recover.

Scammers pose as ticket sellers online, take your money for events that don't exist or tickets that were never delivered.