(no subject)
Okay, so, I figure this was a big deal, so I oughta let the interwubs hear about it.
I got scammed. Big time. /story
A college student could always use some more money, so I decided to sell my PS2 and all the accessories I have. It's a lot of stuff: the system, 4 games, 2 controllers, and 2 Dance Dance Revolution dance pads. Lol. I posted an ad on Craigslist, since I didn't feel like losing 10% to eBay. I got a few responses, and a lady named "Debra Brown" said she'd buy the whole package for $200, 50 bucks more than what I was offering. So, like, heck yeah.
First red flag: her grammar was non-existent. But, I shrugged it off to normal internet stupidity. Hah. To get her money to me, she said I needed to sign up on this website called AlertPay: kind of like PayPal, but... different. I thought this was definitely fishy, so I checked the site out, and it actually was a legit way to move money between buyers and sellers. Okay, so I agreed to sell. It goes downhill from here.
I started clicking links she gave me... big mistake. These links were to an e-mail which were to an AlertPay mediator. In reality, it was the same person under a fake address. The e-mails had links and AlertPay icons and blah blah blah, but the same bad grammar. Again, I shrugged it off. So, they send me a fake e-mail, stating they "recieved" my money and are waiting for the tracking number of my package to verify, and then they'd give me my money.
D'oh. The lady also had a FedEx account, so she sent me a shipping label at no cost to me. The shipping address should have stopped me, but.. oh well. The package was going to Nigeria. NIGERIA. Yeah. I'm stupid. I send the package, I verify the tracking number, and then my "fake" AlertPay guy (who is "Debra Brown") says my money will arrive Thursday morning. I didn't work or have class, so I stayed home all day. Can you guess what happened? Yeah, the money never arrived. When I sent an e-mail asking why, I got an automatic reply stating that that address had been deleted. Score.
I sent another e-mail to AlertPay, who let me know that all their e-mails end with "@alertpay.com". My fake one ended with "@consultant.com". Apparently, this has happened hundreds of times before. I had been taken for a serious ride.
What have I learned? Well, other then "Don't send shit to Africa," I'm not sure. Don't believe those with bad grammar? Only sell stuff locally? That the internets is full of stupid people? That I'm one of them? I dunno.
So it's still not okay. I got VERY angry. I'm still a little steamed over it. But Paul bought "Guitar Hero" and... well... how can I not be happier after rocking so much in the past few days? :)
I got scammed. Big time. /story
A college student could always use some more money, so I decided to sell my PS2 and all the accessories I have. It's a lot of stuff: the system, 4 games, 2 controllers, and 2 Dance Dance Revolution dance pads. Lol. I posted an ad on Craigslist, since I didn't feel like losing 10% to eBay. I got a few responses, and a lady named "Debra Brown" said she'd buy the whole package for $200, 50 bucks more than what I was offering. So, like, heck yeah.
First red flag: her grammar was non-existent. But, I shrugged it off to normal internet stupidity. Hah. To get her money to me, she said I needed to sign up on this website called AlertPay: kind of like PayPal, but... different. I thought this was definitely fishy, so I checked the site out, and it actually was a legit way to move money between buyers and sellers. Okay, so I agreed to sell. It goes downhill from here.
I started clicking links she gave me... big mistake. These links were to an e-mail which were to an AlertPay mediator. In reality, it was the same person under a fake address. The e-mails had links and AlertPay icons and blah blah blah, but the same bad grammar. Again, I shrugged it off. So, they send me a fake e-mail, stating they "recieved" my money and are waiting for the tracking number of my package to verify, and then they'd give me my money.
D'oh. The lady also had a FedEx account, so she sent me a shipping label at no cost to me. The shipping address should have stopped me, but.. oh well. The package was going to Nigeria. NIGERIA. Yeah. I'm stupid. I send the package, I verify the tracking number, and then my "fake" AlertPay guy (who is "Debra Brown") says my money will arrive Thursday morning. I didn't work or have class, so I stayed home all day. Can you guess what happened? Yeah, the money never arrived. When I sent an e-mail asking why, I got an automatic reply stating that that address had been deleted. Score.
I sent another e-mail to AlertPay, who let me know that all their e-mails end with "@alertpay.com". My fake one ended with "@consultant.com". Apparently, this has happened hundreds of times before. I had been taken for a serious ride.
What have I learned? Well, other then "Don't send shit to Africa," I'm not sure. Don't believe those with bad grammar? Only sell stuff locally? That the internets is full of stupid people? That I'm one of them? I dunno.
So it's still not okay. I got VERY angry. I'm still a little steamed over it. But Paul bought "Guitar Hero" and... well... how can I not be happier after rocking so much in the past few days? :)