After falling for a Facebook scam, a father who only wanted to take his son to see the Detroit Lions is now down hundreds of dollars.
Tim Paletti was unable to purchase tickets through ticket resale websites because they were selling for hundreds of dollars. In an attempt to get his son to see the Lions play, the New Baltimore father messaged the ticket seller after finding a decent bargain on Facebook. “It seemed like a normal suburban mom who had kids. Regarding the seller’s profile, he stated, “I assumed everything was normal because the picture of her and her husband, I assume, were wearing Lions gear.”
Paletti stated he paid a $400 Venmo payment to secure two tickets since the individual was offering them for $175 with a $50 parking pass. But there was a problem with the money. The issue was eventually fixed, and the money was sent, but Paletti’s tickets were still missing.
Paletti began to suspect the seller after they failed to reply to messages for hours. “This just doesn’t seem right,” I kept thinking. I am aware of this. He said, “It’s too good to be true.” After noticing that the seller was still promoting the tickets for sale, Paletti eventually got in touch with them once more. The merchant obstructed him at that point.
Paletti remarked, “I know better than this, but my desire to get these tickets for my son blinded me.” “As frustrated and upset as I am, I’m just more mad at myself.” Paletti contacted Venmo to request his money back and filed a police report.
Facebook Marketplace safety tips
Facebook offers advice on how to safely buy and sell on the platform:
- Deals that look too good to be true should be double checked. Scammers may attempt to trick consumers into falling for a scam by offering things at a discount. Deposits for expensive things (cars, flats, etc.) should never be sent before the authenticity of the item has been confirmed. Before making a payment, try to verify the item(s)’s existence and ownership (for instance, a car’s pink slip) in person or via video chat.
- Make sure the delivery address and shipping details are accurate, and always double-check the tracking numbers you see on Marketplace on the shipping company’s website.
- To find out more about the vendor, look through their profile. You may check their other listings, examine their Marketplace activity, and discover ratings and reviews from previous buyers and friends you might have in common on their profile.Examining a person’s profile can disclose information that indicates whether a page is fraudulent, even if the sale is not from Marketplace.Verify the location of the page.Take a look at how recent the individual’s page is. On occasion, posts on the page will have a clock icon next to the date of creation. This indicates that the post was backdated at the time of posting, which is a common technique to give the impression that a page is older than it actually is.
- Examining a person’s profile can disclose information that indicates whether a page is fraudulent, even if the sale is not from Marketplace.Verify the location of the page.Take a look at how recent the individual’s page is. On occasion, posts on the page will have a clock icon next to the date of creation. This indicates that the post was backdated at the time of posting, which is a common technique to give the impression that a page is older than it actually is.
- Verify the location of the page. Take a look at how recent the individual’s page is. On occasion, posts on the page will have a clock icon next to the date of creation. This indicates that the post was backdated at the time of posting, which is a common technique to give the impression that a page is older than it actually is. Purchase Protection covers eligible purchases made through Facebook checkout. Cash or other person-to-person payment methods used for in-person exchanges are not eligible.
- Purchase Protection covers eligible purchases made through Facebook checkout. Cash or other person-to-person payment methods used for in-person exchanges are not eligible. When making an in-person purchase, make careful to thoroughly examine the items to ensure they are authentic and functional before finalising the transaction.