Everything You Need to Know About Facebook Marketplace Scams

Scammers will also try to get buyers to use payment methods that make them difficult to trace. One caller to the AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline, for example, found what she thought was a good deal for concert tickets. At the seller’s request, she sent the $125 payment through a peer-to-peer payment app. After the payment went though, the seller simply blocked her, and never sent the tickets. In other instances, consumers told the Helpline, scammers asked them to pay for vehicles with multiple eBay gift cards instead of a check or credit card.

Sellers targeted by Facebook Marketplace scams

Scammers sometimes pose as buyers and target legitimate sellers on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist and other online marketplace platforms, the FTC warned in 2022. In some cases, they may insist on using a payment app to pay for the goods and then send the seller a fake payment notification, hoping the seller won’t realize the deception until after he or she sends the goods. According to the FTC, scammers will sometimes run the old-fashioned overpayment scam, and send two fake notifications. Then they’ll insist there was an accidental overpayment and ask the seller to refund one of the payments.

In Mississippi, a ring of fraudsters targeted people selling vehicles on Facebook Marketplace. The seller would receive a fake cashier’s check or wire transfer, and one of the crooks would pick up the vehicle before the seller realized the deception. A 24-year-old man who was part of the scheme recently pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and now faces up to 20 years in prison, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi.

Another scam employed by criminals on various online marketplaces is to send the sellers a fake email that looks like a message from payment app Zelle, informing them that they need to pay a fee to upgrade their account to complete the purchase. In reality, the scammer is requesting payment for “an upgrade that doesn’t exist,” Zelle warns on its site.

How to protect yourself against Facebook Marketplace scams 

Facebook takes what it describes as “proactive measures” to protect shoppers, including deploying enforcement and review teams and using detection tools to spot fraudulent activity, according to the Meta website. When Facebook finds scam activity, its responses can include disabling the seller’s commerce accounts, removing listings and canceling existing orders. It also has automated systems to spot listings for counterfeit products. Facebook also has a purchase protection program that allows shoppers to file a claim for a refund for some items, but only if they’ve utilized Facebook’s own checkout and shipping system. That means that shoppers who pick up items from buyers themselves or use other payment methods, such as PayPal or Venmo, aren’t covered, according to Facebook’s website. 

Facebook also has a seller protection program that guards sellers against claims and charge-backs resulting from circumstances beyond the seller’s control, such as problems with shipping. But it’s limited to items covered by the purchase protection policy, its website notes.

But there’s plenty that you can do to avoid scammers as well.

Buyers

• Research before you buy. A Meta spokesperson recommends reviewing a seller’s business profile, along with product reviews and ratings.
• Beware of bargains that seem too good to be true. As Facebook’s website notes, “scammers may try to use underpriced items to lure buyers into a scam.”
• Avoid communicating with buyers privately outside of Facebook and Messenger. Having a record of your conversations will be helpful in case there is a problem with the purchase or payment later, the Meta spokesperson recommends.
• Be wary of sellers who want you to use a difficult-to-trace payment method. “No legitimate seller of any motor vehicle is going to ask for gift cards for payment,” Nofziger says.
• Watch out for fake email notifications. Be wary of emails telling you that there was something wrong with your payment through checkout on Facebook, and avoid clicking suspicious links. Instead, view your payment history on Facebook, which you can find in your settings.

Facebook also has tips on how to recognize scams on Facebook Marketplace.

Sellers

• Avoid communicating with buyers privately outside of Facebook and Messenger. The same advice that legitimate buyers should heed is also crucial for sellers. Having a record of your conversations is important, should a problem arise.
• Be on the lookout for fake buyers. Cybersecurity firm Reason Labs recommends taking a look at a prospective buyer’s Facebook profile. If the person has posted only limited information and doesn’t have a profile picture, that’s reason for caution.
• Watch out for pressure tactics. Reason Labs also recommends that you be wary of buyers who press you to do an immediate transaction or to rush the process. That haste is a red flag that they might be up to something shady.
• Be wary of buyers who want to pay with a personal check. As the FTC warns, it can take weeks for a bank to figure out that a check is a fake, and by then the scammer is long gone. Ask to use a different payment method.

Buyers and sellers

• Be cautious when you go to meet someone to do a transaction. If you’re going to a meeting with $2,000 in your pocket or selling an item that’s similarly valuable, “you might just be setting yourself up to get robbed,” Nofziger says. For safety, she recommends arranging to meet in a public place, or even at a local police station — many of which have a specific parking spot that’s set aside for online selling. Facebook offers tips for meeting someone from Facebook Marketplace and advice on how to create a meetup plan. 
• Report scams. If you see something that makes you suspicious, Facebook recommends you stop communicating with the seller or buyer and report the scam. Its site offers step-by-step instructions on how to file a report.

Pelletier, meanwhile, finally sent a message to the seller, she says, threatening to report her to the FBI, and warned that she wasn’t kidding. That same day, the seller sent back some of Pelletier’s payment, wiring $2,000 through Western Union.

Though Pelletier still ended up losing $2,200, she was relieved that it was over. “I was done dealing with her,” she explains. “I just needed to be done.”

Despite the unhappy experience, Pelletier still likes shopping and selling items on Facebook Marketplace. “I even found a lady who lives about 30 minutes away from here who refurbishes furniture, and I ended up doing everything through her,” she explains. “She was pretty amazing, actually.”