Scammer says he’s a marine

[auskol_84]

any offer I get it’s the same scam message but this time he says he is a us marine

since this is the 3rd time this happened I’m automatically going to believe it’s a scam and if it’s true that he’s saying he’s in the marines just to scam people it’s honestly really sad to disrespect the people who served our country. Just thought I would share my opinion and ask if anyone else got similar scam texts

[hebertsusedautoparts]

One of the oldest scams, it's not true.

Never take a sale off eBay, Never ship to a different address, Never send the numbers from a gift card.

Glad to hear you didn't fall for this as there are post almost every day of those that do.

Put them on your block list.

[ittybitnot]

Never reply to a "text me" scammer.   You will not get any money, but you will get a phony 'payment notification' if you gave that person your email address. Don't change the shipping address, even if you are paid with real funds. 

[eburtonlab]

A message that says "I am interested in your item, kindly text me", an offer greater than your buy it now price, or a request for a gift card is generally the start of a scam where the scammer winds up sending a phony PayPal email that makes it look like the seller has received a payment when none has actually been received.

Sending contact information (text or email) prior to a transaction is a violation of eBay policy; this policy is designed to protect honest buyers and sellers from this sort of thing, and to prevent off-eBay sales.

Never buy a gift card for anyone unless you are giving a gift.

Some scammers target new sellers, but even experienced sellers get such messages.

As a seller you should always check your PayPal account directly (not following a link in an email) to see if you have actually been paid prior to shipping. If an actual buyer does not send an actual payment, file an unpaid item dispute and go through that process to get your fees back and to give the "buyer" a strike -- and set your buying requirement to reject bids from users with two or more strikes.

eBay will likely catch up to such a scammer sending such offers and remove the scammer's account, but the scammer will just create a new account or hijack an old one and continue sending scam offers and messages. Sellers must remain wary of any user that wants the seller to violate eBay policy.

You can avoid many common scams by listing your item for a fixed price with immediate payment required and by not accepting any offers. That way the buyer must complete checkout and actually pay in order to proceed.

[auskol_84]

Thanks for the information just got my upset because I didn’t know people were that low to say your a us marine to Scam you. I went along with it he sent a fake payment email and said PayPal needed proof of the purchase of a gift card before payment was sent 

[ifyouloveit]

Total scammer, and sad he uses the US Military to hide behind.

Report this scum to eBay and block block block.

Don't even respond to him/her but do report their account.

[toysaver]

"I am a US Marine officer so I won’t able to do that"

....  Why would being a Marine make him unable to shop like everyone else?  If he can shop on eBay he has the ability to by a gift card or even better, send cash.

[luckythewinner]

---

@auskol_84 wrote:

I am a US Marine officer so I won’t able to do that

---

I didn't realize that being a Marine officer made it impossible to buy gift cards 🙂

[dbfolks166mt]

This guy is for sure trying to scam you. Since you have his name and address maybe that is something you would like to pass along to the commandant of the Marine Corps. Maybe a few of his fellow Marines will pay him a visit and they can either trade war stories or have a discussion with him about impersonating a marine officer. 

[reallynicestamps]

Not only is he a marine, but the guy sitting next to him in that internet cafe in Lagos is a recent widow who needs to buy it for her grandmother's birthday, and on the other side is the marine biologist who is nursing a cold latte while stationed in Afghanistan. The other guy at the table is a sailor also in Afghanistan who in a twist on the tale is selling a Range Rover for his divorced sister who cannot list it herself because she is in the hospital.

And all the financial stuff will be handled by eBay Finance.

And I am Marie of Romania.

[reallynicestamps]

@dbfolks166mt 

There is no marine.

The address is a mail drop-- not a Post Office box which requires government ID to open, if even available- more like a Mailboxes'R'Us thing, or some corner store/pawn shop/ restaurant willing to hold parcels for cash.

[eburtonlab]

@dbfolks166mt 

Since you have his name and address

What makes you think the scammer has provided a real name and address?

The account the message was sent from is likely either hijacked or a new account registered by the scammer with phony details; the scam is likely just an attempt to steal gift card numbers. Any name or address is not likely to lead back to the scammer, but more likely belongs to a previous victim or a vacant lot. The scammer is not actually a marine, and there is no cousin waiting for the gift. It is all a scam.

[dbfolks166mt]

Thanks for the chuckle. Great to see some people still have a sense of humor in these trying times. 

[simba6]

That is a variant of the old Russian over payment/ wedding  scam. Back then they said they had over paid the amount and wanted the "extra" returned as a money order.  Or they paid you extra as the money order was for a wedding gift.

It just keeps getting better.

[kh-gary]

Hi everyone,

If you believe that you or someone you know was scammed into buying eBay Gift Cards, visit our gift card page to contact customer service and find additional information related to gift card scams.

Thank you.