UPS UKASH UKCASH Gumtree Scam and scams in general

music2dance2

Hi all, in have just this minute checked the email that was used to send me the delivery details as I was suspect of the whole thing very early on but intrigued as it almost sounded genuine. They even offer for me to collect but also offered free postage and a chance to inspect the goods before paying which sounded great.

Anyway some then I chose the postal
Option and recieved the same emails from Janet brown. Ill post them up when I'm next using a computer.

It all sounded too good to be true and yes it was. The items for sale were 2 cdj 1000 for £450.

GTK

Hi, really great to hear and see more people are “spotting” this scam, before actually being scammed out of £s, and vg that reported fraud ads are removed quickly.

Just reported all the following to Gumtree, and they all had the identical scam text added: "Please forward me your contact details if interested,ask any questions,serious buyers only”

Ad ref 1005917050 is copy of eBay item 300817366309.
Ad ref 1005799587 is copy of eBay item 130826163888.
Ad ref 1005794442 is copy of eBay item 200866064291.
Ad ref 1005793120 is copy of eBay item 121039272747.
Ad ref 1005857725 is copy of eBay item 121039432393.
Ad ref 1005746851 is copy of eBay item 281041199239.
Ad ref 1005743654 is copy of eBay item 181046468421.
Ad ref 1005658551 is copy of eBay item 271124512247.
Ad ref 1005633134 is copy of eBay item 300830035834.

So, I am concerned that Gumtree do not seem to be auto detecting such an easy string to match to autoflag suspect scam ads. I have escalated this issue with them to understand why this remedial measure is not being adopted. GTK

Alias_Omega

Hi All,

Keep up the good work, the last 5 posts just show that having this thread running really does stop people from being scammed, which i have no doubt that these new members will tell friends & families about the scams etc.

Its nice to see people are finding out before being scammed, as most times its usually action "once the horse has bolted from the stables" phrase.

Regards,

AO

GabbaGabbaHey

And another one - http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/tag-heuer-watch/1005923178 - fuzzy photos, very underpriced watch, different prices (£175 in the title and a mention of "bids over £350" in the ad, so obviously just copied from an eBay auction), and a request for a phone number.

I have reported it to Gumtree.

cheekychap00

this is the reply from parcelforce to myself
I am writing in response to your recent request for information ...
"Under the freedom of information act can you release to me as much info as possible regarding the numbers of people that you are aware of that have been scammed in the above scam.
And the amount of phone calls to either track scammers parcel or ask you if you participate in this sort of payment."
Our online guidance for individuals affected by this scheme stated that they should forward the email to a dedicated Parcelforce email inbox, [EMAIL="suspiciousmail@parcelforce.com"]suspiciousmail@parcelforce.com[/EMAIL]. We do record the number of instances that emails are received by this inbox, and how many of those refer to 'Ukash'. I can confirm that between July and November 2012 this inbox received 181 emails specifically in relation to the 'Ukash Scam'.

In 2011/2012 we noted a significant increase in the number of email scams in which persons unknown were using the Parcelforce brand to extort money out of people targeted by those sending the emails. The Parcelforce brand or the brand of another reputable company is used in the email to give the request for money an air of authenticity. Those individuals who had been targeted and contacted our call centres were advised to report the matter to the police. To gain a better understanding of the scale of the problem the 'suspiciousmail' site was created and the number of such scams counted and collated. It has also given us the opportunity to support the Police in trying to identify those committing these offences and bring their criminal activity to an end.

In relation to the second part of your request we do not record the number of phone calls we have received in relation to this issue.
I hope this information is useful to you. If for any reason you are not satisfied with this response, you do have the right to request a review,,,,,,
Daniel Tulp
Information Rights Officer
Company Secretary's Office
yes typed from my printer printout it should be .co.uk parcelforce information rights team introduced the typo
just wonder how big a team they need to collect the e-mails and (buckpass) pass them on to the police with not a care what happens to them and don't even know their .com from their .co.uk

GTK

Some of the current scam phrases I am finding on Gumtree ads are:
WILL HELP TO MESSAGE ME YOUR MOBILE FOR MORE INFO,ANY QUESTIONS PLEASE ASK
leave ur ph number
contact me ph,..................
can I have your mobile?cheers.
Can I call you?thanks.
contact me & and call me ph........................
contact on my contact # and call me
Can I call you?thanks.
Message me a contact number,will call you,more safe like that.

So, scammers now “appear” that they want to call the seller. Do they?

Ads placed today or very recently, and every Gumtree ad matched to an actual sold eBay item (where the ad was copied from). Now all reported to Gumtree as:

Ad ref 1005955118 is copy of eBay item 321010131576.
Ad ref 1005949793 is copy of eBay item 170933957181.
Ad ref 1005948729 is copy of eBay item 230874964139.
Ad ref 1005943020 is copy of eBay item 110970118408.
Ad ref 1005942275 is copy of eBay item 150935896491.
Ad ref 1005924187 is copy of eBay item 130809020746.
Ad ref 1005904612 is copy of eBay item 190775149348.
Ad ref 1005834585 is copy of eBay item 261136150752.
Ad ref 1005792380 is copy of eBay item 330842243218.
Ad ref 1005916067 is copy of eBay item 200836248417.
Ad ref 1005911218 is copy of eBay item 261129668597.
Ad ref 1005818028 is copy of eBay item 281040294278.
Ad ref 1005797886 is copy of eBay item 321039333225.
Ad ref 1005748454 is copy of eBay item 321046297976.
Ad ref 1005945078 is copy of eBay item 300838190857.
Ad ref 1005927244 is copy of eBay item 321035717570.
Ad ref 1005807684 is copy of eBay item 321044286082.
Ad ref 1005788221 is copy of eBay item 130823222641.
Ad ref 1005742644 is copy of eBay item 321040282265.
Ad ref 1005739878 is copy of eBay item 251203375339.
Ad ref 1005954216 is copy of eBay item 321012158164.
Ad ref 1005916671 is copy of eBay item 181035608436.
Ad ref 1005915950 is copy of eBay item 170955801938.
Ad ref 1005911111 is copy of eBay item 261140295859.
Ad ref 1005908466 is copy of eBay item 110992223081.
Ad ref 1005792763 is copy of eBay item 110988639114.
Ad ref 1005740358 is copy of eBay item 251200810882.
Ad ref 1005728640 is copy of eBay item 130821849657.
Ad ref 1005727380 is copy of eBay item 300835983574.
Ad ref 1005683507 is copy of eBay item 200866012039.
Ad ref 1005670148 is copy of eBay item 330844356138.
Ad ref 1005956011 is copy of eBay item 281006205219.
Ad ref 1005949085 is copy of eBay item 261119202540.
Ad ref 1005945383 is copy of eBay item 140873001581.
Ad ref 1005905669 is copy of eBay item 121043372881.
Ad ref 1005830042 is copy of eBay item 281040859944.
Ad ref 1005737874 is copy of eBay item 261140121139.
Ad ref 1005925218 is copy of eBay item 110978100238.
Ad ref 1005803354 is copy of eBay item 271131221045.
Ad ref 1005741398 is copy of eBay item 190772665129.
Ad ref 1005743384 is copy of eBay item 190772456272.

Ad 1005920357 is a suspect scam as shares identical scam phrase “message me a contact number,will call you,more safe like that”… but not found on eBay… I did find a possible match on an old server that indicated it may be an old Gumtree item from 23 November. GTK

photobuyer

Hi there
Same scam for a 16-35 Canon lens L series F 2.8

Here is:
Great, I've just finished filling out the forms online and scheduled the delivery for Friday am, 9-10am ( at your end). The courier company will also handle the payment. If you'll accept and sign for the parcel the driver will then leave you a receipt and bac's me afterwards. They sent out an email notification on how to proceed. Did you received it ? Check your spam or junk folder as well, maybe it got caught in there.

Let me know if you have any queries, I'll be glad to help out!

GabbaGabbaHey

cheekychap00 wrote: »

Our online guidance for individuals affected by this scheme stated that they should forward the email to a dedicated Parcelforce email inbox, [EMAIL="suspiciousmail@parcelforce.com"]suspiciousmail@parcelforce.com[/EMAIL].

Unfortunately when I tried this, I got the following automatic response from [EMAIL="postmaster@royalmail.com"]postmaster@royalmail.com[/EMAIL]:

Your message

Subject: FW: Omega

was not delivered to:

[EMAIL="suspiciousmail@parcelforce.com"]suspiciousmail@parcelforce.com[/EMAIL]

because:

User suspiciousmail ([EMAIL="suspiciousmail@parcelforce.com"]suspiciousmail@parcelforce.com[/EMAIL]) not listed in Domino Directory

Anybody know what the problem is?

GTK

Hi GabbaGabbaHey,
On the parcelforce website, they say: Please also forward the emails to [EMAIL="suspiciousemail@parcelforce.co.uk?subject=Suspicious%20Email"]suspiciousemail@parcelforce.co.uk[/EMAIL] so that we are able monitor the numbers and, where possible, make follow up enquiries ourselves.

Ie you need “.co.uk” at the end of the email address. GTK.

Czara

Thanks to the whole thread. I have just managed to avoid the same scan for an advert in Gumtree, this time by janet78brown@gmail.com. I would have lost £360 'buying' a rowing machine if I had followed her instructions to buy a UKASH voucher. The details of the emails sent were exactly the same as below and I only picked it up by Googling to check the validity of the courier company and picking your threads up instead which alerted me. I intend to report this to Trading Standards but unlikely anything will be able to be done. Feel foolish I almost fell for this but seemed very plausible, including a link to her Google+ account showing family photos etc and a valid mobile number. Thanks again, lesson learnt!