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facebook marketplace, is your item the same as?

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this morning have listed a couple of £200 items, and i have had several messages along the lines of,  if your item the same as this?  then a link to the buyers item on ebay
not clicked anything but have blocked them all
whats it about?
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  • soolin
    soolin Posts: 74,150 Ambassador
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    this morning have listed a couple of £200 items, and i have had several messages along the lines of,  if your item the same as this?  then a link to the buyers item on ebay
    not clicked anything but have blocked them all
    whats it about?
    There’s been a lot of talk about this on forums, it appears to be a scam of some sort but no one knows why or how. If you follow the link safely it merely takes you to a google search, so if for instance you are selling shoes it takes you to shoe retailers. A few people are saying it is a phish, but there is nothing to log in , no info to supply and so far no one who has followed a link has had any comeback.

    it is all very strange. 
    I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the eBay, Auctions, Car Boot & Jumble Sales, Boost Your Income, Praise, Vents & Warnings, Overseas Holidays & Travel Planning , UK Holidays, Days Out & Entertainments boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know.. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com.All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.
  • challengedavid
    challengedavid Posts: 253 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 100 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    edited 5 December 2021 at 2:01PM
    i had it a couple of years ago, pressed the link but it just took me there and nothing else

    maybe its some kind of bot messaging who knows

    will just block and move on i think

    thanks for the reply
  • soolin
    soolin Posts: 74,150 Ambassador
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    edited 5 December 2021 at 2:27PM
    i had it a couple of years ago, pressed the link but it just took me there and nothing else

    maybe its some kind of bot messaging who knows

    will just block and move on i think

    thanks for the reply
    I am getting it on a lot of my items, I occasionally have 3 or 4 identical messages from different people when I check my messages. I’d love to know what the point of it is . 

    One suggestion, and it did fit my scenario, was that it was supposed to be a link to a store where you could buy similar items - as a business , so you sell a Keyring and it links you to a Chinese store selling key rings that you might be tempted to buy. Certainly all of the messages I have had have been on new items, none have been received on second hand things (so far) 
    I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the eBay, Auctions, Car Boot & Jumble Sales, Boost Your Income, Praise, Vents & Warnings, Overseas Holidays & Travel Planning , UK Holidays, Days Out & Entertainments boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know.. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com.All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.
  • kalsha
    kalsha Posts: 1,116 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    I have had 2 of those this morning.   Weird that both had used the exact same words.  With the first one, I did click on the link but it took me to google and all selling similar things.  With the second one, I realized straight away that the it was similar to first one.  Checked the profiles and both are in Arabic or similar language.
  • Dark_Star
    Dark_Star Posts: 624 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Photogenic
    Yes, me too & I don’t sell much on Facebook anyway. Two were definitely overseas Arabic type profiles. I just blocked them…utterly weird! Would be interested to find out what the point of it is….
    Lurking in a galaxy far far away...
  • theoretica
    theoretica Posts: 12,691 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    There is a lot on facebook which seems to me designed to get interaction - pointless trivial questions to answer that wouldn't even help guess your password.  If you respond does it give the other party the ability to send targeted advertising or anything?  Or better future access to your inbox?
    But a banker, engaged at enormous expense,
    Had the whole of their cash in his care.
    Lewis Carroll
  • kalsha
    kalsha Posts: 1,116 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Not sure if I understand any of the above.
  • Spoonie_Turtle
    Spoonie_Turtle Posts: 10,333 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Fifth Anniversary Name Dropper
    kalsha said:
    Not sure if I understand any of the above.
    Spammer.  They were building their posts to be able to post links.
  • Bendy_House
    Bendy_House Posts: 4,756 Forumite
    1,000 Posts Second Anniversary Name Dropper
    That could be unfair.

     I have a number of items on FB Marketplace, and have received a few of these weird Q's. No idea what they hope to achieve, but very clearly not a genuine enquiry.
  • It's been quite some time since I sold anything online & looks like there's a different type of time waster compared to when I last used FB Marketplace.

    I'm here basically to check I haven't unknowingly loaded some spyware or whatever to my phone.

    So I listed an item, got a response fairly quickly, by the time I spotted it it was late so I was going to reply this morning.

    Open it up & the guy says if it's like this (provides links) then he'll have it.

    My first thought was you lazy idiot. I've basically given you the description with the make and model. My photos show clearly the condition & you can use the make and model to search what it can and can't do.



    But I click the link anyway to see what he's on about. The link was nonsense.


    The other 2 links are similar to that. Just nonsense.

    Lesson learned but as I've now clicked the link - chances I've done something (harmful) to my phone?


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