It has come to our attention that several of our members were recently scammed out of several hundred dollars relating to parts sold by a new member of the forum, who offered the parts for sale, and then used a "fake" shipping company. This shipping company supposedly then held the products and then wanted to charge exhorbitant additional costs to release the product, under threat of "officials" getting involved in the transaction.
Please note that this forum and its management ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE for any money scammed from any member here, by any member or non-member here. It is not the duty of 500Eboard management to "vet" members (particularly new members) for trustworthiness. While we are vigilant about all newly registered members being legitimate, there are "scammers" and others who very occasionally slip through the cracks using fully legitimate e-mail addresses, IP addresses (via VPN to shield their locations), and other means to evade the considerable countermeasures in place here to reject and identify bots, scammers and other unwanted individuals.
If you are buying parts via this forum (or selling parts here), IT IS 100% YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to vet that the buyer or seller is a real person and can deliver the goods as discussed.
It is a good idea and best practice to ONLY buy parts from ESTABLISHED FORUM MEMBERS with a track record of satisfactory sales of parts. It is also a best practice NOT to buy or sell parts to newly registered members, unless they have identified themselves through posts and activity here as legitimate, "real" persons who interact regularly with other members and participate in the forum life.
The recent scammer was indeed immediately kicked off of the forum, after two separate individual reports were received of monies successfully scammed from forum members.
In the future, and this is to ALL members here -- PLEASE DO YOUR HOMEWORK AND DUE DILIGENCE when it comes to buying and selling parts here. DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH NEW MEMBERS or members who do not have an established track record of posts and activity here. If a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is too good to be true, and it should be avoided.
DO NOT USE "shady" or unknown payment schemes such as Western Union or no-name shipping services. Insist on PayPal, Venmo, Zelle or other well-established payment schemas. ONLY use established shipping services such as US Postal Service, DHL, FedEx, or UPS. DO NOT give out credit/debit card or bank account information -- ALWAYS use a go-between payment service per above.
LASTLY, if you believe that an individual here is trying to scam you, PLEASE IMMEDIATELY REPORT THIS to a forum Administrator for prompt follow-up. Administrators here do have ways to identify shady individuals and deal with them -- permanently -- so that they do not come back on this forum. And forum Administration will give them a very hard kick on their ass on the way out.
While scammers have not been a major problem, we have seen this two or three times over the years here. Please use caution and common sense when buying and selling parts here.
Thanks and regards,
500Eboard Management
keyword: drickysparks dickysparks
Please note that this forum and its management ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE for any money scammed from any member here, by any member or non-member here. It is not the duty of 500Eboard management to "vet" members (particularly new members) for trustworthiness. While we are vigilant about all newly registered members being legitimate, there are "scammers" and others who very occasionally slip through the cracks using fully legitimate e-mail addresses, IP addresses (via VPN to shield their locations), and other means to evade the considerable countermeasures in place here to reject and identify bots, scammers and other unwanted individuals.
If you are buying parts via this forum (or selling parts here), IT IS 100% YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to vet that the buyer or seller is a real person and can deliver the goods as discussed.
It is a good idea and best practice to ONLY buy parts from ESTABLISHED FORUM MEMBERS with a track record of satisfactory sales of parts. It is also a best practice NOT to buy or sell parts to newly registered members, unless they have identified themselves through posts and activity here as legitimate, "real" persons who interact regularly with other members and participate in the forum life.
The recent scammer was indeed immediately kicked off of the forum, after two separate individual reports were received of monies successfully scammed from forum members.
In the future, and this is to ALL members here -- PLEASE DO YOUR HOMEWORK AND DUE DILIGENCE when it comes to buying and selling parts here. DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH NEW MEMBERS or members who do not have an established track record of posts and activity here. If a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is too good to be true, and it should be avoided.
DO NOT USE "shady" or unknown payment schemes such as Western Union or no-name shipping services. Insist on PayPal, Venmo, Zelle or other well-established payment schemas. ONLY use established shipping services such as US Postal Service, DHL, FedEx, or UPS. DO NOT give out credit/debit card or bank account information -- ALWAYS use a go-between payment service per above.
LASTLY, if you believe that an individual here is trying to scam you, PLEASE IMMEDIATELY REPORT THIS to a forum Administrator for prompt follow-up. Administrators here do have ways to identify shady individuals and deal with them -- permanently -- so that they do not come back on this forum. And forum Administration will give them a very hard kick on their ass on the way out.
While scammers have not been a major problem, we have seen this two or three times over the years here. Please use caution and common sense when buying and selling parts here.
Thanks and regards,
500Eboard Management
keyword: drickysparks dickysparks
