How To Avoid Scams on Facebook Marketplace

You can avoid scams on Facebook Marketplace by only using secure methods of payment, looking at buyer and seller reviews, inspecting an item closely before purchasing it and only communicating through Messenger. While Facebook Marketplace is a great way to find clothes, furniture and other items at discounted prices, there comes the risk of being scammed on the platform, making it crucial to be extra cautious as both a buyer and a seller.

Continue reading to learn the most common scams on Facebook Marketplace and how you can avoid getting scammed by following a few precautions

What Is Facebook Marketplace?

Facebook Marketplace is an online marketplace that allows Facebook users to sell and buy new and used items for a discounted price. When purchasing something through Facebook Marketplace, all communication should occur on the Messenger app – Facebook strongly encourages users not to exchange phone numbers as a safety precaution.

While most Facebook Marketplace buyers and sellers choose to meet in a public place when buying or selling an item, Facebook does allow the option to have the item shipped if the buyer is willing to do so. While shipping can be convenient for buyers who don’t live in the same area as the seller, it opens up the door to being scammed. 

Common Scams on Facebook Marketplace Targeting Buyers

Here are some of the most common scams targeting buyers on Facebook Marketplace. 

Bait-and-switch scams

Bait-and-switch is a common scam that takes place on second-hand marketplaces like Facebook. When a bait-and-switch scam happens, the seller will offer a great product for a great price. Usually, the product is offered at a significantly lower price than what it was originally sold for – making it a too-good-to-be-true listing that most buyers don’t want to miss out on. However, the product the buyer is selling isn’t actually being sold.

Once a buyer has lured a victim into wanting to purchase the product, they’ll say it’s not available anymore but offer a similar product at a higher price or lower quality.

Demanding deposits

When scammers “sell” expensive items on Facebook Marketplace, they often ask buyers to put down a deposit as a way to show that they’re committed to purchasing the item. No Facebook Marketplace listing should require that you put down a deposit before meeting with the seller to purchase the item. If a seller is urging you to pay them a deposit, it’s best not to pay it because the listing is most likely a scam and you’ll lose money by putting down the deposit. 

Seller asking to be paid in gift cards 

Gift card scams are becoming more common with online scamming. Instead of having a buyer pay through Facebook Marketplace or a payment app like PayPal, sellers ask buyers to purchase gift cards as a form of payment. For example, if an item a scammer is “selling” is $100, they’ll tell the buyer to put that money on a Visa gift card. The scammer will then ask the buyer to send the gift card number and PIN before they ship the item. The item in question may not be what the buyer intended to buy or they may not receive any item at all, because it never existed. 

Gift cards are untraceable and cannot be refunded which is why scammers prefer to get gift cards as a form of payment. 

Common Scams on Facebook Marketplace Targeting Sellers

Here are some of the most common scams targeting sellers on Facebook Marketplace. 

Overpayment scams

Overpayment scams mainly target sellers on Facebook Marketplace. When an overpayment scam takes place, buyers purposefully send more money than what the item costs to the seller. As a seller, you’ll notice immediately that you’ve been overpaid and you’ll want to send the money back. However, this is what the “buyer” wants you to do as part of the scam. 

What makes overpayment scams so easy to fall for is that the seller doesn’t want to feel like they’re the one scamming the buyer by not sending the money back. Oftentimes, scammers who overpay use stolen debit or credit cards to send the payment, so the money that was sent will eventually bounce out of the seller’s account. This means if the seller had sent the money back, they would have ended up losing their own money.

Buyers using stolen credit cards to pay

There’s no way of guaranteeing that the debit or credit card a buyer is using to pay isn’t stolen. When buyers use stolen credit cards to pay, the money they send to the seller eventually bounces, meaning the seller isn’t actually paid anything for the item they’ve sold. 

Scammers who do use stolen credit cards will want the transaction to happen immediately and often use payment methods like wire transfers, Venmo and CashApp. 

Buyers claiming they never received the item

While most Facebook Marketplace users choose to purchase items that are local to them so they can meet the buyer or seller in person, some sellers and buyers have their items shipped. One scam sellers may face when shipping an item through Facebook Marketplace is having the buyer claim that they never received the item. This could result in the seller losing money and possibly being banned from being able to sell again, while the buyer gets their money back and a free item. 

How to Not Get Scammed on Facebook Marketplace

To avoid getting scammed on Facebook Marketplace, take the following precautions as a buyer and seller. 

Only use secure payment methods

As a buyer, you should only be paying for items using a secure payment method. The best way to guarantee you get your money back if you fall for a scam is to do all transactions through Facebook Marketplace with a credit card. Another secure payment method would be using PayPal. Unlike other third-party applications such as Zelle and Venmo, PayPal Goods & Services investigates fraud claims in case you fall for a scam. For extra security, make sure you link a credit card to your PayPal rather than a debit card, as credit cards offer better fraud protection. 

Look at the buyer and seller reviews

When using Facebook Marketplace, each seller and buyer has a profile that shows you reviews the person has received from other sellers and buyers. Reading these profile reviews is a good indicator of whether or not that person can be trusted with buying your item or selling an item to you.

Before purchasing or selling anything on Facebook Marketplace, be sure to check profile reviews to avoid falling for a scam.

Inspect the item before purchasing

Before you purchase an item on Facebook Marketplace, you should inspect it in person to look for any flaws that weren’t apparent in the listing pictures or were not described in the listing description. This will help you avoid purchasing an item that is different from how it was described by the seller.

Avoid shipping items 

While shipping items as a seller opens your listing to a larger crowd, it also comes with the risk of a scammer claiming you never sent the item or they never received it. As a way to ensure that you get the money you’re owed for the item you’re selling, meet the buyer in person at a public place. If possible, bring a friend or family member with you for safety and to serve as a witness to the transaction. 

Only communicate through Facebook Messenger

Any buyer or seller that asks you for your phone number or email address so they can communicate with you outside of the Messenger app is an immediate red flag. Your phone number and email address are personal information that can be used against you to target you with cyber attacks like phishing so it’s always best to avoid giving out that information to strangers. 

If a buyer or seller ever asks you to communicate with them outside of the Messenger app, stop all communication with them immediately because they are most likely a scammer. 

How To Report a Scam on Facebook Marketplace

If you are a victim of a scam on Facebook Marketplace, here’s how you can report the buyer or seller and the listing to Facebook.

How to report a seller scam to Facebook

1. Log in to your Facebook account
2. Click the Marketplace symbol
3. Click on the seller’s listing that you wish to report
4. Click on the seller’s profile
5. Click the three dots at the very top of their profile
6. Click Report
7. Follow the instructions on your screen

How to report a buyer scam to Facebook

1. Log in to your Facebook account
2. Click the Marketplace symbol
3. Click the profile icon on the top right-hand corner
4. Click Your Listings
5. Click the listing where the buyer messaged you
6. Click on the buyer’s name from your messages
7. Click the three dots at the very top of their profile
8. Click Report
9. Follow the instructions on your screen

How to report a listing scam to Facebook

1. Log in to your Facebook account
2. Click the Marketplace symbol
3. Click the listing you want to report
4. Click the three dots in the upper right-hand corner
5. Click Report Listing
6. Follow the instructions on your screen

Avoid Getting Scammed on Facebook Marketplace

Just like any other online platform, Facebook Marketplace is a common place where scammers target unsuspecting victims. While there’s no way to prevent scammers from targeting you, there are steps you can take to avoid being scammed such as using secure payment methods and looking closely at buyer and seller reviews. 

Don’t let scammers stop you from finding great deals on Facebook Marketplace, just be cautious about who you choose to sell to and buy from. As an extra precautionary step, make sure to secure your Facebook account with a strong, unique password and Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). We recommend using a password manager to aid you in securing your online accounts. 

Not sure what a password manager is? Learn more about what a password manager is and what it does.