The Better Business Bureau is warning sellers on Facebook Marketplace to be cautious when selling big-ticket items.
According to BBB Scam Tracker reports, be wary of phony buyers saying they need you to upgrade your Zelle or another digital wallet app to accept money from them.
These fake buyers quickly say they want to pay using a peer-to-peer payment app. Recent reports reference Zelle specifically, but this scam could also work with CashApp, Venmo, or another similar service.
The BBB says that after it seems like you received payment, you will soon get an email supposedly from Zelle. The email will say that the buyer paid via a Zelle “business account,” and you need to upgrade your account to “business status” in order to accept the transfer. The email will say that in order to do so, the buyer will need to send you another $300.
The email address appears as “zelle@bankconfirmedpayment.com,” and it explain that the funds were waiting, but the buyer had to send an additional $300 in order to upgrade your account because the transaction was over $600. The scammer will say they will be happy to do so, so long as you refund them the money.
The scammer then “sends” the extra funds and includes screenshots of their Zelle app with the money deducted from their account. Generally, they will pressure the seller to repay the money.
If you refund the scammer, the BBB say that you’ll soon quickly realize that they never sent you any money in the first place.
The Better Business Bureau offered the following tips if you think you may be encountering this type of scam:
Don’t trust anyone willing to overpay you. Unless your item is rare and you receive multiple offers, be wary of buyers offering you more than your asking price. Consider it a red flag if someone is quick to send you more money than you are asking.
Check email addresses carefully. If you seem to have received an email from Zelle or another payment app, double-check the email address. Scammers use fake email addresses that resemble official ones.
Get to know payment app policies before you use them. If someone claims you need a business account to accept payments, check the apps official website or contact customer service to find out if the claim is true. Scammers often make up fake policies to trick their victims.
Report scams to Facebook Marketplace. If you spot a seller trying to pull off a scam, report them. Your report can help protect other unsuspecting sellers.
