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There are a lot of bad people out there who want to take advantage of us hard working Americans. Since they are either too lazy or just not smart enough to get a real job, they are looking for an easy way to make money from those of us who do real work for a living and who have a tendency to trust in the goodness and honesty of mankind in general. If you own a website or sell products through an online action site such as eBay or Webidz, there is a particular scam that you need to be aware of.

I am an artist who works hard to make living from my work. I sell my art work from various venues including my online website. I was recently contacted through my site by someone calling themselves Edward. He told me that he wanted to buy three of my paintings for a total of $1,000.00. I was so excited! I hadn’t made a sale in some time and I needed the money. But I was a bit wary when he told me the was going to send me $3,500.00 and he needed me to wire him back $2,500.00. Of course I questioned it but his story seemed legit so I let it play out. We corresponded back and forth a few times and several other oddities sent me warning signals.

But sure enough, I received Walmart money orders in the mail. Maybe this guy is legit, I thought. I went straight to my bank and deposited the money orders. However, I made sure with the teller that she was aware that I thought these might be fake and I wanted to know how long I should wait to verify before I made any withdrawals. She told me the funds would be available the next day but I decided that I should wait 7-10 business days anyway. Just so you know, most banks will clear a money order the next day without first making sure that they are not fraudulent. Money orders used to be safe, but not anymore. I emailed the guy and told him that I was going to wait 7-10 business days before I would wire him any funds. He emailed me back and said he needed the money as soon as possible. This gave me another uneasy feeling so I decided to Google, “money order beware”. That is where I found an article written by an eBay seller where almost the same scenario occurred. I went back to the bank the next day and further warned them to the scam and asked them to re-verify the validity of the money orders. They did and sure enough they confirmed that the money orders were indeed fake. They removed the money from my account and forwarded the information to their fraud department. I went straight home and called the police. The police made a report but they advised that because this person is most likely from out of the country, the chances of this case being take up by an international authority were slim - especially with all the international fraud scams going on these days. It is difficult for them to crack down on them when other countries may not be cooperative.

If I had wired this guy any funds, I would have been royally screwed. My bank would have found out eventually that the money orders were no good and they would have demanded I repay the money back. Thankfully, I was wary enough to play it safe. I did not lose any money and I still have the artwork.

Millions of innocent people get scammed all the time. This particular scam is just one of many that people have fallen victim to. And most of us don’t become victims because we are foolish or gullible. We do it because we are inclined to trust people, we want to make that big sale that will help us pay our bills, and/or we are delighted that someone really seems to appreciate what we are selling.

In order to keep yourself safe from fraud, be cautious. Don’t shrug off anything that doesn’t sound right. Ask questions and expect answers. If you accept a money order or bank cashier’s check, insist that you will hold the payment for at least ten business days to make sure it is valid, no matter what your bank says. Don’t give in to pressure from your customer. If they want to make a fast payment, tell them to use their credit card or sign up with Pay Pal. Never accept more money than the item is worth unless it is intended that you keep all the money. And make it your policy that you will not wire any funds. You can save yourself from a lot of grief by following these few simple tips.

Dawn Ross NatureByDawn.com