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my identity became involved in an odd eBay scam that everyone should also be aware of. He used the information to create a new account with a similar account name. Then, he created a new Paypal account using my information but a different bank account and e-mail address. If someone bought his fake item and paid by Paypal, he would take the money and run. However, once a buyer tried to pay with a money order and it showed up at my door (since the con used my mailing address). I mailed the money order back to the buyer, but many buyers were probably not so lucky. When you are shopping on eBay or another online auction site, be sure to check a person's feedback. Also, only pay people with secure sources (PayPal, credit cards), because you can get a refund for it.

There are also other money order related scams that can land you in real trouble. The con has a counterfeit money order and needs someone to cash it. He sends it to you as payment for something, or perhaps just to ask you to be a nice person and cash it. You are supposed to deposit the counterfeit order, get out the cash that you owe him, and send it to him. By the time that your bank notifies you that the money order was counterfeit (two to three weeks), the con is gone and you're stuck footing the bill! I've even heard stories of people being arrested for cashing fake USPS money orders. In this case, never accept a money order if you did not ask for it, and never accept a money order for more than the amount you are owed. If you are taking payments for an online sale, only accept secure payments like Paypal or credit cards.

These are only the scams that I have personally witnessed or fallen victim to. There are many more, and they are growing day by day. If you receive any kind of suspicious offer that sounds too good to be true, then your best bet is to delete the e-mail or close the website and move on. If you're curiosity is piqued, though, and you can't leave, you should do more research online. You should search for the company or person's name in Google, and check scam sites like www.scam.com or www.scambusters.org. Any good con will be spamming his name all over town and dozens of people just like you will have raised questions about the authenticity of his claims. The Internet can be a scammer's best friend because it opens him up to a world of unsuspecting dupes, but it is also your best friend because it connects you to all of the people have wised up to the scammers real intent.

Learn more about this author, B. Rock.
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