Several people on these boards have posted about how dangerous selling can be.
It’s not just the risks of online selling, but also the risks of face-to-face transactions in an increasingly violent environment where strangers can target you for violent burglary or home invasion, or use counterfeit money in cash on pickup, etc.
It’s worth reading this article:
Seller beware: How putting up items for sale on Facebook marketplace and Gumtree could put you at risk
Ever sold something on Facebook marketplace or Gumtree? Without knowing it, you might've put yourself in danger. Here's how to stay safe when selling items online. Read the full story
PayID scams are another one of which to beware, but I’ll leave that can of worms to another post.
For now, the salient points are:
• don’t give away your phone number or address to strangers and of course don’t post these online;
• don’t photograph items for sale in such a way that you reveal your home or other possessions or family members;
• for pickup sales, don’t use your home — rather, select a public location and try to bring along a second person;
• if accepting cash, how confident are you that you can recognise genuine bills? If you can’t, then use PayPal or PayID (but you’d better be well up to speed on how PayID works so that you don’t fall victim to a PayID scam).
I’m opening the floor here for others to suggest more ways to protect oneself against these risks.
