Market Feedback Possible Measure to Reduce Scams in Marketplace

[montsa007]

Hi,

Came across this mechanism in another forum to reduce scams,
Below message was posted by 1 of the moderators.
Altough it may increase the workload a bit but will atleast reduce the number of scams.

Thoughts?

 

[kartikoli]

I don't want to post my personal details in an open forum so If this suggestion is implemented I will never post a sale thread.

 

[devagya]

Well nothing is stopping you from asking the seller/buyer directly for an id proof before transaction, whether they choose to do so is upto them.

Trusting staff with such senstive info isn't also a good solution, plus it puts extra burden on staff to verify the said ids.

 

[montsa007]

I don't want to post my personal details in an open forum so If this suggestion is implemented I will never post a sale thread.

It wont be posted publicly, it stays inside the protected forum.
Again its a suggestion, whether it is implemented or not is up to the forum admins & team

Well nothing is stopping you from asking the seller/buyer directly for an id proof before transaction, whether they choose to do so is upto them.

Trusting staff with such senstive info isn't also a good solution, plus it puts extra burden on staff to verify the said ids.

Actually I saw a recent post where a user was scammed for 25K (Laptop) and thought there could be something to reduce such incidents (If not stop)

 

[ibose]

It wont be posted publicly, it stays inside the protected forum.

The forum is open as of now and can be read by anyone. Even if it is protected (which is extra work for the Mods etc. and I don't how feasible), anyone can join the forum and access the same information. As mentioned above, you can always ask the seller on an individual basis but even then you will need to do your due diligence by looking at red flags before purchasing a high value item. Best is to inspect the item first hand if possible.

 

[montsa007]

The forum is open as of now and can be read by anyone. Even if it is protected, anyone can join the forum and access the same information. As mentioned above, you can always ask the seller on an individual basis but you will still need to do your due diligence by looking at red flags before purchasing a high value item. Best is to inspect the item first hand if possible.

There can be a separate section wherein such info goes, a protected sub-forum for staff.
Inspecting first hand is possible if its a local deal, for non-local deals have to stick with photos and all.
Lets see what the mods/admin team has to say.

Alternatively it could be a tag wherein the user decides to verify himself and gets a badge saying verified, but again these are all suggestions.

 

[ibose]

There can be a separate section wherein such info goes, a protected sub-forum for staff.
Inspecting first hand is possible if its a local deal, for non-local deals have to stick with photos and all.
Lets see what the mods/admin team has to say.

Alternatively it could be a tag wherein the user decides to verify himself and gets a badge saying verified, but again these are all suggestions.

More than that, why would anyone want to share such sensitive information in the first place ? The buyer can get scammed even if this is in place. I believe that the current Feedback and Rep system is the best to identify trustworthy sellers.

 

[montsa007]

More than that, why would anyone want to share such sensitive information in the first place ? The buyer can get scammed even if this is in place. I believe that the current Feedback and Rep system is the best to identify trustworthy sellers.

True scammers are always 1 step ahead of the system.
Its just that there aren't too many active forums left which have good marketplace, E was an alternative but it has evaporated overnight, TD is dead.

 

[Ir0nMerc]

Hi,

Came across this mechanism in another forum to reduce scams,
Below message was posted by 1 of the moderators.
Altough it may increase the workload a bit but will atleast reduce the number of scams.

Thoughts?

View attachment 138313

Idea is good but what if seller posts someone else's Aadhar or PAN in the picture? Just image search on Google and you will find thousands of pictures of Aadhar or PAN cards of random citizens.

How are we verifying if the member is posting pictures of his own ID? Video KYC?

 

[montsa007]

Idea is good but what if seller posts someone else's Aadhar or PAN in the picture? Just image search on Google and you will find thousands of pictures of Aadhar or PAN cards of random citizens.

How are we verifying if the member is posting pictures of his own ID? Video KYC?

Aadhar + pan + bank pass book where he/she wants the amount to be transferred
You cant find all of it for the same person [I know there is photoshop, but there are ways to cross check that too]
And to take it to the next level, a video call should add another layer of security.
A honest seller shouldn't have any issue, someone shady may sweat from head to toe.

Besides if the deal goes bad, proper bank details will be available.
Here,
This is what the staff member posts after they verify the thread

 

[calvin1719]

I think your perspective is that of a business owner who regularly deals with a lot of people/customers/potential customers without any anonymity. Here, most people are anonymous, and only those who have bought/sold something from/to them might have their full names, addresses, numbers, etc. And that's the way it should be. I don't want my name published here, by a moderator or whoever, and uploading docs, even with info redacted, to an unencrypted file dump is an absolute no go. Besides that, even if I trust the staff completely, a staff account compromise would compromise all of those documents.

There are exceptions to this anonymity - when scams happen and mods publish the scammers details for others to check with. But the "this guy is not sharing info, he has something to hide" outlook is not appropriate. Just because someone is unwilling to share doesn't mean they are a scammer, and just because someone shares everything doesn't mean they are legitimate. All of the extra steps you listed don't increase the confidence of knowing for sure one way or the other.

Video calls, doc uploads, etc., I'd rather just take my chances on olx or sell for a bit lower to bulk purchasers.

And to take it to the next level, a video call should add another layer of security.

What's the point of redacting in the uploads if you're just going to do a VC and ask the seller to show the document?

Aadhar + pan + bank pass book

Do you actually have a passbook in 2022? I sure as hell don't, and I'm pretty sure 99% of people here wouldn't.
-----------
Something else that just occurred to me, where is this forum hosted? Will upload of PII run afoul of IT laws regarding restriction of location of data storage/processing for Indian citizens?

 

[Kloud]

Once upon a time on erodov, I suggested to run an escrow Bank account to protect from scams as well as protect the anonymity. And they called me crazy.

 

[chetansha]

Once upon a time on erodov, I suggested to run an escrow Bank account to protect from scams as well as protect the anonymity. And they called me crazy.

Who will run the account, how will he or she explain all these entries to tax authorities. All bank account details must be furnished to tax authorities, it is compulsory.

 

[montsa007]

Who will run the account, how will he or she explain all these entries to tax authorities. All bank account details must be furnished to tax authorities, it is compulsory.

Exactly, escrow is a totally different concept.

 

[vishal_k]

What if someone makes fake id using paint. Who will check the authenticity of that id's. I think we all are specialist in paint applications. Only Govt agencies/Banks/NBFC's have permission to verify aadhar via UIDAI database.

 

[Kloud]

Who will run the account, how will he or she explain all these entries to tax authorities. All bank account details must be furnished to tax authorities, it is compulsory.

I know. That was like a more than a decade ago. Little me didn't know taxes.

I think current system is good enough. There are some scams but it's worth the risk. It's better than turning it into a police state.

 

[montsa007]

What if someone makes fake id using paint. Who will check the authenticity of that id's. I think we all are specialist in paint applications. Only Govt agencies/Banks/NBFC's have permission to verify aadhar via UIDAI database.

Keep the views pouring in, will let the admin/mod team take a call

I know. That was like a more than a decade ago. Little me didn't know taxes.

I think current system is good enough. There are some scams but it's worth the risk. It's better than turning it into a police state.

Maximum Security Prison

 

[Kloud]

What if someone makes fake id using paint. Who will check the authenticity of that id's. I think we all are specialist in paint applications. Only Govt agencies/Banks/NBFC's have permission to verify aadhar via UIDAI database.

Valid point. Anyone who is savvy enough to sign up on this website can easily fake the documents.

 

[montsa007]

Valid point. Anyone who is savvy enough to sign up on this website can easily fake the documents.

I had done that in the past myself, was in college and had opened paypal (Those days you were paid to post in forums), for some reason Paypal decided to limit my account, didnt have any document in my name, so created an electric bill in photoshop, money was tight then. Account was released.

But then Paypal grew smarter & not sure if that sh1t flies now.

The industry I am in, sees multiple fake documents, sadly some poor underpaid chaps make them so if we look closely we can identify the flaws.

 

[logistopath]

I guess this was posted in a discussion a long time ago. Mods or admins are not going to act as middlemen to verify the claims/authenticity of buyers or sellers. This forum is just a platform for trading. Do your due diligence rather than depending on someone else. If something goes wrong, the most we can do is publicly disclose the involved members' details in the blacklist thread. Same applies for escrow too. That is also not happening. Admins have put in place certain restrictions to minimize wrongdoings, but all of it can be by-passed by the smart scammers. That applies even to the measures suggested above.

TLDR: Do your due diligence. Engage with the buyer/seller and develop a rapport, make sure you can trust the other party and then go ahead with the sale/trade.