‘Very stressful for our family’
An Australian couple have had to erect a sign out the front of their home after more than 100 buyers turned up to their door because a bogus seller used their address for a Facebook Marketplace scam.
Since July, couple Leah and Gerard have been turning away strangers who showed up at their doorstep to pick up the items they purchased on Facebook Marketplace.
However, every one of the hopeful customers walked away empty-handed once they realized they had been entangled in an elaborate and bizarre scam.
The unusual situation started when a woman walked up to the couple’s door inquiring about a bicycle she saw online.
“Then we had more than 100 people show up to our home looking for items that we supposedly had for sale that we did not,” Leah told 9News.
People from all over the state of Queensland unknowingly purchased items from Facebook Marketplace from a bogus seller, unaware they were being led on a goose chase to a fake address that happened to be Leah and Gerard’s.
Since July, more than 100 people have knocked on their door looking for “all sorts of things, mainly large items like TVs, couches, mattresses, outdoor furniture.”
“They would arrive anywhere from 7:30 in the morning right through until 10-10:30 at night,” Leah said.
One Facebook Marketplace customer showed screenshots of their interaction with the bogus seller, complete with the fake pick-up address as proof.
Gerard told the outlet that some people had “paid deposits” before they were scheduled to collect their supposed items, and others had “organized Airtaskers to come and collect on their behalf.”
While the Queensland couple have politely explained to the people about the scam, they have had to resort to extreme lengths to stop people from banging on their doors by placing a sign and safety barrier outside their front yard.
“We are not a Facebook Marketplace seller,” the sign reads.
“Unfortunately, a scammer is using our address fraudulently.
“We understand how inconvenient this is for everyone, and it is very stressful for our family.”
Despite having the scam profiles reported on Facebook, the dodgy sellers created a new account and repeated the process, using Leah and Gerard’s address to lure people in for another dodgy sale.
It wasn’t until a local member contacted Facebook’s parent company Meta that the scam profile was taken down.
Cyber support group ID Care warned Australians what red flags to watch out for while shopping on Facebook Marketplace, including a lack of followers or friends, no profile picture and deals that may seem too good to be true.
Dodgy sellers will often use a random address in a local area to gain customers’ trust and may demand a deposit before the supposed sale goes ahead.
Some scammers may ask for scanned copies of the purchaser’s legal documents like a driver’s license or passport when requesting a deposit.
“Identity theft also is a big risk,” ID Care chief executive Dave Lacey told 9News.
