AboutYan Ross Expertise Certified Identity Theft Risk Management Specialist -- providing responses to questions on identity theft prevention and restoration for consumers and holders of protected information (Personally Identifiable Information)
Experience Recognized and quoted authority in the area of Identity Theft.
Principal Contributing Author to the Identity Theft Risk Management Study Guide published by the Institute of Consumer Financial Education. Frequent lecturer on this subject to attorneys and other professionals, as well as law enforcement and community groups.
Education/Credentials Bachelor of Arts, Princeton University --
Juris Doctor, Yale Law School --
Accredited Educator for numerous professional disciplines
Expert: Yan Ross Date: 8/28/2007 Subject: Suspicious about a buyer
Question QUESTION: I recently receive an email where an entity was interested in buying an item i had listed online for sale, i am suspicious of this entity and i have given them my full name, home address, and mobile phone number, should i be worried about ID theft and if so what do i do?
ANSWER: Bill,
First, you are correct to exercise care in giving personally identifying information to people or companies you don't know.
If all you have sent them is your name, address, & phone number, it is unlikely that they have enough information to use to steal or otherwise abuse your identity.
If you are going to proceed with the sale of an item, however, be careful about giving any additional information, such as bank account numbers, credit card information, and so forth.
Without knowing more about the sale and means of sale & delivery, it's difficult to provide specific suggestions, but here are a few:
If it involves physical delivery and a formal title [car, boat, etc.], be aware that banks will no longer accept "Cashier's Checks" for immediate credit, as there have apparently been many cases of criminals using fraudulent documents of this nature.
Be wary about giving the Buyer your bank account or other direct payment information, especially if they say they need it to "wire" you money or deposit directly to your account.
If you wish to ask a follow-up question, you are welcome to do so.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: thank you for your answer, and since now that you have mentioned a wire transfer i beleive it was a scam because part of the payment was to involve a wire transfer, the reason i became suspicous was because of this (not the only reason), they wanted to send me a check payment from an african bank, however for some reason i cannott remember the payment was going to be more than what was specified for the item i was selling, therefore i would have to transfer the excess money back to africa using western union "only", im almost positive this is a scam and i would doubt you disagree, how do i go about reporting this to the proper authorities? and what can i do to ensure that they are not able to gain access to more of my info based on what they have? (other than what i have already done: placed email notifications on my credit card account along with extra security settings on my online banking account with that credit card company)
Answer Bill,
This follows the pattern of a fairly common and well-known scam, though it may not technically involve "identity theft" as such.
Typically, the fraud victim finds that the incoming transfer of funds has some condition that's never fulfilled -- meanwhile the "excess" amount sent back to the scammer is gone.
I am not sure from your further description how your credit card company figures into the situation.
But I would suggest that, if there is a substantial value involved, you might look into using a reputable escrow company to receive the funds and distribute to you only upon completion of delivery of the goods you are selling.
As far as a complaint to authorities, you could report the particulars to the Federal Trade Commission -- online at www.ftc.gov and follow the Identity Theft logo to file a complaint and affidavit. If they are able to link this pattern or parties to a similar pattern, it may help in the future -- though I hasten to add that it is very difficult for US law enforcement to exercise jurisdiction outside the country.
Again, you may follow up with further details if you wish.
Good luck!
