CORNWALL – With people looking to buy Christmas gifts and also heading online to do their shopping, city police have issued an alert about buy and sell fraud.
Police said items are being advertised in various newspapers and online at a deep discount and the transaction is to be done sight-unseen until delivery.
Fraud investigators said the seller will come up with a hard-luck story and they are out of the country.
In these scams, the money is typically wired to the seller before delivery and, if it’s a local transaction, it’s done by cheque with instructions to send part of the over-payment back, police said.
The following tips are being provided by the Cornwall Community Police Service to keep you safe this holiday season:
- Purchasers should always inspect items before acquisition.
- Do your homework by comparing the item to other similar items and their cost.
- Be cautious of “too-good-to-be-true” offers.
- Never give out personal information, such as your name, address, marital status, personal history, bank accounts, credit card numbers etc.
- Take the necessary time to research the seller/company.
- Sometimes, it is just safer to ignore a good offer when you cannot validate it.
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