DJI Mavic, Air and Mini Drones
Friendly, Helpful & Knowledgeable Community
Join Us Now

PSA: Whole lotta scamming going on in Classifieds

GroovyGeek

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2023
Messages
81
Reactions
63
Age
59
Location
San Diego, CA, USA
Not sure what is going on, but over the last few weeks there has been an absolute explosion of Classified postings for Mavic 3 Pro's at prices that range from attractive to insanely low. Almost all of them appear to be scams from hijacked accounts. I myself got taken for a ride, fortunately paid with PP G&S and funded with a credit card and will get my money back.

Out of morbid curiosity I have engaged with most of these sellers, doing what I should have done with the thief that I sent money to - ask for real name and town of residence, then go to 411.com and verify that such a person exists. Then ask for a cell phone and means to contact at other sites - eBay, LinkedIn, Facebook, you name it. Call the person on the phone and see how they respond to reasonable requests for specific information - very specific pictures of the kit that would be difficult to lift off the Internet if the seller did not have the kit in hand, etc.

Look carefully at the posting history. If the account went dormant for a few years and is now posting again be very afraid (this is how I got taken, by an account that was set up in 2016, with hundreds of postings and feedback but then dormant for a few years - that is on me). If the seller changes their handle and picture at any point run the other way. If the location of the seller is not listed on their account be extra cautious. Pay attention to mannerisms in the language. During discussions with my "seller" they stated that they will "post" the drone as soon as they receive payment. Yet another sign that should have tingled my antennae...

If things check out do NOT allow the seller to send you an invoice. Insisit to send money to the cell phone that you contacted them at, and first send just a few dollars to ensure that it goes to an account that matches the information that the seller provided. And, under no circumstance, send money F&F, and fund G&S with a credit card, not your bank account.

Be safe, don't be a dufas like me. There really should be a rule that all postings in Classifieds have a picture of the item for sale with a hand written note with the date and username. That will not deter prepared thieves but will remove some of the low hanging fruit.
 
Last edited:
I’ve watched(and purchased from)the classified ads on this forum for some time. The release of new DJI products have always tended to increase the amount of classified ads visible in this site. As with any other selling platform, there is always risk involved when interacting with an unknown to you individual. As you have mentioned, the use of a guaranteed refund platform is the best avenue of defense.
Good that you have the requisite gray matter for these kinds of issues.
 
Not sure I would trust 411.com. Looked up my name and it was eroneous. Said I used to live there. Well I've lived there 25 years. Also had other wrong info on me.
Scammers win.....
 
  • Like
Reactions: Cymruflyer
As a moderator on a fairly large forum, we have seen an increase in the past month of both scammers and spammers. We are currently banning over 50 per day on average, with a large number of them originating in Russia. We report their information to both Scamalytics and Stop Forum Spam.

The first and last line of defense remains you. While forum owners never condone scammers, some of these people are very creative in their methods and use the human desire to save money as the prime bait of their trap. The best defense is to require proof of ownership, request a phone conversation instead of text messages, and insist on a form of payment that will allow you recourse if the deal goes south. If the seller won't meet these requirements, mark them off as a sleaze bag scammer and consider yourself lucky.
 
I have purchased several DJI M3 , M210 and Skydios on forums. For DJI I ask for a copy of the DJI Care agreement since it has all aircraft particulars tied to it (if no care pak I back away). I can then call DJI to confirm the SN is ok. I also only use PayPal and contact them to verify the seller is in good standing. There is always risk however, no issues so far. Photos are good however, sellers can take pics of stolen drones.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DarR-T and RuskyFL
We now have definitive confirmation that @mwebster79 is a scammer operating from a hijacked account. Not that we did not already know it, but here are the details

  1. The original handle on the account was Deckyon and he pointed me to "his" website deckyon.com as proof that he was the real thing. I was stupid enough to assume that membership since 2016 and a website that matches the handle is good enough, and did not reach out to him through the website. After it became clear that this is a scam I reached out to the owner of the deckyon.com website on FB and, after a few days, he confirmed that he had an account on mavicpilots.com but had not used it for multiple years and did not even know his password
  2. Shortly after receiving my payment the scammer changed the handle to mwebster79
  3. After a day or two he provided me with a valid-looking FedEx tracking number from Atlanta GA to San Diego CA. The package dimensions looked small but not grossly so (9x9x7), ditto for the weight (2 lbs). The package was signature delivery required.
  4. Earlier today I realized that I never received email notification from FedEx that I have pending delivery to my address. When I attempted to get the delivery location they asked me to confirm at an email address or cell phone that I did not recognize.
  5. The package was delivered today at 10:48am, signed by a person I don't know, at an unknown address. I have two cameras looking at my front door and driveway, and neither recorded a delivery
  6. I had taken very careful notes along the way and today at 11:30am I filed a dispute with PayPal. They refunded me immediately, without ever bothering to contact the seller. They only do this when the transaction has already been flagged in their system as suspicious and the buyer files a dispute.

AT THE MOMENT I WOULD ASSUME THAT ALL POSTINGS FOR MAVIC 3 PRO COMBOS IN THE CLASSIFIED SECTION ARE SCAMS. I have contacted each of the sellers asking them detailed questions, and they either don't respond or try to squirrel out of responding. Perhaps some of them are not scammers, but any buyer should proceed with EXTREME caution.

I will also contact FedEx to report the incident. It seems that they have an insider who feeds them valid looking FedEx tracking numbers to lul unsuspecting buyers into complacency.
 
Very good observations. It was bound to happen here. PayPal is always good about this type of issue.
 
I suspect that they took passwords from the massive worldwide data breach 12 or so months ago, and decided to target drone forums due to the relativelymhigh value of the Magic 3 pro. They probably logged into compromised accounts, selected the ones they have been dormant for a year or two, and went from there. Would not be surprised if they are concurrently active on other drone forums.

The biggest surprise ntonme was the tracking number. I expected to receive a box full of rocks. But it felt like they have someone on the inside at FedEx to give them tracking numbers with the right parameters. @mwebster79 was able to scam another member, and he also received a valid looking tracking number. I attempted to report this to FedEx today and they had zero interest in hearing me out.
 
  • Wow
Reactions: Cymruflyer
Ask them to email you a copy of their driver's license if they don't/won't move on.
 
Not sure what is going on, but over the last few weeks there has been an absolute explosion of Classified postings for Mavic 3 Pro's at prices that range from attractive to insanely low. Almost all of them appear to be scams from hijacked accounts. I myself got taken for a ride, fortunately paid with PP G&S and funded with a credit card and will get my money back.

Out of morbid curiosity I have engaged with most of these sellers, doing what I should have done with the thief that I sent money to - ask for real name and town of residence, then go to 411.com and verify that such a person exists. Then ask for a cell phone and means to contact at other sites - eBay, LinkedIn, Facebook, you name it. Call the person on the phone and see how they respond to reasonable requests for specific information - very specific pictures of the kit that would be difficult to lift off the Internet if the seller did not have the kit in hand, etc.

Look carefully at the posting history. If the account went dormant for a few years and is now posting again be very afraid (this is how I got taken, by an account that was set up in 2016, with hundreds of postings and feedback but then dormant for a few years - that is on me). If the seller changes their handle and picture at any point run the other way. If the location of the seller is not listed on their account be extra cautious. Pay attention to mannerisms in the language. During discussions with my "seller" they stated that they will "post" the drone as soon as they receive payment. Yet another sign that should have tingled my antennae...

If things check out do NOT allow the seller to send you an invoice. Insisit to send money to the cell phone that you contacted them at, and first send just a few dollars to ensure that it goes to an account that matches the information that the seller provided. And, under no circumstance, send money F&F, and fund G&S with a credit card, not your bank account.

Be safe, don't be a dufas like me. There really should be a rule that all postings in Classifieds have a picture of the item for sale with a hand written note with the date and username. That will not deter prepared thieves but will remove some of the low hanging fruit.
Of course, if the seller is British, then saying they will "post" the item, is perfectly normal. That's what I would say. However, all other points you mentioned are very good, to take into account. Sad to see even here has had the scammer settle in. Thanks for your input.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kentdavidge
"I suspect that they took passwords from the massive worldwide data breach 12 or so months ago"

Yes, this appears to be the case. Look at the posting history, and you'll generally see a large gap (1 year+) then they show up again selling their drone. It's possible that this can happen naturally, but it is definitely a red flag.

I've updated the "how not to get scammed" sticky thread in the classifieds discussion area and looking into the possibility of requiring a reset of passwords for members who've been gone for X months.

As always, if something looks suspicious, report it and we'll look into the IP addresses, post history, etc...
 
Be safe, don't be a dufas like me.
You are smart, you made the purchase through PayPal and will be refunded. I WAS AN IDIOT, lost $250 because I transferred the money directly to the scammer's bank account.

To be clear, I came across the ad elsewhere on social media, not on this website.
 
  • Like
Reactions: LandWaterSky
Well, I don't think I would be willing to send a stranger a copy of my driving license.
The license number can be blurred out or marked over. However, I would have no problem with it. No one can use a photocopy of a license with the number blurred out for anything other than proof of identity.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sarahb
What I have had work on many other forums is to require one of the photos of the item to have the date and forum username in a photo next to the item. This at least shows they have possession of what they are selling.
 
  • Like
Reactions: GroovyGeek
What I have had work on many other forums is to require one of the photos of the item to have the date and forum username in a photo next to the item. This at least shows they have possession of what they are selling.
Has to be handwritten for this fo be somewhat effective. Otherwise it can be photoshopped on an image lifted from elsewhere.
 
What I have had work on many other forums is to require one of the photos of the item to have the date and forum username in a photo next to the item. This at least shows they have possession of what they are selling.
Has to be handwritten for this fo be somewhat effective. Otherwise it can be photoshopped on an image lifted from elsewhere

I also think that one of the scammy listings here, which is no longer up, worked around that by changing their username to something else and then providing me with an image dated early in 2025.
 
Not sure what is going on, but over the last few weeks there has been an absolute explosion of Classified postings for Mavic 3 Pro's at prices that range from attractive to insanely low. Almost all of them appear to be scams from hijacked accounts. I myself got taken for a ride, fortunately paid with PP G&S and funded with a credit card and will get my money back.

Out of morbid curiosity I have engaged with most of these sellers, doing what I should have done with the thief that I sent money to - ask for real name and town of residence, then go to 411.com and verify that such a person exists. Then ask for a cell phone and means to contact at other sites - eBay, LinkedIn, Facebook, you name it. Call the person on the phone and see how they respond to reasonable requests for specific information - very specific pictures of the kit that would be difficult to lift off the Internet if the seller did not have the kit in hand, etc.

Look carefully at the posting history. If the account went dormant for a few years and is now posting again be very afraid (this is how I got taken, by an account that was set up in 2016, with hundreds of postings and feedback but then dormant for a few years - that is on me). If the seller changes their handle and picture at any point run the other way. If the location of the seller is not listed on their account be extra cautious. Pay attention to mannerisms in the language. During discussions with my "seller" they stated that they will "post" the drone as soon as they receive payment. Yet another sign that should have tingled my antennae...

If things check out do NOT allow the seller to send you an invoice. Insisit to send money to the cell phone that you contacted them at, and first send just a few dollars to ensure that it goes to an account that matches the information that the seller provided. And, under no circumstance, send money F&F, and fund G&S with a credit card, not your bank account.

Be safe, don't be a dufas like me. There really should be a rule that all postings in Classifieds have a picture of the item for sale with a hand written note with the date and username. That will not deter prepared thieves but will remove some of the low hanging fruit.
You're not a dufas, brother. Thank you for sharing your story.
 
If one shares their ID, they should also blur out the birthdate.
But it's easy enough to photoshop just about anything these days.

There's no way to be 100% safe with an online sale. You can use Paypal but there's still some risks involved.
I'm waiting anywhere from 7-30 days for a refund from Amazon from a scammer that went through them.
 
  • Like
Reactions: LandWaterSky

DJI Drone Deals

New Threads

Forum statistics

Threads
135,755
Messages
1,609,622
Members
164,212
Latest member
miltostammy
Want to Remove this Ad? Simply login or create a free account