Alertpay.com ??? - DPChallenge Forums

01/27/2007 03:10:17 PM · #1

I have a buyer for my camera, but they say the paypal account they have is locked for whatever reason. They mentioned alertpay.com as a method. I've never heard of it, but the site looks professional. I was wondering if anyone could confirm that it's a trustworthy way to recieve payment. I'm a little sketched out because the buyer found me on craigslist under a delaware posted classified, has a UK e-mail address, but wants the camera shipped to them in washington state. Should I just walk away from this?

Tamron SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di for Canon

01/27/2007 03:22:57 PM · #2

I don't know how you'd verify his real whereabouts. It sounds a bit fishy to me.

Count

Canon EOS-30D

01/27/2007 03:24:10 PM · #3

I'd say you can always find a new buyer...

01/27/2007 03:24:37 PM · #4

Some stuff about AlertPay

If you feed "alertpay reviews" into Google, you get mixed reviews. As a banker, I'm wary of it solely because it's Canadian owned, and there has been a lot of fraud being funneled through Canada lately due to some holes in their banking laws.

Edited for emphasis: Th bank I work for is very small, and has seen so much fraud coming through, as everything from bad checks (impossible to verify at the time of deposit) to stolen debit card numbers and wire transfer requests, that we recently added Canada to our list of restricted countries, which we pull from a list put out by the government. Additionally, do you really want to give your credit card or checking account information to someone in another country where the safety of your personal information may or may not be protected by law?

Message edited by author 2007-01-27 15:37:58.

Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

01/27/2007 03:34:44 PM · #5

Originally posted by karmabreeze:

huh?

I did a little search for banking fraud and came up with links to a recent bust about Credit Card fraud in Canada, nothing to do with banking fraud in general. Maybe you can point me to the sources of your information.

ClubJuggle

Canon EOS-400D Rebel XTi

01/27/2007 03:37:26 PM · #6

I'd be wary about doing business with someone who managed to get a PayPal account locked.

~Terry

01/27/2007 03:42:44 PM · #7

Originally posted by cpanaioti:

Originally posted by karmabreeze:
Some stuff about AlertPay

If you feed "alertpay reviews" into Google, you get mixed reviews. As a banker, I'm wary of it solely because it's Canadian owned, and there has been a lot of fraud being funneled through Canada lately due to some holes in their banking laws.

huh?

I did a little search for banking fraud and came up with links to a recent bust about Credit Card fraud in Canada, nothing to do with banking fraud in general. Maybe you can point me to the sources of your information.

There isn't going to be anything online. It's circulated amongst banks through the FDIC. But I can attest to having personally seen an unusually high number of Canadian checks being returned as fraudulent to our bank. When we have tried to authenticate them, we get absolutely nowhere. If we manage to get a positive authentication out of a Canadian bank manager, we still can't trust it. Last year we held in our hands a check we knew was fraudulent without even depositing it, and we still managed to get a green light from the Canadian bank. A fraudulent item in Canada doesn't have such tight time limits for returning to the depositing bank as US banks do, so bad checks for tens of thousands of dollars have been known to be returned more than a year after they were initially deposited. Plus the recent credit card fraud... see where this is going? Bad mojo, I don't trust it.

Message edited by author 2007-01-27 15:43:37.

01/27/2007 03:53:45 PM · #8

Originally posted by karmabreeze:

Originally posted by cpanaioti:

Originally posted by karmabreeze:
Some stuff about AlertPay

If you feed "alertpay reviews" into Google, you get mixed reviews. As a banker, I'm wary of it solely because it's Canadian owned, and there has been a lot of fraud being funneled through Canada lately due to some holes in their banking laws.

huh?

I did a little search for banking fraud and came up with links to a recent bust about Credit Card fraud in Canada, nothing to do with banking fraud in general. Maybe you can point me to the sources of your information.

There isn't going to be anything online. It's circulated amongst banks through the FDIC. But I can attest to having personally seen an unusually high number of Canadian checks being returned as fraudulent to our bank. When we have tried to authenticate them, we get absolutely nowhere. If we manage to get a positive authentication out of a Canadian bank manager, we still can't trust it. Last year we held in our hands a check we knew was fraudulent without even depositing it, and we still managed to get a green light from the Canadian bank. A fraudulent item in Canada doesn't have such tight time limits for returning to the depositing bank as US banks do, so bad checks for tens of thousands of dollars have been known to be returned more than a year after they were initially deposited. Plus the recent credit card fraud... see where this is going? Bad mojo, I don't trust it.

I understand the bad mojo but just because the company is from Canada doesn't make it bad. There are tons more bad/iffy businesses in the States. Having different laws doesn't mean they have holes, they're just different. ;o)

01/27/2007 03:57:01 PM · #9

I'm not anti-Canada. However, I can't trust a company with mixed reviews (and so many of those reviews complaining about checks never arriving or being returned as "dishonored"), and being Canadian in the light of so much recent Canadian bank fraud, that seals it for me. The fact is that as an American citizen, just about any dealing in Canada is bound to be problematic at best (though problematic does not mean fraudulent).

01/27/2007 03:59:45 PM · #10

Originally posted by karmabreeze:

I wasn't knocking the conclusion that the company couldn't be trusted. It was the statement that being Canadian put the icing on the cake. The two things are not related.

Another thing, if a Canadian bank says a cheque is ok and you honour it but it gets returned can't you go after the Canadian bank for payment?

Unless a cheque is a bank draft or certified I wouldn't accept it anyway. Any other cheque is not guaranteed (meaning that the money can be withdrawn from the account after it is verified but before it is presented for payment).

Message edited by author 2007-01-27 16:03:59.

01/27/2007 04:04:37 PM · #11

Originally posted by cpanaioti:

Originally posted by karmabreeze:
I'm not anti-Canada. However, I can't trust a company with mixed reviews (and so many of those reviews complaining about checks never arriving or being returned as "dishonored"), and being Canadian in the light of so much recent Canadian bank fraud, that seals it for me. The fact is that as an American citizen, just about any dealing in Canada is bound to be problematic at best (though problematic does not mean fraudulent).

I wasn't knocking the conclusion that the company couldn't be trusted. It was the statement that being Canadian put the icing on the cake. The two things are not related.

Another thing, if a Canadian bank says a check is ok and you honour it but it gets returned can't you go after the Canadian bank for payment?

Unless a cheque is a bank draft or certified I wouldn't accept it anyway. Any other cheque is not guaranteed.

No. We're obligated to return the funds to the originating bank in Canada. Our customer is expected to eat the cost of having deposited a fraudulent check and must repay us for the amount of the check we funded.

Incidentally, calling a bank to verify funds in the US isn't guaranteed either - we have no idea what might walk in the door to drain that account before your check hits the account.

Message edited by author 2007-01-27 16:07:27.

01/27/2007 04:09:05 PM · #12

About certified checks: they're easily forged. We get 20-30 FDIC alerts daily about fake cashier's checks. If you're going to accept them, always call the originating bank to verify that they really did issue it. If you can't, you shouldn't accept it.

Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC Macro for Nikon

01/27/2007 04:10:21 PM · #13

Originally posted by karmabreeze:

Originally posted by cpanaioti:

Originally posted by karmabreeze:
I'm not anti-Canada. However, I can't trust a company with mixed reviews (and so many of those reviews complaining about checks never arriving or being returned as "dishonored"), and being Canadian in the light of so much recent Canadian bank fraud, that seals it for me. The fact is that as an American citizen, just about any dealing in Canada is bound to be problematic at best (though problematic does not mean fraudulent).

I wasn't knocking the conclusion that the company couldn't be trusted. It was the statement that being Canadian put the icing on the cake. The two things are not related.

Another thing, if a Canadian bank says a check is ok and you honour it but it gets returned can't you go after the Canadian bank for payment?

Unless a cheque is a bank draft or certified I wouldn't accept it anyway. Any other cheque is not guaranteed.

No. We're obligated to return the funds to the originating bank in Canada. Our customer is expected to eat the cost of having deposited a fraudulent check.

Personal cheques are always caveat emptor though I guess bank drafts and certified cheques could be forged.

Anyway, this is way off the original topic.

==================================

Bottom line, don't deal with this guy.

mattforbes

Sigma SD14

01/27/2007 04:32:14 PM · #14

As an expert on fraud, with an expertise in internet fraud, my advice to you is turn away. I have seen it all, which means something new will come up tomorrow, and I can still spot them a mile away.

muckpond

Nikon D200

Sigma 15mm f/2.8 EX Diagonal Fisheye for Nikon

01/27/2007 04:35:13 PM · #15

Originally posted by ClubJuggle:

I'd be wary about doing business with someone who managed to get a PayPal account locked.

ditto.

goc

Apple iPhone 4

01/27/2007 04:53:42 PM · #16

Originally posted by muckpond:

Originally posted by ClubJuggle:
I'd be wary about doing business with someone who managed to get a PayPal account locked.

ditto.

ditto 2x.

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS

01/27/2007 06:27:08 PM · #17

ok well the person offered to pay with a USPS money order now, so as long as that's got the watermark and the strip in it I think it'll be fine.

pineapple

Canon EOS-5D

Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM

01/27/2007 06:55:38 PM · #18

There are fake money orders around so I would be very careful. Clear it before shipping. Make sure he sends you a tracking number so you can track delivery - he might well claim to have sent it when it was not sent....

Strikeslip

Canon EOS-5D

01/27/2007 07:10:53 PM · #19

Typical Americans... always blaming Canada.

Message edited by author 2007-01-27 19:15:22.

Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

01/28/2007 01:52:19 PM · #20

So I got this e-mail today... It includes lots of usps icons in the e-mail ( //www.usps.com/common/images/hdr_uspsLogo.gif for example and //images.google.com.ng/images?q=tbn:ehOx7vxf-pnOOM://www.bvdp.de/files/postmaerkte/images/uspsLogo.jpg) and doesn't come from usps.com it comes from post.com First of all I've never even heard of a USPS money order online... it seems ridiculous for anyone to believe that this could be real.

"Dear Logan,

USPSÂ® Online Auction Payment hereby congratulate you and at the same time informing you that the payment($1045.00) sent to you by Reiner Schwarz, has been verified and confirmed.

Auction Site: Craigslist
Auction Item : Canon 1D mk I

Please verify that the following address below is correct:

*edited to remove my address*

Your payment has been confirmed and has been forwarded to our delivery department for the quick delivery of your Payment. We would email you your eight digit confirmation code to receive your fund from our postman as soon as we receive the copy of the shipping tracking number for shipment verification.

Thank you for using USPSÂ®. We look forward to serving your online auction payment needs!

Sincerely,
USPSÂ®.

Site Map Contact Us Forms Gov't Services Jobs Privacy Policy | National & Premier Accounts

Copyright Â© 1999-2007 USPS. All Rights Reserved. Terms of Use No FEAR Act EEO Data
Postal Inspectors
Preserving the Trust Inspector General
Promoting Integrity"

Message edited by author 2007-01-28 13:52:48.

ClubJuggle

Canon EOS-400D Rebel XTi

01/28/2007 02:02:32 PM · #21

Fraud, if you haven't already figured it out. The tells are the poor grammar and the incorrect domain. Post.com is not even owned by the USPS.

USPS on counterfeit money orders. There are some descriptions of the money orders' security features at the bottom of the article. More information about USPS money order security is here.

It's worth noting that (genuine) USPS money orders can be cashed at your local post office. If you do accept a USPS money order, and are satified that it is read, I would strongly recommend cashing it at the post office rather than depositing it at your bank.

Should you receive a suspect or counterfeit money order, contact your nearest US Postal Inspection Service office, who has jurisdiction over these matters. You can also call their fraud hotline at 1-800-372-8347.

~Terry

Message edited by author 2007-01-28 14:09:38.