Scammer Warning and a Note on Scams

So this message has been circling around, and seemingly only to European collectors. There may have been some non-Europeans that have gotten the message, but so far this is all I've seen.

Screen shot from Etsy, via Issy BJD

This is a good opportunity to discuss warning signs of scammers, especially because some of them are far less obvious than this. I've discussed Safe Buying and Selling practices many times on this blog, so I won't go into that, but you can read the posts relevant to this topic here.

Name Dropping: The scammer tries to associate themselves with someone with high popularity, followers, or fame. This could be a company (such as claiming to be a representative or employee) or a person (claiming to be a famous collector or in collaboration with a famous collector). This is to ease you into comfort with a name fo someone you "know" or are familiar with. It gives the scammer an air of legitimacy.

Monetary Reward: Offers an unrealistic amount of money for the object they're desiring. In this case, they're asking to "rent" a bjd for $100 plus more if you send extra things. They can purchase their own BJD for around $100, to be frank, so they've no business renting yours. They may offer a deposit of a ridiculous sum of money, but be unwilling to send it "Friends and Family" or only want to send you money after you send your portion.

Method of Contact: If they've contacted you on an account not openly related to BJDs, like your personal facebook or Etsy, find out how they got the information. Never give out your real life name or address to these people. If they are claiming to be from a company or a specific person, forward their message onto that company or person and see what they have to say.

Google them. Google any names or information they've used in their message. See if anything pops up. the vlogger mentioned in this message is demonstrably mentally troubled (no offense is meant by this, and I wasn't sure of a more delicate way to address this. My mother is mentally unsound as well, so I have nothing but empathy and compassion for this person), but may not even be aware this person is using her name.

This person will prey upon the desperate and the new, and hopefully no one actually thinks this is legit. Pass this information around. Protect your community! Safe collecting everyone.