HOW TO STAY SAFE WHILE DEALING ON THE MARKETPLACE (SCAMMING TYPES)

SANTA · Apr 17, 2023

I.Universal best practices to follow in orderto ensure that you never get scammed:

Always use a Trusted Middleman (MM)-You've heard it before, and you're about tohear it again. Whenever you're conducting a deal on CRACKED, you shouldALWAYSutilize a Trusted middlemanto complete all deals and trades. You can use CRACKED's official middleman by clicking here.
Always deal/confirm on-site- To ensure that you're avoiding some of these common types of scams, it's ideal toalways ensure that your deals are taking place via the forum'sPrivate Messaging (PM) system, as it's impossible to completely copyanother user's profileon-site. However, if your deal is taking placeoff-site(for example, via Discord), you may not be talking to the person you think you are. For this reason, it's critical to send a PM to the user you believe that you're dealing with to confirm the authenticity of the Discord user. The other person should then reply to this message to confirm that the Discord conversation taking place is authentic.Any person that contacts you via Discord to initiatea deal but refuses to confirm on-site is most certainly trying to scam you.Be sure to read the notes below regarding Discord to avoid other scam techniques associated with the platform.
Check the Vouches!- While Reputation/Vouches are not a foolproof system to gauge a user's trustworthiness, it'sa great place to start. With that said, don't just rely on the number. Be sure to review a user's vouches/rep before dealing with them to see exactly how they deal with their clients and whether or not the Community recommends dealing with them.

II.Common Types of Scams (and how to avoid them)

You go firstwhile refusing a MM- Let's start off with an easy one. If someone (especially a less reputable user) refuses to use a MM andasksyou to go first when dealing with them, you should pay a little closer attention to the deal, especially if you going first involves you sending funds

How to avoid it:As stated above, always use a MM. If this means that you (the seller) have to pay a small fee, it's still worth it to ensure that you don't end up scammed. As an added benefit,insisting on using a MM will usually send ascammerrunning for the hills.
Fake Discord Accounts- Another very common tactic utilized by scammers is the use of fake Discord accounts to mimic real CRACKED's members with high vouches and high reputation, and sometimes even staff members. These scammersutilize either Discord Nitro to copy a realuser's name and Discorddiscriminator tagto create a fake account which they use to facilitate the scam. Another method these scammers will utilize is the use ofhomographs(characters from other alphabets that appear similar to English) in order to copy another user's Discord name and discriminator without Discord Nitro.
How to avoid it:Always deal or confirm on-site, andNEVERcopy/paste Discord usernames!
Triangle/Fake MMScams-In this scam, the scammer will create a fake Discord mimicking a MM or Staff member using the method above,which they will then use to facilitate this scam. As you can see, a scammer who utilizes this method has the potential to scam both the buyerandthe seller to obtain both the item being sold as well as the funds being used to purchase it.

How to avoid it:Always deal or confirm on-site. Trusted MMs and Staff willalwaysconfirm on-site when requested, without exception. Also, don't use MMs that aren't Trusted orStaff.
Multis & Compromised Accounts- More notorious scammers willmultiple accounts (multis)

How to avoid it:A big hint to this is often times these scammers useinactive, upgradeduser accounts to hit these lickssometimes they'll even buy into a group to make the account appear even more authentic. What this means is that often (but not always) you may see a large gap in time between the user's last post/vouch and the current day. If you see this, take caution. Additionally, if your account isupgraded,you should utilize theprofile scan toolto ensure that no shenanigans aregoing on with the user who is trying to deal with you.

Above all, the key to avoiding any scam, no matter how intricate, is using common sense whilemaintaining situational awareness and attention to detail throughout the entire interaction with the person you're dealing with. Always remember thatyou have the power to end the deal at any momentbefore goods/funds are exchangedif you feel that something shady is going on.