Craigslist

scams

This Company Wants Money Before They'll Hire Me, Is It A Scam?

Reader Alexis wants to know if it's standard practice to pay for your own "background check" in order to be hired for a job. She received an email after responding to a legit-sounding seasonal employment ad on craigslist. In the email, the "Head of Recruitment," asks for money in order to perform a background check and to "demonstrate that you are serious about this position and that what you have submitted so far is correct." More »

10:47 AM on Thu Nov 6 2008
By Meg Marco
19,996 views, 92 comments

Most discussed crazyasianman: good ol' shady craigslist. "portobello road, portobello road, place where the riches of ages are sold..." more »

scams

How A Nigerian Steals Your Laptop

Molly's laptop was stolen, and the thief didn't even break into her house, or snag it from her at a coffeeshop, or hold a knife to her neck in a darkened alley. No, her laptop was stolen via email. In fact, she mailed it to thief, in Africa. OMG, you're probably saying to yourself right now with your hands up by your face, how could this be? Discover the horrifying true story, inside... More »

2:26 PM on Thu Oct 30 2008
By Ben Popken
38,199 views, 211 comments

Most discussed LoganAdams: You have a story about someone in Africa who stole a laptop, so you pick a photo of some random more »

renting

Beware Of Apartment Scammers

A reader writes,

In the course of searching for a new place to live in Minneapolis, I found a great condo right in the area I was looking for, renting for $900/mo for a 1 bedroom which included electricity, gas, water, sewer, garbage, cable, and high speed internet! Sound too good to be true? You bet...it was a scam.

More »

9:01 PM on Tue Sep 23 2008
By Chris Walters
24,466 views, 58 comments

Most discussed illtron: I found this listing for a very "specious" apartment on Craigslist a few months ago... [www.flickr.com] more »

walmart

Wal-Mart Challenges Craigslist With Free Online Ads

In an attempt to tighten their stranglehold on American consumers, Wal-Mart has quietly launched a free Internet classified ad service, directly challenging Craigslist, the reigning Internet ad champion. The Wall Street Journal says, "The service, which the retailer described as a pilot test, carries 30 million items, including foreclosed homes, basset hounds, Madonna concert tickets and a 1981 Ford Firebird, as Wal-Mart tapped into Oodle Inc.'s menagerie of listings." More, inside... More »

9:10 AM on Tue Jun 10 2008
By Jay Slatkin
5,781 views, 33 comments

Latest by garbagehead: @Amanduh: that has to be one the scariest landmarks I have ever seen. more »

scams

A Craigslist Scammer Wants Me To Cash This Fake Check, What Should I Do?

Reader Sean got a package with a (presumably fake) check for $4,500. Someone from Craigslist wants him to cash the check and for his trouble, he gets to keep 10%! More »

10:18 AM on Wed Jun 4 2008
By Meg Marco
23,689 views, 104 comments

economy

Former Mortgage Broker Selling Possessions On eBay/Craigslist To Avoid Foreclosure

Marketplace Money took a look at some folks who are selling their possessions on eBay and Craigslist in order to pay their bills. The main interviewee was a former mortgage broker who used to make six figures but was now selling his collection of cool amps to pay off his $5,000 a month mortgage and $50,000 in credit card debt. More »

12:49 PM on Mon May 19 2008
By Meg Marco
6,071 views, 53 comments

Latest by Sasquatch: ...and now the italics tag is closed. more »

casual encounters

Craiglist Sex Ads Were ID Theft Trap

A Minneapolis area crime duo have been arrested for luring people on Craigslist to sexual encounters, then stealing their wallets. Amy Ruth Bergquist and Eric Thorsen are accused of then using the wallets' contents to steal the person's identity to forge checks and pay for their Adderal and Dexedrine addictions. Didn't momma ever tell you not to talk to strangers online and then try to have sex with them?

Eagan couple's sex ads on craigslist were a setup for ID theft [StarTribune] (Thanks to Gregg!)

11:15 AM on Fri Apr 25 2008
By Ben Popken
6,868 views, 33 comments

Latest by fullmetalgenesis: There's a joke in here somewhere about a girl who has an addiction to the drug which the band Dexy's more »

interviews

Craigslist CEO: Be Successful In Business By Pleasing Customers

Craiglist's CEO, Jim Buckmaster, gave a fantastic interview to Marketplace's Kai Ryssdal yesterday in which he explained that Craigslist runs its business by simply doing what its users want. Why doesn't Craigslist have ads? The users never asked for them. How do they decide what cities to introduce? They wait for the users to tell them. Is he crazy? More »

4:29 PM on Wed Apr 23 2008
By Meg Marco
4,735 views, 26 comments

Latest by coraspartan: I ♥ craigslist! It has seriously changed my life. I can go to CL and find pretty much anything I want--a more »

scams

Beware Of Buying Airline Tickets On Craigslist

If you buy airline tickets on Craigslist, you could find yourself paying for the tickets twice, thanks to this latest scam. Elliot blogs the story of a William Marleua, who who bought Southwest airline tickets from someone on Craigslist. Four months after taking the flight, a Southwest collections specialist called him and told him to pay up. Turns out the original tickets were bought using a stolen credit card, and then the real owner of the credit card disputed the charge. Here's what Southwest said about the situation, "Southwest has never been paid for the flight Mr. Marleau took. It is our business policy to collect payment from the person who flew....It's a difficult situation, but we cannot protect a customer who chooses to make a questionable purchase on Craigslist for a Southwest Airlines flight."

Scam alert: don't buy Southwest tickets on Craigslist [Elliot]

8:15 AM on Mon Apr 14 2008
By Ben Popken
3,983 views, 49 comments

Latest by JustAGuy2: @Grrrrrrrrr: Basically, yes. If I buy a car from you, and it turns out to be stolen, I lose the more »

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