Scams on Leboncoin: How to Protect Yourself and Secure Your Transactions
Every month, millions of Internet users visit Leboncoin, France's most popular classified ads site, in search of bargains. But this mass traffic also attracts a lot of scammers, and scams on Leboncoin are commonplace. But you can avoid them by adopting a few simple practices that will change your life.
Find out how to protect yourself on Leboncoin in less than 3 minutes by watching our video :
Want to find out more? Read the full article below
The information in your ad
The text of your ad
Never leave sensitive information in your ad, on Leboncoin or elsewhere, such as your surname, first name, address, etc. No seller or buyer needs this information from the outset, and this information in circulation can be used by potential cyber criminals to create clone ads using your information. Stay clear and direct, the aim is to sell or buy, never to leave information in the public domain that could be misused and/or sensitive.
Location information
Never give your exact address! The name of the street is more than enough. In fact, Leboncoin shows this in its little blue box. Entering your exact address is not compulsory.
Photos of your ad
They should show the object of sale, and nothing else, as far as possible. Never put up photos showing yourself or those close to you, especially faces. If what you are selling or looking for needs to be worn (clothes, leather goods, accessories, etc.), cut out the head of the photo used on Leboncoin. Here too there is a risk that these harmless photos will be reused by scammers.
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Avoid leaving your telephone number
This will ensure that you do not receive automatic SMS messages sent by scam networks and that, in addition to spam messages, you do not initiate a discussion with a potentially dishonest person whose only aim is to dispossess you of your object and/or your money. For more information, please read our article on SMS scams. It couldn't be simpler: just tick the box at the bottom of your ad submission form!
For those responding to ads published on Leboncoin
There are some very simple tricks you can use to quickly tell the difference between a genuine ad and a fake one designed to rip you off. We refer you to this article explaining how to recognise a fake ad on Leboncoin or another classified ads site for private individuals.
Your discussions with potential buyers and sellers
The same safety tips apply to the discussion stage with a stranger on Leboncoin: only give out useful information, and make sure the person is trustworthy before you consider giving it out. To be sure of their reliability, look at their approach, their requests and their general demeanour:
Communication channels
If the seller demands to speak only by email, always claiming to be able to talk face-to-face, beware. The vast majority of scammers use this method.
Spelling and syntax
Scammers are often based abroad, and make numerous mistakes in their messages. Often, despite their disastrous spelling and syntax, these scammers try to adopt the most sustained language possible, creating a strange contrast.
From gentle to aggressive
At first, it's a gentle way of luring the future victim into his pocket, but if the latter asks questions, hesitates or takes too long to proceed to the payment stage, the swindler will become increasingly insistent, and will end up trying to put aggressive psychological pressure on his prey.
Scammers take a variety of approaches to classified ad sites, but in the end they are fairly similar.
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The transaction
Whether you're a buyer or a seller, scammers can prey on everyone and rob you of your euros more or less skilfully.
Buyers will be forced to use payment methods that are either unsuitable for transactions between private individuals or completely false. As for sellers, they will be fooled by fake interfaces asking for their information, codes, activation fees or taxes.
Whatever your position in transactions, we strongly advise you to read these various articles on payment scams and techniques for detecting and protecting yourself against them, written by our experts in the Avoiding scams section.
Choose a secure payment method that is suitable for both seller and buyer
A secure transaction between private individuals with Obvy guarantees that everyone can avoid 100% of the scams on classified ad sites. Every day, our various anti-scam measures make it possible to secure numerous transactions, for all types of goods and services, from €1 to €200,000.
Obvy is the only secure payment method designed for commerce between private individuals that includes all the necessary features (real-time negotiation, secure transactions with video or hand-delivered proof, identity verification, free cancellation of transactions if you change your mind, etc.).