PEOPLE in York are being warned about a scam doing the rounds.

North Yorkshire Police say that over the last couple of weeks they’ve been getting reports of rogue buyers on Facebook.

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PCSO Andy Hugill said: “Facebook Marketplace is a great place to buy and sell goods and services, however, unfortunately the platform is also seen as a hunting ground for scammers. Scammers are there selling non-existent, fake and dangerous goods, but they are also there to try and prey on those selling products.

“If you are selling on Facebook Marketplace, look out for these red flags:

“Refusing to meet up in person

“Moving conversations outside of Facebook Messenger

“Asking for items to be shipped before payment is received

“ Buyers providing a prepaid shipping label

“ Buyers overpaying then asking for a refund of the difference

“ No profile picture

“ Requests for your phone number or other personal information.

”Payment scammers pose as buyers who ask to purchase an item and claim to have sent a payment. They may send a counterfeit cheque, use a fraudulent payment method, or claim to have overpaid and request a refund for the excess amount.

“Payment scammers might also exploit sellers by using payment methods that can be easily cancelled after an item has been posted or delivered.

“Even in person the scammer will try to exploit a payment via a banking app buy showing the transaction on their own mobile device. Always wait for the payment to have cleared before allowing the buyer to leave with the item.

“Here’s a quick summary of ways to stay safe when selling on Facebook Marketplace:

“Deal with local buyers whenever possible.

“ Avoid sharing personal information unless absolutely necessary.

“ Use secure payment methods like PayPal or cash-on-delivery.

“ Check comments under listings for warnings from other users.

“ Report suspicious buyers to Facebook

“If you think you may have been a victim of this scam, please contact your bank immediately and report this to us on 101 or via our website.”