#Online scam

[scam-alerts]

As a Sonic fan I feel the need to spread news about the scams targeting Sonic fans that are going around lately.

One of them, which I don’t have any evidence for at this time but have been warned about through word-of-mouth, is that sometimes scammers will pretend they have a popular or hard-to-find Sonic character plush (Build-a-Bear Shadow, basically any Tails plush, SOAP shoe Sonic, etc.) and pretend to be selling it. A friend of mine said they tried to buy a Tails plush from someone online, sent the “seller” money, and not only did they not get Tails, but the “seller” put the listing back up like nothing happened. And that person showed me evidence of similar scams but they didn’t send it to me, just had me look at the screen.

Another one, which I do have screenshots of, is bot blogs centered around the Sonic movies, using either uncredited fan art or AI-generated images, and posting sketchy-looking links to “watch the movies for free”.

Hi there! Thank you for sending in your ask!

Sellers listing fake products and not shipping the product is something that, unfortunately, happens all the time on places like Facebook marketplace and even ebay.

That is why I would request proof of ownership via a picture of the object you are looking to buy, the plushies for example, and something like your name on a piece of paper written on it beside it, or a fork, spoon, banana, ect in frame or beside it too.

Nothing that would hurt or ruin it, just to add validity that they do ineed own it.

Before buying a product from someone, especially off of tumblr, you can reverse image search the image to see if it's been posted online previously.

Here's a guide on how to do that:

As for links offering free ways/methods to watch movies...

Unfortunately that's always been one of the biggest and most notorious scams circulating around online.

Clicking these links will harm your phone or computer, as in most cases they involve malicious websites that ask you to sign up, download, and/or install some sort of software to watch the movie.

Or they may even lead to a fake tumblr login page that will turn your account into a bot after it steals your login information, or lead to a fake virus alert to install an app that will try to steal your information and passwords.

Its not pretty all around, and any and all posts you encounter like that should be reported as spam asap.

Thank you for your ask! I hope this helps!

Note: The tags that are used are used with appropriate relevance given context to spread awareness and to help prevent scams.

[ultraviolet-ink]

An Important Warning:

On November 1, 2024, I received the below comment on one of my fics. I had replied to it, believing it to be in good faith. This person, Leaona Colin, as seen by the Ao3 comment chain and discord profile below, directly messaged me under the guise of discussing my fic, and the conversation was normal for the most part

The conversation started to change into an attempt to strong arm me into commissioning them directly (something that unfortunately does happen through a desperate measure) for an animation project. I had believed, in my naivety, that this was just two artists workshopping ideas until they had mentioned this being a "paid collaboration". Please note that I at NO POINT made any indication of wanting to make a commission or anything of the like. For the full context, I will link our discord conversation in its entirety

At this point, the conversation started to change to the commission, and in my own personal awkwardness/fear of being perceived as rude, I played along because I honestly did not know what to do next. The way that this person has approached me feels like a MUCH bigger red flag than the insane price they came up with. It would be one thing to come into my direct messages and say "hey, I'm an animator and I'm wondering if you'd be interested in commissioning me to draw [scene] as a paid commission", however what I went through was a bait and switch. I had gone into this thinking I would be entering a casual conversation about my fic, about the story, and about my writing process, but that pretense was very quickly dropped after the above polite small talk

Mind you, THIS is the animation that they seem to be requesting between 1800-2200 USD for:

I had debated whether or not I should include the video, but I feel that it is important to bring up due to the insane price and the information that @baratrongirl helped provide me with due to her husband's own experience in this industry (thank you SO much Richard!!)

I have reported the comment to Ao3 and I have reported the profile to Discord itself. This is a warning to fic authors and other fan creators to please, please, PLEASE, be on the lookout and to stay safe. I have also learned of a recent scam in Ao3/FFN comment sections where a wave of commission scammers use stolen or ai art to promote themselves and either make of with the money or send some sort of ai art. There hasn't been any mention of anything for animation, but it is very much possible that the scam is evolving, more info about this can be linked below r/FanFiction: PMs on Fanfiction.net offering me commissioned art r/AO3: Great, the art scammers are now being registered users r/AO3: These comments are starting to be an annoying trend

[slenbee]

nadahusien

Scam account - nadahusien

Type of scam: image theft + fake gogetfunding campaign

How/why this account is a scam:

As pointed out by @kyra45 in her post about this account, the images the gogetfunding are using have been taken from a gofundme campaign that was originally posted on March 31st, 2024.

Left: the gogetfunding campaign / Right: the gofundme campaign

Also, I need to point out something very very obvious which to me points out that this is a scam. (I know I shouldn't call non-paypal accounts a scam but... stay with me, this takes the cake.)

In the original (real) gofundme campaign, it says this:

Hi, I’m Nada and I am organizing this fundraiser on behalf of my friend Walaa, and her family. This is Walaa’s story: I'm Walaa Jameel from Gaza, a pharmacist and a mother of five children. The youngest, Nour, is now two years and ten months old. I've been living in a tent in Rafah since the start of the genocide war on my city.

And in the gogetfunding campaign (the scam).. it says this:

Hello! Y'all it's Nada from Gaza, my little daughter Nour has hydrocephalus and seizures, we are now in a tent in very bad conditions, and every thing destroyed our house, hospitals and physiotherapy centers.😔

Do... do you see the glaring red flag here?

In the original gofundme campaign Nada (spelt Nada Husien btw) says she is the friend of Walaa, who is the daughter is Nour.

In the gogetfunding campaign Nada (spelt Nada Hussien) says she is the mother of Nour.

Not only that but there is nothing stated in the gofundme campaign that they needed to make a gogetfunding campaign to get additional funds. Something that most people would do if that were the case.

They also claim to be:

Vetted by: @gazavetters @nabulsi @el-shab-hussein @sayruq

But none of these accounts have shared this gogetfunding campaign that I could find via a reblog of the suspected scammer's pinned post.

Also that tumblr account joined on December 23rd, so it isn't that old, and they reblogged nonsensical stuff and then shared their post.

In addition (as I'm typing this post) helpful scam anon just dropped this bombshell of evidence (thank you scam anon!):

in August of last year another documented tumblr scammer, al-rasher, also pretended to be Palestinian and linked to this same exact gogetfunding account that nadahusien is now using, which you can see in this archived reblog of their fundraising post: https://archive.is/Ed8Av you can see how this gogetfunding account appeared on August 25th here: https://archive.is/LeG4u Notice the title, “Donate to Help Rasher’s family evacuate from Gaza, Organized by Margaret” and that the account was created by Margaret Opiyo, and the campaign story describes a mother named al-Rasher and her family. Here you can see how this same exact fundraiser appears today, edited to fit nadahusien's use: https://archive.is/mNX0V The title has been changed to “Donate to Help my little daughter Nour to facilitate the treatment,” and instead of Margaret Opiyo it has been organized by Nada Hussein, and the campaign story has been completely changed to describe Nour. i haven’t yet mentioned the url of this gogetfunding account. it reads “escape-gaza-mallycahs-family-needs-your-support” here is yet another documented tumblr scammer, mallycahblog, calling themself Mallycah and pretending to be Palestinian and linking to this same exact gogetfunding account that al-rasher and nadahusien use: https://archive.is/dj1pG

Some more evidence from this helpful anon can be found here.

Wow... Just.... wow.

Shame on this scammer trying to use an innocent child for their gain.

Again, as a note: I cannot vet or verify accounts running gofundmes/gogetfundings as being legitimate, as I'm not an organization or someone who can- in good faith- do that. I just can't, so please don't ask me about doing that.

But it's people like helpful scam anon here that help gather evidence like this so we scam busters can call these people out and let others know about it if there's enough evidence for it to be considered an actual scam.

----------

Please report the scammers fundraiser if/when you have the time, and remember to not harass or mass report them on tumblr. That's not what this post is about. This post is to bring people awareness about this being non legitimate.

Always do your research folks!

Stay safe!

Here's a post on some tips and tricks on spotting scam blogs.

Helpful guides on how to spot scams. (by @kyra45)

Current list of documented scammers: Part 3

[thesillytransgirlnova]

Hey, just wanted to make you all aware that there's an account (@alivinwong) going around asking trans people if they want HRT treatment and then directing them to a website where they can make an appointment by entering a ton of personal information.

The location that they claim their institution is located on their website leads to a completely different medical institution.

The reblogged posts on this person's blog that are supposedly from accounts that have received treatment from him, come from accounts that only have that one post and look suspicious and like they were made hastily and for this purpose only.

The person's blog is also just incredibly suspicious and unprofessional. His English is also terrible, which is pretty typical of scammers, and also just should not be the case if he graduated medical school here in the US

The text on the website itself looked weird so I ran it through a few AI checkers and they all came up positive.

The domain of the website is just hrthormonetherapy, instead of the name of a medical institution. Also HRT stand for Hormone Replacement Therapy, why include all of those redundant words in the url? Perhaps it's because they didn't know what HRT actually stood for.

The image he's using as his profile pic comes from this random medical site:

Also what kind of medical professional asks people if they want HRT on Tumblr

All of this, and a few other things, makes me think that this is just a scam to get trans people's personal information. Either for typical scamming purposes or for hate crime purposes, the information asked for on the website includes your address. Don't trust shit like this.

Stay safe yall.

[miaqc1]

Scammers Warning. ‼️

Since there are a lot of them on Tumblr, here's a post about the scams I know.

Donation for "insulin or medicine." Someone you don't know will subscribe to you and send you an Ask or a DM. They will say they need money for insulin or medicine and leave you a Donation Link. They are scammers and you won't see your cash again if you give it to them.

Fake "Help for Palestine" GoFundMe or PayPal Donation. Same concept as #1. A scammer, sometimes they stole real identities of Palestinian people in need, will leave you a Ask or a DM asking for money to escape Gaza. While there are honest families on Tumblr that need help, many times it's a Scam Trap.

The "fake/tracer artists." Those are artists who will contact you for Commissions. If you buy one, you either will get a Traced Art or nothing at all while the scammer run off with your money. They will always ask you to pay via PayPal Friend & Family so you cannot chargeback. @salibadati is one of them. I lose 100 USD to her for "emergency medical help" in exchange of nothing + more money for other Commissions! Report and block her.

The "Fake E-Check" or "Art Muse" Scam. A so-called "artist" will contract you to do a painting or a wall art with one of your photos/drawings, etc and promise you money in return. They will put you in contact with their "client" on Discord. The client will then send you two e-checks (fake!) via email, ask you to put them in your bank account, then send them back 4/5 of the money via PayPal Friend & Family. You will never see your money again and, when the fake e-checks are refused by your bank, you can be penalized (and getting your account in the red!). I have lost 1.7K CAD (approx 1.2K USD!) to this scam this very week! Don't fall in like I did! The culprits are @rogersgrey7 at Tumblr and Pauldan008 on Discord. Rogers also use @Randomfactalready77 & @seekforbid. Report and block them.

UPDATE 2024-08-06

@rogersgrey7 & @Randomfactalready77 accounts are gone! YAY!

@seekforbid is still up. May be another scammer who do the same trick as Roger. @salibadati is still up but she seem to be inactive. (Except for donation scams?) Her other blog is @stais02.

Update 2024-12-25

@salibadati is still up & active. She asks for commissions & donations for "dogs in need." She even unblocked me and asked me for money via PM! The nerve. Her other blog is @stais02.

[turqrambles]

Hi there, I’m so sorry for intruding, but I’m in desperate need of help for my beloved Odin, a four-year-old golden retriever who has a history of acid reflux and GI issues. Odin has been in the ICU for six days now, and the vets suspect he may have an autoimmune disease or lymphoma, as they’ve ruled out other possibilities. I’ve made a post detailing everything, and it’s pinned on my blog. If you could take a moment to boost or share it, it would mean the world to me. I know this is a tough time to ask for help, especially with everything happening globally, and I understand the risks involved with the influx of bots lately. Still, I have no other options, and I’m doing everything I can to fight for Odin. Thank you so much for reading this and for considering my plea. I truly appreciate your time and kindness. Wishing you a happy new year in advance, and again, I’m sorry for any inconvenience. 🙏🥹

Hi, Gillian-Pie, owner of a tumblr account that's only been in use for about three days, conveniently reblogging a few popular posts before making this signal post!

Couldn't help but notice that Odin the Dog is

1. Owned by someone else on Facebook

and

2. Dead.

Seems like a dick move to try to make money off of someone else's pain via tumblr scams. Maybe it's me, but stealing photos of someone else's dead dog and writing some asinine post about how you still see his unwrapped presents under the Christmas tree 🥺🥺 seems like some truly heartless, monstrous behavior.

And WOW, HMM...look at that! You want me to use the Friends and Family option when I make a donation to Odin the Dog, an option that isn't protected by the Purchase Protection Policy on Paypal! So I couldn't even ask for a refund if I noticed too late that it was a scam!

Also! Your PayPal seems to be based in the Philippines! Nowhere near Odin's location! HMMM!

And what's this? The PayPal is named after a previous sick animal scam? HMMM!

I don't think I will be donating, but I'm definitely signal-boosting your account and your post because

IT IS A SCAM.

THIS IS A SCAM.

DON'T FALL FOR THIS.

[synthstruck]

Hello, this is a longshot saving life call, I am Imonje from Gaza. I am here to request for your support to help get my insulin, just an injection for today to save my life please I beg. I was diagnosed with Latent Autoimmune Diabetes and due to the current situation in Gaza I'm unable to get my insulin injection as a result I'm here begging for little financial support to help me purchase insulin for this week. My donation link is attached in the pinned post, I might have sent this ask to you earlier but kindly consider donating and sharing. This is the only option I have at the moment to save my life from going into a coma.

This account has been reported as a scam account, do NOT donate to this account! Linked is a post that lists other scam accounts, please be safe!

[youthchronical]

Hyderabad | A retired woman and a private employee conned of over ₹40 lakh in cybercrime cases

A 61-year-old retired woman from Hyderabad lost ₹30.96 lakh to a cybercrime. The image is used for representative purpose only. | Photo Credit: Getty Images Two women from Hyderabad were conned of over ₹40 lakh in separate cybercrime cases. Fake money laundering case In the first such case, a 61-year-old retired woman was conned of ₹30.96 lakh in an impersonation fraud. The woman received a call…

[moogfox]

Tiktok sick pet scam

Hey y'all i recently found out about this scam on tiktok and its making me so angry - this person is using photos of an injured cat claiming they need money for vet bills but.. the photos are on over 100 accts with slight variations to the name, the name/age of the cat changes randomly (she's 3, no now she's 5! she's lily.. no.. she's named mama now), the day of the injury changes (she was attacked july 1st... july 22nd... august 4... whatever is most recent) and they are using 3 or more different venmo's and then deleting them as they go. its stealing from good hearted ppl who want to help a sick cat. PLEASE tell people about this and don't let your family or friends be scammed.

[henrygarcia256]

Warning: Buyerspanel.com Fraud Activities

Buyerspanel .com, linked with Konnect AI Technologies, has been implicated in fraudulent activities. Reports across social media reveal that the company uses deceptive tactics to defraud businesses by offering services like verified buyers and suppliers at suspiciously low prices. This strategy has led to significant financial losses for many victims, ranging from $2,000 to $10,000.

An ongoing police investigation is targeting the company’s directors—Jitendra Kumar, Shivam Agrawal, and Siddharth Bhagat—as well as key team members Utkarsh Kesarwani, Prajjwal Mishra, and Ishant Shukla. These individuals are being scrutinized for their involvement in the fraudulent activities.

Businesses should be vigilant when dealing with Buyerspanel.com. It is essential to thoroughly vet any service provider and be cautious of offers that appear unusually advantageous. If you believe you have been a victim of Buyerspanel .com’s scams, report the incident to the relevant authorities and seek legal assistance. Ensuring the protection of your business from fraud is vital for maintaining its financial health and operational success.

[cemetery-dweller]

luckilyprincesblog/emmily kimesis rajaab/Marystella Majuma Rajaab is a documented scammer profiting off of the genocide. they are not diabetic and they are not palestinian. search the other names they go by on here: leila rajab, remmy cheptau, tasneem r'm, leila mohammed rajab, tasneem remmy rajaab, valentine rajaab, wafula valentine, salima abdallah, tasneem abdalah, Tasneem Majuma, Magandalina Auma, taheera abdallah, Dorine nanjala, dorine rajaab, Jastus Kimanzi, daisy akinyi, daisy rahaab, taheera mohammed, Mutsui Martin Mohamed, merrine sussy rahah, merrine atieno, merrine rahah, Sussy Wamela, Beatrice Akoth Oduor, Nakhumicha Ruth

https://www.tumblr.com/mangocheesecakes/751109520094281728/chiefarcadedreammer-giftedheartgiver

https://www.tumblr.com/mangocheesecakes/750229006118420480/here-is-a-convenient-post-you-can-show-to-convince

https://www.tumblr.com/kyra45/752672613017485312/to-prove-my-point-about-the-names-here-is-proof

here’s the source of one of the images they’re using as proof of their condition https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Sample-chart-for-recording-blood-sugar-values-the-chart-title-is-inappropriate-and_fig1_338131147

would you mind deleting their scam from your blog, or clearly labeling it as a scam so it doesn't spread to others? in the future, please remember to search the username/paypal account name/text used by the people asking for money in your inbox

please familiarize yourself with the posts of some current scammers while they are still under these usernames: atomicsmart, smwitais, agneskebwariii, vero0g, beatriceegiveer, luckilyprincesblog, rasher-9, palewolfkittyhaks, luckieangelali, chieffurygiver, weepingtyrantmaker, burningvoidbird, tacofriends

i really recommend looking at their pinned posts in order to better recognize scams, not just using this list as a blocklist, because once they are terminated they each will immediately remake their scams under a new username

Earlier I responded to one of these scam accounts pretending to be a victim of the g€nocid€. I said « if anyone can donate, please do ! » and that was a mistake on my part. I then deleted my response after seeing this message in my inbox.

They are not actually palestinian. These are scams.

I thought answering that way was the best course of action, but it was idiotic and stupid of me, because I blindly trusted them, and spread the word believing it would make me a good person. So take me as an example of what not to do, do your research, fund actual Palestinian victims, amplify their voice.

The blog I responded to was deleted, but there is a new one using the exact same copy/paste text the previous one was, and pretending to be a different person. No need to say, this is disgusting and fully immoral as they are profiting off empathy and a literal mass massacre to get money.

Report them, block, do anything to get this scam deleted off the platform, please.

Thank you for reading 💜

[scam-alerts]

IMPORTANT - Art Commission Scam

I have updated the art commission scam post with critical and terrifyingly new information that has come to my attention. (Thank you @elrealelchunk!)

Scammers are now threatening to send your private information to law enforcement if you do not send them money.

This is 100% a scare tactic. You do not have to comply.

Your information is safe. Remember, they are scammers.

Just remember the golden rule:

You should never have to give money to get money.

Please make sure to share the updated version of the art commission scam post, and if you know artists, or even follow artists, ask them if they are aware of this scam, and if they're not, please make them aware of it by sharing this post:

This is just... so horribly disgusting. The fact that this can really mess with someone mentally and make them lose out on hundreds of dollars. How much of a deplorable excuse for a human being can you be to try and scam someone like this.

PayPal would never say something like this to someone, and the fact they're stooping this low just infuriates me.

Art tags are added and are relevant because as many artists as possible need to know about this as this would affect their livelihood.

[slenbee]

gloriouswolfbeliever

Scammer alert: gloriouswolfbeliever

Recently banned: sublimenerddragon

Notable names: sublimedestinybird (see Part 2)

Last Known PayPal name: Luciamkira **WARNING**

Same Copy/Paste ask they've used for 6+ months:

Hello sorry for an ask. I am very sick, my asthma is at its maximum level, my nose freezes, I have no medicine or food. I am in bad shape financially, I am a black disabled, who uses multiple medications, I pay for my food and lodging Unfortunately I do not have all the resources to keep me safe, that is why I need your help, whatever you can contribute to me will be of great help.

How/Why this is a scam:

Here's a post from June 2024 of them running the same scam:

And here is another post of another user debunking it:

**WARNING** This name has been used by different scammers in the past. Most notably this one which has recently been found out to request ADDITIONAL money from PayPal users if you decide to donate (see screenshots near the bottom of the post):

Current list of documented scammers: Part 3

[entrailseer]

https://www.tumblr.com/entrailseer/769437994631544832/vetted-and-verified-gaza-fundraiser-donate-and

supportgazalady / Mercy Siomi is a documented scammer profiting off of the genocide. they are not diabetic and they are not palestinian. they have used countless other names to run this scam.

https://www.tumblr.com/kyra45/764499875474898944/samples-of-actual-palestine-scam-blog-posts-show

https://www.tumblr.com/kyra45/758030282271162368/image-id-screenshot-of-an-ask-sent-by-tumblr

https://www.tumblr.com/scam-alerts/767169525835825152/scammer-alert

they habitually edit their name, along with the name used for their paypal account. on november 13th they called themself Betty Mahmoud, and their paypal account was under the name Betty Nekesa, as archived here: https://archive.ph/3gcX5

then on november 16th they were Mecy Alfaat Siomi and their paypal account said Mercy Siomi: https://archive.ph/mZEAL

then on november 17th they were Florence Alfaat Yavalamu and their paypal said Florence Yavalamu: https://archive.ph/zZNcv

then on november 19th they were Mercy Alfaat and they were back to the Mercy Siomi paypal: https://archive.ph/Sz1w2

then on november 21st they were Mariam Tasneem Mahmoud and their paypal also said Mariam Tasneem Mahmoud: https://archive.ph/0338s

then on november 24th they were Tasneem Masoud and their paypal said Masudi Salim: https://archive.ph/zgZcV 

would you mind deleting their scam from your blog, or clearly labeling it as a scam so it doesn't spread to others? in the future, please remember you can use the tumblr search box to search the username/paypal account name/text used by people asking for money to check if they’ve been proven to be a scammer

oh my goodness. i honestly don't even know how to feel about this.

i'll delete their posts from my blog of course, but this is just so incredibly baffling to me. i can't believe that someone would be so desperate to scam people that they would go so far as to pretend to be a Palestinian, lie about being diabetic, and change their name several times so that they can continue their cycle of deception.

it's equally shocking to me because i had been only been reblogging verified fundraisers to ensure that i wouldn't be boosting a scammer's page, but it seems that i wasn't careful enough. and in all honesty, stuff like this is making me lose motivation to reblog any fundraisers at all out of the risk that they could be a scam.

thank you for letting me know about this. even if it doesn't seem like it, i deeply appreciate it. do let me know if this happens again in the future.

[miaqc1]

From this post, scammers to report and block!

@salibadati, @stais02. Same person, Tracer Artist.

@rogersgrey7, @randomfactalready77 & @seekforbid. Same Person, do the "Muse" fake e-check scam.

Also Pauldan008 on Discord. Might be the same person or a accomplice of Rogers.