We have had several account hijacks and attempted hijacks over the past few months, with the goal of committing fraud via the classifieds.
To combat this, we have added some safeguards into the forum software, although these are not guaranteed to 100% prevent scamming attempts.
Members can help by logging in to the forum on regular basis so your account remains active. Hijackers tend to target dormant accounts.
When an account is hijacked the first thing the scammer will try is to change the email address.
To help prevent this:
When conducting online transactions, avoid using uninsured payment methods such as PayPal Family & Friends, CashApp, Venmo, Zelle, Wise, or any other similar options. While these methods might help you avoid taxes or fees, they lack the insurance and protection that financial institutions provide. Such fees are meant to act as a safeguard.
RFF does not guarantee transactions. Buyers and sellers must protect themselves. We offer a platform for members to list items, but the choice of payment method is up to the parties involved.
For safer transactions, we recommend using standard PayPal. Be particularly cautious with transactions from Want to Buy (WTB) threads or with members from other countries.
Just because a seller claims they have great feedback on ebay or other forums, do your own research to confirm. Ask for references. Inquire of other known and trusted members.
It's best to conduct transactions through the messaging system of RFF. Otherwise, scammers may impersonate sellers via other methods outside RFF.
While do our best to offer a safe environment for members, members ultimately have full responsibility for all transactions in which they may enter.
To combat this, we have added some safeguards into the forum software, although these are not guaranteed to 100% prevent scamming attempts.
Members can help by logging in to the forum on regular basis so your account remains active. Hijackers tend to target dormant accounts.
When an account is hijacked the first thing the scammer will try is to change the email address.
To help prevent this:
- Please ensure your login password is strong. Use many characters and include a mix of uppercase letters, numbers, and special characters to make it difficult to guess.
- Enable two-step verification.
When conducting online transactions, avoid using uninsured payment methods such as PayPal Family & Friends, CashApp, Venmo, Zelle, Wise, or any other similar options. While these methods might help you avoid taxes or fees, they lack the insurance and protection that financial institutions provide. Such fees are meant to act as a safeguard.
RFF does not guarantee transactions. Buyers and sellers must protect themselves. We offer a platform for members to list items, but the choice of payment method is up to the parties involved.
For safer transactions, we recommend using standard PayPal. Be particularly cautious with transactions from Want to Buy (WTB) threads or with members from other countries.
Just because a seller claims they have great feedback on ebay or other forums, do your own research to confirm. Ask for references. Inquire of other known and trusted members.
It's best to conduct transactions through the messaging system of RFF. Otherwise, scammers may impersonate sellers via other methods outside RFF.
While do our best to offer a safe environment for members, members ultimately have full responsibility for all transactions in which they may enter.
Richard G
Veteran
Also take up RFF’s 2FA to login. I use Google Authenticator. As I don’t have a fixed IP address at home I’m having to confirm with Google confirmation code frequently, but it takes well under ten seconds. I mostly look at RFF on iPad and just touching the RFF code in Google Authenticator copies it to the clipboard and switching to browser it’s a quick paste.
I took this up when first offered here precisely to avoid damage to my reputation if someone attempted to hijack my account, and to protect the rest of the membership.
I took this up when first offered here precisely to avoid damage to my reputation if someone attempted to hijack my account, and to protect the rest of the membership.