Police have issued a warning to Trade Me users, after three Oamaru people selling vehicles on the site were contacted by offshore scammers.
Community Constable Bruce Dow said in the latest incident, an Oamaru woman selling her car online was sent a text message asking if the vehicle was still for sale - starting communication outside of the site, against the website's guidelines.
To confirm identity, the scammer, posing as a genuine buyer, emailed the woman copies of two driver's licences, of an Oamaru mother and son.
The scammer claimed to be a former Oamaru resident now living in Dubai.
The woman - selling her Mazda 6 SW for $5500 - then sent a copy of her driver's licence to them, to confirm her identity.
Once the sale was agreed and the woman had emailed her PayPal details, the scammer sent a bogus email to say a deposit had been made into her account, Snr Const Dow said.
The scammer then asked the woman to pay $1750 to cover shipping costs.
As contact went on, the woman became more suspicious and stopped the deal from going any further.
If the deal had gone ahead, Snr Const Dow said the Oamaru woman would have been scammed out of her car and $1750 for shipping.
Investigating the scam, Snr Const Dow spoke to the Oamaru woman whose licence was used by the scammers.
She is still in Oamaru and her 20-year-old son is now living in Dunedin.
She told Snr Const Dow she had sent the copies of her and her son's licences to a potential buyer, in similar circumstances in August.
They were contacted by Trade Me, warned of the company's concerns about a member who had viewed the listing. The sale did not go ahead.
She told Snr Const Dow she was ''shocked'' to see her details being used in a scam.
He suspected it was to the same scammer, who might not even live in Dubai.
''That was where the car was to go to, but who would know?''
Snr Const Dow urged anyone using online trading websites not to give anyone copies of their identity.
''It's not a case of stolen identity - they've given their identity away,'' he said.
The copies of their licences could now be being used for ''absolutely'' anything.
''I'm really here to stop this happening again, particularly in Waitaki,'' he said.
Safety tips
• If you had a mobile phone number on your listing, the scammer may send you a text message from an overseas phone number asking you to email them. Do not make contact.
• If you have made contact, disregard their correspondence and add their email address to your blocked senders list.
• Never send money overseas or pay by Western Union, Money Gram, PayPal or any other instant payment method.
• If you have paid someone overseas contact Trade Me immediately at abuse@trademe.co.nz
