Is that Marketplace buyer — or their payment — a scam?
If the money hasn't actually landed in your account, or you're being asked to pay something to receive a payment, you're the target — not the seller.
Facebook Marketplace payment scams hit sellers as often as buyers. The classic version: a buyer agrees to your price instantly, insists on paying by Zelle or PayPal before pickup, and soon you get an official-looking email saying the payment is 'pending' until you upgrade to a business account — a fee the buyer asks you to cover, promising reimbursement. The email is fake; Zelle has no business-upgrade fee, and no real payment is waiting.
Variants include the overpayment scam (a 'mistaken' larger payment you're asked to partially refund before the original transfer bounces), the Google Voice scam (the buyer 'verifies you're real' by asking for a code texted to your number — which actually hijacks your number for a Google Voice account used in further fraud), and fake shipping or escrow links sent to buyers for items that don't exist.
How does the scam work?
- 01
The buyer is too easy
No haggling, no questions about the item, urgency to close today, and a refusal to pay cash at pickup. They push a specific payment method because the scam is built around it.
- 02
A spoofed email does the talking
The 'payment pending' or 'overpayment' notice comes from an address like [email protected] — not zellepay.com. It exists to make you send real money to release fake money.
- 03
You pay to receive, or refund money that never arrived
Upgrade fees, refunds of overpayments, verification codes — every variant ends with you sending something of value against a payment that was never real.
What are the red flags to check?
A fee to receive money
There is no Zelle business-upgrade fee, no PayPal release fee, no 'expand your account limit' charge. Anyone asking you to send money to unlock incoming money is running the con.
The confirmation email's domain is wrong
Real Zelle mail comes from zellepay.com addresses; PayPal from paypal.com. Check the actual sender domain and — more reliably — log into your own bank or PayPal account directly. If the money isn't there, it doesn't exist.
Overpayment plus a refund request
A buyer who 'accidentally' sends too much and wants the difference back is using a payment that will reverse. Your refund, sent from real funds, will not.
A request for a verification code
A buyer asking you to read back a Google code texted to you is stealing your number for a Google Voice account. Never share any code sent to your phone.
Off-platform links for payment or shipping
Fake escrow pages, fake shipping-fee invoices, fake 'Marketplace purchase protection' sites — if a link arrived in chat and asks for card details, treat it as hostile until verified.
Unsure even after checking these? That’s exactly what the $2 Instant URL Check is for — paste the link and get a researched verdict with evidence, instead of guessing.
What should you do right now?
- Trust only your own account, not emails. Log into your bank, Zelle, or PayPal directly — if the balance hasn't changed, no payment exists.
- For local sales, prefer cash or verify person-to-person payment has cleared in your app before handing over the item. Meet in a public place.
- Never send 'fees,' refunds of overpayments, or verification codes. End contact with any buyer who asks.
- Report the profile to Facebook, and report the scam at reportfraud.ftc.gov. If you sent money, contact your bank immediately.
What the check does: a one-time, researched risk report on the URL you paste. What it doesn’t do: continuous monitoring, takedowns, fund recovery, or legal advice — and we’ll never pretend otherwise.