I do art commissions, and this was my first request ever. The person told me what they wanted, then asked to switch to Discord (we started chatting on X). They sent the money right away but said they couldn’t give an account number because it wouldn’t load, and that invoices didn’t work for them. So they asked for my name or email. I gave them my email, and they said they sent the $40 I asked for. I checked, and it ended up in my spam folder with this (1).
I don’t know much about how PayPal works, so I’ve been asking my mom for help, and she says it looks suspicious.
Here’s why I think it might be a scam: Their Twitter account was almost empty—no posts or followers. They insisted on switching to Discord because they “preferred it.” When I friended them, I noticed their Discord account was less than a month old. They didn’t give me any info like a name, account number, or email so I could request the payment myself.
Do you think this is a scam, or am I overthinking it?
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Any time someone asks you to leave the platform you’re on to message you somewhere else, it’s a scam. This goes for buying, selling, getting a job, finding a date, etc. No one should ask you to leave the app you’re already using.
If you think about it, what kind of bank-backed payment system would rely on strangers sending money to each other to somehow verify a business account? The whole banking system would collapse if people just stole from each other.
The complicated instructions are there to confuse you and distract you from the bad grammar that no legit company would use.
There’s a pinned post here with info on a lot of common scams, you should check it out.
Another scam to watch out for is the one targeting artists.
@Flippa
Hi /u/filthyheartbadger, AutoModerator has been triggered to explain the Artist or NFT scam.
This is a type of advance fee scam. A scammer might use a stolen social media account to appear more credible. They’ll reach out to an artist, offering a big sum to buy one of their art pieces (like paintings or digital art). They may try one of three things: a fake payment email asking you to pay a fee to receive the money, a fake check asking you to send money somewhere else, or a fake NFT minting scam.
In this latest scam, the scammer might tell you to mint the art as an NFT on a fake site they control, and then they disappear with your money after you mint it.
If the scammer is pretending to be the client, use this trigger to warn others. If they pretend to be the artist, use the ‘muse’ trigger.
Now that you know it’s a scam, here’s something to protect yourself:
If you’re serious about doing commissions, setting up a PayPal business account is free. Invoice clients and have them pay that way – you’re the artist offering a service, and you can say no to anything you’re uncomfortable with. A real client won’t mind using this payment method. Don’t let a ‘too good to be true’ offer cloud your judgment.
@SophyGenesis
Real commercial client here, I love PayPal Invoices. You know what I don’t love? Trying to explain to the tax man why a bunch of random Zelle transactions are legitimate business expenses.
Their Twitter account was almost empty—no posts or followers.
