The AuthentiLens Marketplace Scam Checker analyzes pasted marketplace listings and buyer or seller messages for fraud patterns, fake payment signals, and AI-generated scam language. Paste a listing description, a message from a buyer or seller, or any marketplace communication you want to verify before you proceed with a transaction.
Marketplace fraud affects millions of buyers and sellers on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, eBay, OfferUp, and similar platforms every year. Common scams include fake listings for items that do not exist, sellers who collect payment and disappear, buyers who send fake payment confirmations or overpayment checks, and requests to move the transaction off-platform to avoid the platform's buyer and seller protections.
Overpayment scams target sellers: a buyer sends a check for more than the agreed price and asks the seller to wire back the difference before the check clears. The check is fraudulent and bounces after the seller has already sent money. Fake escrow scams involve a third-party escrow service the fraudulent buyer insists on using, which is actually controlled by the scammer. Fake shipping scams involve a buyer who sends a prepaid shipping label and requests the seller ship the item before any payment is confirmed.
The checker looks for signals common to marketplace fraud. These include requests to move payment or communication off-platform, overpayment with a request to refund the difference, prices significantly below market value for desirable items, urgency to close the deal quickly before you can think it through, requests for unusual payment methods including gift cards or wire transfer, and language patterns from known marketplace scam scripts.
Paste the full listing text or the full message from the buyer or seller. Include as much context as possible for the most accurate analysis. For checking a profile photo that looks suspicious, use the AI Image Detector to verify whether the photo is AI-generated or stolen from another source.
Every result includes a risk verdict, confidence level, and explanation of the specific signals found. If a transaction is flagged high risk, do not ship any item, send any payment, or wire any money until you have verified the other party independently through the platform's official channels.