1. First thing you want to do, is
read The Blackmarket Rules here:
2. Second thing, as a
buyer, using
PayPal, in my honest opinion, is one of the safest methods. However, make sure you use either your bank account linked to the paypal or a credit/debit card linked to your paypal. In my opinion,
DO NOT USE YOUR PAYPAL BALANCE. The reason why PayPal is best as a
buyer is because it has a chargeback option and you can dispute transactions. This also makes it one of the unsafest methods as a
seller. Keep in mind, when you send as a gift to friends and family, you forfeit your ability to use the chargeback option, however you can still dispute the transaction. Moreover, this is also why I stated that you should use credit/debit card or bank account, as if PayPal does not side in your favor in the dispute, you can contact you bank/debit/credit card provider to cancel the transaction. Do not do this regularly, or you can get in a lot of shit with your providers and PayPal. Once again, this is also why using PayPal as your
selling method is quite dangerous.
3. Most obviously
Request A Trade and make sure it is accepted. This is your best way to help weed out scammers and scare scammers off. 90% of the scams I see, could have been avoided if the person requested a trade. Likewise, you always help the elitepvpers community by being able to give positive reviews to good sellers and negative reviews to scammers.
4.
Confirm the person is not using a stolen PayPal. Easiest way to do this, is to ask them to send an email via the PayPal that is connected to there PayPal. This is essential for both buyers and sellers.
5.
Check there feedback thoroughly. Do not just go off whether or not they have greens or reds. Actually go to their blackmarket profile and see what types of trades they have been doing. One of the most popular scams at the moment, is for scammers to get a lot of positive feedback via the elite*gold trading system and then scam someone on an actual trade worth a lot of money. Be very aware of this method. It is common and it is effective.
6. Ask for a
well-known middleman or use someone who knows both parties. This is not mandatory, but is definitely helpful.
7.
Ask to see the goods. A lot of scams will claim to have something for sale at a very low price eg. CPs at 1.3 USD per 215 CPs or +12's for under 150USD. Easiest way to weed these guys out, is to ask to see the product in-game. Don't settle for screenshots.
8.
Ask around and DO NOT RUSH INTO THE TRADE. Once again, using this tip will probably allow you to avoid most scammers. Most long time members of TBM community can spot a scammer pretty quickly. I will be putting together a discussion group on Skype where newbies can do a background check on someone they are about to trade with and can get nearly instant feedback. This will be up around the 20th of December. I'll post details when I have them.
