Red flags of "newbie" seed scammers on THP

The Hot Pepper

Founder
Admin
This is a guide to help detect "newbie" seed scammers.

This is NOT about ebay or anywhere else, this is about newbies asking for seeds on THP, post or DM, and how to detect a person that really deserves your kindness from those that are stockpiling seeds.

Chime in and I will move the best ones to this list. A few of mine are below (and I will edit them if anyone wants to word them better or challenge them).

  • Most of the time, they are not newbies, but they know how kind people are here. Often times they are stockpiling for trades or even sales.
  • They may pretend to just be growing one plant. Recently, a jalapeno and bell pepper was stated. What this does is trigger kindness to get them into "real" peppers stat. A ploy.
  • Another is, they often claim they are broke but something can be worked out. That something will never happen.
  • They often claim they are buying seeds or willing to trade, when they are still just looking for the kind members and freebies. This may be hard to sniff out but it often is in combo with any of the above.
  • If you receive a DM from a newbie asking for seeds it is likely a scam. Why DM? They will often say they were referred by a member, and they will offer to trade or send money, KNOWING some members will give for free out of kindness. PMs also hide their actions from others so they can spam multiple users and not be detected as in a post.
  • Look out for accounts that were just created.
  • Be wary of pity, even if subtle.
  • Please report anyone you feel is suspicious! We can check if they have other accounts, etc.
Yours?

(Added)
  • Only deal with people you know from the site. If they are a newbie, encourage them to get involved with the community before posting such a request.
 
Wow. Just, WOW.

Dude, I bet you're still here, lurking, and I want you to see this:

YOU SQUAT WHEN YOU PISS, bro. You freakin' snake. I can't stand a thief.


Anybody (especially the newbies) here who sent this P.O.S. seeds and got scammed, send me a PM. I'll try to hook you up with whatever seeds I've got kicking around. Might not be a lot, but I'll do what I can
 
Good to stick to that, in fact. I'm going to add that!
 
Don't sell to or buy from KingChili he ripped me off for a box of pods and then months later tried to scam off someone else. I called him on it, he pretended like he didn't owe me anything so I pulled up the paypal records of nothing being received and the multiple payment reminders I sent him. 
 
He then promised to send payment, week later made up an excuse how  his gf spent  all his money, he was in jail, ect ect ect. Needless to say. Never recieved payment from him. 
 
The Hot Pepper said:
 
 
 
 
  • If you receive a PM from a newbie asking for seeds it is likely a scam. Why PM? They will often say they were referred by a member, and they will offer to trade or send money, KNOWING some members will give for free out of kindness. PMs also hide their identity from others so they can spam multiple users and not be detected as in a post.
 
 
 
I've taken this and flipped it. Occasionally I'll pm a newbie that shows a lot of passion and that seems true to our scene and offer them a gift of seeds. Its my way of hooking up newbies and avoiding the scammers.
 
I gave up on the beggars a long time ago
 
MikeUSMC said:
Anybody (especially the newbies) here who sent this P.O.S. seeds and got scammed, send me a PM. I'll try to hook you up with whatever seeds I've got kicking around. Might not be a lot, but I'll do what I can
 
Oh yeah I got scammed real bad, I'm going to need the following peppers please:
Aji types
Chocolate habanero
Paper lantern
Bishops crown multi colored
Bishops crown red 
 
i only do seed train for trading. there are requirements you are an active member. you get to pick whatever you want from a wide selection. it's great!
 
otherwise i'll just say support our vendors! juanitospeppers, pepperlover, whitehotpeppers, pepperbymail, texascreek, joynershotpeppers, sicmanshotpepepers all are active here.
 
Gorizza said:
 
Oh yeah I got scammed real bad, I'm going to need the following peppers please:
Aji types
Chocolate habanero
Paper lantern
Bishops crown multi colored
Bishops crown red 
 
You gave that guy everything? Keep some for yourself too next time. I'm glad I didn't give more than what I was going to since his lack of a thank you or any form of thanks bothered me. I was really ready to hook a fellow newbie up. What Aji types are you looking for? 
 

Wait. Was this post sarcastic? Opps  :rolleyes:
 
For the list: Getting something free and once they receive it, they complain about it in an attempt to get another. 
Would that be a good scammer alert?
 
 
check out their post count and activity on THP if they seem to be trying to scam.  anyone legit who's an active participant around here will easily pass such an inspection.
 
I've sent seeds/sauces and never received the money or agreed upon trades like most around here, but we learn fast.  :)
 
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