📝 Show notes
CyberAware Daily — 2026-10-29
- Case File Thursday: a real second-hand marketplace scam where the seller, not the buyer, loses out.
- How fake payment links trick sellers into entering bank details to 'receive' money.
- Who's most at risk: anyone selling high-value items like phones and consoles.
- Practical steps if you've already clicked: contact your bank immediately, change passwords, report the listing.
- Today's takeaway: never enter bank details to receive money. Always sell through the platform's own payment system.
More at https://cyberawareuk.co.uk
📄 Full transcript
Welcome back to CyberAware UK. It's Thursday, so it's case file day, where we walk through a real
scam case and pull out the lessons that matter for ordinary households. And today's case is a
good one because it starts with something most of us do every week, buying or selling something
second-hand online. That's right, a seller lists a phone on a popular marketplace, buyer messages,
agrees a price, and then says they'll send the money through a payment link. And the link looks
real, it's got the marketplace logo, the right colours, even a little padlock icon. So what's
the catch? The catch is the link goes to a copycat page. The seller puts in their bank details to
receive the money, and instead of getting paid, they've just handed over their account information.
So it's not the buyer who loses out, it's the seller. That's the twist a lot of people miss.
Exactly, and this is a pattern we've seen again and again. The scam works because it flips the
usual advice. We're all told to be careful when we pay, we're less careful when we think we're
getting paid. How quickly does it happen? Usually within minutes. The scammer says the
money is on hold and needs the seller to confirm their account. That urgency is the tell. Real
payment processors don't ask you to re-enter your bank details to receive money.
And who's most at risk here?
Honestly, anyone selling anything online, a phone, a bike, a sofa. But the reports show a lot of cases
involve people selling high-value items, like phones and games consoles, because the sums are big enough
to make the scam worthwhile. So what should a seller do if they get one of these messages?
Keep it simple. Sell through the platform's own payment system and never follow a link someone
sends you to receive money. If a buyer insists on a link, that's your cue to walk away.
And if someone has already clicked and entered their details?
Contact the bank straight away, the sooner the better. Also change the password on the account
and report the listing to the marketplace. Most banks have a fraud line that's open 24 hours.
Is there anything the rest of us should do today, even if we're not selling anything?
Yes, if you've got a family member who sells online, maybe a teenager selling a console or a parent clearing
out the loft, have a quick chat with them tonight. Tell them the one rule, you never need to enter bank
details to receive money. That's a good, simple message. And it's worth saying this isn't about
being gullible. These pages are designed to look convincing. Exactly. The scammers are good at what
they do. Our job is just to slow down and check before we type anything.
So today's takeaway.
Never enter your bank details to receive money from an online buyer. If someone sends you a payment link,
stop and complete the sale through the platform itself. That's it for today. Stay sharp and we'll see you tomorrow.