The World Traveler
“Sam Young” purchased a highly customized, expensive item from a US based merchant in early 2018. There were few red flags, at first. The merchant began an email conversation with the Gmail account immediately after the order was received. The scammer replied, accepting the build timeline & confirming specific measurements. The first red flag was just 2 weeks after this initial conversation when “Sam” inquired about the timeline, seemingly clueless of the fact that it was spelled out in the email thread that he replied to. A clarification email was sent but nothing no response was made. A response was finally made but only after several more attempts at clarifying the delivery address as a business or a residence (just a test, really). The scammer replied, referring to the purchase as “the item”. He claimed he was in Beijing at a conference. He claimed that the shipping & billing address were one of two residences he owned while the other was in New Zealand. This was another red flag… how do you explain the card’s origin being Switzerland?! After being confronted with the Switzerland question, the scammer discontinued the conversation & the order was canceled by the merchant.
There are instances where a globe trotting customer will be in Beijing for business & order something from you, for delivery to their summer home with a billing address at their primary residence. Usually, though… the “origin” of the card (the bank’s location of where the card was issued) matches at least one of the two addresses. If it doesn’t, this is a red flag & should be explained by the customer in a way that satisfies the merchant. Most truly international customers will APPRECIATE this level of questioning & be very clear regarding their answers. Like you, they don’t want a false positive & have the transaction flagged by their bank, shutting down their card.
Transaction Details
Name: Sam Young
Type: Visa, 7556
Billing: 64 Holly Hill Road, Erith, DA8 1QD, GB
Shipping: Same
Origin: Switzerland
CVC Check: Passed
Street Check: Unavailable
Zip Check: Unavailable
Phone: 07380500243
Email: samyoung78609@gmail.com