I’m making this post in response to the recent D4 portaledge sale thread that popped up on the sale forum. I have seen at least 3 similar posts from different users (new accounts with no other history) that went something like this:

Hey guys, I have a basically brand new D4 portaledge for sale. Life got in the way and my dreams of wall climbing never panned out.

$650 OBO, PM me for pictures!

I probably should have made this thread 6 months ago when I initially found out about the scam but haven’t gotten around to it til now. The ledge I “bought” was D4-058 which seems to be the one that others have as well.

Earlier this year I was looking to buy a ledge and after making a post, lo and behold I get an email from someone with a D4 ledge offering to sell it to me for $600, $650 shipped. This would be a good deal but not a screaming one for an old fish or A5, and for a D4, pretty damn good. Unlikely low, but not impossible. The seller sent what seemed like decent timestamped pictures, could answer some questions (albeit not very technical), and was OK with me sending G&S (Initially he tried to get me to use Zelle but I said only PayPal G&S). I couldn’t see what the scam was so decided to chance it since PayPal has good buyer protection.

A few days later, and much to my surprise, I actually got a tracking number, but from a company I’d never heard of.

The expected delivery date came and went then I got an email from “customs.” Asking for $1000 via F&F to deliver my package. There it was, there’s the scam…

I asked for a rerun but of course got the waterworks and was told the money saw already spent. 2 weeks after initiating a case with PayPal, the money was back in my account. 

Red flags:

1. new account with no activity or history

2. Different PayPal email than contact email (not unheard of but likely the sign of a stolen account)

3. “Sob story” from seller, I got told he was selling due to a divorce and blah blah blah. While these things aren’t unheard of, I’m always a little more on guard when someone brings something like this up as it’s a common tactic employed by scammers in an attempt to prey on sympathy.

4. Low cost and low shipping cost. Usually when things seem true good to be true, they are. This was right on the cusp. The shipping was $50 which seemed low, when i actually bought a ledge, shipping was $140.

5. The shipping company was one I’d never heard of and while names and addresses were provided, things just didn’t quite add up. 

6. Customs will never email you requesting money via F&F from a gmail account. And ask you to send it to a different gmail account.

ways to avoid this:

1. Send money PayPal G&S. G&S provides buyer protection if a package is not delivered. I don’t always see G& but it’s a case by case basis, if it’s a lot of money or a buyer with a new account and not a lot of history, I will. And if they are hesitant offer to cover fees. Some people don’t like it but have a huge sales history and old account, this is very different from someone with no account activity not wanting to accept G&S as the legit person will usually have references and sales history.

1. Video call the seller!!! Timestamps can be faked but it’s a lot harder to fake a video. This is what I ended up doing before I bought my A5 ledge from a guy on FB, he had no problem doing this and showed me the ledge. Easy to verify he actually had it on hand and was real.

sorry didn’t make this post earlier as is seems some people have been scammed in between when I went along with the scam til now but hopefully this will help people going forward and stop whoever keeps trying to fraudulently sell ledge D4-058.

If any of you want more pictures of what the “seller” sent me to prove he had the ledge, I am happy to provide.