Classifieds are a great way to find great deals but it pays to be careful.

Fortunately, avoiding scams is easy:

See it before you buy it. One of the great things about classifieds is that they are best done locally. The easiest way to ensure that you're getting what you want is to go see it in person. Also, choose a meeting place where you feel comfortable -- either go with a friend or meet at a public place. Pay Cash. Exchanging cash in person is the safest way to ensure a legitimate transaction. Be suspicious of sellers who request payment by wire transfers or money orders or if they ask money to be sent overseas.

Other Tips for using classifieds:

Ask questions. CoolerAds can find you great listings but the rest is up to you. Before going to see something, ask the seller lots of questions or request more photos. Make sure you know all the necessary details about an item (and see it) before you buy it. Look for warning signs of fraud. If a sellers are unclear about their location or the origin of an object, be suspicious. Requests for your bank account, social security number, or other personal information is almost always inappropriate, and is a warning sign of fraud. Let CoolerAds know. If you do find a spam listing or have a fraudulent encounter, please let us know about the problem by contacting our support staff here so we can protect other users.

Please report questionable listings to us Something seem too good to be true? A free iPod? Sometimes people place "spam" or fake listings to help drive inquiries to their site. Please help the community stay clean by reporting "spam" posts. When you see a questionable listing, simply click on the "report as spam" link and we'll take care of removing it.

Known Scams

We have had a lot of scams where people are trying to sell dogs, mainly BULLDOGS, and a large percentage of the time will use a Yahoo email account. Most of these scams will look like the following:

ENGLISH BULLDOG READY TO GO NOW English Bulldog very friendly and outgoing; great pedigree her sire has AKC Champions in his pedigree.they has beautiful silky hair, a sweet personality. she is ready to go to a new home now. We can ship to you so if you are intrested contact me via my personal email address soul2soul2u@yahoo.com or Phone 7182348097

BULLDOG FOR YOUR HOME We raise our puppies with extra loving care in our home with our children--they are like part of the family. Our puppies are AKC registered, come with current vaccinations & worming, a certificate of health, a 1 year health guarantee, and very well loved and socialized with other dogs, cats, and children. Contact me for more information via my email

Yorkshire for sale Attention!! They are cute, playful, and will simply steal your heart. All these puppies need is a warm loving home and they are friends for life. They are fully registered and they come with all their papers and they are 100% healthy. Contact me for more information via my email

The North Carolina Attorney General's Telemarketing Fraud Prevention Unit has learned that classified ads are being placed throughout the United States for "advance fee loans" by a company using many alias'. Some of the ads read as follows:

"Having Money Troubles? Don't know where to go? Went to the bank and they told you no? We can help you out. Call (some number) or email (some email address)."

"GET THE FIANACIAL ASSISTANCE YOU NEED TO FINANCE YOUR BUSINESS, EDUCATION AND UPSET YOUR EXISTING DEBT AT A SUBSIDIZE INTEREST RATE OF 2%. APPLY NOW VIA (some email address)."

The companies'' main pitch to consumers, that it will provide loans once those consumers pay it a fee in advance, appears to be false. Before working with any business, we advise you contact the Better Business Bureau (www.bbb.org) to verify the business is legitimate and in good standing.

Please be aware of inquires where the person inquiring tries to control the transaction:

Message: Hello, Complement of the season to you overthere? Am interested in purchased your item without no delay the transaction by answer my question below: [1.] Do you accept a ( Cashier Check / Money Order ) as a mode of payment? [ 2.What is the final asking prize you can go at last? [3.] What is the condition of the items? [4] Will you let our shipping company to come to you house for the pick up of the item cos we don't want you to worry yourself about the shipping of the item . [5] You are to send your NAME,ADDRESS,TEL # to mail out the payment today. [ 6. ] Will you be able to send the excess fund back to the shipping company via western union money transfer same day you recieve and cash the check for the arrangement of the home pick up from your house down to my client.shippment. i'll like this transaction to be kept in utmost trust Thanks