Possible Scam?

I apologize if this is a repeat - I tried searching for prior posts, but kept getting busy errors.

Question: Does Astromart ever get hacked by scammers who then create fake profiles?

I'm interested in a classified ad for EP's offered at a low (but not insanely low) price. The seller has five 5-star ratings from reputable members.

When I contacted the seller about purchasing, the response struck me as being overly reassuring that the seller could be trusted.

Now a little more skeptical, I went back to the seller's profile, and found all the received ratings were with respect to classifieds that could not be found. Also, all the reviews seemed almost tailor written to arrest any suspicion. It also seemed strange that somebody reviewed as an ideal Amarter had not given any reviews back to customers.

All this leaves me wondering if perhaps a scammer hacked into the system and faked a profile? Or, am I just being overly cautious?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated, Thank you!

If in doubt, ask Herb...

Jon

Joel Johnson said:

the response struck me as being overly reassuring that the seller could be trusted.

Does that mean you _were_ reassured or you _weren't_? What your problem was is not at all clear.

Anyway, no, Astromart has not been hacked.

So far everything sounds normal.

Although I'm not an expert, I have learned some valuable lessons here.

Get the seller's phone number, and discuss the items in question.

You can google the seller's name, email address, home address, user name, etc.

Above all else, use a credit card through paypal, so you can reverse the charges if anything goes wrong. Never, ever, ever send a personal check.