Getting Bombarded with Scam Inquiries

Getting Bombarded with Scam Inquiries

This just started in the past few weeks.  I'm getting one or more scam inquiries every day.  They're from new users, and often in another language.  Here's an example:

 

"Hey. I will help you make money using the site. all the details on my telegram channel @rent_haus This request can be rejected. All questions can be asked in telegrams, in this chat we do not answer."

 

I'm sure my response rate is doing amazing as I just type "no" to stop the 24 hour countdown clock, then report the user.  This is getting really annoying though.  Airbnb appears to be removing the scam accounts as the conversation tends to disappear from my inbox after a couple days of me reporting it.

 

Is anyone else seeing this?

51 Replies 51
Vlad32
Level 2
Spring, TX

I did got couple of them, but the weir and scary thing is the ones you replayed to them or accept the conversation, they will show your exactly the same listing ina different city or country. Will your pictures and everything.

 

like this one : Привет! можем поговорить в тлеграм. @Dela_gud  

 

@Vlad32  You don't reply to these at all as far as calling them on the whatsapp number they send. What you do when you get these is:

 

Click on the "report" button by the message.

Message back the guest saying "No" or simply " !%&* "- do not engage in any conversation with them.

Do not click on pre-approve or decline.

Now forget about it.

 

Me too, today twice. One in Russian, with all kind of business proposals. I gave a vague replay, not to decrease my response rate. A pity! It worked nicely last year, and now besides of Covid-19, these scams....

Cathy549
Level 2
Saint-Raphaël, France

Bonjour même problème et même message en russe pour moi,  demandant de communiquer hors Airbnb. J'ai signalé le profil "vierge".

I just got one too in Russian.Pam with no profile and just joined airbnb.

 

Helen2284
Level 1
Hong Kong

Yeh I have recently been in contact with some French guy Terence who was saying he had an Airbnb gift card due to cancelled trip.

but he’s supposed to be flying into Hong Kong and no one is allowed in unless they have residency or a work visa. And then you must quarantine in a hotel for two weeks before you can go home. It’s very strict here. 
this guy kept changing parameters, dates and then rebooked under another name for 4x the stay.... and hassling me. His french phone number shows a business account with the russian company wikiway travel as his status. My russian friend said it’s a BS travel company website.

incant understand what the deal is. Anyway I have reported his second name ‘Bryan from Rome’ . He basically wants me to repay 65% of the money I will earn in exchange for him not staying. It’s v v weird and a total waste of my time. And he became so rude 

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

" He basically wants me to repay 65% of the money I will earn in exchange for him not staying."

 

This sounds like a well-known scam that has been reported here before by many hosts. There is no Airbnb gift card. The scammers who try to pull this try to con the host into sending them money for a booking where no one actually stays and then the so-called guest's payment method is rejected, so the host would just be out the money without receiving any payment at all.

 

If you ever get one of these again, just message back "No" so you don't get dinged for not responding and report it to Airbnb ASAP as a scammer. Don't communicate with the scammer any further nor accept their (fake) booking.

@Helen2284