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OngoingWritten from official sources

Overpayment and fake check scams when you sell online

Seen by Email or marketplaceLast checked 18 Oct 2026Sources 1
In short

A buyer sends a check for too much and asks you to send back the difference. The check is fake, but the money you send is real.

What it looks like

Example message written by us.
I sent the check by mistake for $2,400 instead of $1,800. Please deposit it and send the extra $600 back by gift card or transfer today.

How to spot it

A payment for more than the price

Do not accept a check for more than the selling price.

A request to send some of it back

Gift cards, money orders, crypto and wire transfers are scammer payments.

Funds that show up in your account

The FTC: seeing the money does not mean the check is good. Fakes can take weeks to be found.

What to do

  1. Do not deposit the check or send anything back. Ask for the exact price by a safe method.
  2. If you already sent money, act at once. Gift card: tell the issuer. Wire: call the wire company. Money order: contact the issuer.
  3. Contact your bank. You are usually the one who must repay a check that bounces.
  4. Report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and to your state attorney general.
Already replied or paid? Get a recovery plan

Where to report it

FTC ReportFraudreportfraud.ftc.gov
US Postal Inspection Serviceuspis.gov/report
Outside the US? Find who to contact in your country

Sources

  1. US Federal Trade Commission: How to spot, avoid, and report fake check scams (Checked 18 Oct 2026)

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Written from public fraud-agency notices. Figures and advice are checked against the pages listed under Sources.