Fake Receipts on Facebook Marketplace: How to Spot Them

When we talk about marketplace scams, we usually focus on buyers losing their money. But sellers are equally at risk, and their biggest threat is the fake receipt scam.

If you are selling a phone, a laptop, or a designer item on Facebook Marketplace or Gumtree, you are a target. Scammers have become incredibly sophisticated at generating fake banking receipts that look identical to the real thing. If you hand over your item based on a screenshot, you might never see your money.

How the Fake Receipt Scam Works

The scam usually happens during an in-person handover. The buyer arrives to collect the item and agrees to the price. Instead of handing over cash, they say they will do a bank transfer on their phone right in front of you.

They tap away on their screen, and then show you a receipt. It has your name, your BSB, your account number, and the correct amount. It even has the logo of a major Australian bank like CommBank, NAB, or Westpac.

The buyer tells you that because it is a transfer between different banks, or because it is a new payee, the funds might take 24 to 48 hours to clear. They take the item and leave. The money never arrives, because the transfer never happened. The receipt was generated by a fake banking app or a website designed specifically for scammers.

How to Spot a Fake Receipt

Fake receipts are designed to survive a quick glance. To protect yourself, you need to know what to look for:

• The Pending Excuse: The most common tactic is the claim that the transfer will take a few days to clear. With the introduction of Osko and the New Payments Platform in Australia, the vast majority of transfers between major banks are nearly instant. If a buyer claims a delay, be highly suspicious.
• Inconsistent Fonts and Formatting: Look closely at the receipt they show you. Are the fonts slightly mismatched? Is the bank logo blurry or outdated? Scammers often use generic templates that do not perfectly match the bank's current app design.
• They Refuse to Use PayID: PayID was designed for instant clearing. If you offer a PayID and the buyer insists on using a BSB and account number (which gives them the excuse), it is a major red flag.

The Only Foolproof Defence

There is only one foolproof way to defeat a fake receipt scam: never hand over the item until the money is visible in your own bank account.

Do not trust a screenshot, do not trust an email confirmation, and do not trust a screen they show you on their phone. Log into your own banking app on your own device. If the money is not there, the item does not leave your hands.

If you want to eliminate the awkwardness of waiting for funds to clear on the driveway, use Vaultly. Vaultly provides a single, shared, verified record of the transaction. Both the buyer and the seller can see exactly when the funds are secured and when they are released. There are no fake screenshots and no pending excuses — just clear, verifiable trust.