BBB warns against online money transfer scam

The Better Business Bureau is warning people from using a money transfer app for online purchases.

The app is called Venmo and BBB said it works fine when you’re paying your friend back, but it is an app to be wary of when it comes to using it with someone you don’t know.

How the scam works:

You’re selling a big ticket item on a website like Craigslist or Kijiji and you find an interested buyer. Instead of paying with cash, the buyer suggests sending money through Venmo.

At first, everything probably seems fine. You get an alert from the app saying that the buyer sent the money, so you hand over the item. The only problem is, transfers with Venmo can take several days to process. This means scammers can take advantage of this and set up transactions and cancel them before they go through.

By the time this happens, the scammer still has the money and now the item.

How to avoid a venmo scam:

• Use Venmo with friends: Protect yourself from scams by only using Venmo for its intended purpose -- sending money to people you personally know.
• Link Venmo to a credit card. As with many other purchases, using a credit card will help protect you if you don't get the goods or services you paid for. Linking to a debit card or directly to your bank account does not give you that added protection.
• Check your account to be sure that the money transferred: It takes a few days for Venmo payments to transfer. If you have any concerns that a payer didn't really send the money, be sure to check your account directly.

To report a scam, go to the BBB Scam Tracker.