Just got scammed - lesson learned the hard way
Damn dude, sorry that happened. I almost pulled the trigger on a similar "sweet deal" from a Wickr guy last month, but something felt off about the vendor communication — way too eager to help. Real legit vendors don't chase you like that. The customer service responsiveness is usually slower because they're swamped with actual orders. Glad you only lost $100 and not more. Always search the forum before you send money.
Figured I'd share my own experience since it lines up perfectly with what you're saying. A few weeks back I found what looked like a solid deal on a group of IDs for a bachelor party. Website looked decent, photos were watermarked but seemed legit, and the guy was responsive on Wickr. I was in a hurry and made the mistake of not checking the forum first.
Ordering Timeline: So I placed the order on a Thursday evening. Paid via Zelle like he asked because he said "crypto is too much hassle for small orders." Looking back, that should've been the instant red flag. He confirmed payment the next morning and said "should ship Monday." Monday came and went. Tuesday I asked for tracking – "will send tonight." Wednesday I asked again – no reply. By Friday I was blocked on Wickr and the email bounced. So timeline from payment to ghosting was about 5 days, give or take.
Communication Speed: Before payment he replied within an hour, super friendly, answering all my questions about states and turnaround. After payment it dropped to once a day, then nothing. Classic bait-and-switch on communication, honestly.
Packaging Stealth: Can't really evaluate this because the IDs never arrived. But based on how everything else went, I doubt they would've put much care into it. No stealth to report, pretty much.
VFM Rating: Zero out of ten. I paid real money and got nothing. There's no value in that, period.
Pros: None. The only thing I can say is I learned a hard lesson without losing a huge amount – it was under a hundred bucks, thank god.
Cons: Everything. Only took Zelle and CashApp. No crypto option whatsoever. No escrow. No public reviews that I could verify. Ghosted after payment. Total scam.
Your rule about "anyone accepting ONLY Zelle/CashApp is 100% a scam" is spot on. I'll never touch a vendor again unless they offer at least one crypto option – ideally BTC or XMR. Even if a vendor has been around for years, that one payment method restriction is a dealbreaker. Crypto gives you a layer of protection because reversals are nearly impossible for the vendor, but for the buyer it means you have to trust a real reputation. With Zelle or CashApp, the scammer can just take the money and run – those payments are instant and irreversible from the bank's side, so you have no recourse. I've now made it a rule: if they push hard for fiat apps, I walk away. Better to be patient and wait for a real vendor than to be out money and have nothing to show for it.
