“Hey! Buddy! Wanna buy a cheap parking lot iPad?” Sounds like a bad joke, doesn’t it? After all, there’s plenty of actual scams in technology, but the old, tried and tested “buying a box of unknown goods from a parking lot” (which always used to be speakers back in the day) scam couldn’t work in this day and age — could it?
As if to prove that old adage about the number of suckers born every sixty seconds being apt, MacRumors reports on the scam being updated for the iAge, with punters in Texas being offered iPads or Macbooks from the back of car at bargain basement prices. You probably know what happens next — money changes hands, the car speeds off, and the punter realises that they’ve been sold a dud; in this case wooden Macbooks and iPads. There are keen Apple collectors out there, but they’re unlikely to give you near the $US300 being sought in this scam.
The really incredible note to end this one on is that this isn’t apparently an isolated event; apparently more than a dozen consumers have been scammed this year alone.
[MacRumors]
[Picture Credit: Grand Prarie Police Department]
attila
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 10:50 AMThe speaker scam isn’t just “back in the day” – it is still going strong. A couple of months ago I got offered some while stopped in traffic!
Namarrgon
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 10:54 AMMy parking lot speakers served me well for 7 years, then I sold them (for almost what I paid for them too).
Drongo
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 11:12 AMFor me it was a leather jacket while filling up at the petrol station
Replacement Battery
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 11:16 AMI’ve heard of this scam going around for anything from televisions to women’s perfumes (bottles filled with water). If its too good to be true, it usually is.
unfazed
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 1:33 PMyeah got the speaker offer at a set of lights from a white van about 4 years ago, they go hard, probably best money ive ever spent on home audio, nice dark wood finish too
Michael
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 2:11 PMI was offered a watch worth “$400″ for $100 while I was working at a supermarket. The guy claimed to have a reciept, which was the ones we handed out. (Woolworths) I guess he tought I looked like a sucker.
Aliasalpha
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 6:59 PMIf its portable electronics couldn’t you sort of turn them on a bit before handing over the money?
Geoff
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 7:27 PMExactly Aliasalpha. Wouldn’t you open the box, turn it on and check it , etc? Some people are too stupid to live. They deserve to be ripped off.
2pha
Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 11:37 PMI was offered speakers and a projector in a Coles parking lot last week.