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Scammed Again! PayPal invoices only.
4 months ago
Due to being scammed by someone posing as 
, I am out $755. Since I’ve worked with and trusted Pak009 in the past, the story of his dad being ill and needing the money now for travel to see him seemed legit. I should have dug deeper. I should have joined their discord server, however briefly and confirmed their account was the same as the one messaging me saying I had won a YCH. I did friends and family because I knew and have worked well with Pak009. But the scammer deceived and has now spoiled things for all future commissions going forward.
I will not be doing Friends and Family ever again for any reason, not for my trusted payment recipients. Invoices only from now on. It’s my own stupidity and not digging deeper that caused all this. Be aware, be vigilant. I will not be entertaining any further artists who come to me directly. I will come to you. Period. Learn from my mistakes.
EDIT: You know what? Fuck it. I'm gonna release any info I have for those smart enough to do something about it. Reporting them to Paypal and Discord (who each have done nothing to solve the problem with this person) did not work and it's clear I'm not getting the money back, here is all I've received regarding this:
Name - Steven Chavez - Is this their actual name? I've no clue, I bet it isn't, but it's a good place to start.
Email Used - muelloharry8[at]gmail.com - Is this a burner email? Most likely, but you can never tell.
Discord ID - 1364627299848421466 - Is this a throwaway account? Probably, so killing it won't do much to stop the operation.
Paypal Address: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/WorkOfArt99 - This is probably a temp account too.
Why am I providing this? Because these scammers hurt us all, artists and commissioners alike. They help destroy the trust and integrity of this community of furry lovers and patrons of art. They do not belong here and if any of this helps in removing just one of them, at least for a while, from our community, the better.
, I am out $755. Since I’ve worked with and trusted Pak009 in the past, the story of his dad being ill and needing the money now for travel to see him seemed legit. I should have dug deeper. I should have joined their discord server, however briefly and confirmed their account was the same as the one messaging me saying I had won a YCH. I did friends and family because I knew and have worked well with Pak009. But the scammer deceived and has now spoiled things for all future commissions going forward. I will not be doing Friends and Family ever again for any reason, not for my trusted payment recipients. Invoices only from now on. It’s my own stupidity and not digging deeper that caused all this. Be aware, be vigilant. I will not be entertaining any further artists who come to me directly. I will come to you. Period. Learn from my mistakes.
EDIT: You know what? Fuck it. I'm gonna release any info I have for those smart enough to do something about it. Reporting them to Paypal and Discord (who each have done nothing to solve the problem with this person) did not work and it's clear I'm not getting the money back, here is all I've received regarding this:
Name - Steven Chavez - Is this their actual name? I've no clue, I bet it isn't, but it's a good place to start.
Email Used - muelloharry8[at]gmail.com - Is this a burner email? Most likely, but you can never tell.
Discord ID - 1364627299848421466 - Is this a throwaway account? Probably, so killing it won't do much to stop the operation.
Paypal Address: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/WorkOfArt99 - This is probably a temp account too.
Why am I providing this? Because these scammers hurt us all, artists and commissioners alike. They help destroy the trust and integrity of this community of furry lovers and patrons of art. They do not belong here and if any of this helps in removing just one of them, at least for a while, from our community, the better.
Just be real careful with PayPal invoices, as they aren't proof against being scammed. You probably know this already, but be really vague on whatever details you put on the invoice. PayPal likes to cancel anything they think might be porn.
Also, this will be difficult to hear, but since this isn't the first time you've been scammed, the scammers know you're a productive target. They will share your info with others on their team. And they don't stop, either. When they get tired of trying to work you over, they'll sell your info to another group, so the probes will start coming from another direction/angle.
You're going to have to be exceptionally careful and suspicious of anyone asking you for *anything.*
Being scammed is never fun, been there dealt with that bs before and I'm sorry you are out a lot of money. I know this may make trusting pak009 hard, but as you mentioned before, dig deeper, scammers hate that for they don't always have the correct answer, and i hope one day you can resume being friends.
I hope you are able to get it back somehow though :/
Especially such an amount :(
Sorry to hear this happened to you!