How to Not Fuck Your Butthole with Trades

Guide To Trading With Random Strangers on the Internet (GamerSoul)

If you are reading this, then either:
a) You are trading with someone for the first time and need some information / guides / tips to stay safe
b) You are a retard that recently got scammed or
c) You are a scammer trying to scam someone and need to outsmart me (which is fine, idgaf)

How does someone get scammed?
You either get scammed by:
1) Getting chargebacked
2) Not receiving your payment
3) A fake OMM is used and you lose money due to "fake OMM fees" , your account and items that are being traded
4) Fake NX scams
5) Paying for an item but not receiving it
6) Some other way but my brain hurts from trying to figure it out

Why do you get scammed?
There's many reasons why you get scammed but usually the most common reason is you. Most of the time, you either:
1) Traded with someone you have almost 0 information on
2) Have too much trust with people you randomly meet / trade with on the internet
3) Never referred to the DNT (Do Not Trade) List
4) Didn't ask for their GS ID AND PM Confirmation
5) Didn't do enough research
6) Used a very unsafe / unsecure payment method or
7) A moderator / admin did not ban this user on the forums (ban evasion / scamming)


How to approach trading "safely"?
Regardless of your circumstances, trading on the internet can be "dangerous" as you can easily be scammed if you are too stupid. Most users who do get scammed are, let's be honest, extremely retarded and that's the reality of it. They either don't know what the fuck they are doing and think everyone in the world is an honest, trustworthy individual OR used a very limited, yet easily chargeback-able method (cough, Paypal, cough). Not everyone that gets scammed is an idiot. The person who scammed them was just another person that turned rogue. Why? I don't know.

So what should you do? Well for starters, there are guides on Gamersoul in the Market Section that talks about trading and what you should do. There are many resources and information out there but people are too stupid, using the, "Oh, I didn't know that was there" or, "oh I didn't see it" excuse. Let's be real, for yourself and for others, you fucked up. Yes, you fucked up. You rushed to conclusions, you thought you were going to get the best deal of your life over some mesos or items. Well, in the end, you end up getting screwed in the butthole. Vulgar language to help get the message across.

WHAT YOU SHOULD DO / STEPS TO BEING CAUTIOUS.
These are my tips. Probably the generic ones / common ones in guides and whatnot. But I will dumb it down. Follow these tips and you will feel safer and prepared when dealing with retards trying to scam you.

1) Tell the user to register on Gamersoul
    - I don't give a fuck who you are for most of the part. I do trades for the Gamersoul / MapleStory community and that's what
    handful of users do on Gamersoul. Gamersoul is known for its hacks, but also for its MapleStory Black Market (also caters to other
    games). Tell the idiot on the other end to register on Gamersoul. If he refuses, ask him why. You'll find a stupid reason from them
    and if you do, you probably shouldn't even bother trading with them. Trust me.

2) Check the person's Gamersoul Profile
    - There are signs when dealing with scammers. Most of them have been banned while there are some that are secretly hiding (although
    they know who the fuck they are, lma0).
        a) Check their registration date. Avoid, for the most part, trading with newly registered users. SOME, not all, can be a ban
        evader. They will be dealt with when the mods aren't lazy.
        b) Check their post count. Post count is very crucial. It helps you identify who's a retard and who isn't. Dumbasses spam the
        forums just to post a stupid market thread, or to PM people. If you see someone under 10 for the most part, they are either
        some idiot just doing trades in the Market Section or most likely a potential scammer / ban evader.
        c) Check their country. Now people are going to be super pissed off / triggered for this but check their country. Some
        countries, according to GamerSoul statistics, have a majority of scammers from Israel. Does that mean ALL Israelis scam? Hell
        no. But a shit ton of them do. They use VPNs / proxies / etc. to bypass the market restriction on their country. Why? Because
        for the most part, GamerSoul blocked Israelis from accessing the Market Section.

3) Get a Private Message (PM) Confirmation
    - Do this. No matter who the fuck it is. You will have impostors out there or banned users out there who will fake their identities
    in order to earn your trust. ASK FOR A PM AND ASK FOR A SCREENSHOT. Simply state your contact information (eg. Skype info, trade
    details, etc). in your PM and screenshot it and ask the same from the other person. If they can't provide a screenshot on their
    GamerSoul account, then obviously something is fishy. When dealing with OMMs (Official MiddleMan), YOU MUST ALWAYS CONTACT THEM
    THROUGH A PM. Retards nowadays getting scammed because the culprit brings in a "OMM" when they just impersonate one using another
    Skype account and copy a real OMM's Skype but vary it (an i for a lowercase L for isntance).

4) Use Safe Payment Methods
    - The most common payment people use is Paypal. Why? Because anyone can simply register for a Paypal account in a few seconds and
    get started. Paypal has the issue with chargebacks, which is why a majority of users get scammed. Soemone buys your item, they send
    you some money through Paypal, then moments, days, weeks, or even months later, you get chargedback. The person ran off with your
    money and your item. What do you do? You try to dispute it with Paypal, providing as much information as possible.
    - Use MORE SECURE payment methods. Bitcoins, Amazon Gift Cards, NX Cards (to an extent), Paypal My Cash are very common and safe
    methods of payments. There are also some other methods but I am too lazy to list them all. The idea is, Paypal ISN'T THE ONLY
    OPTION. LOOK FOR OTHER ALTERNATIVES. RESEARCH THEM. ASK USERS THAT DO MANY TRADES WHAT METHODS OF PAYMENTS THEY ACCEPT.

5) Use an Official MiddleMan (OMM).
    - These people are official GamerSoul staff that are trusted among the community, for the most part. Most of them help to
    facilitate trades among users through a step-by-step process. More information on OMMs can be found in the stickied threads in
    the Market Section. When you want to contact an OMM, you should private message them on GamerSoul and state what you want them to
    do. Make sure you check that their Skype is the same as the one in their profile AND in the OMM thread. DO NOT, and I mean, DO NOT
    be fooled by users saying, "Hey let's use X to be our OMM!" Moments later, some random ass, fake user comes along pretending to be
    an OMM comes by and starts talking to you. LOOK THEM UP. DOUBLE CHECK THEIR SKYPE ID AND MAKE SURE IT IS THE ONE STATED ON THE
    GAMERSOUL WEBSITE! If you find any person trying to impersonate an OMM / using a fake OMM, quickly report it to a GamerSoul staff
    with the fake Skype ID as well as the Skype ID of the person you are trading with.

6) Vouches
    - Very minor in my opinion as vouches can't safeguard you from being scammed. Anyone can scam you. Someone with 2 vouches can be
    a scammer. Someone with 10000 vouches can also be a scammer. MANY USERS, REGARDLESS OF THEIR VOUCHES, HAVE SCAMMED. Vouches just
    give you a sense of how many trades have occurred. It's just a number. I personally have a vouch thread but I don't ask users to
    vouch for me anymore. It is only optional if they ask.

7) Ask a GamerSoul staff member questions
    - You should ask / contact GamerSoul staff members if you need help with a trade. Whether it is looking for an OMM or just asking
    for someone to help guide you with trading in the Black Market. It doesn't hurt to ask for help. You should also ask if a staff
    member can look up a certain GamerSoul user. Chances are, they were banned before and need to be banned again.

8) Check the DNT List
    - This DNT (Do Not Trade) List is a collection of almost all banned users / scammers. Use it to help you avoid any returning
    scammers. REMEMBER: this list will NOT 100% protect you. Some users can easily make new Skypes and shit. If that is the case,
    do the previous steps.

9) Record EVERYTHING
    - Take screenshots of everything, from Private Messages, to Skype logs, to contact info, to payment methods. Every little detail
    helps. You can also record everything, alternatively. You can use this in disputes to ban users when they attempt to scam or
    as evidence in cases of chargebacks (Paypal).

Where can you find more information? Check the GamerSoul Market Section. At the top, there are a bunch of stickied threads. READ THEM ALL IF YOU HAVE TO. Don't be a retard like others have been. I have been telling people this: only YOU have something to lose. Why take the risk? Use your brain. If you question something, then the possibility is always there. Trade with reputable users on GamerSoul. Ask for OMM when you need it.

EXTRA LINKS:
DO NOT TRADE (DNT) LIST: http://www.gamersoul.com/forums/showthread.php?103302

THE OFFICIAL MIDDLEMAN LIST: http://www.gamersoul.com/forums/showthread.php?141759

padron150's GUIDE ON SAFE SELLING: http://www.gamersoul.com/forums/showthread.php?128410

ANOTHER GUIDE TO USING OMMS: http://www.gamersoul.com/forums/showthread.php?207754

iDunShare's GUIDE: http://www.gamersoul.com/forums/showthread.php?207338


*Excess usage of the word "retard" is to help get the point across. Not every user is a retard*

**DNT List does not guarantee your "safety". Trade wisely and with caution. Use an OMM / safe payment options to do secured trades. Follw steps above**

***If something new pops up, this pastebin link will be replaced with a new one with edited / more information***