Neopets is a very exciting site with so many different things to do and new games coming out all the time. New members join every day, and some are even very fun to talk to. Some new members, though, could pose a threat. These new members may be scammers. It�s true, Neopets is full of them. Even though there are so many scams, and some are very easy to fall for, you can always avoid them. This guide will tell you about some very common scams. Don�t fall for them!
A Tip -
*If something sounds too good to be true, it is.
� Always follow the NeoRules. Giveaways of any sort are not aloud on the boards, and you can get reported for �begging� or participating in the giveaways. I wouldn�t recommend going to these.
The Scams
Neoboards
Giveaways - On a lot of the neoboard forums, including the help and newbie boards, people will make giveaway boards. These are traps! What they do is tell you that they�re quitting and are giving away 3 million neopoints. Now all they do is wait until you say �Oh! Can I have 500k, then?!� Next, they report you. After all, in that post it looks like you were begging, right? TNT monitors have no clue what happened, therefore you can be frozen, or suspended. I recommend staying away from these boards.
Pets - All the time, everyday, the help boards will have a scam about pounding pets. It will look like every other pounding board. But, hypothetically, let�s say that you are chosen to receive this pet. Sometimes, they won�t even tell you the pets name and sy that �it�s on a side�. Many things will happen to where you can�t see the pet. That�s because it doesn�t exist. Well, things will keep coming up. They may ask for some things and maybe even your neopoints. I have run into several of these, and believe me, you won�t end up getting the pet. Report, or maybe even just block them; just don�t keep talking to them or trying to get the pet.
Trading Post
Fake Trades - As you may have seen on our trade scams guide, there will be scams on the trading post. These are really not that smart, and I can�t imagine why you might fall for this, but some people do! There is a screenie on the trade scams guide of what they will look like. The wishlist will say something like �Bid on this item,� (a junk item, of course!} �and I will send you three baby paint brushes! I�m only asking for 600k, that�s all!!� Believe me, you won�t get those paint brushes.
High Prices - These aren�t necessarily scams, but there will be some very high prices on the trading post. One example that I know of is a Mynci Brain Sandwich. I won one once off of the Vending Machine, and I was so excited � They were over 300k! Well, I didn�t get that much, even though that�s what I put my wish list at. I only got about 100k, and that was kind of the �scam� about it. If you were to bid 300k, you would have lost a lot of neopoints, huh? If you�re unsure of a price, check the help boards.
Email Scams
TNT Scam - This scam has been going on for so long. A scammer will be on the help boards when he spots people exchanging MSN email addresses. Sure enough, he emails them from a fake email like �TheNeopetsTeam@Hotmail.com� and asks for their password, saying �they lost the user�s info and need to make sure that this is them.� Do not give them your password, pin, etc.! TNT will never, ever, ever email you from a hotmail or any other email besides neopets! This scam is so common, but many people fall for it nonetheless.
Avatar Chat
Lending - A lot of times, people will be nice and lend things for free or low collat on the AC. (I was lent FQD, Zdap, and Chokato free � all were returned safely!) Well, some people who lend for free are not so lucky. They sometimes get them stolen by dishonest scammers. I feel extremely bad for these people, and I recommend watching out for the scammers if you are going to lend high-priced items.
So, all in all, Neopets has scams all over the place. This is the bare minimum of common scams that a lot of people fall for. Like I said before, if it�s too good to be true, it is! Don�t fall for anything that sounds fishy, because you won�t get what you want in the end, just a loss of your account, neopoints, or something very valuable. I hope this helps!
- Ary