Verify the seller before you wire a cent

1. Step 01

   Check how old the domain is

   Look up the domain in ICANN Lookup at lookup.icann.org and read the creation date. Legitimate dealers have owned their domain for years. A large share of the fraudulent sites documented here were registered less than six months before the first buyer lost money. A brand-new domain selling a fleet of heavy equipment is the single strongest warning sign there is.

   Registered under 12 months ago plus high-value inventory equals stop.

2. Step 02

   Confirm the business is actually registered

   Take the exact legal name on the invoice and search the Secretary of State business registry for the state they claim to operate in. Most states offer a free search. No filing, a filing that is only weeks old, or a name that does not match the invoice all mean the company on your paperwork does not exist as described.

   No state registration means no recourse and no company to sue.

3. Step 03

   Reverse-search every photo

   Save the listing images and run them through Google Lens or TinEye. Fraudulent listings almost always reuse photos from completed auction listings, dealer sites, or classified ads in another state. If the same unit appears under a different seller, a different price, or a different city, the listing in front of you is fabricated.

   Photos that appear elsewhere mean the seller does not have the unit.

4. Step 04

   Verify the physical location exists

   Put the address into a satellite and street-level map. Equipment dealers occupy yards, lots, and shops. If the address resolves to a residence, a mail center, an empty field, or a building occupied by an unrelated business, and the seller cannot explain it, walk away.

   A dealer with no yard does not have the inventory it advertises.

5. Step 05

   Compare the wire beneficiary to the business name

   Ask for wire instructions early and read them carefully. A legitimate dealer wires into an account under its own legal business name. Instructions naming an individual, an unrelated LLC in another state, or a third-party 'processing agent' are the mechanism nearly every case file in this archive has in common.

   Beneficiary name mismatch is the point of no return. Do not send.

6. Step 06

   Insist on a live, unscripted inspection

   Ask for a video call right now where the seller walks the unit, reads the serial or VIN plate aloud on camera, and starts it in front of you. Refusals, endless rescheduling, pre-recorded clips, or claims that the unit is in a sealed container are all disqualifying. Better still, hire an independent third-party inspector you found yourself.

   If they will not show it live, it is not there.

7. Step 07

   Control the payment method and the escrow

   Never accept an escrow or shipping company introduced by the seller, even one with a professional website, because fraudulent escrow portals are part of the same operation. Use a bank check delivered on pickup, a reputable escrow service you independently selected and called by a phone number you looked up yourself, or a credit card where possible.

   Seller-supplied escrow is part of the scam, not protection from it.

8. Step 08

   Search the domain and phone number

   Search the domain, the business name, the phone number, and the wire beneficiary name here and on the wider web with words like scam, review, and complaint. Absence of results is not clearance, especially for a young domain, but a single match is often enough to save the transaction.

   Check the archive first, then verify everything else anyway.

Free tools that do most of this work

Every check above can be run without paying anyone. These are the authoritative sources, not resellers.

• ICANN Lookup

  The registry-backed WHOIS lookup. Read the creation date and the registrar, and note that a privacy-shielded registrant on a young domain selling six-figure equipment is a warning, not a formality.

  lookup.icann.org

• NICB VINCheck

  Free check from the National Insurance Crime Bureau for whether a VIN has been reported stolen or declared a salvage total loss by a participating insurer.

  www.nicb.org/vincheck

• NHTSA VIN Decoder

  Decodes any 17-character VIN to its factory build data. If the decoded make, model, year, or body class does not match the listing, the VIN is not the vehicle in the photos.

  vpic.nhtsa.dot.gov/decoder

• Google Lens & TinEye

  Reverse image search. Fraudulent listings reuse photos from completed auctions and dealer inventory, so a match under a different seller or city settles the question.

  tineye.com

• USCG Vessel Documentation Search

  For boats, look up documented vessels by hull identification number or official number to confirm the hull and owner exist as described.

  cgmix.uscg.mil/PSIX

• FTC Consumer Advice

  Official guidance on online shopping fraud and payment methods, useful if you want a neutral source to show a hesitant family member.

  consumer.ftc.gov/scams