Fake buyers, commissions, and shipping agents

Not every scam asks for a fee up front. Some pose as genuine buyers or commission clients and use logistics, shipping, and "licensing" as the hook. They all rely on you sending something real, money, files, or art, before you realize the other side is fake.

The templated fake inquiry

Many fake inquiries are mass messages sent to hundreds of artists at once. They are easy to spot once you know the tells:

• A generic greeting like "Hello" or "Dear Artist" instead of your name.
• No mention of any specific piece, just vague praise for your "style and creations."
• A strangely wide budget, like "anywhere from $500 to $50,000."
• Quick agreement to almost anything, because the goal is to move you to the payment step.

A real collector talks about an actual work and asks real questions. Treat a vague, templated inquiry as a scam.

The shipping-agent twist

This is the overpayment scam with an extra layer. The "buyer" agrees to your price, then insists on using their own shipper, mover, or art handler. They send a payment for more than the price and ask you to forward the extra to that "shipping agent," usually by wire, Western Union, MoneyGram, gift cards, or a second check. The shipper is the scammer or an accomplice. The payment they sent you is fake or will be reversed, but the money you forward is real and gone.

How to handle it: arrange and pay for shipping yourself. Never pay a buyer's shipper out of funds they sent you, and never forward or refund money until the original payment has fully cleared. Remember that "funds available" is not the same as cleared, as explained in Overpayment and fake-check scams.

Image theft and fake licensing offers

Two related threats target your work itself rather than your wallet.

• Image theft. Scammers copy your images and your name to set up fake profiles, ads, or shops, selling fakes or collecting payments while you see none of it.
• Fake licensing offers. Someone poses as a publisher, print house, or exhibition program and offers to "license" or feature your work, sometimes promising very large sums. The pretext is used to get high-resolution files, your signature, your banking details, or an upfront "processing" fee.

How to stay safe:

• Post lower-resolution images publicly, and add a visible signature or watermark. Never send high-resolution files or originals to someone you have not verified.
• Look the person or company up independently before engaging. Be wary of pressure and of anyone who will not do a video call or show a verifiable identity.
• Insist on a written license that spells out the use, the territory, the term, and the fee before you send anything. Never pay a fee to receive a licensing deal.
• Register copyright on your important works, which gives you stronger options if your work is stolen.
• If you find your work posted under someone else's name, document it with dated screenshots and file a takedown with the platform hosting it.

If you've already responded

Move fast, the first hours matter most.

1. Call your bank or credit union's fraud department now. If you deposited a check or shared account details, they may be able to stop or reverse it.
2. If you sent a wire or money transfer, call the company's fraud line right away and ask them to stop it. Western Union fraud: 800-448-1492. MoneyGram: 1-800-926-9400.
3. If you paid by card, ask your card issuer to dispute the charge.
4. If you wrote a check, ask your bank for a stop payment before it clears.
5. If you paid with gift cards, contact the card company's fraud line and keep the cards and receipts.
6. Change the password and turn on two-step verification for any affected account, and report the message to the platform. Forward phishing emails to [email protected] or [email protected].
7. Report it to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov, and report online fraud to the FBI at ic3.gov.
8. Save everything: screenshots, messages, and receipts.

Be careful of "recovery" services that ask for a fee to get your money back. Those are scams too.