Mercari Sellers Bombarded With Verification Phishing Spam
UPDATE 12-27-24
Mercari has finally at least sent an email to users addressing the phishing attack, advising they will never ask to complete verification via chat or direct messaging and not to click on external links in messages.
UPDATE 12-25-24
Mercari still has not gotten this phishing attack under control and the scammers are stepping up their game - instead of using gmail addresses, they are now using emails with domain names that have the word Mercari in the them in an attempt to look more legitimate.
For example, this one from mercaribot . su :
This is also a scam and that is not a real Mercari email address - as with the other variations, do not reply to the message or send an email to that address and definitely do not provide any log in credentials, personal or financial information to anyone trying to communicate with you this way.
Mercari US sellers report a sudden influx of phishing attempts using the Mercari messaging system for fake verification scam.
The messages come from an account using a Mercari logo for their profile image, claiming the user will need to undergo additional verification due to "new rules" on the platform and directing them to contact a generic gmail address - not an official Mercari support email.
While most savvy sellers would see a giant red flag with that email address, new or inexperienced users may be more vulnerable to falling for the scam - as evidenced by the large number of posts flooding Reddit unsure if the message was real or not.
Is this “Mercari” message real or a scam?
Got this message from Mercari with a Gmail address- it doesn’t show up in the open tickets/support items. Has anyone else received this? I sent screenshot to support but I have no clue when they will respond. It also came attached to an item I listed but says account verification in the top of message.
To be clear - this is definitely a scam and under no circumstance should anyone email that address or respond to the message within Mercari.
This type of phishing scam is not uncommon, for example Etsy created special tags and a separate inbox for official messages in their battle against similar attacks earlier this year.
Liz Morton
The fake verification account shown in the screenshots shared by some users on Reddit appears to have finally been shut down now, but there are likely other accounts being used for this scam - so keep an eye out!
Other variations may include "help" or "verify" in the names and use slightly different emails, like this example provided by a Value Added Resource reader.
Other variations may provide a phone number to text instead of an email - this is also a scam.
Bottom line - don't trust any similar message you receive and do not send anything to any email or text any number contained in these messages.
The fact that users who are not sure about these messages have had to turn to other users for help because they could not get answers from Mercari's actual support channels highlights the serious work the company still has to do on the safety and security of the site.
Mercari Japan recently launched new initiatives to strengthen safety, security and customer service, including enhancing user identity verification and combating counterfeits on the platform - could those efforts be coming to the US soon too?
Liz Morton
Did you receive a fake verification phishing scam message on Mercari today? Let us know in the comments below!
