Study Finds Craigslist is a ''Cesspool of Crime''

[takchez]

In a study conducted by AIM Group (for Oodle.com, Craigslist's rival website)...

Did anyone keep reading after that part?

 

[Hellbound]

This is one of those "well duh" moments...

 

[lashabane]

"But that’s no longer an excuse that Craigslist can hide behind," added Zollman

Because? Oh yeah, you were trying to make a point somewhere.

 

[charlie_m]

Someone would have to be out of their mind literally to rob someone on craigslist here in az. Everyone is armed. I sell on craigslist almost everyday, usually to mexicans even! Mostly I sell construction extras. I only take cold cash. How am I gonna be taken advantage of? Author of the cited article is a stupid fear monger and needs to get a life.

 

[SmileyTPB1]

This is definitely one of those "Thank you, Captain Obvious" moments.

Crime being rampant on CL isn't exactly a news flash.

My only thoughts on the subject are to agree that Craigslist should make a much bigger effort to police it's website to prevent people using it for crime. If you want people to use and have good faith in your website I would think that CL would would want to try and keep the criminals to a minimum. But as they have proved so far, I don't think they care.

 

[dimar]

Nice place to sell stuff like old video cards etc... I usually exchange a phone call with the buyer or a seller before proceeding. If it's anything near suspicious, then no deal. Maybe it's safer in Canada.., just can't remember any bad experience with Craig's List or Kijiji, but have plenty of bad stories with eBay experience.

 

[maddad]

I have bought several items from people on craigslist, I have also picked up several free items without problems. If it sounds too good to be true applies to Craigslist just like it does anywhere else. For small items you can always meet in a public place; for large items take someone with you; use common sense when you purchase items. I have been ripped off buying items I could only see a picture of on ebay; but on Craigslist I only shop local and I get to see and try the item "before" I hand over my money.

 

[belardo]

So... for the entire time CL has been up... only 330 reported crimes? Out of millions of transactions? Thats PRETTY GOOD.

Of course there is still / has been crime, such as prostitution or child prostitution and always scammers.

But friends have gotten good results... got free stuff, or traded. Because of the NATURE of CL - its easy to say "lets meet at the MALL or Walmart" to make a trade. No email or phone number is given out.

Some of the horrible things on CL:
1 - someone posted "Open house at XXX address, take what you want"... so dozens of people showed up, taking a everything out of a victim's house! He showed up and even yelled at them to STOP. One guy pushed him aside... "hey, a deal is a deal" type comment. Police were involved of course.

2 - ex-BF rape: A guy posted as his EX-GF, saying she wants a rape fantasy. The rape happened and both guys went to jail. The rapist is an idiot, should have double checked and ask for a "safe word" or "code word"... Yeah, there are some freaky girls with rape fantasies. PS: The woman found out about the CL posting and called the police... they did nothing, until after the rape.

 

[theroguex]

So yeah, after reading the very first sentence, I stopped reading.

Anyone who continued reading after finding out that it was research paid for by a rival company probably buys supplements and herbal remedies because of the "clinical studies" that they told you support their effects!

 

[Guest]

@thegreathuntingdolphin I hate your frame of mind, your perspective and your philosophy. Your ideal is what is causing so much wrong in so many areas. Did you ever hear the story about the woman who sued mcdonalds because she spilled hot coffee on herself? Or the guy who sued the owner of a home because he slipped in a puddle of water as he was breaking and entering?

You believe everyone is responsible for everyone, I believe in personal responsibility. I can't prove to you it's better, but should you ever experience a situation where you are forced to take responsibility for someone else's faults, you might just come around the bend.

I suppose google is responsible for what craigslist does, how do you think some might have found the website in the first place? Why stop there? (sarcasm) Lets make all search engines responsible for all 'wrongs' on the internet. Piracy, child pornography, money laundering and so on.

I can say this for a fact, if some clutz comes walking down the street and slips on some ice or maybe a puddle of astroglide, I do not want to be told that I am responsible because this person landed firmly on the ground. There will always be slippery parts of Earth, it's UP TO YOU to determine where you step and don't step. These are facts of life, the shockingly small number of suckers caught on craigslist would have been found in nefarious traps or laying them in some other way, at some other time.

Horrible things happen everywhere, attacking the means that which they occur through is a sickening insanity that I would have no part of. I suppose next you'll start talking about how evil those sentient guns are. kcuf uoy x10.

 

[officeguy]

I have never used Craig list before. I was on it just once just to check it out back in the day and it seemed overwhelming with the amount of stuff that was on there. I never went back. I may use it if I get desperate at finding something.

 

[sagansrun]

This is stupid. There is crime related to everything that humans do.

 

[g00fysmiley]

translation ... big buisness isn't getting its cut oin on the millions of daily transactions between users ( i have myself bought and sold a few cars through craigs list, sold a few appliances when i got new ones and sold a few other odds and ends) so now they find a few incidents where people do the same things as classifieds used to be used fto in an attempt to usurp a free service

 

[Travis Beane]

I just don't like Craigslist because I set up deals with a couple dozen people, and only 2 showed, and only half a dozen responded afterwards.

 

[bildo123]

[citation][nom]g00fysmiley[/nom]translation ... big buisness isn't getting its cut oin on the millions of daily transactions between users ( i have myself bought and sold a few cars through craigs list, sold a few appliances when i got new ones and sold a few other odds and ends) so now they find a few incidents where people do the same things as classifieds used to be used fto in an attempt to usurp a free service[/citation]

That's funny, when I went to use it I was presented with all these payment options and left the site after that.

 

[jwl3]

Looked into buying a car on Craig's List once for a price 7k below blue book. Location was listed as Manhattan where I live.

As soon as I contacted, they said, car was in Maine. And could you please pay us now? Yeah right, I'm going to randomly send cash to some awhole for a car I haven't seen.

 

[COLGeek]

I have had some luck (both good and bad) via CL. Like most things in life, if it looks too good to be true, it usually is. Scam artists are users as are legitimate folks.

I typically try to meet buyers/sellers at a public location when the item in question will allow it. Just a security measure.

 

[gm0n3y]

[citation][nom]bildo123[/nom]That's funny, when I went to use it I was presented with all these payment options and left the site after that.[/citation]
As far as I know, Craigslist does not charge for any of its services except for job advertisements in select cities.

So take everything here with a heap of salt because, as the article mentions, this 'study' was paid for by one of Craigslist's competitors.

I have used Craigslist a few times, never had a bad experience. Most people I know only use Craigslist when looking for a house/apartment to rent. Almost everyone I know that has bought a used car in the last few years went through Craigslist. I have yet to hear about a scam from someone that I know. I'm sure there are scams out there, but just be smart and you have very little to worry about.

Considering that millions of people use Craigslist every day, even if the numbers the study provides are only a small percentage of the total crimes, that still means that overall the site it pretty safe to use.

 

[Guest]

Craigslist... you'll never find a more wretched hive of scum and villany...
Lol actually i bought a truck from a guy using craigslist... got a really good deal on a good truck. Just have to be careful about the scams and if it seems to good to be true it probably is.