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Thankfully, from my experience here, scamming is fairly uncommon. However, just like any other site, there's bound to be a few users lurking around, hoping to con others out of their items, money, or even their account entirely. Thankfully, most scams are also easy to avoid!
Keep in mind- I am not an official site mod, and do not claim to be one. These are just blanket internet safety tips that apply to all sites, not just VP.
1. Never send your username/password over PM
In the most common scam, scammers will change their avatar to match an admin's, change their username to something official-sounding (ex. "Admin1", "Moderater", etc.) and send users PMs, saying that there's been an issue with your account. They'll either ask for your email, your password, or a combination of both so that they can "access the account" and resolve the "issue".
If you recieve a PM like this, report the message. Remember- the admin has access to your account already, why would they need your username and password?
2. Check URLs carefully
On websites like tumblr or gaiaonline, there's a very common scam where a user will send a message that tries to intice others to check the link. Once the recepient of the message goes to check the site, however, it tells them that they need to log in again, whether it's due to an age restriction or stating that their session has been logged out.
Check the url carefully- if it's not virtualpopstar.com, don't enter your information! Some scammers even try to get around this by using fake domains with the site as part of it (for example, if someone was using ariscool to scam someone, the site might have a url like ariscool.com/virtualpopstar). Unless it is en.virtualpopstar.com, do NOT enter your information at all!
3. Don't share accounts with friends
This is a tough rule to follow, I know. But even the best of friends will have their spats, and you might never know how petty your best friend is until you find out they've changed the password to your shared account. Even worse, they might wind up stealing everything on the account, leaving you with an empty account.
In cases like this, both people would likely wind up getting punished- Your friend for scamming you, and you for giving out your password. If you really, truly want to borrow an item from a friend, just ask them- worst case scenario, they say no.
4. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is
It's the perfect situation: Someone is having a contest for an absurd amount of cr, and entries only cost 1k pd! Or, someone just so happens to have your rarest wishlist item, and they're willing to sell it for a measly 500cr- half the average!
Unless the user has a reputation for being generous, you might want to hesitate before springing on the deal. Otherwise, they could take your money and run. If you really want to take a chance, go ahead and message the person before making a deal. Also, check their posts- If the giveaway is their only thread, or other users have mentioned not getting their item, then it'd be best to not take a chance.
As always, there's a report button at the bottom of posts- Don't spam everything they post with reports, though! Only report their first post in their threads (if they've made multiple scamming threads, then only report one and include links to the others in your report), and let the mods handle the situation. Take plenty of screenshots, though- It's easy to delete a thread!
Thankfully, from my experience here, scamming is fairly uncommon. However, just like any other site, there's bound to be a few users lurking around, hoping to con others out of their items, money, or even their account entirely. Thankfully, most scams are also easy to avoid!
Keep in mind- I am not an official site mod, and do not claim to be one. These are just blanket internet safety tips that apply to all sites, not just VP.
1. Never send your username/password over PM
In the most common scam, scammers will change their avatar to match an admin's, change their username to something official-sounding (ex. "Admin1", "Moderater", etc.) and send users PMs, saying that there's been an issue with your account. They'll either ask for your email, your password, or a combination of both so that they can "access the account" and resolve the "issue".
If you recieve a PM like this, report the message. Remember- the admin has access to your account already, why would they need your username and password?
2. Check URLs carefully
On websites like tumblr or gaiaonline, there's a very common scam where a user will send a message that tries to intice others to check the link. Once the recepient of the message goes to check the site, however, it tells them that they need to log in again, whether it's due to an age restriction or stating that their session has been logged out.
Check the url carefully- if it's not virtualpopstar.com, don't enter your information! Some scammers even try to get around this by using fake domains with the site as part of it (for example, if someone was using ariscool to scam someone, the site might have a url like ariscool.com/virtualpopstar). Unless it is en.virtualpopstar.com, do NOT enter your information at all!
3. Don't share accounts with friends
This is a tough rule to follow, I know. But even the best of friends will have their spats, and you might never know how petty your best friend is until you find out they've changed the password to your shared account. Even worse, they might wind up stealing everything on the account, leaving you with an empty account.
In cases like this, both people would likely wind up getting punished- Your friend for scamming you, and you for giving out your password. If you really, truly want to borrow an item from a friend, just ask them- worst case scenario, they say no.
4. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is
It's the perfect situation: Someone is having a contest for an absurd amount of cr, and entries only cost 1k pd! Or, someone just so happens to have your rarest wishlist item, and they're willing to sell it for a measly 500cr- half the average!
Unless the user has a reputation for being generous, you might want to hesitate before springing on the deal. Otherwise, they could take your money and run. If you really want to take a chance, go ahead and message the person before making a deal. Also, check their posts- If the giveaway is their only thread, or other users have mentioned not getting their item, then it'd be best to not take a chance.
As always, there's a report button at the bottom of posts- Don't spam everything they post with reports, though! Only report their first post in their threads (if they've made multiple scamming threads, then only report one and include links to the others in your report), and let the mods handle the situation. Take plenty of screenshots, though- It's easy to delete a thread!
