We use a number of filters to stop scammers from connecting with members, but unfortunately a few sneaky scammers still get through. From our experience, the following messages nearly always lead to a scam.
- “I’m overseas, but will be moving to your area soon.”
- “I’d like to pay you in advance to hold the job.”
- “Please send your address so I can send a check.”
- “My finance manager will handle payment and other expenses.”
- “If this employment opportunity is pleasing to you…”
Read on for more tips on how to protect yourself, your money, and your safety.
1. Only communicate with parents through Sittercity
Never give your personal email or cell phone number to someone you’ve just connected with on Sittercity. Plus, when you send and receive messages through our system, you have the added bonus of our software, which flags messages with language and signs associated with common scams.
2. Never accept money from someone you’ve never met
Seem fishy that someone in the UK wants to send you an enormous check for a month’s worth of babysitting, long before you even start the job? More than likely, it’s because a scammer is on the other end of the message. If a care seeker offers to pay you upfront, that’s a red flag.
Unfortunately, these scammers know you’re looking for a job and could use the money, which is why this scam is so common — and why we see many sitters cash these fake checks and get into sticky situations. Here’s a general rule of thumb (that consequently applies to most things in life): if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. No one would pay you for work you haven’t done yet — these are fraudulent checks.
3. Never send money to someone you’ve never met
If someone wants to send you a big wad of cash for nothing, what harm could that do? The answer: a lot. You could get into trouble because part two of this scam is when the person asks for some or all of their money back. They may claim to have “accidentally overpaid” you and need you to wire a portion of the payment back to them.
Do not wire them money to compensate for what they overpaid. This is a scam and unfortunately banks have and will continue to accidentally cash fraudulent checks. Once your bank realizes the check is fake, you may have already sent money to the scammer — and now you’re out of your hard-earned cash.
4. Don’t release your background check to just anyone
Background checks contain extremely sensitive, scam-friendly information. If a Sittercity user you’ve never spoken with requests your background check, do not release it. If you’re never even communicated with this member, there’s no reason they need to see your background check.
5. Know what a scam looks like
Many scammers can be easily spotted based on their poor grasp of language or lack of clarity. If a job posting or communication with another Sittercity member makes you feel uncomfortable, it’s best to err on the side of safety and move on. Here’s what to watch out for:
- Misspellings: Sure, we all make mistakes and might have a typo here or there. But an entire email laden with typos is a bad sign.
- Grammatical errors: Again, one or two here or there is fine. But if the email is full of grammatical errors, the person on the other end may be a scammer.
- Foreigners claiming to be coming to the U.S. on special assignment: This is a common start to scam emails. Scammers use this story to rationalize the fake check scam detailed above. While it could be possible that an overseas family is starting their search for a sitter or nanny before they arrive, be extra careful when applying to these jobs.
- Inconsistencies: If the care seeker starts off the email as a proud parent of a young toddler boy, but ends the email with a five year old daughter, it’s from a scammer who has hurriedly sent several fake messages without getting their story straight. Parents don’t make those types of mistakes about their own children!
- Advertisements: A work-from-home job guaranteed to make you $100 an hour? While that certainly seems like it would be nice, move on. This job posting doesn’t belong on Sittercity, where we connect families and caregivers.
If you do suspect you’ve encountered a job posting that’s a scam, please notify Sittercity Member Services at support@sittercity.com so we may take action and prevent other caregivers from being scammed.
What does “This message was sent by another Sittercity User” mean???? I have tried to see a profile of a person who sent me a message, but it seems there is nothing.
i’m a paying member and i’ve tried to send my email and phone number multiple times to nannies i was interested in hiring and it always erases the email and phone number from the message. this is unacceptable. how are they supposed to contact me? Nowhere in the terms of service or privacy policy does it say they do not allow you to send your contact information to prospective nannies.
Sitter
I have a question you say don’t give out your email but don’t you guys check these families out with back ground checks before they become members? In the past I have had stopped a few scammers from Sittercity and one I turned in to the police. About the email I know I just gave my email to this family I had turned in because I had thought they would be safe since they are on your sight. You said give it to them only if they are with an agencies well they were with Sittercity and I just found out he was no longer active. He was interested in me until he asked for my resume and I said it was all on Sittercity and that he would have to check that out with them. Well next day Sittercity said he was no longer active. Well this morning at 1 I find out he has emailed me and I know it was the same family and tried to scam me.
I’m new here, but can’t we just communicate via messaging through Sitter City? I don’t give my email or phone number out until I get to the interview… I do all my communications through messaging (well I have at Care.com – as I said I am new here). Before I interview I try to search the family myself, I map via satellite the address or suggest meeting at a public place. If I go to a private home for an interview I set up back up by telling my loved ones to call me 10 minutes into my interview – it’s a check for my safety, if I don’t answer they can call the cops and give the address of where I was 10 minutes ago. If I don’t call within an hour after my interview telling my loved ones how it went, they call again… it’s a good way to ensure my safety – which all parents understand. It’s also a good way to make certain I don’t loose track of time and waste too much of a family’s time interviewing me. However, meeting at McDonalds or a café works really well for both parties too.
There is a certain amount of trust we have to give to meet and get/give jobs, but there are ways to help keep you safe. PLEASE, do all you can to ensure your safety! Remember it’s called PERSONAL information because it’s personal… people understand you wanting to be safe and not scammed.
I love Sittercity and I would like to know why they don’t find out information about some of those scammers before they get to us Nannies. I have had a few but new what to look for and let Sittercity know. It seams like you guys terminate them after the fact that they had emailed me a few times already then the next day I see that they are terminated and I found out to late. I still love you Sittercity!!!
I agree with you 100%…
This scanning should be done before they actually post and we the nannies respond. I have just been contacted by someone from Australia with a 3 yr old boy exac what is described here. When I signed up with sitter city I did not read this section of it. I almost fell for it. But like mh husband and I said… it seemed to good to be true! What a shame…. :/
Hi Marta. The safety of our Sittercity community is important to us. We have a number of filters in place to catch scammers before they connect with our members but, unfortunately, a few sneaky scammers get through. Thanks to our sitters bringing these to our attention, we continue to improve our filters.
The UK example just happened to me!
It happened to me too…. however they claimed to be from Australia. What was the name of the person that contacted you!? What can we do as a comnunity to stop this from happening to others!???
Hi Ritzi. We have a number of filters in place to catch scammers before they connect with our members but, unfortunately, a few get through. Thanks to our sitters bringing these to our attention, we continue to improve our filters. If you do see something that you believe to be a scam, please be sure to report it to Member Services (support@sittercity.com). Thanks!
I have done so through FB messages so I can see my message went through and read and I will continue to for my safety and those of others.
The name used by the person that contacted me was Beatrice, but has been removed. Also the email for the person to contact is robert_g71@hotmail.com
Please pass/post this info maybe on FB or other areas where nannies/caregivers can see in a more accessible way! Thanks! Ritzi
That person wanted me to do payroll checks for her and send them fed x.. I got paid for 2 weeks. I stopped when fed-x told me the account I used was fraud.
Read my e-mails, I sent copies of all to FBI, Local PD and Postal Inspectors (since they used mail to send check)
Same with me. Keyera A. Robert and Andrea Grandberry. I’ve already contacted support. Thank you support for stopping me before I got myself into trouble.
Robert and Andrea Grandberry Robert_g71@Hotmail.com
That is the info I got. I reported them as well.
What a shame that they got to so many of us!
Hi everyone so I’m working with a jamesnelson918@outlook.com what do y’all think he found me on sittercitycom
He’s a scam
Thank you i figured it out, already ruined me but Im done with him!. Thanks for your help really appreciate it thank you
Report it to FBI, NEVER cash a check sent to you by a third party, if any question, call the name on check, this guy had nerve to say he was going to charge me with theft, I forwarded the e-mail to FBI, never heard again, they use different name, could be male or female, same line, “I am going to be working in your area for ___Mos, and need a care provider, then gives dates, and next e-mail will say my company is paying and needs to send you a check, after that comes “Oh, they made a mistake and paid you too much, please send surplus by MO”
Hi Jeanne i already went to go file a police report on the weekend, he just kept sending me messages to my phone and so i went in to the police also gave those numbers and changed my number he hasn’t contacted me at all! Not even through my email hopefully he doesn’t try contact me anymore
Remember this is not in your locality, call FBI, if they sent anything through the mail go to PO and ask for an Investigator, keep originals, only give copies out, even copies of check.
They haven’t sent me nothing all I’m through with those scammers i am done thanks for all your help
That’s another clue, I forgot, they use gmail and hotmail
It also happened to me. With a Robert Grandberry. Was it the same with you? I’ve been googling that to see if there are other girls who got the E-Mail but just found now your post over here. Did you give them any information and did you find out what they wanted? Like why they sent us these E-Mails?
I just kept reading all these other posts and it is really scary. I only said my street name and age but not the apartment number, zip code or full name. So I hope I wont get anything. Did you already receive a check or something? Please let me know when anything happened. And I think we should just tell all our Nanny friends about it and tell them to also tell others. I dont think there is anything else we can really do about it. You can also let me know if yowu need any help.
Oh and I think these people were from the west coast. My e-mail account shows the time difference and what time it was where they sent it from.
Hi Sarah,
Yes, the names they used were Ribert and Andrea Grandberry. I also googled them and found nothing negative. They basically said they needed a trustworthy, honest, loving nanny for their 3 yr old son. That my duties would consist of picking him up from preschool, helping clean out his lunch box, get uniform ready for next day, feed him dinner, bathe him etc… it all seemed very real and they were in the price range I charge so I went ahead and exchanged several emails with them before becoming really suspicious once my husband and I started to get a weird vice about the amount of $ they wanted to send me without ever meeting. They sent me a big chech which is from a university here in the states… they wanted me to send some of it to someone in TN so I said I wouldn’t cash the check to just send that other person the money themselves! That was the last I heard from them. That was just 2 days ago. Very recently. I hate feeling the way I do and for trusting someone I thought was legit.
Oh wow thats so crazy. I was wondering the whole time what these ppl want. But now i know :-/ its crazy to do that with a childcare job.
Are u also from NC or did they send these emails to a lot of nannies over the states?
I am from La most of the checks I sent out was from Ny & california
Sarah, they answer any and all daycare providers, they are sending you a fake or stolen check, you deposit it, draw out money and send them YOUR money, then you find out the check was bogus, and your checks that you wrote are NO GOOD, and you pay OD fees and more.
And i feel sorry for you and really hope everything will be fine
I am from Los Angeles. I guess they are all over the place. And yes, I got a check for almost $4,000 which I would not even concider cashing because I already called the bank and police to advice them of what happened!
That sound like the person I was asked to do checks for. Beatrice T. Joyce Johnson joycehanks101@hotmail.com phone # 323-366-0145
This was exactly the same spiel I got except the names were different…the lunch box thing? and also a three year old who still wears baby diapers?? hmmmm
The name of the person that contacted me is Beatrice T. She wanted me to do payroll checks for her. Then her name was Joyce Johnson her e-mail was joycehanks101@hotmail.com her phone is 1-323-366-0145. this is fraud. She sends check by fed-x and then tells you her accounting over paid you. send money back to her. After you send the money back the check is returned and you are out your money.
They change names, which all are false, as I said I get several a year.
Hey Naomi. Please be sure to always report any potential scams you encounter to Member Services (support@sittercity.com). Thanks!
me to probably the same guy from the uk
This happened to me.. They said from england that they were coming for a job.. “A private research job”.. Sounded to good to be true, and the pay aswell.. 350 for just three days a week.. Alsoo they were going to pay in advancs just to “ensure” the service. Once i said i would only accept cash or money order i never got an answer again! This was stone s the one who sent me a message about his friend coming from england. And funny how someone when i mention about the job said that this had happened to a friend they scammed her. Now i recieved an email saying this person was removed from this website.
It happened to me too…. however they claimed to be from Australia. What was the name of the person that contacted you!? What can we do as a comnunity to stop this from happening to others!???
Stone s.. He said to email his friend that was coming.. The people who were from “england” had a wierd name. Lol. And i have no idea but this spamming needs to stop. What they do is that they send you a check with no funds and then ask you to send some money back. Or give it to someone. Then your the one who has to pay after to the bank. Its fraud. Another lady sent me an email saying to be her payroll assistant something like that. Explain to me if this is for babysitting where does it say something else like payroll? No, its all fraud. Thats why you shouldnt really trust these websites. It makes me mad, because i would really like a job to baby sit. Not to be emailed by people that its just scam!
Hey Ashley. Please know that the safety of our Sittercity community is important to us. We have a number of filters in place to catch scammers before they connect with our members but, unfortunately, a few sneaky scammers get through. Thanks to our sitters bringing these to our attention, we continue to improve our filters.
I feel the same way I am just trying to make some money sitting to help my child go to school.
Hey Ashley. Please be sure to always report any potential scams you encounter to Member Services (support@sittercity.com). Thanks!
I receive a message from a Nelson James stating that he was looking for a babysitting/ nanny position. However he only wanted to be contacted through his personal email. I did so, but he claim the position had been filled, but he was looking for a personal assistant That can do his shopping and collect his mail using my contacts. He was willing to pay 500 a week for a job for 10 to 20 hours a month. Not 10 to 20 hours a week , but a month. I realized That everything he was saying sound like a scam!
I immediately contacted sitter city informing them of the situation. I am happy I realized what was happening before I allowed these scammers to rob me. Please if you receive an email from jamesnelson59@aol.com JUST KNOW IT’S A SCAM!!!
just happened to me. super sketched out.
I responded to a message and that person Nelson James contacted me a month later and had me only intact him from his private email then he told me he was in Australia on business and that he had the nanny position filled already but he is now in need of a personal assistant and the pay would be $500 a week and I’ll work 10-20 hrs a month and he said that he wanted to meet in person to talk more about this position. He said that he needs my address, sex, race, age and my full name also that I need an active bank account. He sent me detailed messages.
I am so glad I googled 1st and found your post about him! I never knew you could be scammed on sittercity! I will always from now on be more aware of the warning signs.
He actually went with James Nelson as his name and his email was
Jamesnelson918@outlook.com…. This is a scam watch out everyone!!!!!!!
Hi Alison. Thank you for reporting this. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to Member Services at 888-747-2489. Thanks.
I was just contacted by the same guy. Same story except his email address now is jamesnelson919@outlook.com.
Wow he just changed one number in the email address.
I was just contacted by the same guy. Same story except his email address now is jamesnelson919@outlook.com.
To be honest, I fell for this scam. I consider myself a smart person and cautious. However, I felt safe giving this person my personal information being that I was contacted through your website. I also thought parents were screened carefully before they were able to post and contact nannies. I am scared and dissapointed. Not only in myself, but your services/website as well. What do I do now… where do I turn for help now that they have my full name, address and phone #???? PLEASE let me know.
Ritzi
I doubt they will come to your house or anything. They want money…social security numbers.
Hey Ritzi. We would like to contact you directly to discuss this. Please email cpanzica@sittercity.com with the best number/email address to reach you. Thanks!
You should have my email on file since I am a member. However, I just emailed you from that email. Thanks! 🙂
Hi! I had the same thing happen to me. I feel unsafe. Is there anything I should do?
I had a notification yesterday from UK. I was suspicious right away. I do feel we should be protected from these scammers on this sight. This is the 3rd scam I have recieved since I joined this site.
Hi Tracy. The safety of our Sittercity community is important to us, and we have several filters in place to protect our users from scams. That said, sometimes a scammer will get through, but thanks to our sitters bringing these to our attention, we continue to improve our filters.
If you do see something that you believe to be a scam, please be sure to report it to Member Services (support@sittercity.com). Thanks!
I received messages from sitter city asking my background check and will be paid by this interested woman who wants to hire me so I gave all my information from this site. Since then I never heard from this woman anymore. When they want to check your background, they also ask for your sss number. Now I feel so much concern about all the information I gave to this site. I truly regret what I did.
Hi Luziminda. Please know that all the information you provided for your background check is never shared by Sittercity.
I was recently contacted by that same person from Australia Robert Cranberry with a 3 y/o son and his wife Andrea. The person that send the email was Heidi S. I knew right away it was a scam. It was too good to be true. I played along with it for a day then I told them I don’t need any upfront money l could wait and l will not send any money western union anywhere. It was that same email address robert_g71@hotmail.com.
Thanks for sharing the contact info Janice. We will look into it ASAP.
The family from England emailed me as well!
Hey guys just to let you all know if you get any envelopes sent to you. Well I had a family who said they are from France and this family was from sittercity and I had been talking to them for a few weeks. They were coming from France and said I would have to cash a check and I would keep 800 of 1800. Well i was suspicious so I went ahead and let them send it. The day after Sittercity had terminated him but we have already talked. Well I kept the envelope did not open it and I called the police about it. They will send a policeman to your home to pick it up personally and they will ask you questions. I gave them his email and address. Well I never heard fro m the police. The guy left me alone. I pretty much can pick them out. I have never been taken from anyone of them. I have had at least 3 and reported each one to Sittercity. So if you ever get envelopes sent to you call the police and don’t open it. They will send someone to pick it up. Thanks Marta. God bless and be safe.
I have the same problem they said they are from australia..and send me a check to paid an advance them i have to send the rest to other person ..i have the check ..but your coment help me what i have to do because i don’t want that money ,for me it was really weird.
Hi everyone. It happened to me too but I contact sittercity support before anything happen. The strange part was that they gave me an address of their home and it was for sell, I called the broker or realtor an actually there was a family with that name but from the pictures they sent me it was not them, so weird. They were writing me from UK this lady called Susan Hofert, same check scam and pretty long emails.
When they were about to sent me the check I told them what support told me and make pretend I closed my bank account and they were like in shock and asking for a friends account. I was like what? No way I am not urgent for any payment from someone I haven’t even meet yet. So I just stop answering their emails and hope I don’t hear from them again. I confess I was really scared but thankful of what happen to be more award of things like this.
I almost got scammed, just today. i thought it sounded a little fishy, so i looked up “babysitting scam” online. Yup sure enough it was! people are ridiculous. the lady was very pushy about me putting the check in my account. SO glad i didnt. Be careful!!!!!
Someone contacted me, which supposedly comes from spain and sent me a check in advance for USPS pick not yet, please i dont know to do , can appreciate my bearings. Thank you.
Hi Vania. This sounds like a scam. We would encourage you to cease contact with this user and report them to Member Services. Please DO NOT send this person money if they have claimed to over pay you, as that is most definitely a scam.
A scammer has gotten my information from this site. They initially texted me, so I thought that it was someone who was responding to an application that I had left my phone number on. I looked up common sitter city scams, and it was a frequent one; someone telling me her child was in a wheelchair, and wanted to send me a week’s paycheck and the deposit for a new power chair for when they move to my area. I refused to give them my physical address but should I be worried about the information they have from me through knowing me email and last name and PO box?
I was asked by Beatrice T. to do payroll checks for her.She would pay me 500.00 every 2 weeks. I printed checks and sent them out fed-X for 2 weeks. ON Friday the Fed-X account I used was Fraud. She gave me a new Fed-X account to use. the e-mail I got was joycehanks101@hotmail.com the phone # was 323-366-0145. I did get paid most of the money she owed me by money gram.
This has happened to me as wel, she was moving here from Canada an she needed a house keeper an child care, she sent me a $3000 check an then told me I needed to pay the movers ahead of time. I told her i wasn’t born last night so if its true give me the address an when the movers get here I will pay them when I see the furniture. I never heard from her again.
I did not cash the check
Pls help me what to do. Someone scam me too and i dony know it. I let her recieve the check and now i got the check but i didnt go to the bank yet because i read here about that. So i know its a scam. What i need to do at that checl
Do NOT cash it. Report it to the Police.
Look on the ck to see who its from and get on the internet look for the bank address and contact them thay like to know who is writing bad ck as well
I received a message from and “Ashley” who stated her friends were coming from Australia on business.She went on to say the family would require a sitter and then included an email I should respond to. Bengiminwalker@… I believe. Anyhow what first tipped me off was that there was NO way to even respond to this “Ashley” character because she didn’t have an account w/ sittercity. My question is this…HOW can someone send you a message on here if they don’t even have an account w/this site? I’m thinking that ANY contact between potential clients and providers should only be allowed if they both actually have a legitimate account here on sittercity. Its step one in my opinion to safety.I’m sure sittercity is working to correct this as they see there are many scammers
I got one from this man named Mark Hartsell coming from the UK for a family vacation in the states (markhartsell1920@gmail.com) I knew it was too good to be true $450.00 plus benefits a week to watch a puppy for two months?
Pictures that the guy sent me.
I answered 20 questions for a lady from England.Her name was Katherine S.She was happy with my answers but wanted to know more about me.She asked me to send her a ID and a picture. I suspected it was a scam. I sent her a email saying that she could see my profile at sittercity and that I was not comfortable sending my ID to a person I never meet. I never heard from her again
I lady message me claiming to b in the UK burying her mom.Her name was Theresa Rees and the address shave gave me was a mansion for sale in Manhattan and the number she gave me was a Jersey number she sent me a check and I got suspicious and called the company name on the check and found out it was a scam.
I received information from a Kim Ferguson claiming her deaf epileptic sister needs assistance. I responsed and received a check yesterday in the mail. I was s bit suspicious and didn’t cash it. Then I got a message from sittercity stating this person was removed from the website. What am I to do with this check?
Hi Angie. This sounds like a scam. Please cut up and throw away the check.
I had the mark hartsell and his family as well. so ignore any messages from him as well. The man claimed to be from the UK and texted me from a number from Chicago. It seemed pretty legit, he included pictures of him in his email with his wife and daughter but the dog pics without any people in them. Probably all fake pictures. I got a bad feeling so I broke off all contact and his account seems to be inactive on sitter city. Please be careful and watch out for this profile name.
I wonder if you received the same photos I did.
I was contacted by Sarah S. and told me to email Benjamin Walker. A family that is coming from Austraulia and was looking for a nanny for their 3 year old son. Unfurtunately I fell for it and gave my information. What should I do if I receive a check from them?? should I just throw it away or report it to the police?
Hi Dana. Yes, you should throw away the check. You may also report it to the police if you would like. If you do report it to the police and they need anything from Sittercity, we are happy to help out.
Thanks for the heads up.
I was contacted last night by a parent name Mrs. Bailey but goes by the Sittercity profile name B.B. from Bronx NY. The reason I knew it is a scam was because I know another caregiver who actually met with Mrs. Bailey and her husband two weeks ago on two separate occasions and was told that she need to give them a copy of her social security number. She never met with the child on both occasion she met the parents. When she told them the next day by phone that she was not comfortable with giving her social security number she was then told by the father the child passed away. When I informed Mrs. Bailey I will take this matter to Sittercity she then became defensive and wrote a bad review on my nanny profile. I have never came across a parent like this before in my 6 years of working as a caregiver.
Wait is this richard and penny bailey? with a three year old son paul
If, it sound too good to be true, be aware. I saw a typo in Roberto’s request and my six sense told me to make myself unavailable to him and I did. He responded ok.
Come on fellow sitters! It is not that hard to spot a scam. Trust your gut and for heaven’s sake do NOT cash any checks prior to meeting!
Well they don’t t stand an chance withh me,cause if they can’t go through the site,or set an interview meet in an public place. I’m not dealing with them at all
I think i recently got one too. Mark Devereux mark.dvrx@gmail.com… He said he will send me a check but i was like i did not do anything, thats how i feel its too fishy and stop talking to him. So what should i do? How can i report him? Or to who? Thank you!
I am so disheartened with this whole situation. This is my first time using sitter city and I received similar contact from a Richard Maynard. This is just awful. I even sent them my background check but it only had my last four digits of ss# on it. I feel so violated and may just delete my account on sitter city altogether. ugh!
Watch out for a family saying they are from Russia coming to the USA. The contact email used was richardmaynard001@hotmail.com. This is a scam and willing to send money without meeting.
The scam ALWAYS starts out(at least for me it does, don’t know about the rest of you). But someone sending me an email in Sitter City saying something like “Hello and how are you? My name is Debby and my friend is looking for a babysitter, please kindly email her…” And that’s when they sent me an email to that other person. I was SO dumb before. Because I had another one by the name of “Cassandra” saying like “My friend is coming from Spain and looking for a babysitter to watch his kids, please kindly email him. And I should’ve known better when this so-called Cassandra chick said Spain and the guy I emailed through my personal email said Australia. But you live and you learned from you’re mistakes and NEVER let it happen again. If you see a phishy email like the ones I’ve received and then email you saying I’m moving to near where you live, I’ll pay $350 in 3 days advance and send you a check and keys to my new house and blah, blah, blah…Do there’s a loophole for every scammer on here. See a phishy email, report it As soon as you receive it. Well take care Sitters & Nannies. Be safe!!. Don’t know how many crazies are on here.
Concerned Sitter/Nanny/Mommy’s Helper <3 🙂
My experience is similar. Luckily, I backed out at the last minute. This time, the family was from Brazil and wanted me to set up their apartment with food and do some other things with the money they were going to send. They did get some information from me, and I’m sure I’m now on their national “sucker” list, but I will be much more diligent from here on. Be careful out there, corruption is rampant!
Yep i was just the unfortunate reciepiant of a nanny scam from england thank god i stopped it before they sent money
Belguim just happen to me he even sent me a FAMILY PHOTO! sick! but after I started reading it again I realized he stated things that he never mentioned to me before, and then he said :his assistant would send me money for a gift for his daughter”. That through a flag and I said no thank you, but was so shocked he sent pictures! UNREAL.
Was his name Joseph B? He sent me pics, too. After hiring me sight unseen to care for his 3 and a half year old. He wanted me to price nintendo games and he would send me the money for them!
This Guy just tried to get me too. He said his daughter name was maria. sent me a list of the games to get her and what color. sent me photos too. His name was Joseph M. Bollon. said they were from belgium and had a small wine company that they were trying to expand.
BE CAREFULLY WITH NICOLE BURFIELD. Supposedly her husband died and she needs that somebody take care her daugther(2years old) and she will send you a lot of money and bla bla…..
We are all sitting ducks in this mess if we don’t follow some of the signs that can cause us to be taken by scams. Unfortunately we are still trusting and want to really help individuals . I am now dealing with a check that was sent to me for services. My bank found the check counterfeit. The person that sent it sister was to come from Colorado and the person sending it was a so called teacher at a deaf and dumb school. So, the only communication we had was through email and phone text. How dumb can I be. I am a case worker for the American Red Cross and help people all over the state in disasters, but this is obviously the way some people do business on the internet. Linda Henry is the providers name, lindaprint@outlook.com.
Hi, so I joined yesterday and started the background check. It came back today saying it’s cleared. Although since yesterday I have not been able to contact people about potential jobs, saying I need an active account and thought It had to do with the background check not yet being clear, but when I look at my profile It says active. What do I do?
Don’t give your email or other information to Joseph M. Bollon from UK. He wasn’t reading my email replies. Then he added another day to the babysitting schedule and asked me to purchase an item plus 7 games for his little girl and he’d pay me back. It all started to sound fishy. My friend said it was a scam!
I feel so stupid. I just fell for a scam despite my gut feeling that something wasn’t right. They sent me photos of their kids and told me they were in Italy because her father just died…how horrible. I sent them all of my information and now I’m just waiting to do damage control. I really needed a job too…Don’t trust Gloria Blackmore.
hey can I see the pictures she sent you? I think I just got scammed by her
I have a question ? I am just finding out about scammers . They got me 2750.00!!!!! the check was forged or stolen and I sent off the money , my god I felt so stupid!!!!!! How could I be played like that I only wanted a job it makes me not even want to sit anymore for people and the fact that I already went through with and when they tried to ask me to send 200$ im like woah now you sent me money why are you asking me for money , that’s when I got suspicious !!! so I immediately told them I think they were up to something , why does the bank hold the check and not check to see if it is clear to be used ??? I thought that was the purpose of the check being held!! smh this has put me in such a bad place of my life I have commited a sin without even knowing it!!!
Hi Ronielle. I am sorry to hear that. If you’d like to speak with someone about this, please call Member Services at 888-748-2489.
Omg I can’t believe I didn’t read this before….I got one too, she said her name was agenla but it was Amy on sitter city… She said I should send my address so she sends toys n money before she comes, I just knew that was fishy so I told her am not in a rush to take mobey from her so anytime she arrives we can meet and talk in person , she said OK but she kept sending me messages to send my address then I refuse
Please help us stop this kinda scarmer
And oh again she had very bad writing skills…her grammer was wayyy too bad…. So I showed it to my fiance and he said she might be from another country where they do not speak English
But clearly that was a scam
Hi Suzzy. We definitely monitor these scams and try to stop them before they reach our caregivers. One thing that helps us do this is if caregivers immediately report anything they believe to be potential scams.
This Image below shows this family is scam… Are they even real family?… So unfortunately for me I gave my number out to this person so she contacted me n she’d me to send my address….I made my fiance called the number very early one morning n a man picked up…we knew then that it was scam
They r all over,be careful
When it sounds so good to be true , don’t let them in
Hi Suzzy. Thanks for sharing this. If you ever have concerns about a job posting being a potential scam, please call Member Services at 888-748-2489 and they will be able to assist you.
I am new in the field and will like advice in how to go into caring for someone’s pet. I more experience with exotic animals. I am glad that you guys protect us from people that like to take advantage of others.
My first time being in this site and doing this too. So I clearly have no idea what to do. I am glad that this information is given, comes in handy for a new person.
Can I ask something, I message three people so far and have yet to receive a replay. How long should I wait for one and is there a certain way I should reply to people?
So if a person on sittercity looking for a nanny requests your resume do you not send it to them? I received a request for it and sent it. The person wrote back and what he wrote sounds like a scam so I reported it. They do have my home address though since it was on my resume along with a few references. They say they are moving to my area and arriving on June 5th. I told them I would need to meet with them in person before agreeing to be their nanny. I’m guessing I will not hear any more from them.
Hi
Its my first time using SitterCity. Just got a request from a very nice family. After answering some questions through personal e-mail back and forth, they have accepted me.. but we have never met. They told me exact time frames, a decent hourly pay, and daughters specific age (several times). They asked what my zip code was, and I told them not expecting much. After that they told me theirs and its not too far from mine… but same as some of the other families that contacted also. The job wont be for another month but I’m putting my other offers aside for this since its exactly what I wanted.. Has anyone successfully worked for a nice family and have been offered the job without meeting them first? Should I be worried in any way? I’m just being cautious. Any input would help a ton ( input from SitterCity staff as well). Thank you.
Hi Airi. It’s a bit unusual that a family would hire you without meeting you first. It sounds as though this may be a potential scam. Please give Member Services a call at 888-748-2489 and someone there will be able to provide helpful information for this situation.
I just got a text from some guy claiming he was moving into the area and wanted me to babysit his five year old. He wanted me to come to his hotel and watch her there. He wanted me to give him more information so he could send me a check to secure my interest. The grammar he used didn’t sound like anything somebody from the United States would say like, “My wife is on the sick bed with cancer”. Some other things seemed fishy and I just ended up telling him I couldn’t do the job.
I consider myself a fairly smart person but recently got scanned as well, this person Bill Gold was offering a caring housekeeping job he was moving from Finland, the job sounded just a little bit too good, so been suspicious all I gave him was the usual information you give when applying for jobs I did not give him a credit card or bank info. But somehow he tried to use my credit card how he got my credit card info is a mystery to me, thank goodness my credit card company saw the red flag and canceled my card
I just joined Sitter city, mainly to get away from the scammers, looking at the list below me that doesn’t seem to be the case, I think there should be some way that these people who are not genuine should be red flag, so that all will know I would like to know why this can’t be done.
Hi Avril. Those who are believed to be scammers are immediately removed from the site. If you feel as though you have encountered a scam, please report it. If you have any questions you can reach out to Member Services at 888-748-2489 and someone there will be able to assist you. Thanks!
This has just happened to me! I’m in New Orleans and have not given my address to the guy, but he has emailed me and given me a phone number that is “text only” and claims to be named “James Green”. He offered to FedEx me a check for my salary of $850 a week plus his first month’s rent pending that I “cleaned his house really well before he got there”. He didn’t respond when I asked if we could arrange a person-to-person conversation before I agreed to anything, nor did he respond with kids’ names or where they were moving to the United States from.
I feel gross 🙁 Watch out for “Mr. Green”.
I believe that Joseph Bollon from the UK is the same person as Bill Schofield from Belgium because the Bollon description sounds identical to the details used
by Bill to scam me. I am a bit shaken by this and find it creepy.
Also, the time I wasted away from hunting for a real job by investing
in his email exchanges is I hope the only damage that comes of the whole
ordeal. Nonetheless, it’s hard to get back in the saddle again and start
communicating with legitimate families — first determining who they are
and then concentrating on getting the position.
Sittercity might consider a background check at least on the placer of the ad mostly as a deterrent and as one piece of screening. Also, email blasting the caregivers immediately when a scam discovery is made would be very helpful.
The flattened world offers the good with the bad! We all need to act smarter.
I just recently for this scam from richard Bailey and Robert fowler looking for a nanny for the three year old son named Paul. First Thomas Fowler he said he filled the position but needed a personal assistant and after several emails back and forth wanted to know where he could send me information that I would need to organize. After I gave him that I got an email from Richard Bailey stating the identical things so I reported both accounts to sittercity. But now I’m really concerned with what he wants to do with the information and how I can protect myself
Hi Jamie. We’re sorry to hear about this. Please give Member Services a call at 888-748-2489 and someone from our team will be available to discuss this situation with you and what you can do moving forward. Thanks.
I am glad I stumbled upon this discussion. I joined Sittercity as a way to help me do what I love and help my family. I hope this can still be achieved because the rate at which I get scam emails is unbelievable. I didn’t give out any information to anyone as I am aware of their antics but how easy they have access to sitters is unnerving. If the site itself is hacked, I honestly fear for the info of 100s of sitters, carers and nannies being available to nefarious characters. We should be better protected because there are people on here that have been contacted by James Nolan almost 8 months ago and they said he had been blocked but I was just contacted again last week by this character, I wish everyone best of luck.
Hi there. We’re sorry to hear about the experience you’ve had. The trust and safety of our members is something we take seriously and we highly recommend our users visit our Trust & Safety Center (https://www.sittercity.com/trust-and-safety.html) for tips and tools on how to protect yourself from all online scam. Also, our member services team is always available to discuss questions and concerns about suspicious activity. You can reach them at help@sittercity.com, or 888-748-2489. Thanks!
After reading this now I know I got scammed by Morgan Bailey he sent me a large amount of money.. But now he says cash the check and send half of it back.. I haven’t cashed it.. Because it seem too good to be true.. Because I haven’t done any work.. And I knew something was up… I google the number he’s been texting me on.. And one person said it was a scam.. Now he’s texting on (408)-620-7332 I called it and for texting only..
Hi there. If you believe you have encountered a scam (and it sounds like you have) please send any additional info about this person to help@sittercity.com – it will help with our investigation.
As a rule of thumb, never cash a check that was sent before any service was provided, and never send money back after cashing said check.
I just got a very suspicious inquiry as well. Although I did not give them my personal home address, I did present my phone number and direct email information to receive direct contact with them. After asking to meet/receiving more information about them they immediately stopped contact with me. The name was Richard Bailey( email: richardbailey39@aol.com ). I have yet to get a real inquiry from this website; but rather it seems like Sittercity is a playground for exploitation and scams in an obviously negligent manner especially considering these previous complaints on the part of sitters. Those who post here, in any capacity, should be held under higher scrutiny…because otherwise what’s the difference between this process and Craigslist??
Thanks for reaching out to us.
The trust and safety of our members is something we take very serious. We appreciate you reaching out to us with this suspicion. If you have any additional info about this person, please send it to Member Services at help@sittercity.com – it will help with our investigation.
We also recommend always communicating through our site so that we can monitor activity and continue to support you.
i dont know if this lady is a scam or not. lol she asked for my full name address and phone number which you can get on public record ANYWAYS she sent me her name full name and address as well and i found it in the phone book which i wouldn’t think is a scam and shes sent me her flight info that looks legit. shes in england right now burrying her mother and said she was sending me a first weeks pay to ensure i have all my affairs in order. i should recieve the check this week but i dont plan on cashing it until we meet. i even told my husband to keep my daughter for that one day incase its some kind of messed up situation i only need to worry about getting myself out.
Hi Rebekah. This sounds like a scam. We encourage our members to never share their personal info with anyone on the site, and to only communicate via Sittercity. Please give Member Services a call at 888-748-2489 and someone will be able to assist you. Thanks!
Hi my name is Brenda I was email by a guy said to tack care of his 3 year old kid then he told me someone had already took so then he told me he had a personal assistant he said all I had to do is pick up packages and send them to there house he said he will pay me 500 a week I don’t know what to this is how name (james nelson ) help anyone
Hi Brenda. If you are concerned this is a scam (which it initially sounds like) please give Member Services a call at 888-748-2489 and someone will be able to assist you. Thanks!
He’s a scam. I got contacted by him as well. Same story. Email jamesnelson919@outlook.com
I received a message from Cee J. In the message they asked me to text them at 214-865-8335 for more info. Once I did that, they asked from my email. I sent them my email address, and received the following:
Hello,
Compliments! I appreciate your prompt response. John/Matty Our son is 4 years old, he is a lovely kid that is easy to get along with. He is a sweet, loving boy who loves to swim, play, be outside, go to parks, go on walks and just have fun/adventures. He is very bright, engaging, and love to explore his surroundings. He is potty trained, free eater, well cultured, very well behaved and well mannered and he is not allergy to food or anything.
We are looking for someone who will be caring, kind, and patient with John. It is a wonderful 4 days work in a week,Monday – Thursday. I will be dropping him off in the morning by 9:00am and will pick him up by 1:00pm or in the evening by 4:00pm to 8:00pm because i may decide to shift my presentation/duty to afternoon; if you can’t work those hours but you can work during the weekend, no problem as I will get someone else to do these hours.
My name is Cindie and I am an Antiques Collector while my husband name is Sonny and he is a Media Advertising Agent and our son name is John or you call him Matty as you know (Happy family we are). We are coming from Dallas, Texas to attend conference/seminars in town and we will be lodging in a hotel around you. You may choose to babysit him in the hotel or I drop him if you want me (let me know your preferred option). I will be very happy if you can let me know your charges per hour and I also want you to get back to me with your total estimate for a month, so as to have you booked and secured prior our arrival, as I am busy with preparation for the trip and already rounding off plans/allotting money to issues that should be settled prior our arrival especially those that concerns our only child (John/Matty) because he meant alot to us.
What are your likes and dislikes in kids? the time frame is 20th of July through October ending. This offer is for someone of well mannered attitudes, neatness and good sense of relationship, so if you are interested in this offer, please answer all my questions below:
* Are you married? * Do you have any special attitude? *Do you have a valid driver’s license? *How old are you ? *Do you have any crime records? *Do you have an open availability? *What are your charges per hour?
Thank you for your time.
Cindie
I thought the email was odd – odd in questions asked, grammar, etc. I google search the email adress: willmichelle05@gmail.com and it came up on a list for scams. I sent my reply just to be sure, this is what I received back:
Hello,
I have discussed the content of your mail with my husband and it’s okay by us. we’re very sure you will enjoy working with John. our son doesn’t have any bad habits and we know he’ll stay with a new sitter easily. Regarding the fee, we are okay with it as long as you assure us that John will get the best care from you and we have resolved that you should be considered for the offer. Kindly estimate the cost per hour from mid 25th of July through October ending and let me know the total cost.
Moreso, I will need you to forward your details for payment, so that i will get them across to my husband as the payment will be issued through my husband company.
I will also need you to understand that we have pre-ordered some special toy/items that John so much love because we want him to enjoy his stay during this programme. We will be forwarding money for my stuffs and John’s items plus $500 for you as an upfront/part payment (security deposit). Once the payment is issued/gets to you, you are to get the check deposited, cash it, and remove $500 upfront payment for yourself as that will serve as your part payment/security deposit and you are to send the rest of the money to the toys seller because we want the seller to ensure safe delivery of the toy items to you at your address prior our arrival in town. Although, programme commence July ending but we are considering getting to town earlier so as to get settled and be familiar with you and the environment at large.
Kindly send your full names, home/mailing address and telephone number for me to get them across to my husband in order to facilitate your payment.
Hoping to hear from you soonest,
Cindie
I reported this to Sittercity. BEWARE!
Thanks for reporting this and also for sharing with the Sittercity community. Please let us know if you have any questions moving forward!
this happened to me recently and I actually received a check via Fed Ex…claiming to be from Australia..I took the whole thing to the Sheriff’s Dept.
Needless to say I felt foolish :/
It happened to me also twice guys don’t fall for it I will post it the message so if you guys are talking or receiving messages from those people stop doing it because it’s a scam
I receive checks too and I decide to give them to the police explain the story before it got to troubled and for my luck the check everything for me to make sure everything was fine. I hope I helped STAY SAFE
TOTAL SCAM BE SAFE THE EMAIL SHES USING IS willmichelle05@gmail.com
Today 7:44 am
Cin J.
We are looking for a responsible caregiver, someone who will be caring, kind, and patient with our son. We’re looking for a caregiver who likes being active outdoors. We’d like someone who enjoys arts and crafts. send message/text to me on 2/1/4/8/6/5/8/3/3/5 (two)(one)(four)(eight)(six)(five)(eight)(three)(three)(five) for more details about the offer.
TOTAL SCAM BE SAFE
Jul 16 9:53am
Christian A.
Hello,My name is Christian Anderson i was going through Sittercity Website and find something nice about you that I’ll love you to babysitting my Daughter, Kindly get back to me through anderson5654r6@hotmail.com : so i can provide you with more detail about the job . Thanks
TOTAL SCAM BE SAFE
Jun 27 3:56pm
Richard B.
Good Day,
How are you doing today ?. My Name is Mr Richard Bailey, my wife’s name is Penny with our first child Paul of 3 years old { Paul }. We are looking for a loving, responsible, and experienced babysitter/nanny to care for our adorable 3 years old son for some few hours from Monday to Friday. Let me know your available time per day.
You can contact us at my personal email for more information about this position. I will be paying $500 weekly.
MAIL — richardbailey50@outlook.com
I will be waiting to read back from you right now via my personal email for more details about the position.
EMAIL ME BACK RIGHT NOW TO MY PERSONAL EMAIL ADDRESS FOR MORE DETAILS.
Thanks …
Mr Richard Bailey.
I played along with a request I got, they sent a check written on a company in USA, I notified the Company( sent them copy of check) and then sent all material (copies) to local FBI and Postal Inspectors, It is a crime to use US Mail for criminal acts. I work with neighborhood watch, this might be difficult for most, but if you cash that check, you’ll be out your whole account.
I knew I wasn’t being paranoid or prejudiced. I was recently contacted by a person who claimed to be the mother-in-law of a family who’s husband was already in The States- her daughter was supposedly still overseas. She continued to repeat herself- and insisted on performing a credit check on me. That was the red flag. I wasn’t put off by her heavy accent- but the mention of the credit check made me even more alert. My advice: don’t ever accept a job in desperation- and never divulge your personal information. Oh! And do attempt to Google prospective employers.
Hi- I just dealt with a scammer named Michael Hurlbert. He lives in London right now, but he is moving to Evanston, and he needs a babysitter for his soon to be 4 year old daughter. He is going to pay me $28/hour, and needs me for 15 hours a week. He does not have a place yet to live in Evanston, and he wants to rent a place in my neighborhood. Before I found out he was in London, he asked for my email, and I gave it to him. Something did not seem right about him, and now I see I was right. He had a brother who was his financial adviser, who was going to pay me my first check, where I would go grocery shopping for them right before they arrived in Evanston. I reported it to Sittercity support.
This just happened to me too! the name was Cassandra Tomkins casthompkins24@hotmail.com. She claimed to have a 2 year old son named Carl and was ready to hire me for $20 an hour without EVER speaking to me! I had asked for her # & gave her mine, but she said that she was comfortable enough with me just from our email contact. She also said that she would mail me a check (from her husband’s company), to keep $500 as advanced payment, and send the rest to a store manager that would send me a car seat and her son’s favorite toys. That’s when I knew something wasn’t right.
BEWARE!!
They basically said they needed a trustworthy, honest, loving nanny for their 3 yr old son. That my duties would consist of picking him up from preschool, helping clean out his lunch box, get uniform ready for next day, feed him dinner, bathe him etc..
This is the same message one guy sent me, to me I knew it was a scam. For one he didn’t know where I lived, secondly he wanted to pay for a metro card to pick up the little boy. Any time they start off by saying Hi my name is Joe and my wife’s name is Mildred. Idiot