Airbnb seems like a great idea.
Founded in 2008, it allows homeowners to rent out rooms or whole premises if they’re going on holiday themselves. With over 2 million listings across 191 countries, Airbnb offers hosts an easy way of making some cash from their superfluous space, while travellers benefit 5 Big Benefits of Booking an AirBnB Room over a Hotel 5 Big Benefits of Booking an AirBnB Room over a Hotel AirBnB has enhanced the guest experience, and mainstream hotels are starting to feel the heat. Here's what AirBnB is doing different, and how it'll improve your traveling experience. Read More from generally cheaper, and arguably friendlier, accommodation.
As ever, though, you’ve got to take the rough with the smooth The Risks And Rewards Of Renting Out Your Apartment On AirBnb The Risks And Rewards Of Renting Out Your Apartment On AirBnb Are you thinking about renting your spare rooms out on AirBnB? Here's why you should, and also a cautionary note on why you should think twice. Read More . You might think homeowners are most at risk, but guests also face major concerns when booking, and during their actual stay.
Discovered @Airbnb has a disaster relief temp housing program. Pretty cool of them.
― Rebekah Rogers (@evolscientist) October 10, 2016
Airbnb can be a security nightmare for those renting ― but what can you do about it?
Fake LinksYou’ll find all kinds ofphishing scams What Exactly Is Phishing & What Techniques Are Scammers Using? What Exactly Is Phishing & What Techniques Are Scammers Using? I’ve never been a fan of fishing, myself. This is mostly because of an early expedition where my cousin managed to catch two fish while I caught zip. Similar to real-life fishing, phishing scams aren’t... Read More on classified advertisement sites like Gumtree and Craigslist: in retrospect, such exploitation methods seem obvious, but we never think it’s going to happen to us.
It should not be a surprise, therefore, to find that Airbnb-inspired scams occur via these places.
Scammers do this a number of ways. The first is by taking conversations away from the Airbnb platform, which is naturally frowned upon. Airbnb, however, typically charge 15% more than the homeowner requests, so cutting out the middle man is tempting.
Image Credit: Airbnb via Flickr
Picture the scenario. You find a great apartment on Airbnb, and there’s an email address also listed to send questions to. You do exactly that, requesting certain dates. Unfortunately, you’re told the apartment isn’t available for those dates, but that there are some related properties nearby. Helpfully, there’s a link to these apartments.
This should be ringing alarm bells, but the link is back to Airbnb, so what’s the harm? The site, though, is a fraud, created to look like the genuine Airbnb website using fake content, copied from the original. Sarah Ruiz-Grossman, who was victim to such a scam, notes :
Their site has the Airbnb logo, and the design matches Airbnb’s to a T. The URLs almost looked legit ― they said“airbnb.intinerary-booking.com,” and the difference went right over our heads. Who looks that closely at URLs? Clearly, we don’t. The listings also had glowing reviews that look just like the ones on Airbnb… The killer move? The fake site’s “About” information, which appears at the bottom of each page, links back to the real Airbnb’s “About Us” page.Genius.
And in case you’re skeptical, the fake site also offers an instant messenger supposedly with the Airbnb team to verify properties are real. Except the real Airbnb doesn’t have an instant messenger service.
Victims are then encouraged to make bookings through bank transfer, which is never advisable.
Fake ListingsThe second way cybercriminals can make serious cash is easier than setting up a fraudulent website: they set up a fake listing.
Absolutely amazed by the @Airbnb offices in #OpenHouseDublin . It'll make you want to go there everyday pic.twitter.com/AIJWdyH1Ul
― Alberto Población (@Pobla) October 15, 2016
It’s the same principle: scammers get photos of other people’s properties, and dress them up as their own. It’s obvious how that scam progresses. If you don’t smell something fishy, you could not only end up being scammed out of hundreds of dollars, but also go on vacation expecting to have accommodation ― then realize you’re out of luck while away from home.
It’s a nightmarish scenario, and there’s even a whole website dedicated to horror stories, AirbnbHell.
There, you’ll find tales of grime, leaks, and various miscellaneous problems to leave you ready for Halloween. You’ll also see complaints about fake listings from verified users . Yes, verified. The system was introduced to reassure users, but ever-resilient scammers have used it to their advantage, often through identity theft.
Airbnb is cracking down on fraudulent listings, but is generally little help to victims unknowingly duped into transactions away from the platform.
Image Credit: Airbnb Office via Flickr Still, the ease with which fake ho