Scamming is allowed. Read names, prices, and quantities. Business only in the trade window with the two-step confirm. Hosp before large cash hits (How to trade → self-hosp). No “double your money.” No “send first.”

They offer cash if you attack them and lose (merits for them; quick cash for you). Legitimate when they pay. Often they do not.

• Tell: Pay comes “after” the attack, or “half later.”
• Tell: Far more enemies than friends on their profile.
• Tell: Offer under $250k or keeps renegotiating down.

• Avoid: Get paid first, or at least half upfront.
• Avoid: Skip lowball floors and “agree later” buyers.
• Avoid: Treat this as a last resort, not a career.

Random mail: send them cash, they “double it” in a week. You never see it again.

• Tell: Unsolicited “investment” or “guaranteed return.”
• Tell: Pressure to send outside a trade, or fast.
• Tell: Vague method, big social proof, no receipts.

• Avoid: Do not send it.
• Avoid: Real income methods are public and boring (Making money).
• Avoid: Anyone offering to “hold” or “grow” your cash is a scam.

Similar icons or names (Xanax vs Vicodin, Skateboard vs Snowboard). You think you bought the expensive one.

• Tell: Deal looks too good for a hot staple.
• Tell: Icon matches; name does not.
• Tell: Seller rushes you past the trade confirm.

• Avoid: Read the name and price every time.
• Avoid: Never trust the picture alone.
• Avoid: Never use sends for business.

A screaming deal on TornW3B or elsewhere. You rush. You pay far more than the listing showed. Price drops long enough to get attention, then jumps right before buy; the page may still show the old number until you click.

• Tell: Price is wildly under every other ask.
• Tell: Listing flickers or changes as you open the bazaar.
• Tell: Seller has a history of bait listings.

• Avoid: Confirm the live bazaar price before you buy.
• Avoid: Only carry enough cash for the purchase you intend (one unit at a time if needed).
• Avoid: Walk away if the number moved.

Big cash in a trade is a signal. When it completes or cancels, a partner (or friend) can mug instantly. Same family: “send items first, money after.” Buy-mugs are the bazaar/IM version after an expensive sale lands on hand. Hosp before the cash is exposed; full checklist: How to trade → self-hosp.

• Tell: New contact, weird friends/enemies ratio, pushes you to add cash first.
• Tell: Trade starts, stalls, then cancels once your cash is visible.
• Tell: “Send first, I will pay after” or pressure to leave hospital.

• Avoid: Be in hospital with revives off before large trades and while bazaar/IM can pay out meaningful cash.
• Avoid: Trade window only. Never direct sends.
• Avoid: Stay hosp until the trade is fully accepted; stash after (Keeping money safe).

High NW player dumps a mountain of one item. Math vs “market” looks like free millions. Reality: inflated book or about to tank. You may be one mule among many.

• Tell: Huge stack of one obscure or pumped item.
• Tell: Seller wants you to clear volume fast at “still under market.”
• Tell: Chart just spiked with no clear event, or a hundred lines so you will not check.

• Avoid: Do not trade what you do not understand.
• Avoid: Ask a trusted trader before you take the pile.
• Avoid: Check history + calendar; size your buy so a dump cannot strand you.

Screenshots of a dream RW. Trade gets the plain weapon. At a glance they look the same.

• Tell: Screenshot bonuses do not match the trade tooltip.
• Tell: Item was removed and re-added in the trade log.
• Tell: Seller rushes past two-step confirm.

• Avoid: i tooltip must match bonuses, rarity, and stats. 1% gaps are big money.
• Avoid: Read the trade log for swaps.
• Avoid: Use two-step confirm so you can cancel after lock.

Property / company / faction “won’t add,” so they want cash outside the trade. Those assets can go in trades.

• Tell: “The UI will not let me add it.”
• Tell: Push for sends, PayPal, or a third party.
• Tell: Color-coded trade slots never show the asset.

• Avoid: Insist on the trade UI. Money red, items yellow, properties green, companies blue, factions grey.
• Avoid: Verify what was added before you confirm.
• Avoid: Walk if they will not use the window.

Vault access emptied, or leadership treats vault cash as theirs. Even big families get hit.

• Tell: Pressure to park life savings “for the war.”
• Tell: Unclear who has banking rights.
• Tell: Sudden leadership / banker changes with no notice.

• Avoid: Do not store life savings there. Prefer stocks, owned property vault, or city bank (Keeping money safe).
• Avoid: Only deposit what you can afford to lose until you trust the bankers.
• Avoid: Vet factions carefully; it still does not guarantee safety.

Some people rent keys for tools (many are fine). A high-access key can expose logs: timing, buys, mug windows.

• Tell: Someone wants a Full key “just for a script.”
• Tell: One key shared across many unknown services.
• Tell: Activity in Settings → API you did not authorize.

• Avoid: Do not sell or hand out a key if you do not understand the access level.
• Avoid: One key per service; read Privacy / ToS.
• Avoid: Revoke and report suspicious use to Staff (API docs).

Pretty avatar fishing for items, cash, or vault access. Treat it as a scam. Anything involving real-life value can get you fedded.

• Tell: Flattery fast-tracks into “send me X.”
• Tell: Asks for vault access, API keys, or RL money.
• Tell: Moves the chat off Torn when money comes up.

• Avoid: Do not send cash, items, or access for attention.
• Avoid: Do not mix RL value into the game.
• Avoid: Report; do not play along.

1. Before any large trade or open bazaar payout: hosp + revives off (checklist).
2. Read every trade line (name, qty, bonuses) on two-step confirm.
3. Park serious cash out of mug range after sales (Keeping money safe).

• Loss selling notes (forum t=15960905)
• BattlebeeAlpha - money methods (forum t=16357988)
• Faction vault caution (forum t=16409528)
• Torn API docs
• How to trade - self-hosp