Suspicious scam

I received a Malaysian telco number saying "is your car still available for sale?kindly email on (scammer's email) as this is urgent". I have an advert posted on my second-hand car. This is what she replied.
"Thanks for the prompt reply. My name is Lorraine West. I believe my son sent you a text message to email me for the sale. I will like to know the lowest price for it and i want you to get back to me with more pictures and its current condition because i can't come over to inspect it. I am buying it locally here as a gift for my son that is living in United Arab Emirates
I am at sea at the moment as i am an Oceanographer ( i work on South Pacific Ocean in east of New Zealand ) and due to the nature of my work, phone calls is restricted. It was my son that check your advert and sent you a text to contact me (his mother ) on my email address because i am currently offshore .
I am really sure he will be more than happy if i am able to purchase it from you because this is what he want and chose from the Advert.
You need not worry yourself about how it will get to him there in United Arab Emirates as i have a contact of shipping company there that will be handling the pick up and all the paper work"

Scam. The oceanographer ploy is common in this kind of scam, and even a West African oceanographer (the writing is West African) would write better than that. Don't sell the car to anyone you don't meet in person.

We had some conversation about the agreement to purchase. I have sent few images of my car and finally, she came to a decision to purchase. She replied:
PayPal is the fastest, secure,easier and the best online transfer or receiving of money into someone's account. You register with PayPal account with your bank details or credit card. It is very easy to set up, the registration will take only 5 minutes, so any transfer you made with your PayPal goes through to your bank account. It is free, safe and reliable.
After you have registered for PayPal account, all i need is just the full name with the email address of the PayPal account to transfer the funds into your bank account that you link up with your PayPal account, it is just as simple as that and Payments are irrevocable
For more information visit www.paypal.com

What 'vx' said still applies.

The next step is that you'll receive a spoofed message pretending to come from Paypal confirming you've been paid. The scammer sends it hoping you won't check with Paypal.

You'll be told that you need to pay fees by Western Union to people who will collect your vehicle on behalf of the fake buyer. Of course there's no reason why you have to pay anything. If the buyer can pay you, he can pay the collection agent too, but he can't scam you otherwise.

The scammer sends out hundreds of messages a day hoping a few people will fall for it.

The scammer (more likely really male) is using a standard paypal script.

If you were to give them a paypal address, you would soon receive emails (as Terrance said, they will be spoofed, meaning they will be made to look like they came from paypal, even though they didn't) stating that payment had been made, including extra for the "shipper." The email will state that your money is on hold and will be moved into your account once this payment to the shipper has been made (as TB said, most likely it will be by Western Union, though occasionally they choose another untraceable method) In reality, the "shipper" is the scammer or an accomplice, and it is this cash that the entire scam is really about.

After receiving the fake email, if you actually go into http://www.paypal.com and log in to see your account, you will see no money received.

In reality, Paypal does not act as an escrow service. They do NOT hold payments pending shipping as any kind of service. When they do hold payments (typically for a brand new account with no history, or when there is a dispute) the money shows up in your account, but you just can't withdraw it.

Payments are irrevocable

More scammer fiction here. Payments can be reversed in many situations. It happens all the time. And if the receiver hasn't physically withdrawn the payment, it's actually quite easy.

But the scammer wants to convince you that you have money coming and that you MUST follow his instructions because there is no way to take the money back. In the end, nobody would show up for your car. The "shipper" would disappear with your money, and the scammer (who is using fake, untraceable information) would disappear as well. You would have no money in your paypal account, and will have lost the entire amount you sent for "shipping.' You will have no way to file a claim with paypal, because they had nothing to do with the fake emails that were sent, and are not liable if you follow instructions that are clearly against their policies.

Good grief!
Silly old lorraine still trying to fool people. The same text as you posted has been used in a previous scam dated January Twenty 14. The only difference being the scammer pretended to be a marine biologist.
http://www.scambusters.co.nz/forum/view ... &start=195 is where you can see the same script.
The scammer has previously used the names lisa manson & gloria Gibson
Also have a look at viewtopic.php?f=6&t=32644 whereby the text looks strikingly similar too.

Very informational statement u guys. Glad that I am not the next victim being scam. Since they had use a mobile number to message me, maybe I can trace her number.

Most likely it will be a prepaid phone, if registered it will be using fake information.