oh my god Megaplex happened and people are still getting scammed for hotel rooms -- SHARE THIS to save a fellow furry from getting stranded at a con! also available on
TwitterMany conventions continue to see a large number of often-foreign scammers attempting to deceive people looking for hotel rooms. Use extreme caution when interacting with strangers whom you have never met if you are searching for hotel rooms.
Pay particular attention to these red flags on Telegram:
• No account username
• Few profile pictures, or lack thereof
• Multiple profile pictures uploaded in quick succession
• Broken English and improper grammar
• Abnormal or overzealous usage of furry terminology
• Obviously stolen artwork (cropped low quality images, well-known art pieces, etc)
• Non-furry profile pictures or names
• Low or absent activity and engagement in group chats except for constant room advertisements
Never pay for a room with cryptocurrency, wire transfer, gift cards, or similar methods. Use caution when paying via Cash App, Venmo, or PayPal unless you are paying someone you already trust. Be extremely wary of any requests for advance payment, especially "deposits" or "confirmation payments". Nearly every hotel does not charge you for your room until you check in at the convention, so there is little reason to pay anyone far ahead of time.
Try to room with people you already know, if possible. If making new friends is unavoidable, consider arranging a video or voice call to verify someone's identity before any payments are made. At the very least, get the person's full legal name as well as any reservation confirmation numbers so that you can call the hotel and verify that the room exists. Be sure to ask whoever booked the room to add your name to the reservation ahead of time.
At the end of the day, if anything seems off, it is better to play it safe and look elsewhere. If an offer seems too good to be true, it probably is.