Timeline for How do cashier's checks work and why are they good for scams?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
16 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Sep 3, 2016 at 5:23 | comment | added | Random832 | When I read about this, the explanation was that (real) cashier's checks are required by some law to be made available in a certain amount of time, so after you deposit a (fake) cashier's check purportedly from a remote/overseas/nonexistent bank that can't be contacted in that amount of time, your bank will "clear" it without having properly verified the check, and then will take the money back away from you (after you've withdrawn it and sent it to the scammer) | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 21:43 | comment | added | TTT | @Aerovistae - Ah, right. I forgot about that rule. I just added some sentences related to "security". | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 21:42 | history | edited | TTT | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
add some particular notes about "security".
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| Jul 27, 2016 at 21:29 | comment | added | temporary_user_name | I laughed at that too, because it won't let me change it unless the answer is changed. | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 20:39 | comment | added | TTT | As a side note, I think this is the first time (that I know of) where I have a DV from the same person that accepted my answer. Hehe. | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 20:37 | comment | added | TTT | Thx. I agree with you that there should be a better mechanism for instant verification cross-bank. They figured out how to do it with debit cards... | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 20:35 | vote | accept | temporary_user_name | ||
| Jul 27, 2016 at 20:34 | comment | added | temporary_user_name | Oh, deposited at a different bank than it was funded at. That makes sense. | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 20:33 | comment | added | temporary_user_name | But why is a fake cashier's check cashable? Surely nowadays there would have to be a record of it in the electronic system, created when it was issued? | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 20:33 | comment | added | TTT | @Aerovistae - The scam is as simple as a fake cashier's check. Your link #2 says that in the first sentence. The depositing bank always just assumes the check is legit, and doesn't get the bad news until after it sends the check to the funding bank. | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 20:28 | comment | added | TTT | @Aerovistae - The reason, which I tried to explain in my answer, is simply about perception. A cashier's check is more secure than a personal check for the same reason that cash is more secure than a cashier's check. Because it is harder to counterfeit, and therefore people accept it without taking it to the bank and verifying that it's legit. If people always waited for cashier's checks to clear just like regular checks, no one would be scamming with them anymore. People can make counterfeit cash too, but that doesn't mean cash is no longer secure. | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 20:19 | comment | added | temporary_user_name | I'm looking for an answer from someone that knows how this works; ideally it shouldn't involve "I assume this is what happens." If the scam is as simple as a fake cashier's check, I would think it wouldn't be cashable, as there would be no record of it in the bank's system. That wouldn't make sense with how these scams play out, where the check is cashed and then fraud is discovered later. If you're right, if it's that simple, I'd just like to know for sure rather than assume that's the fundamental method of most cashier's check scams. | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 20:18 | comment | added | temporary_user_name | Sorry, had to downvote this because it fails to answer my question. I already understand why cashier's checks are considered "safer," as the info in your answer is explained in the sources I copy-pasted over. What I don't understand is how that can be true if they're convenient for scamming, or how the scam is possible given that the bank supposedly takes the money from the account as soon as the check is issued. Your answer does not address these two points. | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 20:06 | comment | added | user27684 | +1. I'd also encourage the OP to think about how a cashier's check really is quite safe if it's coming from a known source, such as a regular customer for whom who have a reliable permanent address. A personal check can fail due to their negligence, but if they try to pass off a forged check, you have everything you need to send them to prison for a very serious crime. | |
| Jul 27, 2016 at 13:33 | history | edited | TTT | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
fix typo
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| Jul 26, 2016 at 18:36 | history | answered | TTT | CC BY-SA 3.0 |