Police have urged Scots to be vigilant after a number of Gumtree sellers have been scammed by fraudsters using fake bank notes.
Officers say that crooks have been using counterfeit £50 notes to pay for items listed on the online trading platform in the north and north east of the country.
Scots have been advised to do a thorough investigation of any £50 notes they receive before accepting them.
If the cash is suspected to be counterfeit then the police should be called immediately.
A spokesperson for Police Scotland said: “We are asking people to be vigilant following counterfeit £50 notes in circulation across the north and the north east of Scotland.
“Victims have placed items for sale on internet trading sites such as ‘Gumtree’ and have been given fake £50 notes in exchange.
“The serial numbers on notes should be compared against each other, along with a general examination of the money prior to any goods exchanged.
“If you suspect the money to be counterfeit then do not accept it and contact police on 101.”
A Gumtree spokesperson commented: “We take fraud very seriously and are committed to tackling scams and educating people about how to avoid them.
"We clearly highlight safety information for buyers and sellers on our website, including a dedicated advice page on safe methods of payment, and we urge our users to always check if banknotes are genuine before accepting them.
"We would encourage anyone who thinks they may have come across an attempted scam to report it to us so that our dedicated safety team can investigate and take action such as blocking the offender from the site.”
