How do you tell a real buyer from a scam message?

Diligence! Question everything. Use AI. Search name address phone numbers. The internet is the wild Wild West of fraud.

I had one that was so convincing. The address the name everything matched up accept the phone number for the gallery and the one in the email were different. So I called the gallery. Fraud🤷🏻‍♀️.

I'd say follow your gut, and ask around on the art scene if you can, in case other people recognise the format.
The most common sort I get are vague inquiries about multiple or non-specific pieces, which turn out to be NFT scams. I now have a template email to respond, which, so far, has put off would-be scammers, hopefully without alienating real collectors:

Dear ------,
Thank you very much for your interest in my artwork. I really appreciate you taking the time to get in touch.

All my artwork has stories behind it - I'd be very happy to tell you more, just let me know which pieces interested you. While I'm still working on my online shop, much of my work is available for sale on enquiry.

If your enquiry relates to NFTs or digital ownership, I'm certainly happy to discuss legitimate opportunities. However, I have a straightforward policy that I apply consistently to everyone.

I only work through well-established, reputable NFT platforms or trusted intermediaries, and I don't pay up-front costs or fees as part of a sale. This includes minting fees, gas fees, account activation charges, validation fees, or any other expenses requested from the artist. If an NFT purchase involves minting or platform costs, these are arranged by the purchaser or through the platform itself as part of the transaction.
I also don't handle cryptocurrency.

This policy simply protects both parties and ensures that any transaction is carried out securely and transparently.

If you're interested in acquiring my work through an established platform, or if you're enquiring about an original artwork or print, I'd be delighted to continue the conversation and explore the options with you.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Kind regards,

Catherine Fostervoll

To me, the red flags, besides the obvious ones, are: no specific titles of work mentioned, no medium mentioned (I am a photographer that sells metal, canvas, and framed prints), and no mention of how they "found" me. If the message seems half legit, I will check them or their company out via a web search. I never click any links they provide. So far, almost all the "buyers" have been scams.

I was scammed last week and I decided it was likely an AI bot due to the way in repeated a word. Blocked it. I don’t need a sale bad enough to let it play out any further. It’s tiring.

They usually have very generic requests, don't give you proper answers if you ask for more details, and try to take you on another platform to talk, often telegram.

Most of the time they don't even check what you are offering, and ask for things like kids or pets portraits.

Some time they ask to buy your art as NFT.

Other they say they already send you a PayPal payment and to check your mail. Always check directly on PayPal.

I get NFT requests the majority of the time or they will flatter you about your art, being generic and not one piece is mentioned.

I usually rub my email through ChatGPT and get it impression. It will recommend follow up just in case it’s not a scammer on the weird ones. Trust your gut. It has always been right.

I usually can tell because I will get a few of the same, misspelled emails at the same time from "different" people. Also they will ask to pay via crypto currency. Some of them will go through a story of how they want to surprise their spouse with a special anniversary gift. Usually if I send them to my site too purchase from there, I then will hear crickets.

I always ask to have a video call. The scammers do not accept it. have heard so many lame excuses...

I keep getting those inquiries that as well as not right off telling me "via NFT" they say they want many, or several of my art pieces and would like to speak to me about purchasing them. Since they contacted me through my website, they would have automatically seen that they could go through my purchase process to get them. So that has become an immediate "Red Flag" revealing to me that their real otive was NFT, but they were not telling me yet. I respond to them telling them that all usual interest approaches I have like this, always end up as NFT or block chaining and experienced artists know better and want nothing to do with it. This especially since they did not want to go through my website purchasing to acquire my paintings.

I get NFT scams a lot. I just tell them they can buy the print on the print on demand website. Usually don't hear from them after that.

Someone using a paypal scam overpayment then asking you to refund.

I've been defending myself against NFTs for a while now; I learned to defend myself against many tricks, I felt almost immune, I thought I had seen them all, but I still fell for about US$200, more or less. This thing about art buyers who proliferate, a new field, I fell for it anyway because I wanted it to be true, usurped names of famous people, fake photos, pirate banks, they invent all sorts of things. One piece of advice: the only way to sell on the Internet is serious platforms properly registered like Saatchi Art and others that are appearing. Fellow artists, there is no easy way, don't fall for it, they're all traps

Here I have already been contacted by a woman who wanted to buy, for one thousand euros or pounds, each of the photos of my art and not my paintings — note — and she would pay in cryptocurrency, and it was for a digital museum. When I informed her that I did not accept cryptocurrency as payment and requested €15 in cash or a transfer to my account for each photo of my art. The woman did not respond to me any longer and deleted her profile on Arthelper.

If they mention purchase via NFT, I shut it down. Just wasting my time.

Or, they want to pay in crypto currency (usually for 5 to 10 times the items current selling price) - same: scam time!

I was almost caught earlier in the month. It seemed so legitimate and I was so excited for such a nice sale, but it didn't take long before I became suspicious and backed out. There are LOTS of them out there and I think that until you have the money, you can't trust anyone.

I've had several NFT scammers, I have turned them all down. Twice I have been asked to do event photography. The latest one was somebody wanting to hire me to take Engagement photos. If they looked at my website they would clearly know that I don't do that type of photography. I have also run the scam requests through ChatGPT and it has picked up scams and written a response to the scammer for me as well.

The only way is to follow through until it becomes obvious. Which it usually does quite early.

The new one through messenger is wanting to take the chat through to what’s app with the phone number.

One I thought must be a scam turned out not to be.

A lady emailed me saying her and her husband had recently got divorced (amicably) and she was expecting him to get in touch with me to buy some artwork. She gave me his name and other info which seemed quite odd.

A while later her ex husband contacted me.

We agreed on slightly less shipping (UK - USA) for two large pieces.

Then his credit card got rejected.

He did eventually pay. The artworks were shipped and later he came back and bought another.

So you really never can tell.

Great question, I keep getting NFT scams, no legitimate buyers.

I started in Art Storefronts in March 2026 and I’m up to 33 scams. If I don’t get one every few days I feel left out. Not good enough for even a scammer. But, they keep coming. I can pretend for a few minutes they are real…

Just send them to your website and if they have further questions to send a contact form. Usually the end of it. Sometimes some weird excuses about no access. then you know

I do the same thing Jon Berndt! I follow through unless it is very obviously a scam...It eventually shows it true face if you simply follow through.

Of the inquiries I have received - as you noted - it is usually pretty obvious. When it's not, I follow along until it becomes obvious it's a scam, or when the money shows up. I haven't yet run into the gray area you described. I would be interested to hear the experiences of others, too - good question.

This is such a real concern. I've had similar messages about my floral work, someone praising specific color palettes in a way that felt almost too tailored. In my experience, the biggest giveaway is when they try to move the transaction away from your website checkout. If someone wants to pay through a personal transfer app or send a check instead of just buying through your site, that's where I get cautious. Same with the "is this available?" question when it's clearly listed for sale online. Emotional stories tied to urgency have also come up more than once. And anything involving crypto or NFTs, I just quietly move on. Checking community threads where other artists share scam attempts has honestly saved me from second guessing legitimate inquiries, because I can compare the patterns instead of just reacting from paranoia.

I received a lot of requests for other forms of payment. When I say you have to purchase by credit card through my website they say they don’t have one. My comment is if you can’t get a credit card then you can’t afford my art. NFTs are also a big scam

A legit person will not have their first message to you be, "Is this for sale?" "I would like to but NFT". Usually, they are going to start a conversation: "Hello, my name is XYZ. I saw your art at this place, or word of mouth, or whatever. Then ask a sincere question."

I find this exercise particularly complicated. In general, the "buyers" who impose a particular process do not inspire confidence in me. Indeed, when I buy a product online, I don't ask the seller to do it according to what I want. Either I buy it as proposed on the site, or I'll look elsewhere. When I signed up on Arthelper, I received many proposals for unsubstantiated NFTs.

Welcome to the "club".

Hey! The fact that you caught the overpayment one on your own means your radar is already working. And honestly, the part about worrying you ghosted real buyers hits harder than the scams themselves. That's the real cost of all this noise, it makes you second-guess the legitimate people too.

Here's the short checklist that separates almost every scam from a real inquiry:

- Real buyers pay through your website with a credit card. Full stop. Anyone who wants to mail a check, wire money, use their own shipping company, or overpay so you can "send the difference" is running a script. The single best filter: "I appreciate the interest! I handle all purchases through my website" and then drop the link. Scammers vanish. Real buyers click.

- Watch for urgency that doesn't make sense. "I need this shipped tomorrow, it's a surprise for my sick mother" paired with zero questions about size, framing, or color accuracy is a tell. Real gift buyers ask practical questions because they actually care about the gift landing well.

- Vague flattery with no specifics is a red flag, but vague flattery with ONE specific detail (like your "warm tones" person) is a more advanced version of the same script. The test: does their follow-up question move toward checkout, or toward getting you off-platform? Real buyers move toward "how do I buy this." Scammers move toward "let me explain my complicated payment situation."

- If someone asks detailed questions and seems genuinely interested, keep talking. The scam always reveals itself within 3-4 exchanges because they NEED you to do something unusual (accept a check, use their shipper, send money somewhere). If after 4 exchanges the only thing they've asked you to do is tell them more about the work or point them to your site, that's probably a real person.

The rule of thumb: you never have to do anything weird to sell art to a real collector. The moment someone asks you to step outside a normal transaction, that's your answer.

Also worth knowing, if you get scam messages or suspicious contacts on ArtHelper, there's a built-in reporting feature on every post and comment (the ellipsis menu) so the moderation team can act on it.

Don't beat yourself up about the ones you ghosted. Going forward, the "I handle everything through my website" line is your filter. It protects you without closing the door on anyone real. Want me to draft a few copy-paste reply templates for the most common scam patterns so you have them ready to go?

Other resources you might find helpful:

- How do you spot a scam buyer these days? — Real buyers vs scammers: specific red flags like payment workarounds, vague inquiries, and verification tactics to protect sales.

- How do you vet purchase inquiries that come through your contact form? — Real buyers use your normal payment channels; scammers push external payment methods like wire transfers or checks—watch for conversation redirects as primary red flag.

- NTF Scam Alert — Detailed breakdown of celebrity impersonation scam red flags and verification tactics to distinguish legitimate buyers from fraudulent schemes.

Arty is our artist super-assistant. Trained on all things related to art business & marketing. use @arty in a post or comment to ask Arty directly. upvote & downvote to provide feedback.

I fell for the same thing with small variations.