RuneScape is home to millions of people from many countries and walks of life and, like any community, there can be a few bad apples.
Jagex, Rules of RuneScape (book)
Scamming is the act of stealing items or accounts from another player via trickery which is strictly against the RuneScape rules. Doing so will result in banning of the player's account or even subsequent accounts used by the player.
Different kinds of scams tend to come and go due to updates. For example, the Gravestone update reduced scamming greatly by preventing players from immediately being able to pick up a player's items after dying. Although Jagex has made an effort to limit scamming as much as possible, it still persists today. Secondly, the removal of free trade and the wilderness in 10 December 2007 put an end to most scamming, as players could no longer scam others for valuable items without paying for them; the most a player could theoretically gain from scamming was 50k. Wilderness luring also had become an impossibility.
However, the return of both Free Trade and the Wilderness on 1 February 2011 caused many scams to resurface, including a few methods of gambling such as the "Dice Game" and "Flower Game" (which become scams when the host refuses payment) as players were no longer limited by the amount of coins that could be traded. Mithril seeds are needed to play the flower game and a dice bag from Faruq in Al Kharid for the dice game. This guide will hopefully ensure you outsmart the scammers of RuneScape. This page is not meant to promote scamming, but rather to prevent players from being scammed.
Item Scams
Always remember that if a deal is too good to be true, it's probably a scam.
Double Money Scam
The true money double, although few ever do it, is to show the doubled money in a single trade.
The scammer says he or she is doubling money. Once the scammer gets someone to trade, he will either then take the money (depending on how much the scammer actually gets) and log out or actually double the money to gain the users trust. The user will then trade a large amount of money to the scammer and the scammer will then log out.
This scam is often performed in honesty to gain trust, doubling genuine amounts of money as "tests" often in piles of millions, when trust is gained and players gain confidence, and attempt to double larger piles of money, the trade is accepted without a trade back.
Some of the doublers may claim to have a program which doubles money for them and that is why two trades is required. There is no such program and all the doublers claiming this are being dishonest and most likely will not double your money.
Suggested Action: Don't trade, it is a reportable offence without being scammed of money if the scammer admits that it will be a two-window trade. If it is a one-window (same trade), it is not reportable.
Ex: "doubling money - legit!" > "Is it a single trade?" > "No" > Reportable.
IN GENERAL: People RARELY double money legitimately, it is best NOT to even try to look for a legitimate money doubler.
Trimming scam
Sometimes, a player may be offering a trim for your armour. He will then take your armour and cash, and log out. Players CANNOT trim armour. Trimmed armour can only be acquired as a reward from Treasure Trails. If a player offers to trim your armor, report him/her for scamming.
Trust scam
Some players might attempt to trick other players into playing "trust games" where you have to show your "trust" of another person by letting them hold onto a large amount of cash or a valuable item of yours. Never participate in these types of games! "Trust game" scams have now resurfaced as a result of the free trade update.
Beware these types of scams, as there are many possible variants and ways of gaining your trust. For example, the scammer may actually return the given items the first few rounds, making the game actually seem legit until someone offers a sufficiently valuable item or a large amount of coins. In addition, the scammer may also have a friend for the purposes of bringing up the price of the bids, and in the event that the friend's bid is the highest, the scammer may give his friend the promised money to make the scam seem legitimate.
Suggested actions: Immediately after the host provides evidence that he is playing the trust game, the player may report him/her for item scamming in the honour section of the rules.
Ice Plateau Scam
Ever since the old style Wilderness returned on 1 February 2011, this scam has become quite common. A high levelled player (120+) advertises a drop party often on a crowded world at the Grand Exchange. Once the scammer attains a line of followers, they usually lure them to a less crowded location. The scammer will then announce that the drop party will be happening elsewhere (usually a telegroup location), so they ask the crowd to turn on Accept Aid. The scammer will then cast Tele Group Ice Plateau to teleport everyone to Ice Plateau and then kill the unprepared players, thus looting everyone's valuable items. It is common practice to invite players onto a different server, normally a German or French server and attempt to teleport them, as the teleport screens are shown in different languages, it can be quite easy to accept the teleport without much thought. Another place to beware such an action would be the ZMI altar, where group teleports to Moonclan are common, lowering players' level of alertness.
Suggested action: It is rather difficult to tell if the player in question is legitimate or not until he/she teleports others. To avoid this scam, always check twice before hitting the "Confirm button" so you know where you are being teleported to. You can also just bring nothing and accept the teleport to see whether it is actually a scam or not. If you suspect a scam, you can also warn other players not to accept any teleport offers. Also, you could turn off Accept Aid, so the teleport won't show up on your screen.
Clan Wars scam
A player will be advertising a clan outside of the clan wars portal, once joined he will get one of his low level friends to equip a valuable item (Partyhat, H' ween mask etc..) and enter the portal. The match will be a safe match at first, the scammer then states that he will re challange his friend and set the rules to drop all items, and in excitement the victim will enter the match. The scammer will tell everyone to fall in so that they can pile, and 10 seconds before the match starts the scammer and his friends will switch teams and barrage you, and kill you for your items which they then share between themselves.
Suggested action: Never go into a dangerous clan wars unless you know every person in your team is 100% trustworthy. This is NOT reportable to Jagex, as when you accept to the rules of the match you are putting all your items at risk just like in the wilderness.
Barrows trade scam
Some players will look for someone selling a valuable item, they will offer to trade the person offering a barows item, e.g a Barrows - dharok's set the trading player will see the profit he is about to make and press accept, the scammer will then decline say it was an accident and offer to re-trade. in the re-trade the scammer will then offer a similar looking item like a Bronze armour set (lg) or and immediately press accept, the trader still excited from the barrows offer instantly double accepts looses thier valuable item and is left with bronze armour.
Suggested action: Always take time to check the traded item you are about to accept. And if a player attempts this scam upon you report them immediately and decline the trade.
Rounding money scam
This scam is similar to doubling your money. It seems more legitimate as the scam takes place over one trade instead of two. The scammer will claim to round your money up to say the nearest million coins and ask you to place your money in the trade window so they know how much to give you. They will then put up the required money and click accept. The scam only works if the target forgets that they have offered money. A scenario where this scam is used is where a target has 3.1 mill and places all of it up in a trade. The scammer then offers 900k and clicks accept. The target player forgets that they have the 3.1m in the trade and accept it they will find themselves 2.2m down.
Item trading scam
A potential victim is advertising an item he/she is willing to trade. Another player (the scammer) trades him or her, but offers money or an item that's worth significantly more than the item the player is willing to sell. The seller is about to click accept as the scammer removes their money/item. After removing or altering the offer (e.g. changing a rune item to a mithril item), the scammer also accepts. The idea is that the seller will be so excited about earning such a large profit that he/she will forget to check the confirmation window and will accept the trade right away.
A scammer may also advertise that they are buying an item for an unusually high price. When a potential victim offers to trade that item, the scammer will offer his amount, then decline once the trade reaches the final confirmation window. The scammer will then ask the potential victim trade back and instead offer a value that appears to be the original, but is significantly less (for example, a first trade offer of 100k might be changed to 100 gp on the second trade).
A scammer may also advertise that they are selling an item (one that has a cheap look-alike) for a relatively low price. The victim offers to buy that item, and the trade is canceled by the scammer on the final confirmation window. The scammer will then re-trade the victim back, but will instead put up a cheaper item that looks like the original. Ex: Turning a noted Saradomin sword into a noted steel 2h sword.
Suggested Action: Always check the second trade window. If you fall victim to this scam, report the scammer.
Bait-and-switch scam
This scam is related to item trading scams. The scammer offers to trade a valuable item for an amount of gold well below the item's value. Before the trade is completed, the scammer declines the trade, possibly claiming that some error occurred. Upon repeating the trade, he offers an item that looks similar but is worth far less than the amount of gold he originally asked, hoping that the victim does not notice the switch.
Suggested Action: Really check the second trade window, every time. Check the net value transfer of a trade. Also report the player for item scamming.
Money For Information Scam
A player sees a new item and wants to know more about it. The scammer states he will inform the victim on how to obtain the item for a fee, but when the scammer receives payment, they log off. The scam is most often performed with uncommon or unusual items like a Rune defender or Barrelchest anchor, or newly released items.
Suggested Action: Report the player for item scamming. Ask a more honest player about the item or look it up here on Runescape Wiki. (Note: If the player actually tells you what the item does after being paid, you CANNOT report him/her).
Claiming an item is rare when it isn't
A scammer may claim an item is very rare, when it is actually very easy to obtain, or extremely uncommon. He or she may offer to sell it for ridiculously large amounts of money, and log out or teleport before the player realises that he/she has been scammed (Example: Rare black lobster = Burnt lobster). Before polished buttons were made untradable, they were commonly used for this scam.
Suggested Actions: Report the offending player for item scamming. This scam is relatively easy to avoid if you double check the guide price on the trade screen. However, if a player were to offer an item for a ridiculous price, it is NOT considered scamming unless the player explicitly states such an item is rare and/or unobtainable, But if they say rare drop, it is also not reportable. Little words are key.
Wilderness Luring
Wilderness Lure would be when a player would announce that they were 'shooting' some sort of video and encouraged the victim to bring anywhere between 1 to 3 of their most valuable items, telling them that they would never becomed skulled. The victim would be led deep into the wilderness where they could not teleport once attacked.
The method would be to lure the victim with aid from a friend. The scammer would then trade the victim a chinchompa (item), telling them to wield it and put on auto-retaliate and it would make a "cool explosion." Since chinchompas have an area effect, the explosion would hit the nearby friend and the victim would be skulled. At this point the scammers would team the victim, killing them, and causing them to lose their items.
Other scams involved giving players 3 or 4 inexpensive items with a high Alchemy value, so that they will be kept on death above the player's other items, and even with the items kept on death update, this will work, because it didn't make any difference to dangerous PvP areas[1]. The same thing happens with players luring each other into the unsafe clan wars portal.
Suggested actions: Luring is scamming, and can be reported. You are responsible for your items in the wilderness. Dont take items to the wilderness if you can't afford to lose them. Don't believe someone making a PKing video unless you have known the player in question for a while.
Show Inventory for Amount Scam
Some players will say that they are filling other people's inventories with a certain item, such as Amulets of glory or Sharks. They ask people to show what they have in their inventory so that the scammer knows how many items to give. Actually, the scammer ends up trading the item they are giving away for something much more valuable. In excitement of getting something for free the targeted player often forgets to take their items out of the trade and quickly clicks accept. This is always a scam, because there is a little box in the trading window which says how many free inventory spaces the other player has, so there is absolutely no need for a player to show how many spaces he/she has free.
Suggested action: Pay attention to what you are trading before you hit the accept button. As the number of free inventory spaces is displayed on the trade screen, careful players can easily avoid this scam. The wealth transfer is also displayed. If the questioned player doesn't return his/her victim's items, report him/her for item scamming.
Trade password for item scam
Some players will claim to give away the password to one of their accounts (including possibly the one they are scamming with) for a certain item they want. Due to an update, you can no-longer say your account's password, but there are many ways to evade this censor.
'Suggested actions: Simply ignore them and report the player item scamming. Even though they are mentioning their password, they can't be reported for password scamming because they are not scamming for someones password, only their items. Also, since they are offering their account (even though they would probably lie about or not even say their password), they can be reported for Account sharing/trading.
Surrogate Trader Scam
This scam involves a team of scammers, at least two, one of which is on the victims "Friend List". The friend will PM the player, asking them to see if they can find a supposedly rare item at the GE, offering to reimburse their victim after obtaining it. The seller who the player finds with the requested item offers it for sale at a very high price, either in cash or expensive items. As soon as the trade is made, the remote friend ignore lists the player and the trader logs out.
Suggested action: The best way of avoiding this scam is to avoid making the trade. However, the trader might be reportable for item scamming if he/she claimed the item was rare. If you have undeniable evidence that the remote friend was attempting to get you into the scam, the remote friend may also be reported.
Player House Scam
Some players will try to give you a rare or expensive item for something you might have. In the case of the Player House Scam, the scammer may ask that the player drop his or her items or put them on a table, claiming that they will also put something valuable on the table as well. As soon as the scammer sees their desired item(s), they will kick the victim from the house.
Suggested action: Make sure you report the player. Never drop anything you wish to keep inside of a player-owned house, including your own.
Trade Fast Scam
One player will be offering something good for a significantly lower price than normal. You will go through the first trade window but at the second window they decline and claims that "you must be faster" after doing this 2 or 3 times they will say: last chance. At that trade the scammer offers something that is similar but since the player is so fixed to do the trade quickly he/she may not notice.
Suggested action: Always check the second trade window carefully. Report the scammer for scamming.
Hacking Software Scam
This is one form of the Double money scam. The scammer will tell the victim that he/she has downloaded a hacking program that can legitimately double any amount of cash or any item in your inventory at no loss to the scammer. This makes players think that the scammer is legitimate because he isn't giving any of his own money away. The victim will usually trade the scammer a small amount of gp first and he will double it to make himself seem even more legitimate. Eventually, the victim will offer a large amount of cash or a valuable item and the scammer will log off with the profits.
Suggested action: Report the scammer for scamming, NOT hacking, since he wasn't actually using a hacking program. He may also have a hacking program but to be sure report them for scamming.
Items sold at higher prices by players
Note: This is not actually a scam, but it may seem like one, so this is just a tip to help players.
A player may be selling something for a certain price. Often, the price is high, ranging depending on the item's regular price. The seller may consider this as the normal price due to its rarity or other circumstances such as the location of the trade. Overpricing is not uncommon amongst very wealthy players.
Suggested action: Check the price in the trade screen, if the trade is unbalanced in the other person's favour the difference will be listed in red. If the player's price is higher, use the Grand Exchange. If the price is lower, trade with the seller. You cannot report the seller no matter how high his prices are. It is unknown if there is an exception for very high prices, but since every trade has to be agreed upon and prices are listed clearly this is unlikely.
Two Person Item Scam
This Scam takes two players. One player is stating they are selling an uncommon item (Cheap, but not in many peoples banks) for a ridiculously high amount of gold. Somewhere else (usually on the other side of the building or G.E.) the second player will be stating they are buying the same item for an even higher price.
The victim notices both the buyer and the seller and sees a chance to make money by being the "middle man." However, once they buy the item, both players will log out. The victim has just effectively over paid for a cheap item, and the two scammers get off with the victim's hard earned cash.
Suggested Action: Know this trick to avoid it. If something seems too good to be true it oftentimes is. Ask yourself: 'Why don't the first player trade the other player instead of you?'
Clan War (Dangerous) Luring Scam
This scam can take a single player to do. It is very similar to the Wilderness Luring but players that are not familiar to Clan Wars may be lured into it easier because the Wilderness' dangers are well-known. A player may claim to be dropping items and will tell a player to follow them. They will bring them to clan wars and go to the dangerous section. They will commonly tell the player that the three-item rule applies, although it does not in that part of clan wars.
They will then say that they will just stay in the safe area and drop the item. Once they get the player in the safe area, they will put down a cat and begin to pet it. They will then pick it up, turning them around and thus making the following player swing into the dangerous area. They will then run in, freeze them, take their items, and go on doing it to other innocent players.
Suggested Action: Be vary wary of players saying they are quitting, or feeling generous. If they wont let you go in with no items, don't go at all. If for whatever reason you still go in, you may use the protect item prayer, although they can still drain your prayer.
Wealth Transfer Scam
In this scam, the scammer will often tell the victim that they can duplicate large amounts of gold, or expensive items. They tell the victim to place all the items they want duplicated in the trade window, and to accept once. They then tell the player to click rapidly on the "wealth" text. After a sufficient period of time, they then accept twice quickly and then log out, stealing the victim's items.
Suggested Action: Be careful when carrying valuable items. Do not trust anyone to double your items, for any reason, ever. If you ever see anyone claiming to duplicate items, be sure to report them immediately.
"Goody bag" Scam
In this scam, the scammer will offer a chance at getting a rare/high value, supposedly drawn out of a goody bag, in exchange for a lower value stake. For example a victim stakes 200k to the scammer. They then are told either to pick a number (e.g. 1-5) and the goody bag item is chosen this way. The scammer will likely offer and show several high-value items to a victim, along with several low value ones in order to seem legitimate. Once a victim has paid and chosen a number, they will offer up the lowest value item, earning in the process or simply log-out without giving anything.
A variation is a player simply claiming they have a real "goody bag" tool in their inventory and as such, they cannot guess what item will emerge from it once loading it with 'prizes'. This is false, no such item exists, and the scammer should be immediately reported for item scamming.
Suggested Action: Be sure to avoid this scam. The scammer is able to make their offer seem attractive and legitimate by showing mainly high value items that will be in the goody-bag, and one low value item. Do not trade away your gold on a promise and if you do unfortunately fall prey to this scam, be sure to report the scammer immediately.
Player-run Gambling Games
With the return of free trade, a number of player-run games of chance have popped up. While some of the player hosting these games may appear to be genuine, there is no guarrantee that they will always play fairly, so think twice before playing these games.
If you do decide to play these games, you can limit your risk by asking the host if you may pay them after should you lose; however this does not protect you completely from being scammed. If you do lose, be fair and give the host their bet. They trusted you; it is only fair to keep your end of the bargain and pay your bet. Note that gambling is not considered against the rules unless the host refuses to give you your prize after you win; in which case you should report the player for scamming.
Flower Game
The Flower Game is a player-made game on Runescape which involves gambling. The host of the game will state the minimum bet and the multiplier for a winning bet. The player betting calls a colour of a flower (Yellow, Red, Blue, Orange, Purple, Rainbow, Purple-Multi, White, or Black), then the host plants a mithril seed. If the player's guess is correct, he or she wins a prize. If it is incorrect, the host keeps the bet.
Dice Game
In the Dice Game, a Dice Bag is purchased and dice are rolled. If the number is over a set number, the gamer wins. If it's below, the host wins. The player is generally rewarded with 2x or 3x their money. This game requires you to join a groups friend chat in order to play, if you are going to partake in this activity make sure the person you are playing with has a high rank in that group. As there is a higher chance of being scammed by low ranked members. An alternative version of this game exists where the player must instead guess the result of dice roll (usually using the two ten-sided dice).
Seal Game
In the Seal Game, players bet on which number will appear on the 'backpack' of that appears when the host uses the Seal of Approval emote. An alternative version exists where the player's bet is multiplied by the number on the seal's backpack instead.
Dungeoneering Cape emote
The Dungeoneering emote gambling game. The performer/scammer will shout out guess dung emote x2 or x4 payout. The rules of the game is to guess the emote which is randomised. Chances are 1 in 3 you would get it right normally, but if the person performing the game/emote isn't legit he/she can easily scam people by wearing a Warrior (for melee emote), Seers' (for mage emote) or Archers' ring (for range emote) when doing the emote. Since the scammer has full control of the emote's outcome he/she can equip the ring which hasn't been bet on or the one with the least payout. The people playing/being scammed will be unaware of this because rings cannot be seen equipped. The scammer may lose on purpose the first couple of times to gain trust and increase the bets.
Password Scams
Password scamming is a more serious kind of scamming where a player steals another's password.
Miscellaneous
The following are not actually scams and are not reportable, but they are still considered against the spirit of the game.
Fake Skillcapes
Fake Skillcapes are non-existent items which some users use to scam others. For example, the cow skillcape was allegedly given to a player that killed 10,000 cows (some players additionally lied that the skillcape would come with a cow costume and an emote). This was actually a scam, to waste a player's time. Some scammers would also secretly record gullible players killing cows for upload to YouTube.
False Begging
A player may claim that he or she was hacked and wants free items. There is no way of knowing for sure if the player in question actually did get hacked, so it is not advised to give anything, as that will only encourage other beggars. Even if the player was not hacked, this is not reportable as it is not considered scamming.
Occasionally, a player may change their name to be similar to that of the friend of another and private message them. This is very ineffective and only inattentive people would fall for this one.
Item Lending Trick
Some players who want an item for a long period of time and not paying the correct amount of coins may try to offer the incorrect amount of coins.
For example, a player may ask if they can borrow an item for a few hours. After the victim puts up their item, the player will then put up the correct amount of money for that time, make a few quick switches, and then end with the correct amount of money for one hour.
Jagex doesn't regard this as a scam because you are not losing any items.
Free Kill "Scam"
Ever since the 5/25/11 Death Hats update, many higher levels have been offering lower levels free kills to those wanting Tier 2 hats mainly in the Duel Arena, but also the occasional person in the Wilderness. The person would most likely be lying and instead of letting the lower level kill them, the higher level retaliates and kills the player, adding another kill to the high level's score. This isn't reportable, as the losing player doesn't lose any items, but it may ruin his or her kill streak.
Account Hacking
This action is applicable to basically any online game. Account hacking is when a player steals another player's account. This can happen in several ways, so to make sure this does not happen to you the following should be done: Always have a bank pin on your account, one that you can relate to and memorize easily, but not one that is easy to guess (such as a logical sequence of numbers like 1234, 0000, 7777, etc). Never download anything related to Runescape that is not from Jagex. Of course somethings like SwiftKit are actually not used to hack you, though Jagex has stated they do not recommend using any 3rd party software for Runescape. NEVER give away your password to ANYONE, Jagex moderators or Jagex themselves will never ask for your password other than to log into Runescape....this goes with Phishing. Change your password frequently, suggested once every two months. Make your recovery questions hard for others, but something you know. Never use the same password for any other account or service "like YouTube, Facebook, etc".
Antiquated Scams
Many other scams existed other than these, but a lot of them have been rendered obsolete or are very rare.
Pretending to be Jagex staff
Moderator Scam
In some cases, the scammer informs you that he or she has noticed maturity displayed from your account and that you have been offered a moderator position. If you ask them to prove it, he or she might log into a so called 'staff world' where they claim that normal player cant go into (usually a foreign language world or a funorb server), then the scammer give you a link to tell you that you should apply for a moderator form. Usually, the site will look exactly like the Runescape homepage, even the log in page. The chances are that a key logger is present in the site and any information typed will be recorded. Once you log in, your log in and password will be remembered, and the scammer in the game wants to discuss about the moderator position more. During the time, the scammer will most likely change your password. Then the scammer informs you that they want you to log out of your account so they can 'refresh their systems'. Once you log out, you wont be able to log back in as your password has already been changed. In some cases, you can apply for a password recovery appeal and change your password, but even if you do, the chances are that your valuable items are already gone when you log back into the game.
There are also scams like the survey scam, where a player will trade you, claiming to be an employee of Jagex, and will give you an amount of cash if you were to complete a survey. The scammer then provides the player with a link, where the player would have to enter their RuneScape username and password (now Email and password), which would result in loss of items or other disruptions to one's account. The player may also be infected with spyware, resulting from clicking on a link at the scam site.
To prevent yourself from being scammed, it's best not to follow link, if you do anyway, check the address, most of the sites might be for example 'jagexmod.Websitename.net', clearly they are registered in a sub-domain. You can scroll down, in some cases it might say something like 'Websitename free web hosting'. All Jagex moderators can be identified ingame by a golden crown next to their messages. Jagex staff will never contact you about becoming a player moderator in any way other than through the ingame Message Centre, and will never ask you for your password or Bank PIN. Advertising websites ingame is against the rules, so Jagex staff won't be doing this either. And last but not least, never trust any website other than https://secure.runescape.com/ with your account details.