Anti-scam guide
Nine red flags, and the counter-move for each
Every scam below is one we found documented in the market Faras replaces. The pattern is always the same: separate you from diligence, then from money. Here’s how each works — and how the platform is built to break it.
- 1
The photos are stunning; the videos don't exist
The play: Stolen photos from European sales sites are the classic. The horse either isn't theirs or looks nothing like the pictures.
Counter: Demand walk/trot/canter video with today's date spoken aloud — or filter to Horse Verified listings, where we've matched the microchip on site.
- 2
"My vet already checked it — here's the report"
The play: A seller-commissioned exam surfaces nothing the seller doesn't want surfaced. Sometimes the letterhead is real and the horse examined was a different one.
Counter: Only trust an exam you commissioned. Book your own PPE; cross-check the microchip number on the report against the horse in front of you.
- 3
Papers "in process" or "with the previous owner"
The play: A purebred price without registry proof. The passport never arrives, and neither does the pedigree.
Counter: No registration number, no purebred price. EAHS/WAHO registration is checkable — Papers Checked listings already were.
- 4
Pressure to close today
The play: "Another buyer is coming this afternoon from Saudi" — urgency kills diligence, which is the point.
Counter: A genuine seller accepts a deposit that holds the horse through a PPE window. That's exactly what Buyer Protection formalizes.
- 5
The price is 40% under market
The play: Bait pricing harvests deposits from buyers who "reserve sight unseen before it's gone".
Counter: Check comparable listings in the same discipline and record band. Never send a dirham before seeing horse + chip + papers together.
- 6
Payment via a link they send you
The play: Fake "escrow" and "shipping company" portals that clone real brands. The page takes your card; the horse was never real.
Counter: The real Buyer Protection flow only starts from the button on a Faras listing. Any link sent in chat is a fraud — report it.
- 7
They won't let your vet flex the horse
The play: Restrictions on flexion tests, lunging on hard ground, or X-rays usually mean they know what you'd find.
Counter: PPE Welcomed is a structured field on Faras listings. "No" is information — price it in or walk away.
- 8
The WhatsApp number changes mid-deal
The play: Account takeover or a relay scam: the 'assistant' or 'brother' takes over as the deal closes and the payment details change.
Counter: Payment details never arrive by chat in the Faras flow. If the counterparty changes, stop and re-verify through the listing.
- 9
No stable visit possible, ever
The play: "The horse is at a private farm / in quarantine / with the trainer" — indefinitely. You're buying a story.
Counter: In the UAE you're never more than two hours from any horse in the country. No viewing, no deal — full stop.