Oct 7, 2014
It's a tough way to learn that there are a lot of bad people out there. There are a lot of folks older than you who fall for the same scam, so you're not alone. I almost fell for the "stolen check" scam once. Got a legit-looking check in the mail once, along with a letter informing me that I won the "Canadian National Lottery", and if I just cashed the $2000 check and wired the "processing fee", they would send me the million-dollar grand prize. Funny that the check was drawn on a bank in Benton Harbor, Michigan. Took the check and the letter to the local sheriff's office, and they told me it was a scam, and the check was probably stolen. Had I actually cashed the thing, I would have been in for a world of hurt!
As far as Craigslist, I buy and sell EVERYTHING locally, and do all deals face-to-face, cash-only, in a mutually-agreed public location with lots of people around (don't really care for getting mugged either). I even say in my listings that I ONLY accept local inquiries, and NEVER give out personal info. That seems to keep the riff-raff out.