This scam that targets AirBnb Hosts has been happening for some months but I didn't quite understand how the modus operandi on the scam works.
A lot of Airbnb hosts have been getting private messages via Facebook Message and Whatsapp from individuals wanting to rent their Airbnb units (units belonging to the host). The individual would basically place several bookings to the host's Airbnb unit and then asks for a deal to return 80% of the booking money in return for not staying in the unit. The individual purportedly always claim they have a unit to stay nearby already and are just booking for claiming as their company travel benefits.
Initially, I speculated it was some kind of money laundering operation going on but some Airbnb hosts that have been or know people who have been scammed mentioned the actual modus operandi as follows :
1) Scammer sends message (via Facebook messenger/Whatsapp) to the Airbnb host
2) Once agreement is made with host to refund the booking money, scammer will use stolen credit cards (more than one) the units. The Airbnb account is also hacked by the scammer.
3) Once the scammer gets 80% of cash from the host, scammer disappears with the money
4) The actual owner of the stolen credit cards will file complaint with AirBnb and AirBnb will cancel the booking and refund back money to actual owner of the credit card
5) The host is the net loser because of the credit card reversal.
There's many variations of the message from the scammer but essentially the message objective is the same. The stolen credit card or hacked account information can easily be purchase over the dark web (internet not crawled by Google) in bulk by questionable individuals. The scammer appears to be a syndicate as they are quite multilingual and organized in their operations. Scams like this is very common during Covid19 period as Airbnb hosts are also desperate to look for bookings and money.
For AirBnb guests/users, do protect your account with strong password and change passwords at least once a year. Your account is a prime target for hackers because it is linked with a credit card. For AirBnb hosts, don't let greed cloud your good judgement and fall into this scam.