How frequently do people get scam requests on Rover?

I have had 3 scammers and been using Rover since Nov 2019. The first one was soliciting sex or inappropriate photos. The last two did the typical "I don't know how to use this app, do you mind if we text only". So if they are asking for things that are going against Rovers recommendations like texting instead of through the app or asking for your address to mail a check, just tell them Rover recommends using the app only. If they persist just report them and have customer support figure out if they are real. Although I kind wanted to have some fun and see how far they could keep up the falseness , I reported them immediately and rover customer support told me they were handling it immediately.

My first request was very similar to this. And I just got received a similar request today. With the first request, the services she was requesting did not match what I offer through Rover so I politely told her that I could not do it. With the request today, they're offering to pay me more than my posted rate which makes me uncomfortable so I plan to tell them that and decline the booking.

I just got one about the "uncle relocating from Paris and paying $300/week to drop in once a day" too...ugh...

This is great to know. I never thought this could be a problem. Thank you for sharing.

SCAM bookings are becoming more common every day and there is little Rover can about someone creating a bogus account and then sending out a booking request. Along with that many new to the site don't complete their profiles so it's hard to discern what is a valid booking vs. a SCAMMER. You have to look for tell tale signs, asking you to email them or call them on a number provided or offering to pay you cash or rates above your rate. If you suspect something may be wrong your first step should be to call Rover support, 99.9% of the time you will get a respectful rep the other .01 percent you may not so just roll with it.

I've had at least 5 scam requests and haven't even been using Rover for a year. It's usually easy to spot but it's making me feel unsafe. What reason is there to scam people on Rover other than luring you to a location to do something nefarious. The requests usually offer many days of care, claiming our messages are glitching and they want to text personally, asking to pay me cash because "they don't have a card", asking for my email, my personal address for no apparent reason, typing with really poor English grammar, not having a photo of their pet or themselves etc.

I got my first scam request last Thursday. A person named “Dani” needed IMMEDIATE care for his dog that he left at a friends house. Upon looking at his profile, I noticed that it was very vague. Barely any details about the pet. Not only that, he said the pet was a 8 month old, 26lb Lhasa Apso - huuuuge red flag - I have a vast knowledge of dog breeds and know that that breed reaches 15lbs fully grown. I played in to it just to see where it would go. He told me he needed my phone number because he couldn’t message me through the app. I told him that I couldn’t provide him my number as Rover had a strict policy. Then I tried to call him through Rover - he said he couldn’t answer because he was at work. He then told me to break my number up and send it through Rover, lol. Hard no. I kept trying to ask him questions about the dog, because legitimate dog owners LOVE their babies and will provide you with everything, he kept calling the dog a “he” then a “she”…another red flag and barely provided me with anything other than “she’s a nice dog”. When I asked about how he would be getting the dog to me (because he was out of town) he told me his “Utility team” would be dropping the dog off (I laughed because I was picturing a truck full of men dropping the dog off or the dog being airlifted in). He also told me that he couldn't pay through the app because he had credit card issues. He also kept trying to ask for personal information (which I provided none of). This guy just screamed “Nope!” so I reported him and Rover investigated/removed him from the site. Please be careful with this kind of stuff, fellow sitters! Look for red flags, even if the sitter seems legit - go through everytbing with a fine toothed comb.

I have no idea how prevalent it is. I think I've had only one such attempt in my 8 years on Rover, Once, I got a strange request and called Rover Customer Support to see if I could verify whether it was a real customer. I got the rudest response from them. Something along the lines of 'yes, he's a real customer.' Well, excuuuuuuuuuze me for asking! I didn't appreciate their lack of concern.

Anyway, the only way to deal with potential scammers is NOT to give out any personal information or requests to discuss a booking outside of Rover's platform. When a customer wants to pay you directly and asks for your address (for a check) or banking info (for an electronic payment), then alarms should go off in your head. Report the contact immediately to Rover Customer Support.

Just because a person hasn't filled out their pet's information on the site or just signed up that day wouldn't necessarily indicate a fraudulent attempt. Many people sign up at the last minute because their regular pet care provider had to cancel out and they are desperate to find someone. Also, they don't think it is necessary to fill out the info, don't have the time, or can't figure out how to do so. When I get one of those, I politely ask them to take the take to fill it out, mainly because there could be information in there that I consider deal breakers and I don't want to waste anyone's time with a M&G, only to find out their dog isn't suited.

Hope this helps.

Just had a girl named Mary with a not complete info card that told me to email her uncle who is moving from Paris and would pay $300 weekly to watch his dog Eddy. Then they asked for my address and other info. Definitely a scam.

DO NOT GO OFF THE APP. This is a very common scam. If someone asks you to text off the app to discuss arrangements and they try to pressure you, that is a red flag. Decline the job. I had the same exact scam happen that was written above. A woman used the app saying her uncle was moving here from Paris and wants me to text him to make arrangements. Immediately I thought why doesn’t he use the app but unfortunately I did text him. He wanted to pay me $250 a week to watch his dog MWF for one hour and it was supposed to be ongoing. This is all a lie. Then he wanted me to buy dog food… after he sent me a check. He went on and on and I blocked him. I talked to the police because I was afraid someone would go meet him and get raped. They told me these people don’t live in America and they will send more money than you are asking for and ask you to deposit it and it will bounce. It happened to a photographer I know. Make sure you book the job and then do the meet and greet. Bring someone with you if you are uncomfortable because being in someone’s house alone can also be dangerous. They are most likely a true customer if they have given their credit card information. Also, do not give out personal information about yourself. Where you live… I live in a very safe community so my guard was down. Now I’m reconsidering doing this job. I am not watching dogs at night anymore or staying overnight. The world is full of people trying to make a quick dollar. Just be safe!