🐝Scams to Bee Aware of on Tumblr: 🐝
Posted: 2/6/25 - Updated: 1/29/26
Note: Titles without links mean I have not made an awareness post on that scam myself but if one is made by another user such as @kyra45 or @ai-art-thieves (or others! feel free to send it to me!) I will include them until I do make a post about it in which theirs will be added to the body explaining it. :)
✨New! ✨ - Added the "verify your account" scam.
The "verify your account" scam ✨New!✨
Was a comment left on a post of yours by "tumblr staff" saying that you need to verify your account by clicking a link? Did it say that your account will be "terminated" in 24 hours if you don't? Did you maybe get a comment saying your art had been purchased? Were you sent a DM or an ask with a similar message? This is not real, and is 100% a phishing scam that will steal your credit card info!
The "I accidentally reported your account" scam.
Were you DM'd by another user with urgency? Did they say that they reported your account and that Tumblr told them to message you? Did they send you a screenshot of the 'email' and tell you to message a 'staff member' on Discord or via an email that wasn't a tumblr.com email? This is your classic 'I accidentally reported your account' scam that started on Steam many years ago that moved to Discord, and is now on Tumblr and other websites like Bluesky. The goal of this scam is to get you to go on discord where they will try to convince you that if you don't 'follow these steps' to fix the issue your account will be terminated and or sent to the cops/FBI ect. These scammers will then tell you to change your email and/or password so they can steal your account, and they will then use it to scam others the same way.
Additionally, they will try to extort you and blackmail you by telling you that you need to pay money to get your account back. Do not do this. [tumblr] staff DOES NOT USE Discord.
Never change your email/password if someone online tells you to.
The "can you draw my sons pet?" aka art commission scam.
Are you an artist? Were you DM'd, sent an ask by a blog with no posts or little to no content, or had a comment on a post asking about a commission and to DM them? Did they ask you to draw their son, daughter, or pet? Did hey offer you $200-$500? If so, you should learn about this scam and how to avoid it.
The sugar baby/daddy scam. / Free money scam.
Did you make a post asking for donations? Did someone DM you wanting you to be their sugar baby or promising you money in exchange for something? Did they tell you that you need to send them money to verify you want to 'do this' or pay for 'shipping' or 'transaction' fees? You're about to get scammed!
The "I feel so inspired by your work!" aka muse scam.
If you post photographs frequently, you may find your posts receiving comments from 'artists' saying how 'inspired' they are and how eager they are to make art or a mural for your work. This is a fake cheque scam and you should avoid it at all costs!
The (read more) / Click here! scam.
If you see a post ending in a link that says (read more...) or Click here! This is an attempt to get you to click a link that will lead to a malicious website in an attempt to steal your information, or possibly even install malicious files onto your phone or computer. Do not click these links, and report these posts immediately!
"Company is Now Hiring!" Scams.
See a post like this on your dash or in a tag you frequent? Was the user once a normal user and now they're spamming ads like this in unrelated tags? This likely means that user got their account hijacked by clicking the link via a different post. Avoid clicking links like these at all costs as the websites are likely malicious and will steal your information.
HRT Medicine / Therapy service scams.
This scam is targeting transgender people, and is likely stealing peoples personal information and likely their credit card information. If you see or find a blog like the above commenting on your posts, in #transgender or other such related tags, block and report them immediately. (Selling stuff like this is illegal btw.)
Recruitment for the Illuminati.
This scam tries to recruit people into the Illuminati by offering people mass amounts of wealth, homes, and even cars. This is all an attempt to steal your money, or worse, your identity...
If you make a post talking about how you've lost money, be it bitcoin, crypto, or were scammed in any sort of way, you may find yourself receiving an ask from a recovery scammer. These are people claiming they can offer 'recovery services' while claiming to be 'ethical hackers' that have 'back end knowledge' to online services. Claiming they can retrieve your money, account, photos, and other such lost items. All you have to do is give them your account information and some money! :) (Do not do this, obviously.)
These scammers also target people who post in #scam and/or other related tags like #scams or #scam alert, posting things like this in the comments on peoples posts:
Dropshipping Websites. (Curtsy of @ai-art-thieves)
See a post of an object or a piece of clothing by a popular tumblr user that has 10k+ notes, does it say 'I got this here!' or '>>GET YOURS HERE<<' at the bottom with a link to a store? That user is a part of a dropshipping advertising scheme and are being paid to advertise these scummy websites. These websites are usually malicious in the manner that they sell cheaply products. In the worst case you'll get a bootleg or flawed product, or even a different product completely, or in even worse cases, you'll never get it at all.
(Or they will steal your information in the case of those shopify websites that popup online with deals you 'just can't refuse!!!' So buyer beware.)
Campaign boost/mutual aid support scams. (By @kyra45)
If you or anyone you know has posted looking for donations, and you receive an ask, DM, or even a comment about someone offering to 'assist you in boosting your account/campaign,' all you have to do is pay them <amount>, then this is a fake check scam you should definitely read up on and learn about to avoid.
Pet donation Scams. (by @kyra45)
See a post about someone needing help with a vet bill? Do they stress the pet is in peril and will die soon? Is their PayPal from the Philippines yet the vet bill is from the United states? Those are just two things to look out for with this scam.
Donation / Mutual Aid scams. (by @kyra45)
One of the most common and well known scams on tumblr to this day. These scams mainly revolve around brand new accounts made within a day or week reblogging very few posts and then suddenly asking for money via donations through PayPal. These blogs will send out the same copy/paste ask en masse to dozens if not hundreds of people, change their name frequently over the course of days if not weeks, and will even lie about being Palestinian, stealing stories from legitimate gofundmes, and even having conditions such as diabetes while not even knowing how it works.
Here is a list of documented PayPal scammers: Part 3
Note: this list is severely outdated, however it contains a lot of key phrases/words that paypal scammers tend to use when sending asks.
Some helpful blogs to follow:
@kyra45 @ai-art-thieves @u-reblogged-a-scam
Tags to follow/check if you need to check on scams:
#scam #scams #scam alert #scammer #scammers
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I think that's it for Tumblr scams, If I think I need to add more later I'll update the post and make an update note about it.
Take care everyone and don't get scammed!
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Check out the Index of important posts I've made!
Here's a post on some tips and tricks on spotting scam blogs.
How to guide: Reverse Image Search. (now with web extensions!)
Scammers pretending to be Palestinian v6 by @kyra45
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