[twiggy]

Your safety on Gumtree is always important to us, and we’re aware that some of you have recently experienced an increased amount of fraud and spam on the site.

We’re sorry this has happened, and we wanted to let you know that we’re doing all we can to get rid of these problems, including:

• Today, we launched a simple word verification step for our users when replying to an ad to help cut down on spam emails.

• Our dedicated safety team works 365 days a year handling reports from you and proactively identifies and removes offenders.

• We’re stepping up our investment in technology to keep Gumtree simple to use while keeping the fraudsters out. It’s not easy, but we intend on winning this fight.

The great majority of our users are genuine, really great individuals. To avoid the few bad apples out there, there are some simple safety tips you should always follow while on the site:

1. Trade locally, face to face
2. Never use money transfer services like Western Union or Moneygram, and be wary of any request to do so
3. Most importantly, go with your gut. If it feels wrong, it probably is. Just report any suspicious activity to us, and we’ll deal with it

You can keep updated with the latest safety tips and information in our Stay Safe section

Thanks for your patience, and your active support in making Gumtree a great place to find, buy and sell.

Twiggy and the rest of The Gumtree team