Safety & reporting

Why we hide sale contacts

Hidden phone numbers, emails, social handles, links and bank details help protect you from impersonation, pressure and requests to pay privately. Keeping sale conversations and agreements on MyTradeMarket preserves a record that authorised staff can review. Moving elsewhere removes that marketplace record; no website can guarantee your safety or stop every disguised contact request.

Company names and equipment specifications remain visible. Detected contacts are removed from displayed sale messages, not merely blurred. Never share passwords, one time codes or identity documents.

Protected payments are not active yet

There is no live website checkout, fund holding, buyer payment protection or seller payout service. Do not send sale payments outside the website, to MyTradeMarket or to anyone claiming to be our payment agent. Contact support before completing a sale. A saved agreement, handover acknowledgement or email confirmation is not proof of payment.

Once an approved provider is connected, eligible payments would go through the website and the provider would hold and route funds, not MyTradeMarket's bank account. The planned R100,000+ flow requires the buyer to confirm receipt and the agreed inspection before release. Under R100,000 sales are planned for release after verified payment and safety checks, unless an approved delay applies. These services remain unavailable until provider approval and legal review; never rely on a promise that funds are already protected.

Inspect before committing

Check the serial number, condition, ownership or authority to sell, service records and agreed price. For high value machinery, use an independent inspector. Record inspection, collection, transport payer and insurance requirements in your private deal record. Buyers and sellers arrange transport themselves; contact support to coordinate sale inspection details without posting private addresses.

A verified seller badge means staff reviewed submitted business details. It does not prove identity, bank ownership, equipment ownership or a completed payment. Photo and serial checks reduce risk but do not guarantee an advert is genuine.

Copied photo checks

Every listing's photos are scanned across MyTradeMarket and the wider web, including Google image search, to spot the same pictures used in other adverts. If a match is found, the listing is hidden and the seller must upload a private video of the exact machine showing it matches the photos and clearly filming its registration or serial number. The video is never posted; only our safety team watches it before the listing can go live. Checks reduce risk but cannot guarantee a listing is genuine.

Spot and report warning signs

Report demands for private deposits, cash or transfers, payment links, fee avoidance offers, fake fund release confirmations, pressure to skip inspection, contact details hidden in photos and requests to move a sale to another app. Do not pay or click suspicious links. If you already paid outside the site, contact your bank or payment provider immediately and report suspected crime to the police; MyTradeMarket cannot reverse those payments.

Signed in users can report a listing or an incoming message directly. Message reports retain the original message for staff review. Block person stops new marketplace messages in both directions; it cannot block outside contact. Reports do not automatically suspend accounts or guarantee recovery.

Rental exception

Rentals have 0% MyTradeMarket commission and allow direct contact and outside arrangements. Rent out at your own risk. Equipment may not be returned, or may be stolen or damaged. MyTradeMarket does not guarantee return or recovery and does not provide rental insurance or compensation. Agree written hire terms, return dates and suitable insurance before handing equipment over. Inspect the equipment and check the owner's authority. Those payments and arrangements have no MyTradeMarket payment protection. General profiles and sale conversations still restrict contact sharing.