Staff! My rental apartment in London has disappeared and I am out $3,100.

Once you wrote to the scammers, they had your email address and used it. They sent you an email that looked like an official message from Booking.com and from a @confirmations-booking.com address, which may seem like a legitimate address. although the company says all its emails end in @booking.com.

Reading copies of the emails you forwarded to me, the imperfect English is also suspicious (“Your booking for a two-bedroom apartment with a view must be paid in full”), as are some account details with the Spanish bank BBVA. “Nyholm Peik,” has no online presence that I could find, and the address associated with the account is that of Vanity, a London 'gentleman's club' whose license was suspended in early 2023.

In our follow-up communication, Sylvia, you asked whether Booking.com had reported this apparent crime to the authorities or to the bank. I asked the company, which said it is the customer's responsibility to report fraud that occurs outside its platform, and BBVA, which declined to comment. Consumers should make such reports to the FBI Complaints center for internet crime and their own bank.

I was curious if Airbnb and Vrbo do anything different than Booking.com, so I reached out.

Edith Morris, a spokeswoman for Vrbo, said the company “deploys a variety of advanced risk strategies and tools to monitor suspicious behavior 24×7 and continually invest in our capabilities.” The company offers “payment protection against fraudulent listings,” although this doesn't necessarily apply to cases where a guest sends money outside of the Vrbo platform.

Airbnb has one new verification process for properties, instead of just hosts, is in the works and will use “a combination of advanced anti-fraud technology, AI and human review to verify authenticity,” a spokeswoman said. She added that the first “verified” icons will soon appear on some listings in the United States, Canada, Australia, England and France.