Facebook Marketplace scams in Bali: why rental groups are risky
Nest team · Last updated:
Facebook groups and Marketplace are risky places to find a Bali rental because nobody checks a post for you: Meta's own help pages tell you not to send a deposit for something valuable, such as an apartment, before you've confirmed that it's real and who owns it, and Meta says it offers no refunds for person-to-person or off-site transactions. A typical Facebook Marketplace scam in Bali follows a pattern that Bali news reports and Indonesia's police both describe: a post on social media, a quick move to a messaging app, and pressure to pay before you have seen anything.
That doesn't make every post a scam. Real homes are advertised there too, and some group admins work hard to remove fake accounts. But the channel itself protects you very little, so the checks are yours to do.
Why are Facebook groups risky for finding a Bali rental?
Nobody checks the poster or the home
A group post or a Marketplace listing gives you photos, a price and a profile. None of that shows that the home exists or that the person may rent it out. Meta's guidance on Marketplace scams puts that check on you: before you pay a deposit for something valuable, and it names apartments, confirm that it exists and who owns it, in person or over a video call.
Profiles can be fake or taken over
Meta warns that scammers create fake accounts, or take over real ones, to trick people out of money (Avoiding scams on Facebook). A 2021 ProPublica investigation into Marketplace described rental scammers often posting from hacked accounts of real estate agents, so their listings looked more legitimate. A familiar agency name, or a profile with years of history, is not proof on its own.
Group admins see this every day. In 2023, the admin of a Facebook rental group for rooms on Australia's Sunshine Coast told ABC that he had been removing about 30 to 40 fake accounts a day, down to two or three by then, and that he checked 150 to 200 profiles daily. The scammers, he said, usually asked for payment for properties that didn't exist, or tried to sell goods through the group.
Listings get copied and reposted
ProPublica also described scammers copying photos from genuine property ads, reposting them at below-market rents and telling renters the home couldn't be viewed in person, at the time blaming the pandemic. A real villa's photos, a lower price and a new phone number are all a fake listing needs.
The conversation moves to WhatsApp
Meta advises keeping Marketplace conversations on Facebook or Messenger, especially early on, because chats moved to WhatsApp, phone, text or email make scams harder to detect. Indonesia's national police crime information centre, Pusiknas Bareskrim Polri, lists social media and messaging apps among the tools scammers often use, along with fake identities and urgent, pushy messages. Because a switch to WhatsApp can feel routine, it's easy to miss as a warning.
A group is only as safe as its admins
Each group's admins decide how it is run. Meta's help pages list membership questions, rules on what members can post and other moderation tools as settings for the people who manage a group. If you report a post to the admins, the report doesn't go to Facebook, and Meta says the admins "may or may not take action" (Facebook Help Center).
Meta's refunds don't cover direct payments
Meta's Purchase Protection covers eligible purchases made with checkout on Facebook. Items exchanged in person using cash or other person-to-person payment methods are not eligible, and Meta says it does not offer refunds for any person-to-person or off-site transactions. Meta's pages don't mention rental deposits. If you think you've been scammed, Pusiknas advises you to stop contact at once, keep the chats and transfer records, block the account or number and report it to the police.
What does a Facebook Marketplace scam in Bali look like?
Bali news reports show two different risks: a fake owner, and a real owner who keeps a problem quiet.
A kos rented out by someone who didn't own it
In April 2026, NusaBali reported that a 26-year-old who had moved from Medan for a job found a kos (a rented room in a shared building) in Denpasar through a social media post. He contacted the number on WhatsApp and transferred a Rp 500,000 DP (down payment) before seeing the room. The number then went silent, and the real owner turned out to be someone else. The report doesn't name the platform, but the path it describes, from post to WhatsApp to transfer, is the one Meta warns about.
A real villa with a problem nobody mentioned
At a trial in Denpasar in November 2023, the prosecutor said a married couple had their villa in Sanur advertised on Facebook Marketplace in 2019. According to Radar Bali's report of the indictment, the tenant viewed the villa, was shown copies of the freehold certificate (SHM) and the building permit, and agreed on five years at Rp 180 million a year. The tenant paid a Rp 10 million DP, signed a written rental agreement, then transferred Rp 845 million to an account in the husband's name.
What the couple didn't say, according to the indictment, was that the certificate had been pledged against a debt since 2014 and that the villa had already gone through an enforced auction in March 2019. A court-ordered eviction followed that September, and the prosecutor put the tenant's loss at Rp 900 million. This was the prosecution's case at trial, not a verdict, and we found no report of a verdict. The viewing proved the villa existed; it couldn't prove the villa was free to rent for five years.
The same channel, at a larger scale
This case is outside Bali and about property sales, not rentals. In July 2025, police in Bekasi, next to Jakarta, said two suspects had offered four kontrakan units (houses built to be rented out) and a plot of land for sale on Facebook Marketplace at below-market prices. The police counted 77 victims and provisional losses of more than Rp 4.1 billion (Pojoksatu). Nationwide, Pusiknas recorded 10,583 reports of online fraud in January to March 2026 alone, counting every kind of online fraud, not only rentals.
What does Meta itself advise?
Meta's help pages are written for buying and selling, but the advice fits renting well. Besides confirming a home is real before any deposit and keeping the chat on Facebook or Messenger at first, Meta advises you to:
- Double-check deals that look too good, especially listings priced far below the market, and be wary of anyone who rushes you.
- Look at the seller's profile: ratings, reviews, friends you have in common and their other listings. An account with no friends, no profile photo or no real activity is a warning.
- Follow its three rules: slow down, check the details yourself, and don't send money on the spot.
- Stop replying and report it to Facebook if you think something is a scam.
How can you use Bali rental groups more safely?
Start from what a post can and can't tell you:
| What you need to know | What a Facebook post gives you | How to find out |
|---|---|---|
| The home exists and matches the photos | Photos, which may be copied | A viewing in person, or a live video call as a first step |
| The person may rent it out | A name and a profile | Their ID, and the certificate or their own lease |
| You're paying the right person | An account number sent in a chat | A signed contract, and an account in the same name |
| Your money is protected | Nothing: Meta offers no refunds for person-to-person or off-site transactions | Pay only against a contract and a receipt |
Then use groups as a place to find leads, not to close deals:
- Treat a post as a lead. Compare the price and photos with similar homes elsewhere before you reply.
- Ask who you're dealing with. An owner, an agent and a tenant passing on their own lease each need different proof. A profile that looks real says nothing about who owns the villa.
- Keep your number out of "looking for" posts. In 2018, Malaysia's communications regulator relayed a police warning on Sebenarnya.my that most victims of rental-scam syndicates had posted their names and phone numbers on social media while house hunting. Let people reply in the comments or on Messenger, where you can see their profile first.
- Stay on Messenger until you've seen the place. If someone insists on WhatsApp straight away, ask why.
- See the home before any money moves. If you're still abroad or in another city, a live video call is a first check, not the last one. NusaBali's advice to newcomers was to ask someone you know in the area to go and look.
- Pay against paper. Sign a contract, get a receipt, and pay only into an account in the name of the person who signed.
- For a long lease, check the certificate itself. The Sanur case shows that a photocopy and a viewing aren't enough. Before you sign a lease you pay years ahead, check with a licensed notary (PPAT). This is general information, not legal advice.
- Report it in both places. A report to the group's admins doesn't reach Facebook, so report a suspicious post or group to Facebook too. Meta reviews reports against its rules, but says a report doesn't guarantee removal (Report a group to Facebook).
What is the alternative to Facebook groups?
The weak point of a group is that you can't tell who is behind a post. The alternative is to search where the person behind each listing has had to prove who they are, and where a suspicious listing can be reported to people who review it.
That is how Nest works. You can browse long-term rentals on Nest or see every listing on the map of all listings. Instead of checking a group feed every day, save a search and turn on alerts: the Nest app sends you a daily alert when a new listing matches. If something feels wrong, the Nest safety page explains how to report a scam.
Before you pay anyone you met in a group
A Facebook post can lead you to a good home. It just can't tell you who you're paying. Before any money moves, see the place, know the person and keep the paper trail: the contract, the receipt and the chat. If a post or a person feels wrong, stop replying and report it to the group's admins and to Facebook.
Sources
- Meta, Facebook Help Center: About scams on Facebook Marketplace (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Meta, Facebook Help Center: Avoiding scams on Facebook (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Meta, Facebook Help Center: Report a Facebook group post or comment to the admins (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Meta, Facebook Help Center: Report a group to Facebook (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Meta, Facebook Help Center: Manage people and content (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Pusiknas Bareskrim Polri: Modus Penipuan Online Kian Canggih, Ribuan Kasus Terjadi Tiap Bulan (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Sebenarnya.my (Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission): Terdapat Sindiket Penipuan Sewa Rumah Dan Bilik Atas Talian? (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Radar Bali: Penipuan Modus Sewa Vila Nyaris Rp 1 Miliar di Sanur, Suami Jadi Pesakitan, Istri Buron, Begini Ceritanya (accessed 6 October 2026)
- NusaBali: Awas Penipuan Berkedok Kos, Perantau di Denpasar Jadi Korban (accessed 6 October 2026)
- Pojoksatu: Polres Metro Bekasi Tangkap 2 Pelaku Tawarkan Rumah Kontrakan dan Tanah Harga Murah di Marketplace (accessed 6 October 2026)
- ABC Indonesia: Penipuan di Facebook Marketplace Semakin Marak, Ini Cara untuk Menghindarinya (accessed 6 October 2026)
- ProPublica: Facebook Grew Marketplace to 1 Billion Users. Now Scammers Are Using It to Target People Around the World (accessed 6 October 2026)