Unfortunately, my recent interfacing with strangers on the internet has proven the adage that “If something seems too good to be true, it probably is.” I found the rare Paris Craigslist gem: a luxurious one bedroom apartment just steps from Place des Vosges, for a mere 630 euros a month. There was a brand-new designer kitchen, lovely furnishings, original wooden ceiling beams, a sunken tub, and even the rare Parisian anomalies: a workout room and a parking space. My luck seemed too good to be true.

But I responded to the Craigslist ad, and to my delight, I was soon preparing for my year-long residence at 6 Rue du Foin. The owner sounded legitimate: a businessman who had been transferred to London; the exchange of the keys, the lease, and the first month’s rent would be done through “a third party” so as to safeguard both our interests.

I almost sent a thousand dollars cash to London this weekend via the ever-sketchy money transaction system, MoneyGram—but as I was standing at my local Indian grocer, haggling with the cashier over MoneyGram’s nonsensical protocols, I finally realized that my desperation for a perfect Paris apartment had robbed me of my cynicism toward people. I soon realized that the whole fiasco was a classic scam done by conniving Craigslist creepers who go bump in the night, preying on young girls and boys who are desperate for a place to rest their heads in The City of Light.

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