After enough deals cross a platform, a strange thing happens: the fake ones stop looking creative and start looking almost identical to each other. Different commodity, different names, same five ingredients. Here they are, in the order they usually show up.
1. The price is "too good," with a flimsy explanation
Genuine sellers price near market, because they don't need to do otherwise. A price sitting 15–20% below spot always comes with a story — "the seller needs liquidity fast," "a government contract fell through," "we're clearing inventory before quarter-end." The story exists to stop you from asking the obvious question: why would anyone leave that much money on the table?
2. Nobody will get on a call, ever
Everything happens over text or email. Answers to specific questions come back vague, or slightly off-topic, in a way that feels like it's been copy-pasted from a template used on the last five people who asked. A real counterparty, especially on a deal worth real money, will talk to you.
3. The documents look official but can't be independently verified
SGS reports with no traceable reference number. "Bank comfort letters" from banks that, when you actually call them, have never heard of the person named. The documents are designed to look convincing at a glance and fall apart under five minutes of independent verification — which is exactly why that five minutes matters more than how official something looks.
4. You're asked to pay before any of your own conditions are met
An "activation fee." A "refundable performance bond." A "documentation charge." The specific label doesn't matter — what matters is the sequence. If you're asked to send money before you've verified anything on the other side, the fee isn't securing your position in the deal. It is the deal, as far as the other party is concerned.
5. Urgency that doesn't match the size of the transaction
A genuine multi-million-dollar shipment does not have a six-hour expiry window. Real supply chains, real allocations, and real bank processes don't move that fast — which is precisely why scam windows are built to close fast. Urgency isn't a sign of a good opportunity. It's a sign someone doesn't want you to have time to check.
Bonus flag: nobody can explain who actually owns the product
Six intermediaries deep, and when you ask "who is the actual seller, on paper, with a registered company," the answer gets vague. A real deal chain can trace back to an actual owner. A fake one can't, because there's nothing at the end of it.
What to do instead
None of the countermeasures here are exotic: verify company registration independently, verify SGS/bank documents directly with the issuing party, insist on inspection before payment, and use milestone escrow instead of upfront wires so no single moment exposes you completely.
This is also, not coincidentally, why verification status and trust scores exist as first-class features on CommodityOS rather than an afterthought — so counterparties build a real track record over time, and "we've seen them all" becomes something the platform remembers, instead of something you have to learn the hard way, deal by deal.
If a deal shows all five flags at once, it's not a red flag. It's a red flag parade.