“The days of strictly going into a store and purchasing something are gone,” says Officer Karl Ratcliff with the Lafayette Police Department.

It seems like Facebook Marketplace is being used by many as some sort of online garage sale. It came into existence in 2007 and one user, Trevor Navarre, says he’s been going to it as an alternative to other ‘buy, sell, trade’ sites.

He tells News 10 that he feels more comfortable using Facebook Marketplace, “At the very least, if someone messages me about something I was buying or selling and I mean, you can go and see how many friends they have, if they live near you. I’d say it’s safer.”

But even if you’ve checked a seller’s profile, there can still be risks. Officer Ratcliffe explains, “It’s dangerous. There’s a lot of unknowns when you go and meet someone that you don’t know that you maybe met in an online marketplace.”

One suggestion he gives– using Lafayette Police Department’s ‘safe exchange’ spot.

“It’s right across the street from our main headquarters. We do have video surveillance 24 hours a day. We have signs up just instructing folks to give us a call and let us know that you’re out here, and we’ll actually have an officer monitoring just making sure that you’re safe when you do so,” says Ratcliffe.

Another thing officials warn about when buying or selling from a stranger, is the method of payment.

Sharane Gott, CEO of Better Business Bureau Acadiana, says, “If they’re an individual, it’s harder to trace. So there are safe ways [to receive payment]. There’s my wallet, there’s bank to bank information now; I know my bank will pay any other bank by electronic means.”

But the safest payment option? Gott says it’s cash.

So next time you plan on buying or selling anything from Facebook Marketplace, remember to be cautious.