Escrow: who holds the money until an order is done
From Vortex Wiki, the Vortex knowledge base
Escrow is a promise kept by a third party, which only works if the third party is real.
Definition
Escrow means a payment is held by the platform rather than sent straight to the seller. It is released when the order is completed or returned if it is cancelled.
Why platforms use it
It reduces the risk that either side walks away with the money or the goods.
Its limits
Escrow depends entirely on the platform. If the platform disappears, the money it holds can disappear with it.
The red flag
A seller asking you to pay "outside escrow" to save fees, or a message offering a private escrow service, is a common scam pattern.
See also
- Multisig – Multisig: payments that need more than one key
- Monero (XMR) – Monero (XMR): the privacy coin used on many onion services
- Phishing mirror – Phishing mirror: a fake Vortex market mirror that steals logins