Police station now Craigslist HQ?

For most of us, Craigslist is a great resource for buying or selling cars, iPhones, furniture and other items. But for those with fewer scruples, it's also an easy way to scope out potential victims.

From the Boston medical student labeled the "Craigslist Killer" in 2009 to the more recent murder of three job seekers in Ohio, Craigslist crime is on the rise nationwide.

After six Craigslist-related robberies in Milwaukee's District 7 in the past month, the police department came up with a potential solution for local residents buying and selling goods via Web-based classifieds: Conduct your business at the police station. Post continues below.

By offering a safe place for buyers and sellers to meet, police hope to halt the robberies. "If they don't want to meet you at a police district, that should be a red flag, an indicator: Don't do business with that individual," said police officer Lisa Staffold.

"This is nothing new. It's happening all over the country," she told the Journal Sentinel. "The media has deemed it 'robbery by appointment' because you're posting ads, you're selling your iPhones, your iPads, your vehicles, and when you go to a meeting location, you're being robbed."

Use Craigslist with caution

When my girlfriend sold her Jeep on Craigslist last year, she took precautions to avoid a bad experience. She conversed with potential buyers only via email (using paid reverse phone directories, enterprising thieves can obtain your name and address from just your cellphone number). And she met with them at a busy local Starbucks.

But based on many of the news stories about sales gone wrong, she may have simply been lucky that everything went smoothly.

The most recent of the Milwaukee robberies occurred Sunday at 6:25 p.m. at a gas station, where a man selling a cellphone reportedly arranged to meet a prospective buyer.

According to the Journal Sentinel, the "buyer" -- now the suspect -- forced the man to drive to the back of the parking lot, threatened him with a gun and -- after a fight -- stole $40 in cash and two cellphones.

Crime-prevention tips

If your local law enforcement officials don't let buyers and sellers conduct transactions at headquarters, here are some steps you can take for safe online buying and selling experiences, according to the Milwaukee police:

• For items that can be shipped, use an online service such as eBay instead of Craigslist. Buying and selling on eBay involves no personal contact, and payments can be processed through a third-party business such as PayPal.
• If the price for an item sounds too good to be true, it may be stolen -- or a setup.
• When arranging to meet a buyer or seller, do so during daylight hours and choose a safe, busy, well-lit location.
• Bring a friend and your cellphone to the meeting, and show up early.
• Even if your local police station hasn't expressly invited the public to conduct all sales on the premises, you can arrange to meet a prospective iPad seller, for example, in front of a police station -- or possibly even in the lobby.
• Don't give out personal information, but try to find out as much as you can about the other person, and check to see if he or she has a criminal record.

Then again, there are also some stories about how Craigslist actually helps solve some crimes.

A Florida man whose $700 bicycle was stolen on Friday saw an ad for a bike that looked a lot like it on Craigslist on Sunday, according to the Gainesville Sun. Samuel Gause arranged to meet with the seller -- but he also alerted the police. An officer showed up at the meeting and made the arrest.

More on MSN Money:

• Using Craigslist to make a living
• How to be a bad Craigslist seller
• Crooks can buy ATMs on eBay
• Strong holiday sales point to eBay renaissance
• How to uncover a car's secret history
• Try the 50-30-20 budget