Remote stock evidence is particularly weak when high-value metal is offered at a substantial discount and the seller seeks advance payment. Verification should combine live, unpredictable challenges with independent company, facility, banking and document checks.
Live-video challenge protocol
- Request a same-day live call, not a pre-recorded clip.
- Ask the presenter to show a random written code and current date.
- Move continuously from exterior signage to the identified lot where lawful and safe.
- Select random bundles or bales and perform buyer-directed checks.
- Show scale display, lot markings, container numbers or other identifiers where relevant.
- Repeat from a second angle or location selected during the call.
Verify outside the video
Confirm the legal entity, domain age and ownership context, facility address, landline or independently sourced contact, bank beneficiary, seller authority, export capability, inspection access and document consistency. Reverse-image or frame searches can identify reused footage, but failure to find a match does not authenticate the video.
Link payment to verifiable control points
Do not let a video substitute for an acceptable payment structure. For a first high-value trade, assess whether an independent escrow, documentary credit, bank instrument, title-controlled structure or milestone payment offers better protection than unsecured advance T/T.
General commercial guidance only. Grade nomenclature and market practice vary. The signed contract, current official specifications and transaction-specific professional advice control.