Beware of Fraudulent Email Spammers Awaiting to Extort Money
Internet/world wide web is undisputedly one of the great innovations of the last century that shrunk the world to a global village but on the other side of the coin, it is equivalently providing opportunities to cyber criminals, and has become nurturing grounds of criminal thoughts and activities. The main advantages of these cyber criminals are ignorance of the net users and the boundaries between the countries – the distance apart from the one who cheats and the one who gets cheated.
To my surprise, even my brother, well educated and an attorney, got deceived by one such mail that he responded to it and at one point I had to drag him away citing the consequences that he may have to suffer.
Basically these criminals want to capitalize on the emotions inside you viz., anxiety, excitement, sympathy and fear along with your ignorance. So the tactics that they use to win your mind are:
- Intimating that you won a lottery of a huge sum, the crook may request a small fraction of that huge sum as advance towards processing charges of the sum. Popular names throughout the world are utilized for this. You may receive bogus mails supposed to be from computer/internet giants like Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Intel or cellphone manufacturers like Nokia or Motorola, or electrical giants like Philips or Panasonic, or car giants like Ford or Honda, or rather any famous name in the world.
- Intimating that you have won a contract, the crook may request you to pay some portion of the contract money as earnest money deposit (EMD)/caution deposit/security deposit. Else, the crook may offer to share a huge sum with you that he/she inherited but lying unutilized in need of money to complete legal formalities.
- Begging. Citing some public tragedy that took place in the near past, the crook may request you some aid as money to help those in need.
- Phishing. Imitating as a mail (spoof mail) from your bank/Paypal/Moneygram, request will be made to update your details by clicking on the links inside the mails. The links in such mails would lead you to sites where your identity, password, contact details, everything will be stolen if you key-in your details ignorantly; the net result – a clean swipe of your bank/Paypal/Moneygram account without your knowledge before you can act upon. Check out the article on Microsoft’s site on recognizing phishing scams and fraudulent email.
One interesting fact that I used to notice earlier was that such mails originated from African countries especially Nigeria but nowadays, no country is spared. I’m giving a sample copy of some of these mails below to be aware of such fraudulent mails but before we go into that, let’s look into safeguarding ourselves from falling into prey of such ransom extort calls.
- Simply ignore, delete and block such messages. Never reply through email or respond back through phone.
- Apparently, no antivirus program can trap such mails as they don’t contain any malicious software that may try to harm or download into your computer, but you can set your junk email filter to a high level to trap and route those mails to your junk mail folder.
- Keep and provide different email IDs for different set of purposes -one official email ID for official, business and job related communications, one email ID purely for subscriptions and for those forms requesting your email ID to gain access to any information that you may be interested of, and one email ID for friends and relatives. By this way, you don’t mess things up and will be eliminating the job of going through those spam mails daily.
This post has become enormously long by including a few of those mails but if it can save at least an innocent one, it solves the purpose.
Here are a few sample messages that I received (Note the poor English of the mails that convey important messages worth hefty sums!):
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1. Lottery winning notification (message 1):
FROM THE DESK OF THE DIRECTOR INTERNATIONAL
PRIZE AWARD DEPT
Ref Number: MARKT 80 ES 9414
Batch Number: 444821545-UK/2008
Ticket Number: CP 3812 /2008-08
Amount Won: £2,500,000.00.
Attn Lucky Winner,
WINNING NOTIFICATION FOR CATEGORY “A” WINNER ONLY
We are pleased to inform you of the result of the last final annual draw of our Lottery International Programs.
The online cyber lotto draws was conducted from an exclusive list of 25,000,000 e-mail addresses of individual and corporate bodies picked by an advanced automated random computer search from the internet. No tickets were sold.
CONGRATULATIONS!!!
After this automated computer ballot, your e-mail address emerged as a winner in the category “A” with the following numbers attached Ref Number: MARKT 80 ES 9414, Batch Number: 444821545-UK/2008 and Ticket Number: CP3812/2008-08. You are therefore to receive a cash prize of £2,500,000.00.(Two Million Five Hundred Thousand Pounds Sterlings) from the total payout
CONGRATULATIONS!!!.
Your prize award has been insured with your e-mail address and will be transferred to you upon meeting our requirements, statutory obligations, verifications, validations and satisfactory report.
To file in for the processing of your prize winnings, you are advised to contact our Certified and Accredited claims agent for category “A” winners with the information below:
***************************************************
Name : Mr.Raymond Davidson
Tel: +** 701 1133 603
Email: raydavidson**@yahoo.com.hk
****************************************************
You are advice to provide him with the following information:
Full Names:
Telephone/Fax number:
Nationality:
Occupation:
Amount Won:
Age:
Sex:
Marital Status:
Contact Address:
Country Of Residence:
A Scanned Copy of your Identity:
Reference and Batch number:
Next of Kin:
NOTE: All winnings must be claimed not later than 14 days, thereafter unclaimed funds would be included in the next stake. Remember to quote your reference information in all correspondence.
You are to keep all lotto information confidential, especially your reference and ticket numbers. (This is important as a case of double claims will not be entertained).Members of the affiliate agencies are automatically not allowed to participate in this program.
Furthermore, should there be any change of address do inform our agent as soon as possible.
Congratulations once more from our members of staff and thank you for being part of our promotional program.
Yours Faithfully,
Mrs Mary Jones.
Lottery Coordinator.
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Lottery winning notification (message 2):
Microsoft Windows Incorperation®
In Conjuction With The Msn Live/Yahoo Int’l
PO Box 1010,Liverpool L70 1NL,
United Kingdom.
=====================
Ref: XYL /26510460037/05
=====================
Batch: 24/00319/IPD
Dear Email Subcriber,
Notification letter from the Microsoft Windows Inc.
This is to inform you that your email have won you a prize money of Five hundred thousand, Great Britain Pounds Sterling 500,000.00 In Your Geographical Regional Category for the month of September 2008 Lottery promotions In Parternaship with the Window Live and Yahoo Int’l.
Msn/Yahoo Int’l, Radomly Collects all the email and IP addresses of Individuals/Organisations who are active online, Among millions that subscribed to Yahoo and Hotmail, Gmail, and various Microsoft window users.
Every Month The Microsoft Windows Inc select five Emails/IP Address Worldwide One each from Asia, America, Europe, Africa and Australia. Our Winners/Beneficiary’s emerges through electronic balloting System without the without the individual/Organisation winners applying.
Microsoft Windows Inc Prizes must be claimed not later than 14days {2 weeks} from the date of this Notification after the Draw date in which Prize has won. Any prize not claimed within this period will be forfeited.
These are your identification numbers:
Ref: XYL /26510460037/05
Batch: 24/00319/IPD
Winning number:YM/09788/60
Our Event Manager will immediately commence the process to facilitate the release of your funds as soon as you contact him. For security reasons, you are advised to keep your winning information confidential till remitted to you. This is part of our precautionary measure to avoid double claiming and unwarranted abuse of this program, Please be warned.
Attached here is the claim verification and funds release form. You are expected to fill and submit to the event manager.
VERIFICATION AND FUNDS RELEASE FORM
1.FULL NAMES:_________________________________
2.ADDRESS:__________________________________________
3.SEX:___________
4.AGE:_______
5.MARITAL STATUS:__________________
6.OCCUPATION:___________________
7.E-MAIL ADDRESS:_____________________________
8.TELEPHONE NUMBER:_____________________
9.AMOUNTWON:____________________________
10.STATE:__________________________________
11. COUNTRY________________________________
12. NEXT OFKIN:_____________________________
13. ZIP CODE:_______________
14:NATIONALITY:___________________________
13:Your Reference and Batch number at the
top of this mail: REF: XYL/26510460037, Batch: 24/00319/IPD,
winning number: YM/09788/60
To file for your claim, please fill and submit your verification form to our events manager immediately via email.
(CONTACT EVENTS MANAGER)
Name:Mr. Elton Mills
E-mail:eventmanager-verifications**@live.com
Once again congratulations…
Cordially,
Mrs.Rose Bailey
Online Co-ordinator
(Msn/Yahoo Lottery Games/Lottery Coordinator)
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2. Phishing mail (message 1):
Dear customer,
Your access to online services has been suspended. Due to a miss-match access code between your online access details.
To re-activate your online account, Please following the re-activation reference below:
Re-activate your online account (This was actually a phishing link, which I removed)
Important Notice:- You are strictly advised to match your information rightly to avoid service suspension.
We apologize for any inconvenience.
Thank you for using *#*# BANK!
© *#*# Bank. All rights reserved.
Information on protecting yourself from fraud, please review the Security Tips in our Security Center
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Phishing mail (message 2): (I removed the link of the phishing URL)
This email was sent automatically by MoneyGram eMoney Transfer.
Please take a few moments to validate your email address.
At MoneyGram we take customer security very seriously.
Validating your email address is one more way that helps verify your identity.
To validate your email address, please follow these steps:
1. Click on the link below. If nothing happens when you click on the link,
copy and paste the link into the address bar of your web browser.
https://www.emoneygram.com/eMoneyGram/loginIndex.do?id=1340906&guid=10924b1
2. Fill in the appropriate fields to validate your email address, and click Sign In.
You will then be able to initiate person-to-person and Express Payment transfers.
Thank you for using MoneyGram eMoney Transfer.
© 2008 MoneyGram eMoney Transfer. All rights reserved.
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4. Huge sum inherited lying unclaimed:
Dear Loved
I am Mary Kaka, the son of the former Democratic Republic of Congo, Late chief Anthony Kaka, before the assassination of my father; he deposited the sum of $6.5 million U.S dollars and some boxs in a private organization in Accra Ghana.
They have invited me for the collection of the funds, so I want to present you as my late father business partner associate for the collection of the funds, do your visibility study on how to trade with the fund in a lucrative and profitable investment in any part of the world.
I have contacted a lawyer in Accra Ghana here who will do the change of beneficiary and power of attorney on your name as a business partner associate of my late father. This will enable you to relate directly to the director of the company for the release of the consignment before your arrival
Keep me updated on your arrival to Ghana to enable us meet the chairman of the company for the collection of the funds in cash. You can reach me on my direct private email address; mary_kaka****@hotmail.com below this is the videotape of the funds you can go through it and get back to me
Mrs mary kaka
Regards,
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4A. Huge sum inherited lying unclaimed (Sympathy):
Beloved In Christ,
Dearest one. Calvary greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, I am Mrs Theresa Smith. I am 65years old, am suffering from long time liver problem. From all indications, my condition is serious and according to my doctor it is quite obvious that I may not survive the sickness, although as a christain, I believe God, and I know that I will not die, I will leave to declare the glory of God. My late Husband and my only son was killed during the Ogoni Crisis and I am presently Leaving alone. Our Lord Jesus Christ is my comforter.
My late Husband was very wealthy we have a lot of properties including shares and houses. After the death of my Husband, I made up my mind to travel abroad to leave the rest of my life and continue to do the work of God as a missionary. I called our lawyer and I instructed him to sell all my Husband properties and shares to enable me raise some money to conitue my mission. The lawyer sold the Shares and some of the properties and I was able to raise the sum of($10.300,000.00(Ten Million Three Hundred Thousand US Dollars). The fund is in cash, for the safety of the fund till am able to travel out, I packaged the fund in consignments deposited it with a Security Company. Presently, all the documents concerning the consignments are with my lawyer.
Now that my sickness has gone to this stage, I am scared and I want the fund to be used for the work of God all over the world. I have prayed and I told God to direct me to an honest person who will receive this fund and utilise it for things that will glorify the name of God. After my prayers, I searched the internet, I found your email address and I decided to contact you. Please if you are interested in using this fund for the work of God, please send to me your private phone and fax number, full names and address to enable me give it to my lawyer for immediate arrangement with the Security company on how the consignments that contained the fund will be delivered to you. I await your urgent reply
Thanks and God bless you.
Regards,
Mrs Theresa Smit
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4A. Huge sum to be distributed to charity but in need of a distributor (Sympathy):
Dear one,
I am Mrs Patricia Alison.76yrs old of age female, live USA.I am a good merchant. I spent all my life on investment in cooperate business both in Asia, Europe and America here. I am a very unhappy person because I lost my husband and two beautiful children in Plane Crash years back. I am a very greedy woman who I never knew much or cared about people. But my numerous afflictions have exposed me to untold hardship as well as the realities of life, that we live in a World we sharing and caring matter. I have found it increasingly difficult to sleep and my soul has not known peace and rest. Later part of the year 2005 February a medical check up by my doctor, revealed that I have Lung Cancer, which has geometrically been eroding my life.
In this situation it became obvious that my businesses and numerous investments will suffer for it. I had call up a clergyman to counsel me on positive thinking/spiritual healing to my situation.
Who ministered to me to share my properties, wealth, to motherless babies/orphanage homes/people that need money for survival, as a way of atoning for my numerous unwholesome treatment to persons who had worked me at various times in the process of accumulating the stupendous wealth and in giving out everything, it must be to persons who have never had anything to do with me. I have 17.5 million US DOLLARS to give out.
I am therefore writing based on the spiritual advise, trying to reach out to person who are in dare need or better still who know people in need and can assist with the distribution of my earthly possession contact me urgently if you consider yourself available for this charity project, so that I can make available funds.
Remain Blessed,
Mrs Patricia Alison
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5. Unclaimed contract money:
¡Tengo nueva dirección de correo!
Ahora puedes escribirme a:investigation**@yahoo.com.co
I, am Farida Mzamber Waziri Economic And Financial Crime Commission, a committee set up by the Federal Government of Nigeria under the able President Yar’Adua. The purpose of the committee among other is to investigate, verify and settle all outstanding debts owned to foreign contractors whose payment is Consequently, we received a directive from the office of the president, ordering the above office to settle all genuine contractors whose debts has been outstanding for a long time now. and for those that shown sufficient proof regarding the release of their fund, And we wish to inform you that in our record here, you have fulfilled such conditions as the rightful beneficiary of the said But the reasons why your own Transfer has to be delayed is because, there is presently a counter claims on your funds by one MR.JOHN WHEELER, who is presently trying to make us believe that you are dead and even explained that you entered into an agreement with him, to help you in receiving your fund, So here comes the big question. Did you sign any Deed of Assignment in favor of (JOHN WHEELER). there by making him the current beneficiary with his following account details: MR JOHN WHEELER, AC/NUMBER: *********. ROUTING/122006743, B/NAME:CITI BANK, ADDRESS:NEW YORK,USA. Please if you did not sign, or authorize MR.JOHN WHEELER to receive your payment on your behalf, kindly reconfirm to us, for your urgent release the Premium immediately, Please Reconfirm your genuine ADDRESS (information) ! your bank information were you want this payment to be transfered including your phone number for verification Or call us, to avoid making payment to a wrong person, attempt to divert your payment to a new account without your knowledge. This office is glad to inform you that your payment shall be made as soon as we receive your feedback of claim/release today. We are sorry to inform you that the Federal Government had made it clear to all foreign contractors whose payment is overdue to be paid immediately hence all the modality relating to the release of your contract fund had been completed today. You are advised to stop any further communication with any department Or any Government parastatal. This is to forestall new effort towards a diversion of your payment. We applogise on behalf of the President and the good citizens of this country Nigeria for any delay and lost this most have coursed you and promise that such thing will not happen again. And if you are dealing with any of the hudlooms regarding this payment Or any transfer from this country, Please we urge you to STOP, because your funds in the total sum $7,500.000(Seven Million five Hundred United States Dollars) AND all expencess which you must have lost, was recently approved by the Presidency and here with this Investigation Bureau (EFCC)here in Nigeria to be settled.
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5A. Unclaimed Deposit:
Hello,
This proposal might come to you as a surprise but believe me that it is transparent business.
My name is Mr Richard Smith, and I work in the delievery department in a security company here in London. I feel quite safe dealing with you in this important Business. I was on a routine inspection when I dscovered a deposit account with a BAL. Of (THIRTY SIX MILLION SEVEN HUNDRED AND FIFTY NINE THOUSAND POUNDS STERLINGS).I later learnt on further discreet investigation that the depositor of the funds has passed away (dead) leaving no beneficiary to the deposit.
The company will delieve this money to anyone with legal claims because the former depositor is a foreigner. I am certainly sure that nobody will come again for the claim of this money. We claim this money with legal claims to the deposit Holder, therefore I need your cooperation in this transaction. I will provide all necessary information needed in order to claim this money, Hoping in God that you will never let me down now and in future.o.k!. Late Rafik Bahaa
Edine Hariri (November 1, 1944 – February 14, 2005), married to Nazek Audi Hariri, was a Lebanese self-made billionaire and business tycoon, and was five times Prime Minister of Lebanon (1992-1998 and 2000-2004) before his last resignation from office on October 20, 2004. The late Rafik Hariri died on February 14, 2005 when explosives equivalent to around 300 kg of C4 were detonated as his motorcade drove past the Saint George Hotel in the Lebanese capital, for more information please log on to (http://www.rafik***.com)
We WANT TO TRANSFER THIS MONEY INTO A SAFE FOREIGN ACCOUNT ABROAD BUT I DON’T KNOW ANY FOREIGNER WHOM I CAN TRUST, I KNOW THAT THIS MESSAGE WILL COME TO YOU AS A SURPRISE AS WE DON’T KNOW OURSELVES BEFORE, BUT BE SURE THAT IT IS REAL AND A GENUINE BUSINESS.
I CONTACT YOU BELIEVING THAT YOU WILL NOT LET ME DOWN ONCE THE FUND GOES TO YOU.
Let me hear from you URGENTLY by Email.
Best Regards
Mr Richard Smith.
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