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Joe Pelonio
01-26-2006, 6:43 PM
I get tired of getting at least one or two of these scams a day in my e-mail. They target small business mainly but are so well known by now that you'd think they would at least change it to some other country. Better yet, you'd think there would be a way to stop them if the government thinks they will be able to arrrest people for sending annoying e-mails.

Below is the text of the last one I just got:

ATTN :Sir/Madam
It is obvious that this proposal will come to you as a
suprise.
This is because we have not met before but i am inspired to sending you
this
email by the huge fund transfer opportunity that will be of mutual
benefit
to the two of us.
However, I am JOSE AGU personal Attorney to the late Engr.Steve
Moore a
national of Isle of Man in UK, who used to work with
Shell Petroleum Development Company(SPDC) in Nigeria.
On the 21st of April 1996,my client,his wife And their three children
were
involved in a car accident along
Sagamu/Lagos Express Road.
Unfortunately they all lost
their lives in the event of the accident, Since then I have made
several
enquiries to several Embassies to
locate any of my clients extended relatives, this has also proved
unsuccessful.
After these several unsuccessful attempts, I decided to
tracehisrelatives
over the Internet to locate any member of his family but of no avail,
hence
I contacted you.
I contacted you to assist in repartrating the money
and property left behind by my client,I can easily convince the bank
with my
legal practice that you are
the only surviving relation of my client. Otherwise the Estate he left
behind will be confiscated or
declared unserviceable by the bank where this huge deposits were
lodged.Particularly, the Bank where the deceased had an account valued
at
about $27million U.S
dollars(twenty seven million U.S.America
dollars).
Conseqently,The bank issued me a notice to provide the next of kin or
have
the account confiscated within
the next ten official working days.
since i have been unsuccesfull in locating the the relatives for over
several years now.I seek your consent to present you
as the next of kin of the deceased,so that the proceeds of this account
valued at $27million U.Sdollarscan be paid to your account and then you
and
me can share the money. 55%to
me and 40% to you,while 5% should be for expenses or tax as your
government
may require.
I have all necessary legal documents that can be used to back up any
claim
we may make. All I require is
your honest cooperation to enable us see this deal through.
I guarantee that this will be executed under legitimate arrangement
that
will protect you from any
breach of the law.Please get in touch with me by my email to enable
usdiscuss further.
please get back to me from this email
barristerjoseagu1@walla.com
Yours Faithfully,
Barrister JOSE AGU

Joe Pelonio
01-26-2006, 6:53 PM
I barely posted this when I got another, this one is from the UK but
basically the same scam. There's my two for the day. Here's
the first paragraph, the whole thing is very long.:mad:

Dear Friend,

My name is Dr.Edward Smith. the auditor and head of computing department of
a bank here in london,UnitedKingdom.There is an account opened in this bank
in 1995 and since my inception into office in 2000, nobody has operated on
this account again, after going through some old files, I discovered that if
I do not remit this money out urgently, it will be forfeited for nothing. In
order to transfer out (fifteen-million pounds sterling) from our bank here
have the courage to look for a reliable and honest person who will be
capable for this important transaction, believing that you will never let me
down either now or in future.

Lee DeRaud
01-26-2006, 7:11 PM
...look for a reliable and honest person who will be
capable for this important transaction, believing that you will never let me
down either now or in future.What the heck is this guy thinking?!?

I always get a hoot out of these things because they always include a line like that...and the silly bugger emailed it to me.
(Well, me and thirty or forty thousand other carefully-selected trustworthy souls.)

The scary part is, it must work occasionally or people would have given up on it by now.

Steve Clardy
01-26-2006, 7:53 PM
Yea.:mad:
Been getting 2-3 a day now for a couple weeks.:mad:
Sure glad they haven't got my new email address yet.
They are all coming in on my old one, as I still have it till the ISP fees runs out on that one.

Joe Pelonio
01-26-2006, 7:55 PM
Lee, since I opened my mouth about it I'm getting more than usual, the 3rd for today just came. Again Nigeria, this time a guy wants to send me $25 million to buy him a house here. The scam is always the same, you have to give them your business account info so they can transfer the funds to you, then they'll wipe it out. The Nigerians need to farm or drill for more oil or something.

Jerry Clark
01-26-2006, 9:52 PM
I got one several months ago and I stroked the guy for a month or so--

"I sent the $$"

"Then CIA stopped the Western Union $1,000 money and was investigating the scam" :eek:

I used the name and address of the head fraud guy in LA. Had fun and hope he is still looking over his shoulder for the CIA. Never got anymore and blocked his address.:cool:

Joe Stallard
01-26-2006, 10:16 PM
:eek: I have almost stopped getting those by being as low down rotten as the sender:cool: ! You want to know how, I forward all of those types of email to our local Chief of Police:D :D Their e-mail address is listed in our city directory. At first he asked why I was doing it and I told him someone there surely was in charge of investigating scams. I thought they may have blocked my address but I go to church with his assistant and he says they are still getting to him.;)

Vaughn McMillan
01-27-2006, 4:34 AM
I got one several months ago and I stroked the guy for a month or so--

"I sent the $$"

"Then CIA stopped the Western Union $1,000 money and was investigating the scam" :eek:

I used the name and address of the head fraud guy in LA. Had fun and hope he is still looking over his shoulder for the CIA. Never got anymore and blocked his address.:cool:
I've read websites full of guys who play these slimeballs like a trout. They've almost turned it into an art form. (Looks like you're off to a good start, Jerry.) Well done. If I had the time, I think it'd be a fun sport.

- Vaughn

Joe Pelonio
01-27-2006, 8:47 AM
:eek: I have almost stopped getting those by being as low down rotten as the sender:cool: ! You want to know how, I forward all of those types of email to our local Chief of Police:D :D Their e-mail address is listed in our city directory. At first he asked why I was doing it and I told him someone there surely was in charge of investigating scams. I thought they may have blocked my address but I go to church with his assistant and he says they are still getting to him.;)
I don't think I'd want the local police chief mad at me, but all these ideas have me thinking. I think I'll just come up with a standard response to them indicating that I have forwarded their e-mail to the CIA, FBI, and
Treasury Department. I've even thought about opening another business account and running it down until it's got about $5 in it then going along with one of them so they can steal the $5 and be disappointed.

John Hart
01-27-2006, 9:26 AM
Here's a link that describes the problem pretty well and offers a number of other links that help in reporting the fraud. http://www.crimes-of-persuasion.com/Crimes/Business/nigerian.htm The Secret Service and FBI are trying to get their arms around it, but I spoke to an agent a few months ago and he said that it is fairly difficult to prosecute and the victims are generally too embarrassed to report. The Dark Side of the internet I reckon.

Bob Noles
01-27-2006, 9:37 AM
It is hard to believe that anyone would swallow these, but it is a sad reality that there are a few who do.

Joe Pelonio
01-27-2006, 12:21 PM
Speaking of nuts, this guy sent me a scam e-mail this morning and I sent him my new standard response, and he answered as follows:

My dear Joe,

It is very illexpected of you to say such an unexpected word to my humbleself. Note that this proposal is written by me and your priority is what gives me the enormous feelings to contact you for this restricted business and to confirm your understanding intanderm with my requirement.

I really desire an informal relataionship fro you that will be good and profound so that the anxielty of this business will become anxiliary. I will need to know what you think am talking about and your possbile convictious that will bring me and you closer so that I can open up to you the whole details as I am afraid and, I'm only interested in doing this business of mutual understanding if you please !

The choice of the net has amply needs for quite a frank means for me.This business is real and if you please, do note that my situation is secret. If you like, you can even give me the email of the U.S.A Treasury Department for their investigation & FBI so that I can be plain to them as my proposal is rist free.


Be good, while I expect to hear from you soonest.

Respectfully,

Rev. Martin Moore

Dennis Peacock
01-27-2006, 12:31 PM
Speaking of nuts, this guy sent me a scam e-mail this morning and I sent him my new standard response, and he answered as follows:

My dear Joe,

It is very illexpected of you to say such an unexpected word to my humbleself. Note that this proposal is written by me and your priority is what gives me the enormous feelings to contact you for this restricted business and to confirm your understanding intanderm with my requirement.

I really desire an informal relataionship fro you that will be good and profound so that the anxielty of this business will become anxiliary. I will need to know what you think am talking about and your possbile convictious that will bring me and you closer so that I can open up to you the whole details as I am afraid and, I'm only interested in doing this business of mutual understanding if you please !

The choice of the net has amply needs for quite a frank means for me.This business is real and if you please, do note that my situation is secret. If you like, you can even give me the email of the U.S.A Treasury Department for their investigation & FBI so that I can be plain to them as my proposal is rist free.


Be good, while I expect to hear from you soonest.

Respectfully,

Rev. Martin Moore




It's all because he KNOWS he can't be touched by U.S. Law. It's all a big game....the all of them. It's just a large annoyance for "us". Don't waist your time on these noodles....ain't worth it.

Bryan Somers
01-27-2006, 12:51 PM
It's all because he KNOWS he can't be touched by U.S. Law. It's all a big game....the all of them. It's just a large annoyance for "us". .

You are so right!! Guess I've been lucky, have'nt been getting this stuff. There are enough out there falling for it tough.

Frank Chaffee
01-27-2006, 1:07 PM
Joe,
One consolation in the internet age is that it is cheaper to delete an email that it was to throw out your own fax paper when they were doing the same scams 20 years ago.
Frank

Joe Pelonio
01-27-2006, 2:29 PM
Joe,
One consolation in the internet age is that it is cheaper to delete an email that it was to throw out your own fax paper when they were doing the same scams 20 years ago.
Frank

I got those faxes as recently as 10 years ago. Now I'm plagued with fax offers for mortgages and equipment leasing. In the US it's illegal to send unsolicited fax ads but you have to send them a letter citing the law and tell them that they owe you $500 and follow up by suing, but who has the time to do that? Plus they never give an address, just an 800 #. So I just toss them.

Pete Lamberty
01-27-2006, 3:17 PM
First off, let me say that I am not a computer savy individual. But as most people do, I have a friend who seems to be quite knowledgeable. I think he once told me that if I open these sorts of emails the persons who sent them can tell that I opened them. There by showing them that I am interested, at least a little. They, therefore, send more thinking that at some time in the future I may try what they are offering. So if you don't open them they won't send more, but if you do they will keep sending. Like I said at the begining. I don't know if this is really correct but why do you even bother opening these things. Send them right to the trash. I delete at least a dozen emails a day without even openning them.

Joe Pelonio
01-27-2006, 4:19 PM
So if you don't open them they won't send more, but if you do they will keep sending. Like I said at the begining. I don't know if this is really correct but why do you even bother opening these things. Send them right to the trash. I delete at least a dozen emails a day without even openning them.
Pete,

That's good advice but doesn't always work, especially for people with
business web sites.

These people target businesses, and disguise the subject so that you have to open it. I had some spam filter software for several weeks until customers strarted calling to ask why I hadn't responded to their e-mails.
Turns out I had some key words to identify spam like "mortgage" but got a customer who is a mortgage broker that needed signs for his office. Also,
they are sending to the e-mail shown on my website, so they know what words to use to get me to open it. When I get an e-mail with a subject
like "hot teens" or "Lottery winner" I'll delete without opening, but most are more like "sign inquiry" that could be real business. The worst thing is that customers also send artwork files so I'm more vulnerable to opening e-mail that contains a virus when it looks like business, that's why I have so many anti virus and adware programs.

philip marcou
01-30-2006, 4:36 AM
Joe, one should delete those messages immediately and resist the urge to jerk their chain-by answering they can get info the likes of which you would never dream of-ask a computer geek to confirm that.
Having said that , this thing is a worldwide sickness, and I'm really tired of winning huge lotteries, recieving millions into my bank account etc etc.
I just wish I knew how to keep the poxy turkeys out of my computer!

John Hart
01-30-2006, 6:52 AM
I would like to warn everyone about another scam that is proving very successful. The Nigerian scam really isn't very successful because it is so obvious a fraud that most people don't bite. Even the FBI acknowledges that the number of victims is fairly low.

The one that is extremely successful is the "Work from home and make thousands of dollars part time" scams. These are overseas organized crime scams that ask you to receive money from their "customers" in the US, consolidate those payments into a single account, then send Western Union transfers overseas. When you make the WU transaction, you keep a percentage.

The reason they work is because the victim actually gets paid. But it is an internet sales money laundering network that is completely illegal. The victim is guilty of money laundering and the people in the network are almost impossible to track. This is a dangerous one.