New Scams

[Mister Musicman]

I have noticed that the scammers are getting clever and the composition of email messages now need more scrutiny than the usual awkward sounding named person living in Uganda.

Here's one I nearly replied to with the good old english name of Jack Nelson with the title "wedding planning"‏ ([email protected]) The return email was different: [email protected]

Hello....
We are looking for an experienced wedding planner who will handle our wedding and arrange the reception dinner for a group of people who will be attending the wedding ceremony.

The wedding is expected to hold on the 11th of oct 2010 and MY 15guests are expected to attend with 2days accomodation starting from 10 th oct 2010 through 11th oct 2010. Plus a suit (room)for me and my wife 7th oct through 13th oct 2010

As I do not know what the guests might choose for their meals and drinks, i will make a prepayment as initial deposit for this booking cashier cheque once availability is confirmed by you.

You are to arrange for a venue for the wedding (its a civil wedding), a place for the reception ,Videography,Music Entertainment,Photography,cake and flowers (RED COLOR ALL THROUGH PLEASE).

If there is any items that is beyond your capability,you let us know so that another company can handle it.

Get back to me with your response as we don't have much time with us so that we can process our accommodation within the region more convenient for you and us.

I will appreciate if you can respond ontime to our request...and also let me know what the total amount for the whole arrangement ll be like

Mr and Mrs Nelson -Winney Jaknel

- I wonder if this chap - who only has one arm and wears an eyepatch is still asking people to kiss him harder?


Rob (Mister Musicman)
www.mistermusicman.co.uk

People may forget what you say or look like, but they won't forget how you make them feel!

[DeckstarDeluxe]

One you nearly replied to?

Everything about that screams scam and its not a new format either.

[Mister Musicman]

new name for you - cheeky spice!

I sincerely hope you are more polite with your customers.
Rob

[DazzyD]

Have to agree with Neil. This one has been doing the rounds for a while now. It's the classic bouncy-cheque-given-initially-but-then-requesting-you-refund-the-money-with-your-good-cheque-before-the-dodgy-one-clears-properly scam.

In fact, I remember seeing this scam on The Real Hustle in the first series a few years ago!

[rob1963]

One you nearly replied to?

Everything about that screams scam and its not a new format either.

Indeed.

I know people who have fallen for scams like this & the fake emails supposedly from their bank who actually put in their account details, only to have their account cleaned out soon after, and harsh as it may seem, I really have no sympathy for people who find themselves in this situation.

It's one of the disadvantages for having no common sense & being incredibly naive.

Going back to the OP, the return email address concerned me a bit, as I know a Mr B Anthony!

[Mister Musicman]

I just wanted to warn people and perhaps learn about anyone that knows someone who has had this happen or has experienced similar things and that was the reason I posted the new topic. I worry that younger more naive people will get sucked into a job offer like this. We all know that e-mails have become a great way for scammers to easily lure money or personal information from innocent individuals and we are all vulnerable to one degree or another.

Some of the old favourites are doing the rounds at the moment and it has occurred to me that some of the more astute among our membership may be able to give the rest of us (young and old) some tips on how to spot the cunning ways these spammer’s use to get people to part with their hard earned cash.

It obvious that e-mails from these parasites are merely sent to tempt their prospect victims to provide their personal data and once they succeed, they will use the submitted information to steal money from the victim’s bank accounts or purchase items through the credit card provided by the victim.

My own advice would be to treat any company that approaches you the same way you would a stranger on the street – check them out thoroughly before agreeing to anything. Ask questions and do an online search of the company name and see what comes up.

Any firm without a landline or with only a PO Box address should set off alarm bells. Bad spelling or grammar on websites or in emails should also serve as a warning sign.

Most of us know somebody who has been scammed or who had a near-miss. This is not a joke, as it is not funny. Although no life was lost in most scams, many people have lost their life savings or hard-earned money because they were targeted by scammers. Everybody has a weakness, and the scammers target this weakness.

Rob (Mister Musicman)
www.mistermusicman.co.uk

[Daryll]

Havent had that one yet..................
However I do receive the 419 scam emails , approx 10 a day , I always reply with the following.

OK.
This is what you have to do. You MUST follow my instructions to the letter , any deviation will mean a total loss for you , I have done the method many times, and as a result have close to $53.8 (53.8 million dollars)
you must open a bank account under the name of stephen smithers , this MUST be in the royal bank of Iceland , that is very important , after you have done this , you will transfer all the money to this account ,email me all the account information , I can then transfer this to my offshore account.
I do hope for your safely this is not a scam ,Do NOT ask for any handling fee , I deal with Western union and other like them every day , I NEVER pay up front fees .
I await your keen response

That its , sometimes they reply with the same old email , sometimes they dont

[DeckstarDeluxe]

Daryll just a guess but if your getting ten a day then somethings going wrong.

If your replying to them your telling them that your address is "live" and they will more than likely share it with other people.

Just a thought.

[rob1963]

Daryll just a guess but if your getting ten a day then somethings going wrong.

If your replying to them your telling them that your address is "live" and they will more than likely share it with other people.

Just a thought.

Completely agree.

The only thing to do is to hit delete as soon as they're received.

[DazzyD]

Daryll just a guess but if your getting ten a day then somethings going wrong.

If your replying to them your telling them that your address is "live" and they will more than likely share it with other people.

Just a thought.

Replying to obvious (and not so obvious) scams is a definite no-no. Just don't do it. The reason? As Neil says, you are letting the scammers know your email address is active. They can then spoof your email address so the spam looks like it's come from you. Then lots of people get these emails with your email address on them. It's not good.

And then you could then find yourself on a list such as SpamHaus (SpamHaus site). Email services will check these lists and you could find your emails being blocked. I speak from experience and this is not a pleasant situation to be in. The last thing you want is for your business email domain to be blacklisted.