RootsChat.Com
General => The Common Room => Topic started by: setraynor on Saturday 04 December 04 10:33 GMT (UK)
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Just wanted to alert everyone that there is a possible internet scam that is targetting people researching their family trees. :o
I receved an e-mail purporting to be from a barrister in Nigeria searching for 'next of kin'. Alarm bells rang when I saw:
1) It had been sent from one e-mail address but the replies would go back to a different e-mail account
2) The person wanted to 'share equally' the money
3) Personal details were asked for.
Another curious thing is that the mail completely disappeared from my in-box & saved mail when I closed it down (luckily I had forwarded it on to my husband's e-mail account so I do have a different copy). Goodness knows if it has taken over my e-mail or computer or done something else nasty :'( - so I thought I should warn people about it.
I could be wrong...but I think this is some kind of scam. Here is a copy of the e-mail text. Has anyone else been targetted like this?
Sharon
Subj: Next of kin to your late relative Mr Clough,please do revert immediately.
Date: 29/11/2004 17:35:58 GMT Standard Time
From: daviddada@atina.cl
Reply-to: david_dad01@yahoo.com
Sent from the Internet (Details)
From:Barrister David Dada Esq (LLb,Bsc,Phd)
Solicitor & Public Notory-Service to Humanity
Suit 15 Independence Building Victoria Island,
Lagos--Nigeria
P.O.Box 1279 Marina
LAGOS-NIGERIA
Hello,
I am Barrister David Dada,the attorney at law to Mr Jim Clough, a nationale
of your country, who used to work with Emron Electrical Company in Nigeria.
Here in after shall be referred to as my client. On the 21st of April 2001,my
client, his wife and their Only Son were involved in a car accident along
Ibadan express-road. All occupants of the vehicle unfortunately lost their
lives.Since then I have made several enquiries to your embassy to locate
any of my clients extended relatives this has also proved unsuccessful.
After these several unsuccessful attempts, I decided to track his last
name over the Internet, to locate any member of his family hence I contacted
you.I have contacted you to assist in repatriating the money and property
left behind by my client before they get confiscated or declared
unserviceable
by the bank here. These huge deposits were lodged Particularly,with the
"City Express Bank Plc" where the deceased had an account valued at about
$9.5million dollars.The bank has issued me a notice to provide the next
of kin or have the account confiscated. Since I have been unsuccessful in
locating the relatives for over 2 years now I seek your consent to present
you as the next of kin of the deceased since you have the same last name
so that the proceeds of this account valued at 9.5million dollars can be
paid to you and then you and i can share the money evenly and then part
will go to the dream of Jim which has been developing a social home for
the less previlage. I will
procure all necessary legal documents that can be used to back up for any
claim we may make.
What i need from you is to send me in your next mail,
1) YOUR FULL NAME
2) YOUR ADDRESS
3) YOUR AGE AND OCCUPATION
4) YOUR TELEPHONE NUMBERS WHERE I CAN REACH YOU AT ALL TIME
Please,make sure that all the information that you will be forwarding
to me are very correct because that will be what i will use to get all the
legal documents in your name for the transfer of fund to your account All
I require is your honest co-operation to enable us see this deal through.I
guarantee that this will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that
will protect you from any breach of the law. Do feel free to ask questions
in what you do not understand in this letter in
your next mail as i wait positively to your response.
I remain ,
Barrister David Dada Esq
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Hi Sharon
I received the self-same email some months ago, and just deleted it straight away.
It is definitely a 'scam' .....
Su
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These Nigeriam scams appear to be so ridiculous that it is hard to believe that people do fall for them but they do - in the UK to a reported level of £150-million a year.
Equally ridiculous are the Netherlands Lottery scams and that is said to pull out about £70-million.
Many years ago aman made a living by running an advert in the newspapers that said "Send £1.00 to PO Box xxx, xxxxxxx". A Pound would buy you 10 pints of beer back then and he was arrested and charged with having obtained £35000 by false pretences. The case was dismissed as he had promised them nothing in return.
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I received one of those E mails myself they must be doing there rounds it went in the bin there is a lot of new people coming into this and I am afraid there is going to be a lot of abuse so all I can say is beware
Audrey
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I also received one of these several months ago but with a strange twist - the relative not only died suddenly and left lots of money to get out of the country but
"Secondly he has a consignment tagged 'family
valuables' he shipped or lifted by as cargo to Europe
early the same year he died, according to the
information he passed to me, it is of a important to
him. "
So not only could I be tempted by money - but what person interested in their family tree wouldn't be interested in 'family valuables'.
I also deleted it, but not after marvelling at the way scams are adapted to tempt their audience!!
Jenny.
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This type of scam known as Advance Fee Fraud has been going the rounds for some time it is generally referred to as the Nigerian 419 scam after the section of the Nigerian penal code which it breeches.
Although referred to as the Nigerian 419 scam it could come from any part of the world and is generally addressed to you by someone of the same or similar surname see http://www.scamorama.com/ for some information about how some people decided to fight back. Funny but not recommended
Delete any you receive
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There's a useful site called www.fraudwatchinternational.com which has lots of information and also allows you to forward to them those lottery scam emails so that they can work to close them down.
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Thanks for the links - that was partly what I was after when I posted the topic (and to raise the awareness of the newer people researching their trees).
I've forwarded the message I received on to fraud watch.
Sharon
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Just out of interest I'm sure I read in the paper last week about someone being arrested & charged with this type of scam (claiming to be from Nigeria etc etc).
Anything in my in box that isn't from someone I know or someone I'm expected mail from gets deleted!!
tabitha :)
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I was still getting those emails last week!! Makes you wonder if they have a net connection in Broadmore! lol
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I used to get one of them every week or so but in the past few days I've had dozens. I haven't posted my email address anywhere new so am puzzled as to why they've exploded like this. >:(
Anyone else getting several a day too?
Angela
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I just got that one this week two times. I got them last year and they started again. How do they get our addresses? BAD BAD people!!
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I got one yesterday :o :o Just deleted it.
It makes me wonder where they get our email addresses from ??? ???
Jan :)
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I have been receiving 4-6 scam e-mails a day and the number seems to have increased as Christmas gets closer. I just delete them but one got through. Not thinking I went to my Outlook Express inbox and a message was imported from my usual web address the sender being myself . This time it was from an Afghani woman who had lost her husband, she had 6 children to feed and she was dying from cancer not expecting to live out the month. The money was to support her children after she died. Can you hear the violins playing? Usually I go to my to my main web-address first and delete messages from anyone I don't know but this day was not paying attention. I've probably opened a Pandoras Box now they know my address is active. It pays to be alert at all times for these parasites to use a nice phrase!!!
A question for the more computer savvy buff: how can you be sent a message from a stranger and have it posted as coming from your own web-address? ??? Very puzzling.
Juddee
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The 'dying of cancer' one must be doing the rounds in Oz, Judee - I received mine today.
As Hack says, I don't know how people get taken in by them.
I get offered $25 million quite often from Nigeria - and with the Blessing of Jesus as well.
Darcy ;)
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I receive those emails all the time here in U.S.. Delete-Delete-Delete! Our newspapers often run stories about these warning everyone to just Delete such email. It seems to do no good reporting it to the police or anyone because as soon as they do track down one person who is doing it another person takes over. It is all a big scam and has nothing to do w/genealogy except your name may have been taken from a genealogy site by them. This has been a problem for years and dosen't seem to be about to stop any time soon. Anything that says Nigeria is suspect and one never gets Anything For Nothing. Unless you are a very young person (Who hasn't learned it yet) or a really older person (Who still believes in the goodness of everyone) you should know that "If it sounds too good to be true it probably Isn't" Leagen
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I have had both those - Nigerian & cancer .... plus lots of others that I haven't read or have deleted.... in the past few days........ it worries me and I've got to say this re-started last week when I started doing the trivis quiz....can it be connected ?
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I haven't done the trivia quiz....so they must be getting the addresses from somewhere else
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Get mailwasher and just bounce em back a few times. They stop and you get no more. Haven't had one in about 2 months now although I have been getting others. Also it may pay to get the headers and then return with the headers to the originating server using something like Abuse@123.xxx where 123.xxx is the ISP but remember only to send to the originating ISP and not the one in the from box that is spoofed
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Generally though spammers use other people's mailservers to do their dirty work, so it's very difficult to trace.
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I received a few of those in the past couple of months. It's a definite scam.
One asked me for a bank account number to deposit the money in. Yeah...I'll just give that right out to anyone. LOL!!!
Minime
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I hate it when people foreward so many false warnings, but this one is important.
Send this to everyone--repeat--everyone on your email list.
If someone comes to your front door saying they are conducting a survey on deer ticks and ask you to take your clothes off and dance around,
DON'T DO IT!!!
It is a scam; they only want to see you naked.
I wish I'd gotten this yesterday.
I feel so stupid now....
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Don't worry Fitty - she caught me too and it was 'orrible cold ::)
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Too late Fitty! ;D
They got me this morning and Hack, it was freezing ::)
Haven't had any of the Nigerian ones though.
Newbie
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I have had loads of the Nigerian ones... have managed to avoid the knock at the door. lol...
I will have to look out for them... what really annoys me is the amount of medical products I get offered... and cannot use any of them lol.... they must really be hard up if they think I need them lol....
Best wishes..
Mo
I hate it when people foreward so many false warnings, but this one is important.
Send this to everyone--repeat--everyone on your email list.
If someone comes to your front door saying they are conducting a survey on deer ticks and ask you to take your clothes off and dance around,
DON'T DO IT!!!
It is a scam; they only want to see you naked.
I wish I'd gotten this yesterday.
I feel so stupid now....
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Hi all,
Yes these are definitely scams and apparently lots of innocent people have been conned by these ruthless con merchants.
They get your email addresses either by reading peoples guestbook entries or by pure chance variants of email addresses.
DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES GET INVOLVED WITH THEM as it has been known that some people have died by meeting up with these scammers.
There are people out there trying to scam these scammers at their own game and you may like to check out
http://www.419eater.com/
Keep safe
Karen
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Just received one from Mrs Arafat whose e-mail address is as follows: mrsarafat@tiscale.co.uk. Does this provider exist in the UK. Anyone know?
Juddee
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Hi, my provider is tiscali.co.uk ! They are authentic but I've never come across tiscale.
tabitha
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I have also been getting email saying I've won a lottery or some other type of drawing and telling me to click on a link to claim the money. I Never click on any link from Anyone I don't know as that may lead to a virus. Has anyone else received those saying u won money and if so how did u handle it? Leagen
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Leagen, I'm afraid I could be a millionaire lottery winner and don't know it....anything from a sender I don't recognise gets deleted without opening!!! I now have a spam filter which cuts down on loads of this rubbish!
"What I haven't got I won't miss" as the saying goes ;D
tabitha (the penniless one!!)
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As I said before, if you get anything saying you've won lots of money, just forward it to scams@fraudwatchinternational.com
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Anybody know what Namesdatabase.com is ? Bogus or legit? Got some strange emails from them that seem to know too much for my liking!
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Sorry Tabitha
Hit the wrong key yet again ::) Looking at the address again it is tiscali.co.uk. Anything I can do?
Juddee
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Hi Juddee, just had a look at Tiscali.co.uk's web site, I can't find anyway of reporting suspected frauds direct to them other than sending a normal email.
I would suggest using the link supplied by sutton trust earlier in this thread and send the email to them at scams@fraudwatchinternational.com
The website there explains in detail some of the scams being used at the moment including Nigeria, Lottery, etc.
I don't know how the law works regarding email addresses being used for scams or illegal activities, so don't know if Tisacali have a legal duty (as opposed to a moral one!) to stop the use of their email addresses for this type of thing!
Cheers
tabitha :)
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There's one going round with an attachment that says 'I love you' .....DO NOT OPEN THIS
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I had cause to report to tiscali some while ago. The link is in there honest; addy is abuse@tiscali.co.uk. Just *forward* it to them with the mail subject
lottery win/ anatomical enlargement (or whatever) SPAM REPORT
Pauline
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I get loads of Nigerian dodgy money offers - look out for Nigerian address, bad grammar, hyperbole, expressinos of sincereity and the fact that IT'S TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!
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I haven't had any from Nigeria for a while, perhaps due to the clause 419. However the problem seem sto have relocated to Togo and Benin.
I don't have any family there either.
The same goes for buying university degrees (I've got enough already), anatomical extensions (I'm happy the way it is), performance enhancing tablets (my wife hasn't complained yet) or anything else. Even mails (apparently) from myself saying "Hello". All junk, all binned.
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Guess what folks, I just got another one from Nigeria not 20 mins. ago. The heading on this one looked legit so I opened it but deleted it soon as I realized what it was. So be on the look-out, even if heading looks O.K., Beware! Leagen
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I received one yesterday claiming that my relative Edward Hylton had died and they were trying to trace his relatives
The thing that gave it away as a total scam? My maiden name is Hilton I changed the spelling to Hylton after I changed my name from Jackson when I divorced so it would be a wild leap of imagination to actually connect me to this 'supposed' relative
BTW they very nicely posted pictures of the site that he was killed at in an explosion. Bit heartless if he was actually a relative
Also seems a bit daft contacting someone who is researching their family tree as well - shall I e-mail them back and ask which branch of the family tree he came down. Bet that would throw them lol!
And yes I have forwarded on to fraudwatchinternational
Willow x
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Morning,
the last thing anyone should do is answer these mails. that just confirms that your email address exists. These scam mailings usually generate email addresses by computer, many of which may or may not exist. As I said, if you answer, you confirm your address, which can make you the pointed target of even more rubbish.
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... and just to add to that:
If you do (even) read one of these mails, DO NOT click on anything that say "Remove your name from ...." this subscriber list, mailing list, etc., or anything similar !
This is often another ruse to check if the e-mail address is valid and ...
if you answer, you confirm your address, which can make you the pointed target of even more rubbish.
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About 1880 or so the States was overrun by confidence tricksters with grandiose schemes to bilk John Public of his saved dollars. One was the Cat and Rat Ranch. Catskins fetched a good price so they were worth ranching on a huge scale. Rats bred rapidly so they would serve as a cheap food source for the cats. What were they to feed the rats on? The skinned cat carcasses :o
And so, massive profits were assured ::)
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This looks just like a typical fraudulent e-mail that emanates so frequently from African countries these days. I used to get around 5 a day until I changed to a new e-mail account, but no doubt they'll catch up with me again eventually. These people must think we are all really stupid!
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Unfortunately there are people out there who respond to these fraudsters official figures put it in the hundreds of thousands of pounds per annum.
The bottom line to remember is "If it sounds too good to be true...... avoid it like the plague ::) "