Current Status

This blog is not frequently updated because most case-by-case scam reports are now listed in subordinate blogs. At this point in time, most of my efforts are targeted at documenting employment scams in the Suckers Wanted blog.

2007-07-27

Advance Fee Fraud: 419 through 101egreetings.com

This is probably more common than I'm aware of, because my reflex action is to delete "ecard" notifications of this sort. Anyway, this is an instance of an "ecard" site being used to send 419 scam spam. I checked out the site, and there's no "report this as spam" button on the page that I can see, so shame on 101egreetings.com for leaving their system so open to abuse.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: danlami_zbplc@yahoo.co.uk <danlami_zbplc@yahoo.co.uk>
Date: 07/26/2007;
Subject: A warm wish from Mr. DAVID DANLAMI
To: ideceive@gmail.com

Dear Recipient,

[Mr. DAVID DANLAMI (danlami_zbplc@yahoo.co.uk)] has sent you an egreeting from 101eGreetings.com
101eGreetings.com is all about saying something, expressing yourself,
and connecting . We have got ecards for all occasions to help you
celebrate all the little and big things in life. Share the joy with
people you love and care about, make them smile, by sending them an
e-wish from our collection.

Your ecard will be available on our server for the next [30] days.

--------------------------------------
        CARD DETAILS
--------------------------------------

To view your ecard, please click on the following link :

http://www.101egreetings.com/cgi-bin/greetings/viewcard.pl?cardnum=EG12505126072007783

Alternately, you may copy and paste this link in your browser's
address box.

Your ecard number is : [ EG12505126072007783 ]

In case you have any questions or queries regarding your greeting
please mail us at [ support@101egreetings.com ]


Best Wishes
Customer Care
http://www.101egreetings.com/

To send someone an ecard, please visit us at http://www.101egreetings.com

2007-07-19

Advance Fee Fraud: Richard Dolls Foundation

I felt that this one was worth noting, because I don't recall having seen a 419 disguised as a conference invitation before. The bait here is the part that says, "Richard Dolls Foundation has set up an Access Fund to support the travel costs for all qualified participants." Depending on their modus operandi, they'll either ask for money up front (and never send you anything in return), or send you a fake cheque, get you to bank it, and then send them money based on the proceeds -- leaving you to foot the bill when the cheque bounces.

How do I know this is a scam? Easy. For starters, it's spam. For seconds, it's from a Yahoo freemail account. For thirds, "Richard Dolls Foundation?" Where do they get these names? And last, but certainly not least, the originating IP address of the spam was 77.70.128.146, which is presently delegated to a service provider in sunny Nigeria. 'Nuff said.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Richard Doll Foundation <infor_dollfoundation@yahoo.co.uk>
Date: 19-Jul-2007 03:14
Subject: Call To Participate
To: doll_foundation1@yahoo.co.uk

Hello Delegate,

This is a Call for Participation in an INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF NGOs holding from 20th August till the 30th of  September  2007 in London, United Kingdom where as many as 200 participants from across the world including Health Practitioners, Professionals in relevant fields, Lawyers, Psychologists, Women and Youth Development Groups, Government Officials, Donor Agencies and participating NGOs will meet to discuss issues pertaining to the Welfare of NGOs...and also to meet others like yourself; to learn, teach, inspire and being inspired. This event will be exploring the potential of a practical approach that will unleash and nurture the human capacity to create, collaborate and change positively, the world at large.

What are the objectives of this meeting? The meeting will provide a medium where participating individuals and NGOs will convene to address and discuss ways of improving key Humanitarian issues and topics with much emphasis on Human Rights, Gender Equality, Peace and Security, Social and Economic Development, Youth and Children, Health Education, Ethics and Value and Environmental Protection. Participating NGOs will have direct access to grants by International Donor Agencies.

The opening Lecture will be held by Dr Mrs Artemisa Franco who is the President of the Center for Human Rights Research and Development, Maputo - Mozambique.The program will include:
* Thought-provoking plenaries
* In-depth breakout and dinner sessions for strategy-development
* Capacity and skills-building sessions; and
* Debates to stimulate discussion.

In addition to the main program, the meeting will also host book launches, artistic and cultural activities, exhibitions, plenty of space and opportunity for informal networking and alliance building.

All plenaries and selected breakout sessions will have interpretation into English, Spanish and French.

Who can participate? What happens if more than 200 participants apply? Anyone who is a member of an NGO, Professionals in related fields, Students Unions, Lecturers of Universities and Community based organizations, the Clergy as well as women and youth development groups can apply to participate.

If more than 200 people apply (as we anticipate), a global selection committee will select a representative 200 from among the applicants. This committee will ensure that the participants at the meeting are truly international and represent a diverse range of interests, issues, and regions.

The events shall commence on the 20th till the 30th of July 2007 at Abba Queens Gate Hotel London.
I can't afford the cost - Can you help? Richard Dolls Foundation has set up an Access Fund to support the travel costs for all qualified participants.

How do I apply, and when is the deadline? All Interested organizations should send an email to the Local Organizing Committee. Participants MUST be a group of 1-3 persons to qualify for registration.

Contact Person: Rev. George Solomon
Email: infor_dollfoundation@yahoo.co.uk

Regards,
Local Organizing Committee
Richard Dolls Foundation


Yahoo! Answers - Get better answers from someone who knows. Try it now.

2007-06-19

News: 111 suspected 419ers arrested in Amsterdam

I'm pleased to say that the Netherlands is still taking Nigerian organised crime seriously, even if the UK has decided to slack off. As reported in The Register (among other places), police in Amsterdam last weekend arrested 111 people of West African nationality (primarily Nigerian). They are suspected of running lottery scams.

2007-06-12

Spam: Job Scammer does OEM Soft too?

A few days ago, I received a short blast of identical spams (other than the "from" address, which was totally different for each instance) promoting dubious vacancies at a "company" called SunFx. For detail, see the SunFX Online Inc scam report at my Suckers Wanted blog. This particular instance of the spam stood out because it's mangled: it blends an OEM Software scam with the job scam. I suspect that this is either the same scammer running more than one scam, or at least the same spammer, possibly sending spam on behalf of more than one dodgy client.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: James Nelson <[redacted]>
Date: 09-Jun-2007 19:45
Subject: Re: Hi
To: [redacted]


OEM Soft Store 80% Discounts

  We are glad to present You this online software store with maximum lowest prices on the Internet. You won\'t find software anywhere else on the Internet with prices lower than here. All the programs we have here for sale and available for Download Only.

http://www.best-soft-download.hk/

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MS Windows Vista Business Edition at ......ONLY $49.95

MS Office 2007 Professional .......................ONLY $49.95

ADOBE Creative Suite 3 Design Premium ..ONLY $37.95

SystemWorks Premier 2007 Edt .................ONLY $19.95

And many more...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Come and check out by yourself
http://www.best-soft-download.hk/
SunFx Online Inc. customer service department is currently offering employment for 10 Australia residents and 15 United States residents in order to provide it's new branch with qualified personnel.
The private client support desk is responsible for following up client enquiries, helping the clients to understand how SunFx Online can save them money on foreign currency transactions, and developing new business through referrals.
If you're a customer service fanatic, and enjoy working in a challenging and rewarding environment, please see below for our current list of opportunities.

Position: Customer service officer.
Salary: Your starting salary will be $2300 - $4500, which will be paid to you in accordance with our standard payroll procedures.
In addition, you will be eligible for monthly and annual bonuses.
Relevant Work Experience: Will be an advantage.
Location: Australia / United States.
Education Level: College degree will be an advantage.
Insurance: 1 month after you begin work, you will be covered under our group health insurance policy, unless you advise us that you do not desire such coverage.
Information regarding our health insurance, as well as other group benefit plans, is enclosed
Keywords: Telecommuting, flexiplace.


Should you have any questions regarding this letter, our offer of employment or anything else, please write me an e-mail.
We are excited to have you join our organization and look forward to working with you.

Please forward your full resume, contact information and questions to HR dept. e-mail: sunfxcareers@ssl-mail.com

You will be contacted within 1 to 4 business days.

Best regards,
James Nelson
Employment Manager
SunFx Online Inc.
sunfxcareers@ssl-mail.com

2007-06-01

Spam: ship4love

This scam is funny. I don't know what the exact details are -- it looks like advance fee fraud, but I'm not going to bother digging up details. However, here are a few suspicious points.

  • Does this whole thing reek of "bait" to you? Someone is trying to lure desparate males with some very tall tales here.
  • A beauty pageant called, "The Beauty and Intelligence of Russia"? Oh really? Seems like nobody else on the Internet has heard of it.
  • They advertise by spam. That's a good way to get victims, not customers.
  • The domain name is freshly registered.

Speaking of domain registration...

   Domain Name: SHIP4LOVE.COM <-- scam
   Registrar: ENOM, INC.
   Whois Server: whois.enom.com
   Referral URL: http://www.enom.com
   Name Server: NS1.SLAVHOST.COM
   Name Server: NS2.SLAVHOST.COM
   Updated Date: 10-apr-2007
   Creation Date: 10-apr-2007 <-- recent
   Expiration Date: 10-apr-2008

That's about all the effort I'm going to waste on this scam. Here's the original spam text for reference, though.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: [redacted]
Date: 01-Jun-2007 16:17
Subject: ship4love
To: [redacted]


Hello,

If you do not want to loose your money and to talk to girls who does not
even exist there is new wonderful opportunity to meet Russian girls in
person and to spend 7 days on cruise with them. On the 25 of July a
beautiful ship " St. Valentine " will sail from Sochi (Russia) and will
go around the Black Sea. There will be 50 Russian beauties who want to
meet a foreigner in order to make a family and they are ready to leave
Russia. These girls are disappointed in Russian men and they will be
happy to find the man abroad. All their pictures are placed on the
website. On the ship will be created such an atmosphere that will help to
start romantic relations. There will be invited only 30
foreign men on that cruise. And you can be one of them!
If you are interested, go in a site: ship4love.com

ship4love.com

Best regards.