Scam Alerts--summary of Various E-mail Scams on the Internet Today

I get them everyday, despite my attempts to keep my email away from sources that may generate them. Job offers, pleas for help from foreign countries, news of lottery winnnings from places I certainly have never heard of. Yes, I know they are scams, but entertaining to some degree! I chuckle at them most of the time, and report them as phishing scams, delete them, and go on my way to more entertaining ways to spend my time. It wasn't until a good friend fell for one of these not once, but twice!! It's time that everyone recognizes the various internet based and email scams out there--and be warned.

I have a hard time believing that, after being warned repeatedly, people still are falling for variations of these emails, and losing large sums of money on a whim. Get real folks, you check snopes.com for every missing child or female abduction chain letter, you really should be focusing on protecting your assets! There is very little recourse when you are taken advantage of, especially if the person who schemed and took your money doesn't live in the same country. You will never see your money again, and now that the economy is not looking so hot for many people, that's a danger you can't afford to fall victim to.

Here is a variation of letter I get at least three times a week via email. The company name is changed, as is the product or services provided. Sometimes the name and email of the sender is changed, sometimes only by one letter! Spelling errors are common in most of these emails as well, but once in a while they get lucky and use spell check. This one isn't too bad though, whoever sent it seemed to have a fairly good grasp of the English language--maybe they got some assistance! Notice how official the title of "accounts receivable officer" sounds.

It's one to watch out for, as many people have lost thousands of dollars with variations of this email.

Dear Sir/Madam,

We have a job opening for the position of Accounts receivable officer.
Would you like to work form your home and get paid weekly? We are
offering this position to all interested applicants. Please carefully
read through. This employment opportunity is targeted at providing
part/full time job seekers, and also people who would like to working
from home, and get paid weekly.
xxx Furniture Inc is a well established Furniture company,
Established in 1984, with warehouses all over the world and delivers
just about all kind of Furniture's, component, or related wooden items
to its customers. It stocks and sells hundreds of thousands of items
from thousands of manufacturers. We deliver high quality precision
products to some of the largest and best known companies in far back
Asia ,the Regions Of America and Rest of The world for a long time. You
will find our high quality Furniture's in the BEST products on the
market today.We serve the entire United States/Canada and a growing
export market, particularly in the upplies of Furniture's products. Your
primary task as a
representative of the company would be to coordinate payments from
customers and help us with the payment process.You are not involved in any
sales. Once orders are received and sorted we deliver the product to the
customer, after this has been done, the customer has to pay for the
products but in most cases we make our clients prepay for orders or items
they order for.About 90 percent of our customers prefer to pay through
Certified Checks or Money Orders drawn from the United States/Canada based
on the amount involved. We then decided to throw open this new contract
-to-hire job position as a way of giving back to the Nation in form of
extra job creation
and as a way of social responsibility to the populace and ultimately to
fill up this position.

Your First Primary task(Collection of Payments):

1. Receive payment from our Customers or Clients.
2. Cash Payment at your Bank or any cashing facilities near you.
3. Deduct 10 % which will be your percentage/pay on Payment processed
4. Forward balance after deduction of percentage/pay to any of the offices
you will be contacted to send payment to.You will have a lot of free time
doing another job, because this job is part time, you also will get good
income, but this job is very challenging and you should understand it.we
are sure you will be a diligent and timely worker, you do not need any
form of data entry experience to perform the job duties. Get back to us
with information below information , so that we can add your mailing
address to our Regional database and forward it to our customers for them
to start sending payments.

First name:.......................

Middle name:......................

Last name:........................

Address Line 1:...................

Address Line 2:...................

City:.............................

State:............................

Zip/Postal code:..................

Age:..............................

Marital Status:..................

Nationality:.....................

Home phone:......................

Cell phone:......................

Your response to this email is needed, so that we can reconfirm your
mailing/residential address details we have in our database. We
will be updating you as soon as a payment is being sent to you, and
you will be directed as to where to have the remaining 90% of the
money sent to, after the deduction of your 10% wage on any payments
received and processed by you. A swift acknowledgment of the receipt
of this email will be appreciated.

Thanks For Your Total Understanding.

Mr. JOHN XXXX

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Another variation is the mystery shopper scam, which can deceptively use the name of established legitimate mystery shopping companies. People fall for this when they google the company and assume that the email they have received came from the legitimate mystery shopping company. This is another form of the "Nigerian scam".

In some cases, a check for a large sum of money is sent to the potential mystery shopper. The shopper's assignment is to evaluate a bank's service, or make a large purchase from a department store, return the merchandise and send a portion of the money back to the sender.

The shopper is asked to wire the money through one bank to another. The check appears to the bank to be a legitimate check, and there is no sign that there is a problem-until a few weeks later. The check is found to be bad.

"You've sent thousands of dollars overseas to somebody that you'll never ever see again, whom you don't know, and you'll owe that amount back to the bank. In essence, the bank wants their money-and you have no recourse, since those guys overseas have their money--or should I say YOUR money?

Here is another one indicating I have money coming to me, from a mysterious source-for no apparent reason. They are trying to access my bank account apparently, note grammatical errors.

Attention
To The Owner Of This E-mail,How are you today, I write to inform you that we have already sent you USD5000.00 dollars through Western union as we have been given the mandate to transfer your full compensation payment total sum of USD850,000.00 via western union by this governemnt.

I was calling your telephone number to give you the information through phone but you did not pick up my calls throughout that yesterday eventhis morning.Now, I decided to email you the MTCN and sender name so that you will pick up this USD5000.00 to enable us send another USD5000.00 today as you know we will be sending you only USD5000.00 per day.

Please pick up this information and run to western union to pick up the USD5000.00 and call me back to send you another payment today, My direct phone line is +229-93-300-XXX, Manager Mr.Paddy Moris Email:(western.union2791@gmail.com) call or email me once you picked up this USD5000.00 today.Here is the western union information to pick up the Money
MTCN:1431193271,Senders Name: Icha Kamizo,Text Question: HOW MUCH Answer:$5000 Amount:USD $5000.00 I am waiting for your call once you pick up this USD5000.00,
Please email me your direct telephone number because I need to be calling you once we send any payment for the informations.

Thanks
Mr.Ben Mike +229-9858xxxx

Now, there are a variety of scams out there involving your bank account. You see, they are taking the chance that you already have an account at the bank they are claiming to be. One of them wants your debit card information, or your credit card information. Be warned, these are not limited to emails, they are actually calling random phone numbers. They claim that there has been some unusual transactions with your account, and ask for you to verify, give them your social security number, credit or debit card number, and pin. It's not obvious to everyone, but they now have stolen your account information and your identity! Try getting your money back from this one.

My all time personal favorite, and honestly I can't for the life of me understand how anyone falls for this-is the one begging for help. They rely on your need to help people, and get rewarded as a good and outstanding citizen. They often compliment you in the email, and say that you were recommended as a dependable person. My question is who recommended me?
The key with this one is many times it appears to be an orphaned child, or a widow making the plea. It appears much more urgent and time sensitive this way.

From: Robert XXXX.
XXXX Chartered Bank
First Light Branch Ghana
P.O. Box XXXX

Dear Friend,

I found your contact while I was doing a private research from Ghana Chamber of Commerce for a reliable and capable foreign partner that will assist me on this transaction. I have the honor and confidence to introduce to you this business in view of the fact that you are trustworthy and reliable. I am Mr. Robert Brown; the Area District Manager Standard Chartered Bank Ghana Limited.

There is an account opened in this bank in 2001 and since 2004, nobody has operated on this account again. After an intensive investigation, I discovered that the owner of this account was the owner of U. MARTINS COMPANY PLC. A foreigner and he died in 2004 and the account has no beneficiary, my investigation proved to me as well that this company does not know anything about this account.

The amount involved is US $ 26.000.000.00 (Twenty Six Million united state dollars only). In the light of the above fact, honesty I need your assistance to open door to this opportunity by providing your account or any account of your choice either private / companys account where the fund will be remitted. Your assistance as a foreigner is necessary because the management is ready to welcome any person, a foreigner who has correct information of this account, which I will give to you immediately. If you are interested and ready to conclude this transaction with me, I would be very much happy because my retirement is at hand and I cannot leave the money with the bank.

You should be informed strictly that I would damage all the documents in your presence; you should bear in mind that we shall meet face to face for sharing of this money in your country. I will apply for annual leave immediately I hear from you that you are ready to act as regards to this transaction and ready to receive this fund in your account. This is to enable me use my position and influence to effect the onward transfer of this fund to your account overseas.

At the conclusion of this business, you will be given 30% of the total amount, 60% will be for us, and 10% will be for local and international expenses both parties will incur on the process of this transaction.

I look forward to your earnest response on my direct telephone number: +233247610915 or you can reply by e-mail for confidentiality. Your private contact numbers is needed for easy communications.

Yours Sincerely,
Mr.Robert XXXX

I cannot possibly post every scam mail or Internet scam to watch for, but these are simply variations of earlier emails, and those to come. Names and locations, and the specific manner of notification will vary, sometimes daily, as these schemers and phishers make their way into our lives via electronic communication. Sometimes the information highway can be downright misleading. Let the consumer beware--and please share this article with everyone you know!