Scam Email from "Mr Wang Li" of Hong Kong - Beware!

The barrage of scam emails in our inboxes never seems to end! By educating yourself about the latest email hoaxes, email bribes, and email scams you can avoid months of financial heartache. This email from "Mr. Wang Li" is the latest!

This email was received yesterday evening. It has been copied in its entirety for your convenience. While we are not certain if there is such a person as "Mr. Wang Li", it is in fact a scam email. Please read the email, then educate yourself about what you should look for to avoid email scams in the first place thru the tutorial at the end of this article. After all, nothing is more powerful than the power of knowledge!

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From: Mr Wang Li
Sent: Thu, October 28, 2010 9:54:31 PM
Subject: Please Get Back To Me

Good Day ,

Although, the internet is a very hard place to trust and to believe and what not to. I don't find strange because of the means by which I have contacted you, please accept my apologies for this, it was due to prompt access in the internet and confidentiality reposed on this medium.

Actually I got your contact from Hong Kong commerce and Industry, during my discrete online search through a web based directory while searching for a foreign partner to execute this project together.This is were all individual and business contact are kept. Please do not be offended with the manner I have contacted you. It was necessitated by the urgency and nature of this transaction.

My name is Mr. Wang Li I work with the Hang Seng Bank. Although you might be apprehensive about my email as we have not met before,There is the sum of USD19,500,000.00 in my bank"Hang Seng Bank", Hong kong. There were no beneficiaries stated concerning these funds which means no one would ever come forward to claim it. That is why I ask that we work together so as to have the sum transferred out of my bank to you. Should you be interested please send me your:-

1. Full names,
2. private phone number,
3. current residential address
4. Occupation

Your earliest response to this letter will be appreciated.

Best Regards,

Wang Li.

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How to Avoid Email Scams

While the average email user knows to avoid giving out social security numbers or dates of birth, few realize that internet criminals already have this information in the first place! Thanks to our laws regarding "public" records, all of the information that you provide to the utility companies, court systems, employers, or other legitimate entities is left wide open for the world to see. A scary thought, to say the least!

Email criminals search the Internet looking for this information. What they don't have is a few key information pieces, such as listed in the email above. So how can you know if an email you receive is an email scam, or legitimate?

Internet criminals might be smart, but you can be smarter! Follow these steps to avoid being taken advantage of by a scam email!

1. Scam email tip #1: Huge Money

Any email that was created with the intent to defraud you will include large, enticing sums of money. Criminal masterminds, for the most part, don't bother with petty cash. If you see huge money amounts, rest assured, its an email scam.

2. Scam email tip #2: Foreign origins

I have received countless scam emails in my inbox over the years. All of them, and I repeat, all of them, have been of foreign origins. Or, I should say, CLAIM to be from foreign entities. Common locations include Nigeria, China, Africa, Kenya, and the Phillipines, among others. If the email says that the person is from another country, it is probably an email scam.

3. Scam email tip #3: Bad English

Despite modern technology, Internet criminals from other countries still have difficulty speaking or writing proper English. As you look at the email above, you'll see that the message is riddled with grammar mistakes. The average American, even someone who has bad spelling skills, don't mess up this much or this often! Email scams, on the other hand, are riddled with mistakes that stick out like a sore thumb. If you see these mistakes, rest assured, its a scam.

4. Scam email tip #4: Sender's Name/ Sender's Email don't match

In most, but not all, email scams, the sender will say that their name is totally different from what is indicated in the sender's email address. In a different scam email I received earlier this month, the sender's name was "Mr. Wang Li", but the email address was "ericamoore24". Why would someone of Japanese heritage use an American sounding email? This is a clear indication that you have received a scam email!

5. Scam email tip #5: Money Order/ Money Gram

If you receive an email that asks you to receive a large sum of money via money gram, money order, western union, or any other means of money transfer, you could be setting yourself up for email fraud. While it may seem like a great, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, chances are that the money you get will be "fake". Likewise, the banks will not recognize the scam for 2 - 4 weeks, giving the crooks plenty time to collect and run! You'll be sitting at home, peaceful and content, then suddenly - "Ring!!!!" - its the bank, your transaction bounced, and the police are on their way! In other words, if the message mentions anything about money grams, money orders, or western union, its an email scam!

6. Scam email tip #6: Get Personal

So you've been getting this same email, from the same person. You want to try it. You want to believe. You are certain that nothing bad could happen to you. Fine, try it, if you're so bound and determined to do so. But before you do, get personal with the other party. Ask THEM for their personal information, especially a phone number. And while you're at it, why not try calling them? Granted, a long distance phone call might cost you, but the price will be much less than what you'd pay should you be involved in email fraud! If the other party won't give you their name, address, occupation, phone number, and age, then why should you believe them? After all, they are asking you, a total stranger, for these things, right? Isn't it fair for you to request the same? And guess what? When you do call the party, chances are they won't speak English! Are you still convinced that they are legit?