Saturday, September 29, 2012

Internet Scam: Fake Car Advertisement Job

I received this email today and felt it was worthy of a post because I've seen this particular scam a number of times.

Hi, I received an email from a supposed hiring manager from redbull, he was offering me a job where all I have to do is drive my car around with their logo company on it, he send me a paycheck and ask me to send some of the money to a guy that is called the "specialist" from the company and that I will keep the rest of the money because of my first payment, I went and cash the check but I don't want to send money to nobody because of my first payment, so what do next?

This IS a scam. It is not a real offer. You can tell because it has the classic check cashing scam built into it - they overpay with a counterfeit check, ask you to deposit it and send some portion of the amount on to another party - via wire transfer (always via wire transfer, because that's how they are untraceable once they've picked up your money). The original check will turn out to be counterfeit and the money you have forwarded is good and you will be on the hook for the full amount because the bank will pull that fraudulent amount back out of your account as soon as they figure it out.

There is no Redbull specialist, there is no car advertisement, there is only a scammer at the other end of that wire transfer, waiting to disappear with your good money.

I'm SO glad this person wrote in, from their Samsung mobile phone, and will NOT be sending any money to this scammer. I told her she doesn't have to even reply - just ignore any further emails from the scammer and let them waste their time while they figure out that no money will be coming from this particular potential victim, who will not be a victim today!

Friday, September 28, 2012

Internet Scam: Triangle Credit Card Fraud

This is a tricky one, called the Triangle Credit Card Scam and here is how it works:

1. The scam seller, on some auction or selling site like eBay, sells a product to a buyer, who pays for it.

2. The scam seller doesn't actually have the product so they then go to a seller online who actually is selling the product.

3. They order from that seller, who is now also a victim, using the buyer's information but a different stolen credit card number. The victim seller thinks the the buyer is just shipping to a different address, which happens frequently.

4. So the second seller is out because the goods were purchased with a stolen credit card and the actual owner of that credit card will do a charge-back when they figure out their card number has been stolen, and the buyer has their product but in reality they have now received stolen goods, which is a felony, and the original scammer disappears with the money.

A little confusing but of course everyone loses but the scammer. I'm kind of thinking why even go past the point of getting the money from the buyer. Many scammers just do this scam - pretend to have something to sell that they don't, get payment, and then disappear. Of course, the ideal payment is via wire transfer but even with credit cards, scammers can turn that into cash by buying stolen goods themselves.

The only way not to get pulled into this scam is to fully research who you are buying things from before you do the purchase.

Monday, September 24, 2012

Internet Scam: Fake Shipping Notification Scam

The below email got my attention more for the text at the bottom which you wouldn't see because it was white text on a white background, but when I selected the text - there it was. Very weird, though I figure it's purpose is to randomize that text to avoid the spam filters, which worked, because it got through to me.

Also notice the FROM email. That is a technique spammers use to trick people who aren't paying attention. ups-support.com is NOT an UPS domain name. It's not the same. But scammers are hoping you don't notice that.

And of course, this email had the expected malicious attachment payload (the attached file was named UPS_Label_Copy_US_ID45555.zip - which doesn't even match the ID number in their subject line, but whatever - scammers don't care about the details, they are seeking someone not paying attention) that, had I opened them (and I knew not to), would have probably installed a virus or spyware on my computer to monitor my keystrokes and look for passwords when I type them in.

Even if you DID have a package in route from UPS, these emails are NOT the way to check out the status. Go to the website yourself in a new browser window and look up the tracking number. Or call them.
Received: from ups-support.com ([80.123.214.210])
From: "UPS Customer Service" [international@ups-support.com]
Subject: UPS shipment status ID#5578

Notification,

We couldn’t deliver your parcel.

Status: Postal code isn’t specified.
LOCATION OF YOUR ITEM:Miami
STATUS OF YOUR ITEM: not delivered
SERVICE: Express Mail
NUMBER OF YOUR PARCEL:U452061644 NU
FEATURES: No

Postal label is enclosed to the letter.
Print a label and show it at your post office.

Important information!
If the parcel isn’t received within 30 working days our company will have the right to claim compensation from you for it's keeping in the amount of $21.26 for each day of keeping over limited time.

You can find the information about the procedure and conditions of parcels keeping in the nearest office.

Thank you for attention.
UPS Global Mail.

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Monday, September 17, 2012

Grandmother Scams

These scams started out as the "stranded scam", where scammers would target grandmothers and call them up and pretend to be their grandson, saying they were stranded in Mexico and now at the police station and needed money wired to them to get back home (and please don't tell anyone...) Grandmother's all over were falling for this scam, even when the person on the phone did not sound like their grandson. they would override their gut instinct and tell themselves that it was a bad connection or that they were under stressed and so "sounded different". And what grandmother would refuse to help their grandchild?

I hate scammers. This scam is still pretty active.

I am hearing more and more of these grandmother scams so Grandmothers everywhere - beware! Always call someone else to verify the location of your grandchild. Never wire money to anyone without speaking with another relative first. The scammer, pretending to be your grandson, will tell you not to tell anyone because they are embarrassed - but they really don't want you to tell anyone because then you'll figure out it's a scam and they won't be able to steal your money.

And today's news had a clip of an even more despicable Grandmother scam - the kind where it was actually her grandson who WAS doing the scamming. Heartbreaker.

He stole $200,000 from his 78-year-old grandmother in order to buying himself drugs, a motorcycle, and a ring for his girlfriend (who actually split town when she found out what he was doing - smart girl).  He told his grandmother that he needed money to pay fines and court fees before he could be accepted in the army, and she gave him the money because she thought it would keep him out of jail for late fees.

According to investigators, he would then call and even have his friends call and call and call his grandmother and pretend to be employees of the Seminole County courthouse, even a judge, demanding late fees, fines and other penalties from her. And she kept paying. And when she ran out of money, she borrowed it.What grandmothers will do for their grandchildren, and clearly even one who didn't deserve such love and support.


I am happy to say he was arrested but think of the emotional and financial devastation he left behind.

And now he really IS in jail, but he won't be able to work the scam now.

Grandmothers - you have a lot of love to give, and the world needs you... just double and triple check with others before wiring money to anyone or giving out any of your bank or credit card or social security information.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Internet Scam: Voicemail Over Email Scam

This is a twist I hadn't heard of before, but it doesn't surprise me. It will probably work as a scam for awhile just because of its novelty.

For those of us who have phones at work that can email us notifications when we get a voice message, and even provide us a link to click on to listen to that voice message, we feel efficient and connected. Scammers see an opportunity. You knew they were going exploit it.

The fake notification emails appear to come from Microsoft Outlook referencing a call from an anonymous person. Some scammers are able to leverage the company catch-all email so it might say voice.mail@yourcompany.com but some scammers don't even make this effort to trick people. The email attachment appears to be a .WAV file but it is really an HTML file that will redirect you to a scammer's bogus website where it will either download malicious malware software to your computer (which will then scan your computer seeking passwords and logins to your banking account) or it might attempt to collect personal financial or login information from you right there on the fake site.

There's always that basic advice to not click on ANY links in emails that you are not 10,000% sure of it's origin.

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Internet Scam: Locksmiths

The Locksmith Scam is pretty simple. Scammers are placing ads online and using email to promote really low-cost services. Then, when you need to change your locks, they come and take the lock you have and disassemble it and then tell you they have to charge a lot more to change your locks. That way, you no longer have a functioning lock and you are upset but more likely to pay the increased amount just to get any working lock back on.

Watch out for this one.