Facebook Scam ALERT! Free Southwest Airline Tickets

There is a virus spreading like wildfire on Facebook tonight. The scam offers free southwest airline tickets BUT when you click, it spreads the virus to other people on your friends list, and the landing page is malicious, probably downloads spyware and definitely tries to put the victim through multiple questionnaires and surveys - collecting as much information as they can for identity theft and/or trying to ascertain passwords to banking accounts.

DO NOT CLICK ON IT when you see it on Facebook. DO NOT CLICK!

You can report it to Facebook as a spam or just ignore it. But do not click on it. It will only spread further.

Here is what one looks like on my wall:

You can learn more about protecting yourself from social media scams with this book, Social Media Scams, now available on Amazon.

Free Signed Book Giveaway Feb 4-7, 2013

Please feel free to enter my book giveaway contest on GoodReads.com

http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/43422-social-media-scams-protect-yourself-on-facebook-twitter-ebay-more

I've been helping people for years avoid online scams and I wrote <i>Top 10 Email Scams</i> and <i>Social Media Scams</i> to help spread the word further on how to avoid Internet scams. I want to continue my crusade to reduce the number of victims from these criminals.

This giveaway focuses on my second book, in printed book format, in the series. In <i>Social Media Scams</i> you will learn to recognize and avoid all the top scams currently in use online - it covers scams on Facebook, Twitter, eBay, Craigslist, dating sites and more. It will be a signed copy. It is 220 pages.

The contest is from February 4 through February 7, 2013.

Stay safe out there!

Email Scam: Fake Facebook Support Email

Here is an email I just got and it is pretending to be an official email from Facebook Support, which one might want to pay attention to. That is what the scammer is counting on. They are hoping that at least some percentage of the people receiving this email are not paying close attention and think it is really from Facebook Support when it is not.

All the links in the email look like they go to Facebook (or they are a linked button or linked word) but the actual destination of the link is: http://maxmax.webnow.biz/transferring.html?fb=katiemoe (DO NOT CLICK ON THIS LINK!!!!) but notice how they were able to insert a variable at the end of the string which identifies which Facebook account they are trying to attack. This is bad. If I click on this link, they will know who clicked on it, even if I don't provide them any further information. Worse than that, I may get some nasty spyware software downloaded to my computer. So, DO NOT CLICK ON ANY OF THESE LINKS!!!

From:    Facebook Support [surojitroy321@server55.neubox.net]
Sent:    Thu 1/24/13 6:27 PM
Subject: Facebook Support

facebook

Facebook Support sent you a notification. Your account has been successfully updated. Go To Facebook See All Notifications

This message was sent to xxxx@xxxxx. If you don't want to receive these emails from Facebook in the future, please click: unsubscribe.
Facebook, Inc. Attention: Department 415 P.O Box 10005 Palo Alto CA 94303

New Book: Social Media Scams

I'm delighted to announce my second book is now available for sale. "Social Media Scams" is a book to help educate and protect people from falling victim to scams on sites like Facebook, Twitter, Craigslist, eBay, as well as online dating sites. eBook or Paperback can be purchased from Amazon at http://amzn.to/RZSfZc

The first book in my scam series covers how to protect yourself from email scams. It is called "Top 10 Email Scams" and can be purchased on Amazon at http://amzn.to/QsAzhT
 
I also provide a variety of resources where users post their scam experiences and help alert each other:

KTMObooks: https://www.facebook.com/ktmobooks

Facebook Stop Art Scams: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Stop-Art-Scams/135887239769963

Stop Art Scams Blog: http://stopartscams.blogspot.com/

KTMObooks Blog: http://KTMObooks.com/blog/

KTMObooks Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/KTMObooks 

Scam Email: Fake Craigslist Alert Email

This email is just like fake LinkedIn email alerts, or fake PayPal alert emails, or fake account alerts supposedly from your online banking. It is fake and the goal of the scammer is to get you to click on the link in the email, which looks like it goes to one place but actually goes to their own malicious web page. Sometimes on that fake web page, they collect information, including your passwords or they download spyware software on your computer and you won't even know it. That spyware software will monitor your keystrokes and seek out account passwords. Ultimate goal? To get at your bank account, either through paypal or through your online banking. Failing that, they'll use your account to send out more scam emails so they look like they come from you instead of them.

In the below email I just got, the words "simple click" are hotlinked and actually goes to http://craigslistuser.yolasite.com/ but DO NOT TRY OR CLICK ON THIS LINK!

From: winndowwmall@telenet.be
Subject: Craigslist Account Alert!‏‏
Date: Sun 1/20/13 9:40 PM
Return-Path: Return-Path: peterdegraef@telenet.be

Dear Craigslist User,

We require you to verify your Account with one, simple click ,to confirm the validity of your account.

Thanks again for choosing our Service

Sincerely,
Craigslist Team

Catfishing Scam

I love that someone has dubbed a word for online dating scams. It helps it become more ingrained in the sub-conscious mind of more people. People like buzz words. People can remember them better.

Catfish. A little different than what you think this word would mean at first. But in the urban dictionary a "catfish" is someone who creates a full false identity online, typically in pursuit of deceptive online romances. The name came from a 2010 documentary movie made by Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman. In the movie, Ariel Schulman develops a relationship - falls in love, with a woman on Facebook and then goes to track her down in real life and finds her to be not at all what she represented herself to be, and married with children.

Now there are many more meanings for "catfishing" than just creating false identities for the purpose of deceptive online dating. People have created them to enact out whole "stories", about having cancer or some other crisis in their life. It is probably a convoluted way to feel the connection, sympathy and compassion of others. Sometimes, they want to "end" the story (it must become a burden after awhile keeping all the stories straight) but because others online think they are interacting with a real person, often the only way they can think to do this is to "kill" off their online identity. That is what happened in the case of Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o. He was, at first, torn to shreds in the media for making up a girlfriend (and still parts of the story do not make complete sense, like apparently his father referred to them being in Hawaii together), but Manti insists he was a victim of a "catfish" scam. That he thought someone was his girlfriend online and that she died of leukemia last year. Until some reporters looked into the story and realized there was no one by the name of his girlfriend. This particular story is still developing, but however it turns out, it is certainly a great example of the perils of online relationships. Most victims say it may seem crazy but that it happens in very small increments and does not seem so crazy at the time. Until you step back and look at the whole thing. But for me, how can these people think they are in a relationship and "in love" when they have never met the person face-to-face? It certainly targets people who may have idealized notions of love and relationships and those who may have more difficulty connecting face-to-face with people.

So what are the catfish scammers after? I think there are two main types. The ones after the deceptive sense of connection, sympathy, love, and compassion of another, and then those that are strictly in the game to eventually begin siphoning their victims dry of their money and savings. I mostly see the latter but I'm aware some create their false identities just to be able to "live" online as that character. It certainly blurs the lines of imagination, reality, identity exploration, and morality. The ones after the money are a little more clear cut. They are after the money. Very clear.

These type of scammers typically operate with more than one person, often in little cooperative "gangs", sharing the loot. And they go for big, big numbers. In fake buyer scams, they tend to target stealing about $1000-$3000 and stay under the radar of the authorities and just hope to get a lot of victims under the radar so it adds up. But in online dating scams, it may take longer to warm up their victim, but then they go for broke, often getting $200,000 or more out of the victims. I've seen cases commonly in the $800,000 range. You can see why scammers are attracted to this scam. Some victims, thinking they are helping someone they are in love with, will begin borrowing money once their own money is all gone, and in one case, the woman began writing checks from her employers checkbook and she was eventually arrested for embezzling. But she didn't keep a dime. It all went to her "fiancee", who she had never met face-to-face. So she was in jail with none of the money and the scammer got off scott-free, sitting in some foreign country with all the money. Amazing.

But I'm glad now there is a popularized term for this scam. Catfishing. It means more unsuspecting people will become educated and look out for the warning signs. Hopefully, it will begin to result in fewer victims. I review the warning signs for online dating in depth in my book "<a href="http://amzn.to/RZSfZc">Social Media Scams</a>". All efforts to bring this scam out of the dark corners of shame and embarrassment and bring more light to the subject is, well, a Good Thing. I think Manti Te'o is a reluctant educator on this subject, but still, that is a positive thing that will come out of his experience. And congrats to the "Catfish" documentary guys - you are doing great work to expose this scam.

Scam Email: Fake LinkedIn Private Message Emails

Okay, I'm getting slammed with these tonight so I wanted to post an alert. These look like they come from LinkedIn and someone has left you a private message, then providing you a link to click on in the email to see the private message. DON'T CLICK ON THAT LINK!

From:Glenda Clark [yianniskalaitzakis@s109.loopia.se]
Subject: Glenda sent you a 1 personal message‏

Linked In

Glenda Clark sent you a 1 personal message
Date: 1/10/2013

http://linkedin.com/do?viewProfile&message=89839692

View or reply to this message

This email was intended for katiemoe@hotmail.com. Learn why we included this.
© 2013, Linked In Corporation. 2029 Stierlin Ct. Mountain View, CA 94043, USA

The actual destination of the links in this email goes to: http://123-beach-resort.com/caverns.html (don't click on this link either!!)

Here is another one I got tonight was well (and the actual destination of the links goes to http://cgssac.com/headland.html, so don't click on it!!!)

From:Andrea Cook [Cook1972@server41.campusspeicher.de]

Subject: Andrea Cook just sent you a private message. LinkedIn Andrea Cook has sent you a personal message. Date: 1/10/2013 https://www.linkedin.com/trk?act=viewProfile&yt=message&poster=8897 View/reply to this message Don't want to receive e-mail notifications? Adjust your message settings. © 2013, LinkedIn Corporation

New European Cybercrime Centre

A shout out over the pond for the newly formed European Cybercrime Centre (EC3), opening January 11th, to fight online abuse, child pornography, identity theft and banking fraud on smartphones attacking European nations.

More resources on this worldwide problem is a great thing.

The centre already has a staff of 30 full-time employees. It will provide operational support to member states to combat intrusions, fraud and online child sexual abuse. The centre will also provide technical, analytical and forensic expertise in EU joint investigations. EC3 will focus on criminals with the aim of becoming a "focal point" of information exchange between national law enforcement agencies to identify threats more quickly.

This is a great addition to the U.S.'s effort with IC3 (ic3.gov).

Although scammers are like cockroaches and there is no hope of eradicating them completely,  more resources to make their life harder and to hold the line against the rising tide of gangs of scammers becoming more and more effective, this is an encouraging sign of hope. It's almost too easy now to become a scammer and steal money from unsuspecting victims. This will throw an additional wrench in their otherwise pretty cushy activities.

Congrats, EC3 - lots of good wishes on your cybercrime-fighting efforts. Go get 'em!

Scam: Independent Third Party Technical Support

I had a close friend get caught in this in the past week. It reminded me how vulnerable non-technical people are when something is not working right on their laptop, their printer, or something like their Hotmail email account.

It is so easy for the non-technical to get led down dangerous paths while they just look for the support they need to fix their problem.

One version of this scam is just a plain ole scam - the victim doesn't have any problem with their computer but they get a call or an email saying their computer DOES have a problem and they need to call such-and-such number to get technical support to fix it. Once they call the number, the "technician" (yeah, right...) downloads remote control software on the victim's system (now giving them access to EVERYTHING, including passwords, online banking... everything) and then charges them some fee for the service, which they'll charge via credit card or ask the money be wired with some lame story as to why they are making such a weird request. Other variations of this scam claim the victim's computer has been identified by the FBI as having illegal information on it... or porn and asking for a fee to have it removed and not prosecuted (the scammer is counting on real porn watchers being so embarrassed or intimated that they will pay and never let anyone know what has happened, ensuring the scammer gets off scot-free).

That's just a plain ole scam.

What my friend got caught in this past week was more of a deceptive unethical business practice scam than a regular ole gonna-steal-your-money scam (though the result is the same). These scams are distinct in that they actually pretend to provide a real service. And maybe they do, I'm not sure, but what I do know is how they get their customers is very slimy and what they do once they have a customer is also unethical and dangerous to the non-technical person seeking technical support.

These are independent, third party technical support companies, mostly operating out of India, who present themselves online is such a way as to confuse non-technical people. The victim thinks they are talking to Microsoft technical support, Hotmail technical support, Toshiba technical support, Canon technical support - whatever. The companies list themselves under as many brand names as they can online and present themselves as the support for those brands. I would say these sites include disclaimers saying they are not associated with the Brand in question, but non-technical people seem to miss these disclaimers. I still have to excavate why my friend thought she was calling Toshiba technical support and got this other company who did NOT identify themselves as not being the official Toshiba technical support so she proceeded.

And in proceeding, they downloaded remote control software on to her computer first thing and then charged her to cover one month of technical support. She figured her computer was not under warranty so neither of these things completely got her attention, though she admitted "something didn't seem right". They accessed her computer remotely and said they could not find the problem so of course there she was, having been charged, with remote control software on her computer and she STILL had the problem. It was only when she got an email confirmation of her payment that she realized she had been taken, for the receipt came from a company called iYogi.net (also using iyogi.com as well as well as other url names). It seems iyogi was a legitimate support provider at one time but now resorts to deceptive practices in order to acquire new customers. Here is a quote from the wikipedia page:

In March 2012, antivirus major Avast severed its ties with iYogi. Under the agreement that lasted a little more than two years iYogi had been providing online support to Avast users free of cost. Avast accused iYogi of forcefully selling its online support plans to Avast users which the Antivirus maker claimed to be unnecessary and expensive.

And here is the official statement from Avast, which reveals that iyogi was trying to increase revenue by claiming users had problems they didn't have: https://blog.avast.com/2012/03/15/iyogi-support-service-removed/

This user posted this comment online, not that long ago (just at the beginning of the month):

Tony
Dec 09, 2012  from Jefferson, Georgia
I called a phone # that was supposed to be for mcafee and wound up with Iyogi on the line they advertised three tears of total protection software for my computer,and help installing any new device's that I may purchase under same contract after having problems with thier tech support,and 24 to 30 hours on the phone with them,I still had some of the same problems they were supposed to have fixed .I called them back because after 30 hours on the phone with them in remote session I wanted to terminate thier services and dispute thier charges. the next morning my computer would not even boot up and I had to start in safe mode to a prior earlier known working date. then I found out they were disputing my complaint with discover and had maliciously taken over my e-mail address ,and since I havent sent any new e-mails I was unable too recover my hotmail account

There are a number of complaints with a similar theme posted at http://www.ripoffreport.com/Search/IYOGI.aspx

iyogi tends to post a lot of "shill" articles online so that users will likely get rerouted to them in searching for technical answers. And it's been tricky, because apparently this company HAS been a support partner for legitimate brand names but has been using these slimy tactics to get money out of users.

And apparently their remote control software is almost impossible to remove off your system. Certainly can't be removed in the normal ways.

Today, another company that looks like it has the very same approach as iyogi attempted to post a message in my blog with a link to one of their shill pages. iveera.com & iveera.net. Same crap. They are pretending to provide Hotmail support. They certainly want to show up in the google search results as providing hotmail support. It confuses people because Microsoft does not provide live support for Hotmail. And Microsoft has to keep saying these companies are NOT affiliated with them. And iveera is pretending to provide Norton Antivirus support, McAfee support, etc. They have posted "expert" articles so they show up in search results. Non-technical people don't realize all the time they are calling some third party support company in India, that they will be charged, and that they then run the risk of having remote control spyware downloaded on their computer.

This type of scam will be found under many different company names and I'm sure more new ones going forward. It's always a good step to google a company first and see what comes up. I googled "iyogi scam" and pretty much saw everything I needed to know.

Okay, so what is my advice to the non-technical?

1. If you are speaking to a technical support person, do NOT purchase any software from them in order to resolve a technical support problem.

2. Always ask at the beginning of a technical support call if there is a fee or subscription fee associated with the service. If there is, hang up.

3. Never EVER give up control of your computer using remote control software unless you are ABSOLUTELY confident (100%) that the person you are speaking to is an authorized representative of that brand name for which you are seeking support (i.e. Microsoft, Toshiba, etc.)

4. Never ever provide your credit card or any financial information to anyone claiming to be a technical support person. If you are being asked this, hang up.

5. Technical support people NEVER call customers proactively to tell them they have a problem that needs resolving. Only scammers do this. If you receive a call or email offering support you didn't ask for... it is a scam.

Popular 2012 Cyber Scams

Okay, we still have a week to go here to roll through the holiday season and settle down and focus on 2013, but I was reviewing my email inbox for December and realized I had received at least one example of each of the below scams (and in some cases, two of three per example).

How many of these can you check off as having received during the holiday season?

[ ] Phoney PayPal Payment Confirmation Email
[ ] Phoney YouTube Video Upload Confirmation Email
[ ] Phoney Bank Account Has Been Suspended Email
[ ] Phoney Discounts/Gift Cards on Holiday Items
[ ] Phoney Someone is Stranded & Needs Help Email
[ ] Phoney Facebook Friends Request Email
[ ] Phoney LinkedIn Connection Request Email
[ ] Phoney UPS/FedEx/USPS Delivery Invoice Email
[ ] Phoney Charity Money Request Email
[ ] Phoney Crazy Inheritance Email (can't believe this one still exists)
[ ] Phoney Work-At-Home Job Opportunity Email
[ ] Phoney Response to Craigslist Posting Email

I have to say, I am a popular girl with the scammers.

YouTube Email Scam

Scammers do not rest on Christmas. People who are amoral and online criminals do not really observe holidays. Notice the time stamp of the below scam email. Ok... do not notice the time stamp of my posting of this scam email to alert others. They won't let it rest, neither will I.

So here is one example of how a scam fake youtube notification email looks. I used a screen shot so you can see how they set it up to look like the email is coming from youtube to tell you your video has been approved. As I have not uploaded any videos to youtube, I'm clearly not their target, but they send out millions of these emails, knowing that lots of people DO upload videos to youtube and certainly some percentage of them will think this is a real notification and click on one of those darn links in the fake email.

The message for the link of the supposed video says this: "The link for the video says: There was a problem connecting to YouTube. This video may not exist or it may only play on YouTube. Try going to their website: www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEaaDkFzYw0a&feature=topvideos_mp"

An unsuspecting user will then think, oh I have to click on one of these other links to go see my video - and *all* the other links in the scam email actually redirect the user to a clearly bogus and probably malicious website: http://hasret.ekarakus.com/deliriously.html [I put the link here but DON'T go to it, I wouldn't even risk what would happen, especially since many of these malicious pages can just begin downloading spyware to your computer so they can track your keystrokes, seeking out your passwords. So don't try that link.]

The header of the email looked like this:
From:    YouTube Service (lwong@50.22.132.48-static.reverse.softlayer.com)
Return-Path: lwong@50.22.132.48-static.reverse.softlayer.com
Date: Tue, 25 Dec 2012 03:33:07 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: YouTube Service has sent you a personal message: Your video has been approved‏

and below is an image of the bogus email content, designed to look as if youtube was actually notifying you of your upload. Remember, none of the links actually go to youtube, they all go to a fake page that probably looks like youtube if you are not paying attention to the actual destination of the url and not just the blue underlined label you see in the email.

Give me a Christmas gift and do NOT fall for this scam. Let the scammer go empty-handed this time. Make my day.

Email Scam: It's Going to Be a Long Tax Season

Scammers are going to pile on the tax-related scams now until April. People are starting to collect up their 2012 information as the year ends, accountants are reminding their clients what to collect up and do by the end of the year, and scammers know this is a timely topic. Unsuspecting people will read it. This one is targeted at Accountants. DO NOT CLICK ANY LINKS IN ANY TAX-RELATED EMAIL.

I didn't mean to shout, but I kinda did...

It doesn't matter the scammer sent this to everyone. They only care about those sub-set of people receiving it who actually ARE members of AICPA and thus more likely to click on the link. It's a numbers game to them.

From: AICPA (alert@aicpa.org)
Return Path: [normalizationcf51@blomnet.com]
Subject: Tax return assistance  fraud prosecution.

Having trouble reading this email? (actually redirects to: http://cccjinfo.com/components/com_ag_google_analytics2/taxfraudalert.html) [Does this mean the scammers are actually tracking the responses on their scam emails to improve their effectiveness? Yikes. They can set up google analytics and yet can't spell or format worth crap below??]

You're receiving this informationas a Certified Public Accountant anda  member of AICPA.Having trouble reading this email?  Take a look atit in your  favorite browser.
        
Revocation of Public Account Status due to income tax  fraud

Dear  AICPA participant,We have received a delation about your possibleassistanceinincome tax refundfraud  for one of youremployers. In obedience to AICPA Bylaw Section No.700your Certified Public Accountantstatuscan beterminatedin case of the actoffilingof a incorrector fraudulentincome tax return for your client or employer.Pleasefamiliarize yourself with the notificationbelow andrespond toit within 7 business days.The  denial toprovide the clarificationswithin thistermwouldresult indiscontinuationof your Certified Accountant Career.Complaint.pdf

The American Institute ofCertified PublicAccountants.  Email: service@aicpa.orgTel. 888.777.7077Fax. 800.362.5066

Scammer: Bobby Paul

Here is a typical fake buyer scam, where they go for the high-ticket item in order to steal more cash in the scam. Remember, the scam is they pay with a counterfeit check or stolen credit card, overpay and say some non-existent shipping company is going to pick up and they ask you to forward that money on to the shipper via wire transfer. The scammer's money is fake but the money you forward is your own and real and it is just the scammer at the other end of that wire transfer, and once they pick up the money, it is gone and untraceable.

Also, when scammers say they can pay via paypal, they end up doing one of two things (or sometimes both): they send a fake paypal confirmation email saying the payment has been received by paypal (when, in fact, no money was paid... the scammer is hoping the victim doesn't check before forwarding the money via Western Union) or they come up with some story as to why paypal doesn't work for them and can they pay via certified check or credit (which falls back to being counterfeit or stolen).

Here is the email sent to me:

Hi Kathleen,

I’d like to add the cell phone number from “Bobby Paul”, when he initially contacted me by text.  It’s:  954-284-0147 which I think is in Florida. Thanks again for your website.  I’m grateful for your information to help protect people from disgusting scammers.

Sincerely,
Rhonda

From: Rhonda
Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2012 1:26 PM
Subject: Fw: Motorcoach for sale

Hi,

I received this email from what I thought is a prospective buyer for my motorhome I have listed on Kijiji.  They initially sent me a text message with their interest to purchase and requested my email address.  I sent an email at 10:08am but when his reply email came the time showed 4:08am on the email I had initially sent...5 hour time difference?  This email sounds like a scam.  Now they have my email address and cell phone number.

Thanks for your helpful site.  Bobby Paul looks like another scammer name for your list.

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

To: bobbypaull@yahoo.com
Sent: Wednesday, November 28, 2012 4:08 AM
Subject: Motorcoach for sale

Good Morning,

Thank-you for your reply to my ad listed on Kijiji regarding our Motorcoach for sale.  The price is somewhat negotiable with a slim margin.  The Newmar Essex is a luxury line of motorhomes and it’s condition is outstanding.  This coach has provided us with tremendous comfort and pleasure with it’s convenience in every way.  We have recently purchased a house for our winter retreat and the coach is no longer needed.

Please reply for further information.

Thank-you
---------------

From: Bobby Paul
Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2012 10:12 AM
Subject: Re: Motorcoach for sale

Thanks for the swift response...I am willing to know the lowest price of it.im out of state presently and please due to the nature of my job and location,i will not be able to come for inspection,am a very busy type as i work long hours everyday,i have gone through your advert and i am satisfied with it.As for the payment..i will be paying you via the fastest and secure way to pay online(PayPal).
I have a private courier agent that will come for the pick up after the payment have been made ...so no shipping included.You can now send me your PayPal email so i can pay in right away and also include your address in your reply.If you don't have a paypal account, you can easily set up one...log on to www.paypal.com and sign up. its very easy. await your reply asap.

Bobby Paul

Fake Buyer Scam: Pedro Alvex

Hi Kathleen,

I just had the same situation happen but I was contacted and requested for catering food. I “Googled” some of the info he gave me and it came up with your website.

It sounds exactly like the stories in your website so I thought I would add mine to alert people they have many scams!

I’m actually still in contact trying to get his visa number so I can alert Visa of this fraud.

As you may notice he is requesting to pick up catering at 11 am for an event in Ontario, …which he doesn’t even spell properly…

Thank you so much for having this web page!

Susana

First Email:

From: Pedro Alvex [mailto:alvexpedro@yahoo.ca]
To: undisclosed recipients
Subject: hello

My name is Pedro Alvex and i will like to order for cup cakes for 400 people for an upcoming event kindly advice if you can handle that ..

Regards.
Pedro

Second Reply:

From: Pedro Alvex [mailto:alvexpedro@yahoo.ca]
To: Susana
Subject: Thanks for the prompt response

Thanks for getting back to me .. I will be interested in the white chocolate cup cake so please advice on the cost for each cup cakes and let me know the total cost for it .

The event will be taken place on the 30th of this month, so kindly advice if you can have it ready by then ..

You don't need to worry as i have a shipper agent who will be coming over for the pick up of the order from you.

do you accept credit card as a mode of payment?

waiting to read back from you ...

Regards.
Pedro.

Third Reply:

From: Pedro Alvex [mailto:alvexpedro@yahoo.ca]
To: Susana
Subject: Re: Thanks for the prompt response

Since you don't have the white chocolate i will go for the vanilla chocolate and let it be regular size

I want you to please do me a favor as i have a shipper agent who will be coming over for the pick up of the cup cakes from your end but he made it clear to me that he doesn't have credit card facilities to run his charges through so i will urge you to add the sum of $1350 to the total cost of the cup cakes (which is $2572 ) and kindly run it on my credit card so as soon as you have it charge you can then go ahead and send the shipper agent fees to them as they have some other stuff to pick up for me in regards of the event .. Kindly get back to me so we can proceed.. I am hearing impaired so i wont be able to call you to give you the card but can only email my credit card

Will be waiting to read back from you ..

Pedro.

Fourth Reply:

From: Pedro Alvex [mailto:alvexpedro@yahoo.ca]
To: Susana
Subject: Re: Thanks for the prompt response

Hi Susana,

I am unable to down the file you sent to me cos i don't have a pdf application on my laptop so i will urge you to send the document to me using a wordpad so i can be able to fill the form and get back to you ..

I will be sending you my shipper agent details so as to know when he will be coming over for the pick up but the event start from 11: 00 am in the morning and i want the cup cakes to be here before that time.

I await the form so we can proceed..

Regards,
Pedro

Fifth Reply:

From: Pedro Alvex [mailto:alvexpedro@yahoo.ca]
To: Susana
Subject: Re: Thanks for the prompt response

The event will be taken place at Cambridge Ontarioso he will be coming from there as he has some other stuff to pick up for me for the event .. I still cant open the file you sent to me .. please check and send it to me through wordpad.

Pedro

Can Any Scammer Spell?

There are a couple of things I love about the below exchange that someone forwarded to me for posting. The first obvious thing is this particular scammer couldn't figure out how to correctly spell their own fake name. Curse that 'is it i-e or e-i?' english grammar rule! How do you Americans spell that darn nickname for Jennifer? Ha. That is so funny. Poor scammer misspells the fake first name and tips many potential victims off that something is not right. No one has the name Jennei. Oh, maybe someone buckin' the name rule does, someone trying to be different than every other Jennie, but spelling the name Jennei certainly threw up the Red Flags.

I also love the way this artist kept the scammer 'on the line'. Really, time is money to a scammer and the more time you can keep a scammer engaged, the less time they have trying to get other victims. Love how this scammer was strung along.

I also love how this artist, in a more ironic turn of strategy than anything else, proceeds to ask the scammer to reveal all kinds of identity information, like their social security number - just like the scammers do. Funny! Most scammers are not U.S.-based and so will not have a social security number and I doubt a scammer would begin providing their information (they make it all up anyway), but I love the humor this artist had in asking.

After the artist let on they knew it was a scam, there was one more lame attempt to see if the scam was really over and you almost get the sense this scammer was so upset they could barely type. And then there was no further contact and the scammer did, in fact, move on to seek out other victims.

But it was fun while it lasted.

Hi Kathleen

Thanks for all the work you do towards informing artists about internet scams. I wanted to share with you my latest predator-turned-victim...I love messing with them.

Susan


On Nov 7, 2012, at 5:56 PM, Jennei Brown wrote:

Hello,

Your work is most creative & desirable, so much talent! I am interested in purchasing some of your unique items. But before i place my order i will like to inform you that my method of payment is Via my U.S issued credit card Account. Please let me know if you can assist me with these items and do not forget to include your webpage in responses to my email. Mind you i will be having my shipping agent coming to pick up the order directly from your location cause i already have some Large merchandise with them in Which they Will be shipping together to me here in Norway.

Kind Regard,
Jennei Brown.

Jenney-fanaffairantique No
21 Hegdehaugsveien,
Oslo, NO-0507,
Norway.
Tel: (+47) 022336203
Email: Jennei.s.complex222@gmail.com
Webpage: www.fanaffairantiquefans.com

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On Thu, Nov 8, 2012 at 9:06 AM, susan wrote:

Thank you so much. I am sure I can help you with the items you like. Which paintings are you interested in?

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On Nov 8, 2012, at 1:17 PM, Jennei Brown wrote:

Hello Susan,

I got you response,So below here is what i will like to order from your stock.

Chinatown
acrylic on paper
23×26 framed
Qty...1

Big Cascade
acrylic on paper
28×28 framed
Qty...1

Dog Park
36″ x 48″
Qty...1

Please kindly get back to me with the total estimate of this order, so  you can get the items ready for shipment. I will email you my U.S. issued credit card information for the payment. And my shipping agent will be coming to pick up the order directly from location cause i already have some large merchandise with them in which after picking up the items, they will then deliver it to me here in Norway, please let me know the size and weight of items for shipping reason.

Regard,
Jennei Brown.

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On Thu, Nov 8, 2012 at 5:58 PM, susan wrote:

Dear Jennei
I am so excited that you like these pieces. I have just recently had a price increase and the following works are priced as follows...

Chinatown $1800
Big Cascade $1800
Dog Park $2800

Total $6400

I think you will be very happy with these choices.
Best,
Susan

[PS: Kathleen - I more than doubled my prices here and she asked nothing about that! Too funny.]

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On Nov 8, 2012, at 6:12 PM, Jennei Brown wrote:

Hello Susan,

Thank for your response, yes i'm very happy with these choices. but i will like to go for the "Chinatown" and "Big Cascade" for now cause that is what i can afford for now when next i will be ordering i we go for the "Dog Park" i admire you jobs they are one of a kind.

Please kindly get back to me with the new total cost of this order, so  you can get the items ready for shipment. I will email you my U.S. issued credit card information for the payment. And my shipping agent will be coming to pick up the order directly from location cause i already have some large merchandise with them in which after picking up the items, they will then deliver it to me here in Norway, please let me know the size and weight of items for shipping reason.

Regard,
Jennei Brown.

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On Fri, Nov 9, 2012 at 10:40 AM, susan wrote:

Hi Jennei

Your total is exactly $6400.
No shipping fee since you are picking up.
Please provide me with your credit card number, expiration date, social security number and US mailing address...all of which you would need in order to have a US issued credit card :)

Thank you so much!
Susan

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On Nov 9, 2012, at 4:14 PM, Jennei Brown wrote:

Hello Susan,

I got your response, but i want to be clear with the total cost. did you mean that the total cost for the  "Chinatown" and "Big Cascade" is $6400. Like i said i don't want the "Dog Park" for now so you have to deduct the money  "Dog Park" and get back to me with the new total cost so as to proceed with the order.

Thanks,
Jennei Brown.

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On Fri, Nov 9, 2012 at 5:03 PM, susan wrote:

Hi Jennei
Oh so sorry! You are right - your total will be $3600. Big difference!
Thanks,
Susan

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On Nov 12, 2012, at 3:49 PM, Jennei Brown wrote:

Dear Susan,

Thanks for the total quote of my order which is ($3,600..00) is quite correct and okay by me and I'm ready to pay the bills. I shall inform my freight forwarder who will be coming to pick up the order to hold on and come immediately you inform me that the items are ready for pick up then i can give you a call on that day to get the items packed for pick up and they will call you on their arrival at your address. Also I want you to help me Charge another ($2,750.00) from my credit card for the freight forwarder who will be coming to pick up my ordered items from you. The ($2,750.00) that will be sent to the freight forwarder is for the shipping of my order and other items i ordered from different part. ($200) for the transfer fee and for your efforts. Please note that i should have given the shipping agency my credit card for him to deduct the freight charges but he told me that he doesn't have the facilities to charge or debit credit card, so that's why i bring my vote of confidence in you and i want you to assist me in this measure, so i want you to transfer the funds to him after you have make the charges and the money charged from my credit card is in your account, then you can now make the transfer to the agent via western union. I will have love to do this my self but there are no western union here around me cause i am out of town to monitor my estate construction at a remote village, So the charges you will deduct on my credit card will be:

Order Fee: $3,600..00
Agent fee: $2,750.00
Transfer Fee with shipping fee: $200
Total: $6,550.00

Note that my credit card will be charged for the amounts above.So kindly do get back to me if you are in the office right now so that i can email you my credit card details,then you can charge the full amount and transfer the shipping company fee to them via western union so as to proceeding the shipment. And as soon as the shipping agency they received the shipping fund, they will schedule the time for the pick up and then come to your facility for the pick up.

Warmest Regards,
Jennei Brown.

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On 11/13/12, susan wrote:

You may email me your credit card information.

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On Nov 21, 2012, at 10:15 AM, Jennei Brown wrote:

Hello Susan,

I got your response and sorry for my late in respond.I want to confirm if i can go ahead and forward my credit card account to you so as to run the cost of the goods and the shipping altogether as i have explain to you earlier.So kindly get back to me with a feedback.

Thanks,
Jennei Brown.

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On Nov 21, 2012, at 11:17 AM, Jennei Brown wrote:

Susan ,

I got your response and i want to thank you for the assist,I'm really grateful and i deeply appreciate.Below here is the credit card details due to the card limitation.So you are hereby Authorize to charge to the lowest limit of the card so as to get the total due and meanwhile i can go ahead and contact the shipping agent in meantime that the order will be ready for collection to make the necessary arrangement.

Card Type: Master Card
Card Number:  5491-2370-0623-6767
Exp Date: 09/2013
Cvv: 423

So as soon you have run the full charges on it and as soon it's has been approved kindly get back to me with a feedback so as to forward the shipping company bank details where the shipping fee will be transferred to.So i will be waiting to read from you as soon as possible.

Thanks,
Jennei Brown.

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On Wed, Nov 21, 2012 at 12:14 PM, susan wrote:

Thanks for sending the number.
I have reported it as stolen to USAA Federal Savings Bank.
Sucker.

-------

Hello Susan,

   What do you mean by that?
he's this how you do business? and who told you that the credit card is a stolen one!!!

Thanks,
Jennei Brown.

Scam Email: Mark Peters

This is a pretty classic exchange of emails between a scammer and their potential victim, until the victim realized it was a scam in time to not lose any money. Notice how the email changed because one email was just hijacked but the actual "reply-to" went to a gmail account the scammer was using. That way, they can communicate with their potential victim but keep the sense of legitimacy and the victims often don't even notice this change. and see how the scammer waits a few steps to lure the victim deeper into the scam and then has a long email to begin to re-direct the victim towards the heart of the scam - overpaying with a counterfeit check or stolen credit card (and trying to have a whole fake story as to why the check will be so much more than the amount owed) and asking the victim to forward the difference to a shipper (who doesn't exist) via wire transfer (so that when the scammer picks up the money, it is gone and untraceable).

From: Mark Peters [mailto:mark@markpeters.com]
Sent: Tuesday, 20 November 2012 11:03 PM
Subject: Order Inquiry

My name is Mark Peters,I want to place an order in your store,I will like to know if you ship to Philippines. Do you have credit card facility?Get back to me with your website.I will await your prompt response.
Best Regards,
Mark

On Mon, Nov 19, 2012 at 6:12 PM, Janice wrote:

It would depend what you were interested in ..........if a painting unframed this is easy if glass work would depend on the size of the piece

Janice

 From: Mark Peters [mailto:auszza@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, 20 November 2012 11:03 PM
Subject: Re: Order Inquiry

Email me with the prices of the birds below
Nature, Panel 6mm glass 50 x 70 cm
Emu Panel - 84cm x 32cm
Robins on Red - 40cm x 40cm
Jabiru - 38cm x 38cm

On Tue, Nov 20, 2012 at 2:36 PM, Janice wrote:

I do not ship framed, this is better done after you receive them

These are all original paintings and the sizes are as follows before framing

Emu panel - 106 x 37 cm            $350 AU + postage
Robins - 106 x 37cm                  $350 AU + postage
Jabiru - 77 x 28cm                   $300 AU + postage

And not sure which nature one you are referring to

Janice

From: Mark Peters [mailto:auszza@gmail.com]
Sent: Wednesday, 21 November 2012 6:41 AM
Subject: CONTACT SHIPPER

Dear Janice
Good to read back from you . below are the Items I want to order

Emu panel - 106 x 37 cm   
2 qty

Robins - 106 x 37cm
2 qty

Jabiru - 77 x 28cm
1 qty

SHIPPING ADDRESS
8221 Paseo de Roxas,
Makati City, Metro Manila.
Philippines  , 1226

Concerning the shipment,the likes of UPS,FEDEX and POST OFFICE always don't take care of the charges down here. Charges like handling,customs duties,tax etc. I have experienced such situation before and I don't want to be the victims of such a thing again. I will be glad if you contact this freight forwarder Lintel logistics for shipping quote.The shipping company will arrange the pick-up of my order from your store,so you don't have any stress to face in shipping processing at all.Here is their email address (lintellogistics@yahoo.com) ,Not that I can't deal with the shipper directly,but they always prefer to deal with the store where they will be doing the pick up in other to reduce the customs duties and other charges.They have a way of preparing their shipment documents whereby the custom duties payment on this goods will be reduced and if I wanted to pay for the custom duties and other charges, at times it is 40% of the whole package amount.I do trust Lintel logistics ,if not I wouldn't have recommend them for my shipment.They are very reliable and fast.They will take care of everything including Handling, Customs duties,Tax, Insurance etc.Contact them to obtain a quote and get back to me in the format bellow:

COST OF THE ORDER
COST OF THE SHIPPING FROM LINTEL LOGISTICS
TOTAL COST (ORDER + SHIPPING)
Once I have these details from you, I will get back to you with my
credit card information,so you can charge and make the necessary
shipping arrangements.
Regards,
Mark

NOTE:The freight company will need these 5 information to get you a quote,so provide them with the details bellow:

1)My Customer's ID # :BWA45479ZQ
2)Delivery Full Address:
8221 Paseo de Roxas,
Makati City, Metro Manila.
Philippines  , 1226
3)Pick Up Full Address : PROVIDE YOUR ADDRESS
4)Weight Of The Consignment : PROVIDE ORDER WEIGHT
5)Momentary Value Of The Consignment : PROVIDE ORDER TOTAL COST

Scammers Love the Holiday Shopping Season

Scammers love this time of year. People are distracted, in the most intense shopping season of the year, and looking for the best deals. Easy pickin's for scammers. They use "hooks" to lure in their victims, like offering a free or cheap iphone 5 or LCD TV - things that people desire and are looking for. But these are just the hooks. There is no iphone "prize" or deep discount, there is no TV. The scammer is either trying to get cash out of their victims (small shipping fee or taxes) or they seek to steal identity information by getting people to fill out surveys that ask the user to provide WAY too many details about their themselves - account numbers, passwords, social security numbers.

Be VERY careful because in addition to all the legitimate "Black Friday" and "Cyber Monday" sales, scammers will also be putting up fake pages and sending out fake emails targeting these phrases and trying to trick unsuspecting people to respond to their fake ads.Yes, we want great deals online, but check and double-check and triple-check you are really at the right website and not a fake website. Do not go to websites via links in emails, even when they offer a great deal. That deal can also be found, if it is real, by opening a new browser and typing in the main url yourself and search around for the holiday specials. Yes, it is extra work and not as convenient as just clicking on a link in an email, but it is SO much safer.

And on the other side of the equation are all the small businesses selling online during this season - scammers also run their fake buyer scam as often as their little keyboard typing fingers can send out the emails. Sellers: NO WIRE TRANSFERS! I can not emphasize this enough. Do NOT use wire transfers under ANY circumstances. Scammers *need* this in order to steal your cash and disappear without a trace. Do not accept any checks or credit card payments for more than the amount or agree to forward money to anyone in behalf of a buyer via wire transfer. Just do NOT do it!

Gift cards - this is the season for scammers to try and sell gift cards that have been stolen and are worthless. This is super rampant this time of year. If its not properly activated at the store register, it is a worthless piece of plastic. Don't buy these from sources you don't know, don't buy gift cards on Craigslist or eBay, don't buy "discounted gift cards" from some third party, and if you get a gift card, check at the register FIRST to see its value and if its valid before shopping.

Yes, the season of shopping will kick into high gear this week... but also be on the lookout, because scammers also kick into their high season of trying to steal money from people.

Are Scammers As Dumb as They Seem?

Something that always amazes me is how dumb scammers appear to be. They hardly even try to correct the grammar in their emails. They don't seem to care a lick about spelling or formatting. Their sentences often do not even make any sense. Their made-up names often are gender confused or they'll use a typical last name as their first name - when clearly it is a last name. They use the same fake name and email addresses for long periods of time. They seem to use the same templated content over and over and over and over again. They make up stories that often are too unbelievable, and they use dollar amounts for "inheritances" or prize money that are so outlandish, it seems too fantastical.

And I think to myself - how can scammers be so stupid?

And then I thought - are scammers really as stupid as they seem to be?

They seem to be making millions and millions of dollars from unsuspecting victims and they don't even have to clean their act up. They can put in a minimum of effort, not even make sense, have all their formatting off, and their story nonsensical - and still they are making millions and millions of dollars. They can send the exact same "story" out to hundreds of thousands of people and use this same story over a long period of time - years in many cases, and still they make millions and millions of dollars. They evade the authorities and get people from all over the world to wire them money and people keep doing this even though wire transfer is the one way their money will disappear and be untraceable once the scammer has picked it up from Western Union or Money Gram or some other wire transfer service.

So the really sad thing about this is the fact that scammers are as successful as they are doing the crappiest of jobs that they are.

I really do not think victims are dumb. I think scammers exploit some very nuanced weaknesses in people - that they are in a fast-paced society and don't take the time to read everything before acting. They don't take the time to check things out from independent sources online (more people are now, but clearly not enough). People are moving fast and not checking the details.

The other weakness scammers exploit is the tendency people have to trust what is in front of them. If their bank has sent them an email saying their account has been temporarily suspended for suspicious activity and click here to verify your identity - way too many people just naturally believe that email is really from their bank and they need to click on that link and verify their identity. It never occurs to them that the email is all made up to look like their bank but a scammer is behind it all. People just wanna believe.

So scammers have the luxury, for now, of not even having to make sense or present an email with correct sentence structure, spelling, or formatting. Their story doesn't have to make sense. They can throw any huge number out there of how much you've won or inherited from some Nigerian prince. They can say anything they want and put an absolute minimum amount of effort into it, and they will still make a bundle of money from their victims. That is why there are so many scammers. It's a dream job.

When are you - people - going to get off this bandwagon and not make it so easy for a scammer to take your money or identity or passwords online? What will it take to move the awareness of enough people so that it actually becomes difficult for scammers?

Why am I going on a rant like this on a Saturday morning? Because I am going to post an email below that I received and the scammer was SO dumb that he pasted the entire message of his scam all in the Subject line and left the content area blank. Scammers have these templates and software that push out their spam email and this scammer couldn't even paste his spam content into the correct field of his spam software. And yet... I wonder how much money he'll successfull make on even this email....

Reply-To: [mrabrahammaluba@yahoo.co.jp]
From: "Abraham Maluba"[mrabrahammaluba@yahoo.co.jp]

To: mrabrahammaluba@yahoo.co.jp

Subject: IAm a ex-banker from Benin Republic. A family friend Mrs. Linda Calsabay who happens to be the wife of a late banker and my former boss intimated me on her intention to invest the sum of USD12.6M in a foreign country, being money left for her family by her late husband who died recently. Iam soliciting on her behalf for you to help her invest and manage the money properly in your country, her areas of investment interest includes but not limited to real estate and hotel.Get back to me for more info please.

Email Scam: Vague Support Email Scam

Here is a scam email that intentionally is SO vague that some people will click just to see what the heck it is about. Be careful about that. Regardless of the content of an email, do NOT click on links in an email that you are not sure where they are going (often the actual destination is different than the visible destination - scroll your mouse over the link without clicking and look to the lower left portion of your screen in the status bar to see what the actual destination is).

Return-Path: support@rainbowfocus.nl
FROM: Support Center (noreply@message.rainbowfocus.nl)
Subject: Support Center

Thank you for contacting us, your information arrived today.

Alright, here's the link to the site:

Proceed to Site  [this is linked and actually goes to: dietblueline.com]

Thank you for taking the time to contact us.

Regards, Alana Kane, Support Team manager.
 

Scam Email: Fake Red Bull Job Ad

Here is an email I received that clearly was a scam email. Always be suspicious when an email for a job opportunity (or something to make some extra money) comes unsolicited AND tries to collect a whole bunch of information on the first email. I've seen this one a lot - make money to drive around with ads on your car. I glanced at the full headers and sure enough, the REPLY-TO was different and revealed the real email account receiving replies from unsuspecting potential victims. So it has nothing to do with Red Bull but this scammer is hoping to trick some young people who drink Red Bull and wouldn't mind having some cash to put ads on their car. Truth is there will be no ads, but only the loss of your identity information and probably some cash later in the scam. The check they promise in this email will SURELY be counterfeit and they'll ask you forward part of it to someplace else via wire transfer, losing your own good money.

Be VERY careful of any unsolicited opportunities to make money. It is almost always a scam.

Reply-To: [tradefeettable@yahoo.co.jp]
From: "RedBull"[user@redbull.com]
Subject: RedBull Job Ad - Get Paid To Drive
To: undisclosed-recipients:;

Hello,

We are currently seeking to employ individual’s world wide. How would you like to make money by simply driving your car advertising for RED BULL.

How it works?

Here’s the basic premise of the "paid to drive" concept: RED BULL seeks people -- regular citizens,professional drivers to go about their normal routine as they usually do, only with a big advert for "RED BULL" plastered on your car. The ads are typically vinyl decals, also known as "auto wraps,"that almost seem to be painted on the vehicle, and which will cover any portion of your car's exterior surface.

What does the company get out of this type of ad strategy? Lots of exposure and awareness. The auto wraps tend to be colorful, eye-catching and attract lots of attention. Plus, it's a form of advertising with a captive audience,meaning people who are stuck in traffic can't avoid seeing the wrapped car alongside them. This program will last for 3 months and the minimum you can participate is 1 month.

You will be compensated with $300 per week which is essentially a "rental"payment for letting our company use the space no fee is required from you RED BULL shall provide experts that would handle the advert placing on your car. You will receive an up front payment of $300 inform of check via courier service for accepting to carry this advert on your car.

It is very easy and simple no application fees required contact email along with the following you are interested in these offer.

Full Name:
Address:
City:
State:
Zip code:
Age:
Current Occupation
Other email address
Make of car/ year:
Telephone numbers:

We shall be contacting you as soon as we receive this information.

Mrs. Jennifer Brooks
Hiring Manager,
RedBull(TM)