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Security 247 - SPAM SCAM

The SPAM SCAM: Protect against e-mail scams that steal your money, your
identity and sometimes your life!

So what are the chances that the Oil Minister in Nigeria really is
sitting on 6 million dollars and will share it with you if you send him
a fax with your banking information on it? Surprisingly enough, these
scammers stole over $2 Billion dollars from unsuspecting victims in 2003.

In fact, the "Nigerian Email Scam", also called the "419 scam" because
this type of theft is a violation of a Nigerian Penal Code #419, has
actually become the second biggest industry in Nigeria and is thought by
some U.S. Intelligence Agencies to be Nigerian Government sponsored.

It all starts when the crooks send out hundreds of thousands of SPAM
email messages to everyday people. The messages typically promise a 30%
cut of some huge amount of "excess" funds if the victim can only help
transfer the money out of a Nigerian bank and into an American bank.

Most people simply delete the email, but some do respond. After several
rounds of messages the scammer comes up with a temporary last minute
snag that requires the person who is about to be bilked to provide a
cash advance to help with legal fees or some other issue. And that's
when the hook gets set.

At some point in the process the victim is told that they will need to
met with a "government official" at a hotel in Nigeria. Since someone on
the scam team is usually an actual corrupt government official it is a
simple matter for them to bribe the Nigerian Immigration Service to let
the American in. Once in, however, getting out is a little bit tougher.
In 2003 twenty-five Americans were either declared missing or found dead
as a result of these little visits to pick up their money. Sometimes the
country changes but the scam is always the same.

Here's another popular way the SPAM can cost you your money or your
life. It's called the "Foreign Lottery Scam". In this one you receive a
very official looking email that purports to be from the Lottery
Department in some foreign country. Lately the Netherlands has been the
country of choice. Although they don't bother to try and remind you how
it is that you came to own the winning ticket you are assured that the
prize, sometimes millions of dollars, is deposited in some national bank
just waiting for you to claim it. When you contact the people who sent
you the letter you're informed that the money will be transferred to
your bank account as soon as you send them the modest "transfer fee".
These scammers end up with your bank account number and all of your
money by the time you realize that you've been taken.

Yes, the Internet has changed a lot of things but one thing hasn't
changed: If it seems to good to be true then it probably isn't.

None of these scams would work if people set aside their greed and used
a bit of common sense. Don't let poor judgement make you into a victim.

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