4-1-9 OR ADVANCE FEE FRAUD SCHEMES

McFox · #1 (**permalink**) 04-07-2004, 03:43 PM

Hello all.
A 'heads-up' on 4-1-9 or Advance Fee Fraud Schemes. Some of you will know about them, some of you will not.

For those who do not, they are an illegal, money-making scam designed to lighten your bank account by considerable sums of cash.

The scheme used to be snail-mail based, with armies of Nigerian workers appealling for help with apparently genuine, hand-written letters. In reality, the workers were under the control of an organiser. The general principle was 'shooting-blind'. Do it enough times and eventually you will hit something!

That was how it began. With the advent of technological advancement, the internet and email, the 4-1-9'ers have put the internet to work. Although emails are still clogging mailboxes, the latest move is to send you a Personal Message on a forum such as this. Be warned.

More information can be found on the US Secret Service website: 4-1-9 or Advance Fee Fraud

McF

hal · #2 (**permalink**) 04-08-2004, 01:19 PM

Hi McFox,

Isn't this actually kind of sad? I haven't received a Nigerian scam letter in over a week! I thought maybe they'd finally gone away. But no. I just saw this post.

I thought, Gee! The feds finally took notice! Then I thought, Gee! That's troubling. What took them so long?

Then I scrolled to the bottom of the page, and saw
> Copyright © 2002 United States Secret
> Service. All rights reserved.

Then I thought, Gee! That's troubling. All this time! Why haven't they done anything?

But then I thought, It figures! Isn't there a federal law someplace that puts federal documents in the public domain? That would make it illegal for the feds to copyright public information, wouldn't it? If so, then here's a leading federal government agency which doesn't even know their own marching orders.

Then I thought, Gee! Everything's running normally. That's troubling...

<sigh>

Hal

TrafficProducer · #3 (**permalink**) 04-08-2004, 02:41 PM

Nigerian scam letter

They have moved!!! or so they imply.

Dear Sir

I need $500.00 to release $26.5Million.

etc.

Still get posted.

AND

Log on to your bank account to enter your secure details.

(Phishing)

Still get posted.

####

And always will..

lseeley · #4 (**permalink**) 04-08-2004, 03:36 PM

Haha I'm not only getting emails from Nigeria, I'm also getting them from Gambia and the Philippines. Sometimes they're from relatives of a wealthy, prominent, deceased man, sometimes they are from personal assistants of the same, and most recently, they seem to be from people repenting of their ill-gotten gains and wishing to donate it all to Christian charities.

Ah, if only these were true, I could be a multi-millionaire several times over!

LOL

hal · #5 (**permalink**) 04-08-2004, 08:33 PM

Hello McFox,

Please don't get me (us?) wrong. We can't help having fun with this. Forgive us. What you posted was a serious topic, deserving of a serious response. However, I notice that you are sitting (quite?) safely over there in the Motherland. Over on this side of the Pond, however, in the "Homeland" are deep into our periodic silly season.

We know full well that people still fall victim to this scam. A few months back I saw an interview on TV. Once you pay, it appears they keep coming back for more. The person being interviewed was into it for some US$35,000 as I remember.

I don't remember if I was supposed to laugh or to cry.

It's turning into a movie. We see the guy walking down the street. We see the banana peel. Close-up of the guy. Close-up of the banana peel. Guy. Peel. Guy, smiling. He sees the peel. Camera pulls back to show the guy stepping over the banana peel... and falling down through a manhole.

Making it up? On the TV news just a minute ago they showed a dog -- under his own power -- riding a skateboard. Successfully! And coming back for more!

Maybe we do need a Nigerian or two from time to time!

Hal

Luckenbach · #6 (**permalink**) 04-08-2004, 09:07 PM

I get scam emails, since I sell boats on the internet I get a lot of the other scam where they want to send you a bogus check for more than the amount and have you wire them the "difference" western union. I made a couple webpages to warn my website users about them, even have a picture of the bogus check I got from one I played along with,
http://www.sailingtexas.com/chumor4.html

When doing that, I found out that these crooks have friends here in the US, so I don't mess with them anymore. If I have free time, I just email them one line:
Thou shalt not steal

Maybe if they read that a couple thousand times a day they'll get a job.

David

thusmann · #7 (**permalink**) 04-09-2004, 12:08 AM

I second that. One of my clients fell victim to a scheme where she got an order for $4000 worth of her products (not unusal, as she sells art). She was sent a cashier's check for the full amount and was asked to ship to an address in Nigeria. The Nigerian person then contacted her several times asking if the check had cleared yet and urged her to hurry up and send the merchandise. Finally after a few weeks, she decided to spend her own money on shipping and sent the products off. A couple weeks later, she was notified by her bank that the cashier's check was counterfeit. When she notified authorities, she was told that the US doesn't have jurisdiction in Nigeria...

lseeley · #8 (**permalink**) 04-09-2004, 10:38 AM

I apologize if I seemed too light-hearted in the earlier post. Scams are no joke, and innocent people are taken in by them every day. I see, on average, about 50 of those emails every day, so I sometimes forget that not everyone has seen them.

Another dangerous scam is out there that people should be aware of, and it's taking place in the US and in the UK. Our company recently became aware that someone had hijacked the content off one of our websites, put it up onto their site, and was using it to perpetrate a version of the PayPal scam -- similar to the above in some ways, only the person ends up wiring money to the Ukraine. Working with people who were taken in by the scam (she lost $3000 in one month), we have managed to get the advertisements taken off the major job sites (they were advertising for people to process PayPal payments for them). However, despite our best efforts, we have not yet managed to get their hosting company to shut down the site. We will be pursuing legal action if the site is not taken down soon, on grounds of copyright violation and plagiarism.

These people very definitely have friends in the US, but we have exposed them by name on our company blog (the bogus company in question is InsyncSoft, their hosting company is Doteasy) and in other publications. I commend David for his earlier efforts to protect people and alert them, and I'm sorry that something happened to change your mind about it. I also commend McFox for his posting, since it's probable that some readers haven't heard of that scam yet. One person warned is one less victim, and scammers don't quit as long as they can still succeed.

McFox · #9 (**permalink**) 04-09-2004, 07:28 PM

No apologies necessary!
Most people already know about these sorts of scams but there are a few that don't. What caught my attention was the use of Private Messaging to try to elicit a response.

Cheers! :o)
McF
PS - Anyone else wonder about the 'secret' in Secret Service?

coadster · #10 (**permalink**) 04-09-2004, 08:42 PM

When you recieve a scam mail I try to scam them back.
To do this I reply to their email and say I feel sorry about there perdicament etc etc. I like to make them feel like they have me roped in good and proper etc etc. They keep pressing for bank details but I stall them by saying that I want to find out a bit more about my "new penfriend" (Some have even sent their pictures!!)After a few emails to an fro I ask them to send me $1.00 of their currency as a sign that they are geniune. Some do and some dont but I always tell them that they have to do this otherwise I wont disclose my bank details.
Greed sometimes overtakes the scammers own desires so they send me the dollar via snail mail, thinking that they will soon be able to plunder my bank account. So far I got 4 different scammers.
Once I get their email I tell them that I know what their up to and that they have been scammed!!
Most times I tell them my name is kanga roo, boomer rang, ayres rock etc etc!!
These people dont even relise the names I use are dodgy ones, so I also get a laugh out of filling them full of crap along the way!! Also you can help their cause by surfing the internet and singing them up to anything and everything using their email addy etc(great fun!!)
Anyway we should start some sort of group to scam the scammers then maybe they will etheir;
a.)give up
b.)go broke!!
This is a fun way to have fun and a great laugh at the scammers expense!!

Codey
www.territorypictures.com
quote:
If your not having fun donig what your doing,
don't do it!!

McFox · #11 (**permalink**) 04-10-2004, 06:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coadster

When you recieve a scam mail I try to scam them back.

Dumb idea #1 - Broken legs, arms, personal visits, yadda, yadda

Quote:

To do this I reply to their email

Dumb idea #2 - Never confirm your email to SPAMMERS!

Quote:

(Some have even sent their pictures!!)

Like they are genuine! LOL!

Quote:

After a few emails to an fro

Dumb idea #3 - Never reply to SPAM!

Quote:

I ask them to send me $1.00 of their currency as a sign that they are geniune

Dumb idea #4 - see above

Quote:

Greed sometimes overtakes the scammers own desires so they send me the dollar via snail mail

DUMBEST IDEA EVER! Giving a scammer your postal address?! Unbelievable!

Quote:

Once I get their email I tell them that I know what their up to and that they have been scammed!!

Thought you sent a few emails to and fro?

McF

simonm · #12 (**permalink**) 04-13-2004, 05:11 AM

See www.419eater.com and other web sites for a more light hearted view.

The sad thing is that we have now got a world where a small minority have destroyed mutual trust between relative strangers. I would always prefer to trust somebody - now I can't.

I would favour a new law, one where peope can get arrested and jailed for "taking advantage of trust"

ammonetbenson · #13 (**permalink**) 06-02-2004, 09:54 PM

Our company has been in the internet business for some time and is domiciled in Switzerland - an irresistable attraction to these crooks. Several years ago, I received what must have been part of the tail end of the hand-written efforts. I was offended - it was written on plain paper, rather than a letterhead stolen from the Nigerian National Oil company. Well, it had a real Nigerian stamp on it so my kids were happy. Now it's all e-mail. People continue to lose a lot of money to this scam, believe it or not. (That's why it continues, obviously.) Some of them are overseas Nigerians according to news reports (one woman was taken for $145K - she thought she knew the ropes), but most are not. When they hook a real sucker, they'll go so far as to set up and attend meetings in hotels near airports etc - big money is involved. Also "small" money. There was an interview on TV with a guy who lost $35K but didn't blame his correspondents - in fact he felt sorry for them when they asked for yet more to make last minute bribes to release the cash pot - "They have a lot of problems with the authorities over there". There's a group in New Zealand that replies and asks them for verification - photos of themselves in ridiculous poses (shoe on head etc) but, as noted in this forum, these guys now have nasty pals in various countries, notably UK and USA, so I suggest not tangling with them.

staceman · #14 (**permalink**) 06-03-2004, 09:50 AM

I have been getting one or two of these a week:

National Electoral Commission
Harare. Zimbabwe.
May 10th, 2004.

PROPOSAL FOR BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY.

I have the honor and privilege to send this proposal to you via electronic mail. In the first place, may l use this medium to introduce myself as Mr. Bernard Thalawa. I am the secretary of Zimbabwean National Electoral Commission charged with the responsibility of all matters. Other members of the Commission and l were given the total sum of $25.7 million US Dollars by the President Robert Mugabe in the last general elections to return him into power by Monumental rigging, manipulations of figures to ensure that he would have land slide victory in the polls duly conducted by our Commission Consequently, this victory has been achieved and the funds as an inducement under our control.

This electoral victory has been followed and observed by International observers as fraudulent yet the President has perpetuated himself to power and he is currently the President and Commander in Chief of Armed Forces.

What is expected of you in this proposal? You are expected to help us to receive this sum, which we have carefully sent recently towards the end of last year (2003) via cargo to oversea Country for security reason.

The Funds in question are in cash Form, but since we are Civil Servants and we do not maintain foreign account we humbly urge you to keep the funds on our behalf. You are expected to have 20%, as your share for rendering this service while the remaining will be kept for us under your supervision until we put our acts together in future.

If you are well disposed to handle this transaction we shall give you further directives and other guidelines.

Please get in touch with me through my private e-mail box: b_thalawa@netpiper.com expecting your positive response.

Always copy my alternative e-mail address: b_thalawa@netpiper.com to ensure recipient of your reply to me and most significantly for the security of privacy between us.

Thanking you.

Sincerely.
Bernard Thalawa.

Pour gagner une Playstation 2, envoyez un SMS avec le code PS au 61321.
(0,35 € hors coût du SMS)

Man...just for helping him out, I could get $5.14 million woohooo! ;)

brian mcdonald · #15 (**permalink**) 08-16-2004, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by simonm

See www.419eater.com and other web sites for a more light hearted view.

I would favour a new law, one where peope can get arrested and jailed for "taking advantage of trust"

wouldn't that by definition make politics illegal?

CLBridges · #16 (**permalink**) 08-16-2004, 05:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Luckenbach

I get scam emails, since I sell boats on the internet I get a lot of the other scam where they want to send you a bogus check for more than the amount and have you wire them the "difference" western union.

This isn't just happening over the internet. My sister put an ad in numerous publications (newspapers, auto trader, etc.) trying to sell my fathers motorcycle. He lived in Vegas, and we live in So. Calif, so she had ads placed in everything from here to there. Some guy contacted her asking for pics of the bike, which she sent snail mail and he called back, wanting to buy it. He said some guy here in So. Cal owed him money.. almost twice the amount we were asking for the bike and he asked if we would pick up a cashiers check from the guy, (made out to us), cash it, use part of the money to ship it to him and then wire him the balance. He even offered to pay an additional $100 for our trouble.

We didn't bite (of course) but my sister said he was SO NICE (rolling my eyes) that she couldnt' bring herself to accuse him of anything, so instead, told him we'd deliver the bike ourselves and expected CASH at the time of delivery.

Needless to say, we never heard from him again. What's really bothering me now, is the fact that they really ARE everywhere!!! This guy didn't know we were in So. Cal until after he said he wanted the bike and it took him less than an hour to arrange the cashiers check pickup!

Carrie**

AITechnology · #17 (**permalink**) 08-16-2004, 06:15 PM

McFox and others,

I just wanted to thank you for this posting. I have been getting a lot of these Nigerian letters, but last week I got one completely different. It was from a guy wanting to actually buy product off my website. We ship internationally all the time and so we were going to look into working with this guy, but I think we will pass due to some of the responses I just read.

Ozewebhost · #18 (**permalink**) 08-17-2004, 12:00 AM

Hey McFox.... lighten up!

No need to get so fired up with poor ol' Coadster (anyway, gotta stick up for a fellow Aussie :-))

I too have a lot of fun with these dudes, while collecting material for a book I'm writing (their inventiveness leaves one speechless). I have actually been working on trying to convert 2 of them to making a 'semi-honest' living (yeah I know, I'm an optimist ;-)

Nowadays, they generally purport to be from a European country rather than Nigeria, Sudan, etc.

To etablish their true Cyber-location at the time of sending the email, simply check your Email Properties by right-clicking the email Subject header and selecting <Details>. If you do this you will see the originating IP address at the top of the popup Details screen.

To track this to its geographic source use DNS resource like www.dnsstuff.com where you can do an IP geographic lookup to find the country where the IP address is allocated.
NB: Just remember this is not 100% foolproof as they can always make an International call from Africa to a dialup ISP account anywhere in the world (damn!... hope your Secret Service don't start tracking me for giving away potentially 'criminal-secrets'<big grin>)

Have fun!