Nigeria Email Scams!!!

[Maggie]

I am being spammed to death by Nigerians -- at least they allege that they are Nigerians. In a recent communication, I am warned against "Miscreants, Hoodlums and Touts who go about scamming innnocent people by claiming to be who they are not..." In the same batch of spam, was a letter from a person who purported to be a widow dying of cancer ... I stopped reading after that. So, I think we should all be on the lookout for Miscreants, Hoodlums and Touts, and I wish us all luck in that pursuit:) Maggie

[eddieMX07]

I have also been spammed by a lot of people who think I am stupid. Most of the spammers say they are foreigners and want me to click a link to confirm a online payment or something that is uselss. I always sent those messages to my spam folder and they are eventually deleted.

[LapisLee]

Nigerian Scam Emails are very old news on the internet. Always check out unbelievable claims at Snopes.com (http://www.Snopes.com). Here is the link for these fraudulent Nigerian emails.

Nigerian Scam Emails at Snopes (http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/nigeria.asp)

[jash18]

I get at least 2 mails like that everyday, saying that i had won a lottery, or that someone from Nigeria or Australia wants some funds transferred, or something like that. I only read these mails when i have nothing better to do, since it's really worth a laugh. :p

The Idiots who mail these are so void of creativity, always the same old trash. Why can't they even think of something original, for a change? :rolleyes:

[LapisLee]

The reason these Nigerian Fraud emails, or advance fee frauds, generate over $100 million per year in the US alone is because there are many people who are either unfamiliar with the scam or new to the internet. If you send out 1 million emails per year, someone is bound to bite, which is why selling lists of valid email addresses is such a viable enterprise.

[LapisLee]

Grant's Boon is any scam where someone either calls or emails you telling you that the government is holding your money and for a small fee they will release the information to you. It is a form of the prepayment scam.

Grant's Boon (http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/govgrant.asp)

[jash18]

You know the real funny part about these scam mails, is that they contain messages saying that you should beware of scammers and email frauds. I still don't understand why almost all of these messages indicate that they are from Nigeria. :confused:

What's there? Is there a gold or diamond mine in Nigeria ? I didn't think the people there were so rich, i though their economy was mainly run by oil exports.

I wonder why these scammers do not select any other country.

Anyone has any idea why?

[eddieMX07]

You know the real funny part about these scam mails, is that they contain messages saying that you should beware of scammers and email frauds. I still don't understand why almost all of these messages indicate that they are from Nigeria. :confused:

What's there? Is there a gold or diamond mine in Nigeria ? I didn't think the people there were so rich, i though their economy was mainly run by oil exports.

I wonder why these scammers do not select any other country.

Anyone has any idea why?

Actually, I get spam emails that claim they're from other coutries that are foreign. Most of them say China, Canda, South Africa and others. It's annoying to get spam but I delete them all after they are sent to the spam folder.

[LapisLee]

The Kizombe Correspondence
I love the way people are publishing their correspondences with Nigerian scammers. This one, by a woman named Savannah, is a classic.

Dear Kizombe Kamara,

I am so honored that you would consider trusting me with your valuable investment, given that you simply came across my name while surfing the internet and really know nothing about me. Allow me to remedy that situation by giving you some background information about myself, as you have already so graciously told me about yourself. I am one of the world's premier investment specialists. I started out with $25 USD in my pocket and single-handedly parlayed it into $25million USD within the course of six months!

My strategy is to invest 100% of my principal in Texas beef futures and any cosmetic company endorsed by Britney Spears. By focusing my investments in this way and minimizing the risk factors associated with diversification (hey, look what happened to Enron when they branched out into diverse ventures, right?), I can maximize the returns on my investments into the six figures. Not too shabby for someone who only made it through the tenth grade!

I'm a little confused about your proposal because in one place it says you have $16million US to invest, but in another place it says you only have $8million. It really doesn't matter to me which figure is correct, but I need you to clarify this so I can begin investing on your behalf right away. Your proposal of a 15% commission is a little low, compared to what I usually make. Normally, I'm in the 27% - 36% range. Maybe we can negotiate this.

Oh, by the way, I'm sorry to hear about your father. Bummer about the whole killing thing. Please e-mail me back with more details about how we can transfer your money into one of my security accounts, and I'll get started right away on investing it, so you have plenty of money to live on while you continue fighting your little war over there in Sierra Leone. I'm thinking we'll put the bulk of your cash into Certified Angus Beef products, along with Max Factor and Old Navy. Pumpkin futures also look good, though, with projections showing strong growth in the jack-o-lantern industry for 2002, so I don't know. It's your call.

Sincerely yours,
Elizabeth Hanes

dear Elizabeth,
thanks for your mail and as well your acceptance of my proposal for assistance. in the first place,i wish to tell you that the total amount is us$16.000.000 it was a thipographical error.your vastness and business acumen i must say is rich by all standards and as such i wish to tell you
of my total confidence and resolve to work with you as partner and financial adviser.on the issue of percentages we can renegotiate that.there is no problems.

at the moment the fund is still in the assets and treasures department of the security company in this vein,i will like you to negotiate on my behalf with the security company in evolving a way of transfering his funds to your country. give me your secured fax and phone numbers to enable me fax the deposit documents for your perusal and prompt action.i also intend to submit a letter of nomination and a power of attorney to the security company on your behalf in order to make the process smooth. i wait for your early reply and at the same time restating my confidence on you. you can call me through my number 00 221 668 03 99 for us to have a detailed discussions. thanks

yours truly
kizombe kamara

Hello Mr. Kamara,

Whew! I am sooooo glad you wrote back to me! I was afraid I might miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime offer. You have really made my day! :-)

Mr. Kamara, I had a vision this morning. A vision of wealth beyond our wildest dreams. A vision that came to me as a single word: angora. Yes, Mr. Kamara, angora. This morning, as I watched my goats frolicking in the front yard in the frosty winter air, I thought to myself, "Sure, we're dropping food packets and other humanitarian aid on a massive scale to benefit the people of Afghanistan, but who's taking care of the pets?" Who, indeed, Mr. Kamara? And as I envisioned the poor dogs and cats freezing in the Afghani winter, the word came to me: angora.

I propose we buy several hundred thousand angora goats, harvest the hair, and knit thousands upon thousands of stylishly fashioned coats and booties for both dogs and cats. We will then sell these garments to PETA or some other rabid animal rights group, who can fly them into Afghanistan to stop the senseless deaths of the pets of this war-torn region. Well, it's just a thought.

You wanted my "secure" phone number, so here it is: 505-555-9493. I'm not sure what country codes you have to dial, or anything. I'm pretty dense when it comes to geography. I mean, when you first contacted me, I thought "Sierra Leone" was that dry county just south of Santa Fe. I had no idea it was actually a country in South America.

You can use the same number for my fax machine. Well, it's not really a "machine," per se. It's really just software on my computer. I got it as
freeware, and it seems pretty reliable. Most of the time my faxes come right through. There was that one unfortunate incident where one of my faxes got misdirected to the Treasury Department, and they showed up sniffing around my trailer...er, office...but without a warrant they really couldn't do much. Well, that and the fact I was able to burn quite a few "sensitive" documents, if you get my drift.

Also, (and this is really important, so please pay attention!) when you make out your power of attorney paperwork, BE SURE to use the name "Savannah Lawless." This is the name I use for all my business dealings. It makes it a little easier to circumvent the Internal Revenue Service, not to mention the Securities and Exchange Commission. All those pesky tax and trading laws -- they're enough to give a girl a headache! I mean, I have enough trouble remembering what channel WWF Raw is on, let alone memorize the nuances of securities law. 'Nuff said.

Thanks for giving me your phone number, but I really don't think I'll be calling you. I have an appointment to get my hair highlighted next week, and that's going to run me about $100 -- which pretty much shoots the heck out of my long distance budget for the month. You know, it occurs to me that if the angora thing doesn't work out, maybe I should invest your money in Clairol or Sprint long distance. They seem to be pretty good money makers. And, of course, there's always the feminine hygiene market, which is utterly recession-proof.

I appreciate this opportunity to be of service to you, and don't worry if I don't answer the phone when you call. I usually let the machine pick it up
in order to avoid the bill collectors. You know how nasty they can be sometimes.

Best regards,
Elizabeth

[eddieMX07]

Since this thread is about spam email, I decided to let everyone know about spam email that looks like a legitimate bank. Today received an email from onlinebanking.alert at bankofamerica.com. This email looked like something a Bank of America customer would get but the link revealed that it was not real and that it was a scam.

Here is the entire email:

Bank Of America alert : online Banking Sign-in Error.

For your security, access to Online Banking has been locked because the number of attempts to sign in exceeded the number allowed. To regain access, you must restore your account. Please click here and submin your information.

Your security is important to us. If you are not aware of this situation, please contact us immediately at 1.800.933.6262.

Want to confirm this email is from Bank of America? Sign in to Online Banking and select Alerts History to verify this alert.

Want to get more alerts? Sign in to Bank of America Online Banking and click the "Manage Alerts" link in the "I want to..." box.

Because email is not a secure form of communication, please do not reply to this email.
If you have any questions about your account or need assistance, please call the phone number on your statement or go to Contact Us at www.bankofamerica.com.

This email had all the graphics you would expect from Bank of America like a logo saying "Official Sponsor 2004-2008 USA Olympic team". When I clicked on the link in the emai, I was sent to a page that was NOT Protect or encrypted and the web domain did not match this website (https://www.bankofamerica.com/index.jsp). This email was sent to my spam folder so I knew it was a scam and I don't have a Bank of America account so either way I would have deleted it.

I also received a spam email from Wall Fargo that had a lot in common with this Bank of American email. Watch out for this kinds of scams because if you fall for it your'll be in big trouble.

[jash18]

Yes, i got that email too, and i have an account in Bank of America. But i did not click on the link, because first of all it came to the wrong email address, and also i have already got plenty of emails like that from ebay , paypal etc.

I never click on any links in an email except when it is a survey. :cool:

[maplaver]

i get these emails all the time... i just ignore them!!!

[ericmcdonald5823]

I never answer anything in my E-mail.

Simple rule,
If its addressed to me, and hasnt been payed already,
Its most likely a scam.


I remember getting one a long time ago.
Said my father had died and left me his fortune.
I needed to send so much monney so they could ship it here.

several fatal flaws with this.
but one stood out.

My father, is still alive,
as a matter of fact, It came in while I was letting him surf the internet on my comp.