Scams

[Ron1432]

I just had someone come to my office asking about an e-mail he received from a Nigerian Bank.

IT'S A SCAM!!!

Remeber If it's too good to be true...
It probably is....

www.snopes2.com/inboxer/scams/nigeria.htm

For more scams go to: www.snopes.com
Go to Inboxer Rebellion

[Pigskin]

I had a guy come into the office asking advice about a letter he had received saying in big bold red letters, "YOU COULD WIN $15,000!" In smaller black print it said, "Or $10,000". In smaller black print it said, "Or $5,000". In smaller black print it said, "Or $1,000". In smaller black print it said, "Or $100". In smaller black print it said, "Or $1". I pointed out the odds of winning on the back in itty-bitty print being 499,999 to 500,000 for the one dollar prize & all the rest being 1 in 500,000. I pointed out that you had to call a 900 number with the average phone call being seven minutes at $3 per minute. The guy thanked me for pointing out all of this & walked to the door, turned around, & said, "But I COULD win $15,000." You just can't help some people.

[Sig220Man]

That Nigerian scam has been going around for years. It's just become more prevalent due to the widespread use of e-mail.

What amazes me about this, and other scams that spread via the Internet, is that people who are otherwise suspicious of stuff like that will completely let their guard down just because it's from the Internet.

If someone sent this request to you via US Postal Service, you'd throw it in the trash immediately, so why does the request coming via e-mail (as opposed to "snail mail") make it any more legitimate?

If someone called you on the phone and told you about this offer, you'd immediately think it was another one of those annoying telemarketers and hang up. So why is this offer any more legitimate just because it came through the phone lines as a series of "0's" and "1's" rather than voice communication?

[Snoopy1]

At one time I was getting four or five a week. I never replied, just deleted the messages. Finally they stopped coming, I think.

[ateamer]

It's morally wrong to allow a sucker to keep his money.

[Mitzi]

When my son was getting married, they were very excited because they had won a honeymoon trip to the Bahamas. I was suspicious and asked around. I finally found some newlyweds that said it was the biggest ripoff ever. They said EVERYONE wins but once you get there, you have to pay to upgrade to a just decent room, it doesn't include maid service, so on and so on. She said their "free" honeymoon ended up costing them over $1,000.
So, my son called about all the stuff that went with it and sure enough, it was a scam and would have cost them money.
I told him he had to check into "Free" prizes and stuff because rarely does anything come without a string attached.

[Mike Tx]

I got that email, and I emailed them back. Haven't heard from them again. Maybe it's because I was not as nice as I am around here.

[Mitzi]

LIAR, LIAR, PANTS ON FIRE! lol When ARE you nice?

[kirch]

Whatever you do, DON'T e-mail these scammers back asking to be taken off their list or to tell them off. All that does is confirm to them that they have reached a valid e-mail address. They will then turn around and sell that address to other unscrupulous scammers and you'll end up getting MORE of these offers.

Your best bet is to set up a filter in your e-mail program that automatically deletes spam or sends it to the trash. You can do this in Outlook by turning on the "Junk E-Mail" function.

[Bill R]

I just got this version of the Nigerian letter.

I am Mr Frank Makalele, a native of Cape Town in South Africa and I am an Executive Accountant with the South Africa Department of Mining & Natural Resources.