Has anyone gotten a so-called email from the FBI that says something like a Nigerian or other international bank releasing a large sum of money and mention terrorism? Then it finishes with this;
"So to this regards you are to re-assure and proof to us that what you are about to receive is a clean money by sending to us FBI International Clearance and also Diplomatic Immunity Seal Of Transfer (DIST) to satisfy to us that the money your about to receive is legitimate and real money. If you fail to provide the Documents to us, we will charge you either to U S federal Court or international court of justice and take our proper action against you for not proofing the legitimacy of the funds you are about to receive.
"THIS CONDITION IS VALID UNTIL (date) AFTER WE SHALL TAKE ACTIONS ON CANCELLING THE PAYMENT AND THEN CHARGES YOU FOR ILLEGALL MOVING OF FUNDS OUT OF NIGERIA GOVERNMENT. FUNDS WILL BE RELEASED ON CONFIRMATION OF THE DOCUMENTS."
*sniffing the air* Now that's a whole lot of bovine stinky droppings. Anyone want a cow pattie burger with a large urine?
Those two paragraphs make absolutely zero sense...
Showing posts with label scam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label scam. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Never give out your password - Part 3
As I've said many times, never give out your password to anyone. We've heard about the phishing scams out there. They will tell you to go to the "company" website and fill out your info including password or respond to an email asking for your password. The best defense against that is to type in the URL yourself in the browser for that company and go from there. That way, you know you're going to the correct site. It's good to read the URL carefully. Something that looks like http://[domain name].com/youtube.com/ does NOT go to YouTube, but a fake site.
Administrators of password-protected sites can change your password for you. They have access to your account. They don't need your password or your security question answers sent them in email. What do you think they do when they reset your password if you've forgotten it? Depending on the software used, the password will either show up or it won't on the administrator's screen, with the ability to change it or disable/delete the account.
An email asking you to send back your username, password, security question answers, and other things is a definite phish. If the email says your account will be closed or there is legal action, most likely it is fake. Check with your ISP to confirm. So are the emails for lotteries, jackpots, and any kind of winnings programs. Federal law forbids collection of "fees" to receive your winnings. Read this from the NAD;
Scam Alert – Protect Yourself
Administrators of password-protected sites can change your password for you. They have access to your account. They don't need your password or your security question answers sent them in email. What do you think they do when they reset your password if you've forgotten it? Depending on the software used, the password will either show up or it won't on the administrator's screen, with the ability to change it or disable/delete the account.
An email asking you to send back your username, password, security question answers, and other things is a definite phish. If the email says your account will be closed or there is legal action, most likely it is fake. Check with your ISP to confirm. So are the emails for lotteries, jackpots, and any kind of winnings programs. Federal law forbids collection of "fees" to receive your winnings. Read this from the NAD;
Scam Alert – Protect Yourself
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Interpreter Scam with a Twist
Another interpreter scam has come up, but this one has a bit of a twist. In Ocean City, Maryland, an interpreter basically created a need for interpreters by sending false messages from fake email accounts from deaf people. She pretended to be deaf, sending interpreter request emails, in order to create work for herself.
Here's the article;
OC Police Probe Reveals Sign Language Scheme
Related blog post: Forget the DC Tax Scam. We Got An Interpreter Scam
Here's the article;
OC Police Probe Reveals Sign Language Scheme
Related blog post: Forget the DC Tax Scam. We Got An Interpreter Scam
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Nigerian Scam Targets Deaf Youngsters
I just returned tonight from having to deal with someone's teenager who was about to get scammed. I got a copy of the chat log and knew just what was going on. I fired off a response email to all involved including the teen's teachers.
This is what I sent;
I've seen this conversation and this is EXACTLY the thing I have been seeing and hearing about all over the place.
To begin, the screen names they hit/contact can be found in two places.
The first would be from DeafVP, as it has been a major source of live AIM screen names. They would hit you with invites to a website to enter your phone number or similar info. If not DeafVP, it would be found in other places like Facebook.
The second is what I have been seeing more and more often, what you saw with the teen.
What they would do is get the AIM SN owner's password somehow. The first would be either through force or through telling them false stories. If they got it through force, they would have you visit a "poisoned" website which would install something to capture your passwords or other information. This last option I've rarely seen.
When they try to get the person's password, they would tell them that they've won money and tell them other stories. They will say they need your AIM password "to open the briefcase" or to help them in getting their money better.
Once they get the password, they take over the account by changing the password and then abuse it. How exactly they abuse it, I don't know. First, they use one of their own accounts, known as Account A, to make first contact using the "taken" account's buddy list. Then the "taken" account, known as Account B, is used to help fool other people if needed.
Account A has been known to refer to Account B, to gain the trust of the person they're talking with, making it seem like they are talking with their friend on their buddy list. Now and then this is used, but I don't see this often.
If they don't go for the password, like you saw with the teen, they would tell the person stories as to how they need to pay a fee to FedEx on delivery of the "money cash" or winnings. They will ALWAYS ask for your name and address, and to send the fee somewhere or wait for the FedEx or other delivery company.
If you try to tell them that they can take the "fee" out of the money you've "won," they will always tell you that's not how it works. It MUST be cash or something made out to the delivery company. They will not stop, just harassing you. Putting them on ignore is only a temporary measure til they get another IM name.
I received something similar some time ago, but in this case, they said they were a police officer in another state and gave me a URL. When I contacted the real person's office, they were VERY interested in getting the chat log. Another one tried to have me send an employment application to a place in the United Kingdom. When I checked the place of business out, I found they were only located here in the United States.
I have blogged about this before, and you can read it here;
Give Out Your Password? NOT! NEVER!
NEVER Give Out Your Password! (Part two)
For the second posting, there is a link to another article of interest.
Internet scammers target deaf community
If you pass all this around, it would help in reducing the number of people being scammed by these idiots.
This is what I sent;
I've seen this conversation and this is EXACTLY the thing I have been seeing and hearing about all over the place.
To begin, the screen names they hit/contact can be found in two places.
The first would be from DeafVP, as it has been a major source of live AIM screen names. They would hit you with invites to a website to enter your phone number or similar info. If not DeafVP, it would be found in other places like Facebook.
The second is what I have been seeing more and more often, what you saw with the teen.
What they would do is get the AIM SN owner's password somehow. The first would be either through force or through telling them false stories. If they got it through force, they would have you visit a "poisoned" website which would install something to capture your passwords or other information. This last option I've rarely seen.
When they try to get the person's password, they would tell them that they've won money and tell them other stories. They will say they need your AIM password "to open the briefcase" or to help them in getting their money better.
Once they get the password, they take over the account by changing the password and then abuse it. How exactly they abuse it, I don't know. First, they use one of their own accounts, known as Account A, to make first contact using the "taken" account's buddy list. Then the "taken" account, known as Account B, is used to help fool other people if needed.
Account A has been known to refer to Account B, to gain the trust of the person they're talking with, making it seem like they are talking with their friend on their buddy list. Now and then this is used, but I don't see this often.
If they don't go for the password, like you saw with the teen, they would tell the person stories as to how they need to pay a fee to FedEx on delivery of the "money cash" or winnings. They will ALWAYS ask for your name and address, and to send the fee somewhere or wait for the FedEx or other delivery company.
If you try to tell them that they can take the "fee" out of the money you've "won," they will always tell you that's not how it works. It MUST be cash or something made out to the delivery company. They will not stop, just harassing you. Putting them on ignore is only a temporary measure til they get another IM name.
I received something similar some time ago, but in this case, they said they were a police officer in another state and gave me a URL. When I contacted the real person's office, they were VERY interested in getting the chat log. Another one tried to have me send an employment application to a place in the United Kingdom. When I checked the place of business out, I found they were only located here in the United States.
I have blogged about this before, and you can read it here;
Give Out Your Password? NOT! NEVER!
NEVER Give Out Your Password! (Part two)
For the second posting, there is a link to another article of interest.
Internet scammers target deaf community
If you pass all this around, it would help in reducing the number of people being scammed by these idiots.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
NEVER Give Out Your Password! (Part two)
A month ago, I posted this article, Give Out Your Password? NOT! NEVER! It's even more urgent and very important that you do not even give your password out to anyone, not even someone who claims to be your friend. Here's why;
Internet scammers target deaf community
The scam works exactly the same way in every time. They say you've won money or something like that. In reality, you haven't. The account of someone you know is compromised somehow and this person impersonates them. They'll IM everyone on the buddy list. Then this same person on a second account talks to you, and tells you to talk to your friend or your friend will talk to you.
This is your classic confidence or similar scheme.
How do you defend yourself? A good password not found in the dictionary that's at least 6 characters. That plus never giving out your password to anyone. Even better is to actually pay attention to how your "friend" is typing including use of capitals and lower case and English. There's a way to know if it's your friend or not;
- certain things only you and your friend know, change the details of them.
- Ask them about how their husband/wife is, but this time, use a completely different name.
- Ask if they're going to this imaginary event/movie next month with you.
- If the actual owner of the account has an illness, give a different name than what the illness is and ask them about it. For example, if they need surgery on their arm, ask about their broken leg.
If the person doesn't even make corrections to your 'mistakes'...
BUSTED! COVER BLOWN!
It works every time without failure.
Internet scammers target deaf community
The scam works exactly the same way in every time. They say you've won money or something like that. In reality, you haven't. The account of someone you know is compromised somehow and this person impersonates them. They'll IM everyone on the buddy list. Then this same person on a second account talks to you, and tells you to talk to your friend or your friend will talk to you.
This is your classic confidence or similar scheme.
How do you defend yourself? A good password not found in the dictionary that's at least 6 characters. That plus never giving out your password to anyone. Even better is to actually pay attention to how your "friend" is typing including use of capitals and lower case and English. There's a way to know if it's your friend or not;
- certain things only you and your friend know, change the details of them.
- Ask them about how their husband/wife is, but this time, use a completely different name.
- Ask if they're going to this imaginary event/movie next month with you.
- If the actual owner of the account has an illness, give a different name than what the illness is and ask them about it. For example, if they need surgery on their arm, ask about their broken leg.
If the person doesn't even make corrections to your 'mistakes'...
BUSTED! COVER BLOWN!
It works every time without failure.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Give Out Your Password? NOT! NEVER!
There's some AIM screen names, most notably "powerball4real8," that are being used to scam more deaf out there. Watch also for any with "emerson" in it, like "pacemerson247" that kept getting others. This time it's of someone who is trying to ask you for your password to "open the briefcase" to get the person their money.
First, this is another variation of the Nigerian scam.
Second, this is a gross violation of your account security. Plenty of damage they can do with your account.
Third, it's against the TOS of any service out there to give out your password.
So in short, do NOT give out your password, no matter what. I made this mistake some years ago back in college and had it locked down shortly afterwards. Apparently, someone combined a bunch of files into one huge file and sent it to various people, including the system operators and, unbelievably, the head of operations! Needless to say, I had to do some explaining. I've even broken into a few accounts myself due to weak passwords and my knowing the person well.
Worse stuff can be done with more sensitive accounts. Again, do not give out your passwords. A password like cat-0cargo3 is quite difficult to brute-force crack. The longer your password, the longer it takes.
First, this is another variation of the Nigerian scam.
Second, this is a gross violation of your account security. Plenty of damage they can do with your account.
Third, it's against the TOS of any service out there to give out your password.
So in short, do NOT give out your password, no matter what. I made this mistake some years ago back in college and had it locked down shortly afterwards. Apparently, someone combined a bunch of files into one huge file and sent it to various people, including the system operators and, unbelievably, the head of operations! Needless to say, I had to do some explaining. I've even broken into a few accounts myself due to weak passwords and my knowing the person well.
Worse stuff can be done with more sensitive accounts. Again, do not give out your passwords. A password like cat-0cargo3 is quite difficult to brute-force crack. The longer your password, the longer it takes.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Forget the DC Tax Scam. We Got An Interpreter Scam.
Never mind it being Friday the 13th today... The Washington Post Metro section had a story about an embezzlement case involving the local community college. What upset me was finding that the former coordinator of interpreters for the deaf was involved as well as one of the interpreters, and I knew Mark Kreidler from when I attended and worked with him on getting interpreters for my classes. A bit more upsetting is that I was going to use him as a reference...
The DC tax scam ran for around several years and cost DC at least $20 million dollars. (use keywords dc tax scam on Google or the Post)
I'm disappointed in you, Mark Kreidler. You may have caused damage to the jobs of other interpreter coordinators and interpreters around the nation. Your position involved more than just the trust of deaf students attending the college.
The DC tax scam ran for around several years and cost DC at least $20 million dollars. (use keywords dc tax scam on Google or the Post)
I'm disappointed in you, Mark Kreidler. You may have caused damage to the jobs of other interpreter coordinators and interpreters around the nation. Your position involved more than just the trust of deaf students attending the college.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Deaf Scams via AIM
Did anyone get an AIM message from someone claiming to be an FBI agent, law enforcement officer, etc? It most likely is a scam. They will often offer you something like this if you work for them online;
- cash every month or week, usually nearly $1,000
- a new vehicle
- pay for vehicle registration, typically a few hundred
- have you fill out an application which most likely you will send to a completely different address
They may say something about helping other deaf. Don't fall for this scam. You will most likely lose money and be a victim of ID theft. Report it to the people they were trying to fraudulently represent.
One other IM scam I've heard about is how the FBI IMs the so-called victims. Maybe the FBI/law enforcement does this from time to time when the victim requests but a lot of the time from what I've seen, they'll use snail mail or the phone. However, when one receives an IM from the "FBI," let them make the first moves. They should have all your info in front of them including your case number and related information.
My own experiences almost exactly mirror Dianarez's experience in her Scamming Deaf via Sidekick blog post. In my case, this other person tried to impersonate a police chief in Ohio. They were very interested in knowing who this person was when I contacted them. If you see ddaservice on AIM, that's the person. Another time it was a business.
One way they get your info is via DeafVP. That's a scammer's paradise right there since all IM info is out in the open. Make it so they have to email you for the info, like I do. When I removed my info, the IMs from them stopped.
Update 3/24/2009:
When posting chat logs anywhere, change your AIM name to something like [name_removed], and remove your personal info with [personal_info_removed]. This way, you're protecting yourself from worse things like ID theft.
Let's get this powerball4real8 idiot OFF the air!
- cash every month or week, usually nearly $1,000
- a new vehicle
- pay for vehicle registration, typically a few hundred
- have you fill out an application which most likely you will send to a completely different address
They may say something about helping other deaf. Don't fall for this scam. You will most likely lose money and be a victim of ID theft. Report it to the people they were trying to fraudulently represent.
One other IM scam I've heard about is how the FBI IMs the so-called victims. Maybe the FBI/law enforcement does this from time to time when the victim requests but a lot of the time from what I've seen, they'll use snail mail or the phone. However, when one receives an IM from the "FBI," let them make the first moves. They should have all your info in front of them including your case number and related information.
My own experiences almost exactly mirror Dianarez's experience in her Scamming Deaf via Sidekick blog post. In my case, this other person tried to impersonate a police chief in Ohio. They were very interested in knowing who this person was when I contacted them. If you see ddaservice on AIM, that's the person. Another time it was a business.
One way they get your info is via DeafVP. That's a scammer's paradise right there since all IM info is out in the open. Make it so they have to email you for the info, like I do. When I removed my info, the IMs from them stopped.
Update 3/24/2009:
When posting chat logs anywhere, change your AIM name to something like [name_removed], and remove your personal info with [personal_info_removed]. This way, you're protecting yourself from worse things like ID theft.
Let's get this powerball4real8 idiot OFF the air!
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