Scammers are sending out thousands of advance-fee email scams like the one below, where they claim to be someone in the Marines. Recipients of the same fake emails are asked not to follow the instructions in them. The scams are an attempt by scammers to trick potential victims into sending them money or personal information by impersonating someone else. An advance-fee scam is a form of fraud and one of the most common types of confidence trick. The scam typically involves promising the victim a significant share of a large sum of money, in return for a small up-front payment, which the fraudster requires in order to obtain the large sum.