Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers

Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers

Online users, beware of advance-fee emails, where the scammers who are sending the fake emails claim you can make thousands or millions of dollars. 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.

A Sample of an Advance-fee Scam

From: S.F <pbf@saovicentedeminas.mg.gov.br>

Sent: Monday, March 11, 2019 12:01 PM

Subject: AWAITING YOUR URGENT RESPONSE

Hello,

My name is Nina fatima, I am contacting you because am planning to invest some amount of money in your country. I need some guidelines from you on how I can make a good and profitable investment in your country since my country is been conflicted with wars and bombings. I will give you 20% of the total money for your assistance as my partner and advise. Get back to me via email FOR MORE DETAILS: fatimasonia@yandex.com

God bless you.

Fatima

Email :fatimasonia@yandex.com

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Note: Some of the information in samples on this website may have been impersonated or spoofed.

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July 30, 2020 at 7:57 PM by
Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers
an anonymous user from: Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India

Here is another scam:

”My dear I'm very happy now to open up more about me and more about this money to you because I feel very relax now after reading your last mail showing your interest to help me without any bad intention, God Almighty will surely bless you for me and I promise to be loyal and allow you to direct me after this transfer. Things is very difficult for me here in the Refugee camp, there is no good health care and there is no good medical treatment here and people die like animals here because of lack of medical care, so I need you to do everything possible to finish up with this transaction with my late father, Bank to enable you bring me over to your country for a new life with you.

I'm using the Reverend father computer to check your mails, although I've explain my life situation to him but I never tell him about this transaction because I keep it secret until we secure the money in your account. Before I will cheek my mail in the office of the Reverend priest here I have to walk for like 15 Minutes from where I'm living at the female hostel to the office of the Reverend Pastor. I want you to assure me that my personality protection is guaranteed within and at the conclusion of this transaction. It is compulsory that I have to do this business with a foreigner as it is stated in my late father's will.

I wish to state my sincerity and complete trust in you and hope that you'll not disappoint or try to double cross me. Upon re-confirmation of your next email with your full support of assisting me, I shall instantly forward to you the contact of the Bank which you've to contact them as my next of kin of this project. I want you to send to me the requirement as listed below to help me use them to introduce you as my business partner and also my late father, as business associate whom I'll like the inherited money released to your account.

These are the items you've to send to me immediately:

1. Your name ...

2. Residential Address ...

3. Private Phone Number,...

4. International Passport,...

5. Your photo,...

6. Name of Your Country,...

7. Your business or company name (if any) ...

I need the above information's from you, so that I can forward it to the Bank to introduce you to them as my next of kin before you can contact them. My Dear, the most important thing I'll like you to do for me is to keep this transaction secret for security reason until when this money is released to your account. Promise me you'll not discuss this matter with anyone, it will between you and God. People are very bad they may try to double cross you if you let anyone know about this money.

Immediately I received your information, I'll instantly forward to you the contact of my late father, Bank and their location address, email and their fax number, phone number and the name of the Bank Director whom you can write to confirm this transaction with them. I'll prepare a drafted mail which you can send to the bank as the appointed beneficiary of the deposited fund $8.500.000 deposited by my late father Mr. Wilson Abumaiga. Remember that I lost my International passport in my country during the time I was escaping from those killers and I'll get a new passport when the transfer is successfully done.

After this money is transfer to your bank account, you'll help me withdraw some money from the account where the money will be deposited, then you'll help me send some money through the Reverend Father account or through western union, in order to get my traveling documents, You'll also send a letter of invitation to me so that they will give me a VISA urgently to travel and join you over.

Dear Love I'm for real and honest, please let us have mutual understanding and let trust, truthfulness, God fearing and trustworthy be our watch worlds. I have to be sincere to you that this transaction is 100 % risk free and you've nothing to doubt or fear off. God will lead us and bring us together soonest. You can call me through the Reverend father's telephone number, his name is Reverend father Geoffrey William.

I await your soonest response. I am sincerely and honest, please forward your details to enable me know you more:

Yours beloved one

Miss. Diane Wilson."

Delete

June 6, 2020 at 1:30 AM by
Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers
info

"From: Mr Wilson Jonathan <brennananna@eircom.net>

Date: Fri, Jun 5, 2020, 7:28 PM

Subject: Attention

Attention

This is Mr Wilson Jonathan The International Diplomatic Agent I'm writing this message to Notify you about my successful Arrival right now am at the City of Corpus Christi, Tx. 78413 USA with your Consignment Box Package worth 4.5 Million us dollars to your destination Home address and right now i want you to send email to me once you received this message and give me all about your information to avoid wrong delivering such as so that i can delivery your consignment box to you,

Your Name...

Your Address...

Your Telephone Number...

your country and state...

your email address...

TXT OR CALL... 1 410 670 0806

Thanks,

Mr Wilson Jonathan"

Here is another scam.

Delete

May 18, 2020 at 6:28 PM by
Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers
info

"From: Leonardo Ponzcok <hmaewkitty@windstream.net>

Date: May 18, 2020 at 3:33:15 PM MST

To: hmaewkitty@windstream.net

Subject: My Letter

Reply-To: leonardoponzcok@indamail.hu

Hello,

I am Leonardo Ponzcok the Chief Executive Officer of a renowned law and auditing firm here in Spain. I was contracted to audit the accounting section of some firms in Spain. This audit in line with government policies and account reconciliation became necessary following the current European Economic crisis which Spain happens to be one of the most pretentious countries with the Euro Zone.

During my audits, I discovered several dormant accounts due to inactivity. some of the said account has been d.ormant for over a decade as the initial owner of funds h a d passed on. Against this backdrop, I decided to contact you in order to confirm whether or not you know or are related to the deceased family? This is because from our preliminary findings, your and one of the deceased happen to bear same surname and common heritage.

Lastly, owing to the sensitivity of this situation, I urge you to keep this proposal in utmost confidentiality pending our discussion. I expect your response to enable me send you more informations.

Thanks for your time and expecting your response."

Here is another scam.

Delete

February 5, 2020 at 7:03 AM by
Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers
info

"From: "HM.TREASURY BOARD" <nisha4u0@yahoo.com>

Date: February 5, 2020 at 12:47:41 AM MST

Subject: Dear Beneficially.

Reply-To: hmtreasuryfile@meta.ua

Dear Beneficially.

This is about your Inheritance/Entitlement Total of $25 million my name is Wally Shaw I have been working tirelessly to get your transaction processed and now i have gotten the optimistic way out by getting you a financier .I have narrow discussion already with him to sponsor your transfer charges but I want to hear from you and know how serious you are so that I can finalize with the financier to sponsor you.Email me back {hmtreasuryfile@meta.ua}

Regards

Wally Shaw

HM.TREASURY BOARD BENIN/LONDON UK"

Here is another scam.

Delete

December 23, 2019 at 8:44 AM by
Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers
info

Here is another scam

- Forwarded message -

From: CHAMBERLYN OYIBO <swacandra@telkom.net>

Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 at 6:13 pm

Subject: You can be a millionaire in a week.

To:

You can be a millionaire in a week.

I work for a big bank as commercial manager I discovered that there are many domant accounts that have been in that state for some many years now. I investigated some of these dormant accounts and discovered that their owners died may be without letting their next-of-kin to have knowledge of their wealth or they would have disclose this wealth later before accident occurd.

Some of these funds make some bank managers rich when they discovered that these funds are abadom as a result that no wright person comes to claim them.

There is $48,000,000 of this kind of fund availble hence I am contacting you. I have worked modality to transfer this fund to you for our mutual benefit without risk. This modality will be disclose to you if you are interested to partner with for hitch free riches.

Chamberlyn Oyibo

Delete

December 20, 2019 at 4:44 PM by
Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers
info

"From: Mr. Philip Johnson <mrskyusuf444@gmail.com>

Sent: Thursday, December 19, 2019 12:34 PM

To: Recipients

Subject: VERY URGENT ATTENTION IS NEEDED FROM YOU NOW PACKAGE OWNER,

Attention My Dear,

Simply contact Diplomat Mrs. Cynthia Morgan with your full delivery address

And your nearest airport to land, on this information below so that

she can deliver the Package worth $3.7 Million Dollars to you; Name: Lady Mrs. Cynthia Morgan.

his contact email address (diplomcynthiamrose121@yahoo.com)

Your Full Name

Your House Address

Your Telephone Number

Your Country

Your City

Your S*x/ Age

Your Nearest Airport

I advice you to reconfirm the following information below to her,So

that she can deliver your Box that contained your fund as soon as possible.

Regards,

Mr. Philip Johnson."

Received this scam.

Delete

December 16, 2019 at 2:59 PM by
Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers
info

THIS SO-CALLED QC DOES NOT EXIST

- - -

From: Christopher Quinlan QC <cqukesq@posta.ro>

Sent: 15 December 2019 00:53

Subject: Compliments

Compliments,

My name is Christopher Quinlan QC I am a solicitor at law / investment adviser to your late relative. Your late relative left behind Cash deposit in capital and investment security account along with properties, I will like to discuss with you regarding making this claim since he is related to you going by the lineage, surname and country of origin.

Once I receive your information and endorse same appropriately, I shall provide you with all the privileged information/legal documents relating to the deceased and also will give you guidelines on how to realize this goal without the breach of the law. I would respectfully request that you treat the content of this letter as privileged and respect the integrity of the information you come by as a result of this correspondence. Contact me immediately for more information and to begin the legal process of redeeming your lawful entitlement before the bank is compelled by law to hand over the money to the government.

Please get back to me on my private email cqesq@posta.ro for further details.

To facilitate the process of this transaction, urgently forward to me

Your full names,

Telephone and fax numbers,

Address,

Age,

Marital status,

Occupation

I will be expecting to hear from you.

Regards

Christopher Quinlan QC

Private email cqesq@posta.ro

Delete

November 8, 2019 at 10:27 PM by
Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers
info

"From: Rev Father Peter Cox <revfatherpetercox@gmail.com>

Date: November 3, 2019 at 6:14:40 AM EST

Subject: REMAIN BLESS IN THE LORD!

Reply-To: "Rev Father Peter Cox" <revfatherpetercox@gmail.com>

Remain bless in the Lord

My name is Rev Father Peter Cox I am 77 years old. I have been suffering in the sick bed for the past 7 years. Now I believe that my time has come to join my ancestors in heaven. I got your email address from the Internet, as the spirit of Almighty God directed me to contact you for this charity work. I have $ 25,000,000.00 deposited with the Finance Tax Force Office for security reasons which I want you to claim on my behalf for an important charitable project,

Can you honestly do this for me?

Remain bless in the Lord.

Rev Father Peter Cox"

Here is another scam.

Delete

November 1, 2019 at 1:16 PM by
Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers
info

Here is another scam:

"From: Mrs Amin El-Kara <info@avantel.ru>

Sent: Thursday, October 31, 2019 4:50 PM

Subject: Your quick response will help us a lot..

I'm Mrs Amin El-Kara, from the New York Express Courier Service. We wish to urgently confirm from you if actually you know one Mrs.Cynthia Edward who claims to be your business associate/partner. Kindly reconfirm this application put in by Mrs. Cynthia Edward - she submitted the under listed Name and Address information supposedly sent by you to receive your Parcel on your behalf.

Account Name: Cynthia Edward

Address: #1230 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA

The said Mrs. Cynthia Edward has claimed to this office that you died on a motor accident and have Instructed that all relevant documentation/Information regarding your parcel, be changed to her as the beneficiary of the parcel,I need to confirm from you if it's really true that you are dead as made mention by your Associate.

You should note that, if we do not hear from you in the next 24 hours, we automatically assume that you are actually dead and the information passed to us by Mrs. Cynthia Edward is correct. Hence, you are hereby requested to reply this Email immediately for confirmation.

Your quick response will help us a lot.

Yours, Sincerely,

Mrs Amin El-Kara"

Delete

October 9, 2019 at 4:50 PM by
Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers
info

Here is another scam:

- Forwarded message -

From: Mrs Judith Compola <rdeeganeng@eircom.net>

Date: Wed, Oct 9, 2019 at 3:51 PM

Subject: CONTACT MY SECRETARY NOW

Attention: My Dear,

I have received the cheque from bank three days a go and kept the cheque with Rev Mark Williams as we discussed. Please mail him immediately to send the cheque to you. I am in Colombia now. I kept USD900.000.00 cashier cheque and will send you the rest of money after my business trip here.I send you so many mails but all bounced back.

So mail Rev Mark Williams with below email for him to send the cheque to you:(revmarkwilliams50@aol.com) Thanks and do let me know when you receive it.

Below is Their Contact

Contact Person: Rev Mark Williams

Email: revmarkwilliams50@aol.com

Call me Phone: 2269 00008 000845

Reconfirm Your Full Information To him Such as;

1. Full Name:

2. Full Address:

3. Occupation:

4. Age:

5. S*x:

6. TelephMaone Number:

7. Country :

8. City:

Hoping to hear from you.

Thanks and God bless you and your family.

Mrs Judith Compola

CONTACT MY SECRETARY NOW

Delete

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Online Threat Alerts Security Tips

Pay the safest way

Credit cards are the safest way to pay for online purchases because you can dispute the charges if you never get the goods or services or if the offer was misrepresented. Federal law limits your liability to $50 if someone makes unauthorized charges to your account, and most credit card issuers will remove them completely if you report the problem promptly.

Guard your personal information

In any transaction you conduct, make sure to check with your state or local consumer protection agency and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to see if the seller, charity, company, or organization is credible. Be especially wary if the entity is unfamiliar to you. Always call the number found on a website’s contact information to make sure the number legitimately belongs to the entity you are dealing with.

Be careful of the information you share

Never give out your codes, passwords or personal information, unless you are sure of who you're dealing with

Know who you’re dealing with

Crooks pretending to be from companies you do business with may call or send an email, claiming they need to verify your personal information. Don’t provide your credit card or bank account number unless you are actually paying for something and know who you are sending payment to. Your social security number should not be necessary unless you are applying for credit. Be especially suspicious if someone claiming to be from a company with whom you have an account asks for information that the business already has.

Check your accounts

Regularly check your account transactions and report any suspicious or unauthorised transactions.

Don’t believe promises of easy money

If someone claims that you can earn money with little or no work, get a loan or credit card even if you have bad credit, or make money on an investment with little or no risk, it’s probably a scam. Oftentimes, offers that seem too good to be true, actually are too good to be true.

Do not open email from people you don’t know

If you are unsure whether an email you received is legitimate, try contacting the sender directly via other means. Do not click on any links in an email unless you are sure it is safe.

Think before you click

If an email or text message looks suspicious, don’t open any attachments or click on the links.

Verify urgent requests or unsolicited emails, messages or phone calls before you respond

If you receive a message or a phone call asking for immediate action and don't know the sender, it could be a phishing message.

Be careful with links and new website addresses

Malicious website addresses may appear almost identical to legitimate sites. Scammers often use a slight variation in spelling or logo to lure you. Malicious links can also come from friends whose email has unknowingly been compromised, so be careful.

Secure your personal information

Before providing any personal information, such as your date of birth, Social Security number, account numbers, and passwords, be sure the website is secure.

Stay informed on the latest cyber threats

Keep yourself up to date on current scams by visiting this website daily.

Use Strong Passwords

Strong passwords are critical to online security.

Keep your software up to date and maintain preventative software programs

Keep all of your software applications up to date on your computers and mobile devices. Install software that provides antivirus, firewall, and email filter services.

Update the operating systems on your electronic devices

Make sure your operating systems (OSs) and applications are up to date on all of your electronic devices. Older and unpatched versions of OSs and software are the target of many hacks. Read the CISA security tip on Understanding Patches and Software Updates for more information.

What if You Got Scammed?

Stop Contact With The Scammer

Hang up the phone. Do not reply to emails, messages, or letters that the scammer sends. Do not make any more payments to the scammer. Beware of additional scammers who may contact you claiming they can help you get your lost money back.

Secure Your Finances

  • Report potentially compromised bank account, credit or debit card information to your financial institution(s) immediately. They may be able to cancel or reverse fraudulent transactions.
  • Notify the three major credit bureaus. They can add a fraud alert to warn potential credit grantors that you may be a victim of identity theft. You may also want to consider placing a free security freeze on your credit report. Doing so prevents lenders and others from accessing your credit report entirely, which will prevent them from extending credit:

Check Your Computer

If your computer was accessed or otherwise affected by a scam, check to make sure that your anti-virus is up-to-date and running and that your system is free of malware and keylogging software. You may also need to seek the help of a computer repair company. Consider utilizing the Better Business Bureau’s website to find a reputable company.

Change Your Account Passwords

Update your bank, credit card, social media, and email account passwords to try to limit further unauthorized access. Make sure to choose strong passwords when changing account passwords.

Report The Scam

Reporting helps protect others. While agencies can’t always track down perpetrators of crimes against scammers, they can utilize the information gathered to record patterns of abuse which may lead to action being taken against a company or industry.

Report your issue to the following agencies based on the nature of the scam:

  • Local Law Enforcement: Consumers are encouraged to report scams to their local police department or sheriff’s office, especially if you lost money or property or had your identity compromised.
  • Federal Trade Commission: Contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357) or use the Online Complaint Assistant to report various types of fraud, including counterfeit checks, lottery or sweepstakes scams, and more.
  • Identitytheft.gov: If someone is using your personal information, like your Social Security, credit card, or bank account number, to open new accounts, make purchases, or get a tax refund, report it at www.identitytheft.gov. This federal government site will also help you create your Identity Theft Report and a personal recovery plan based on your situation. Questions can be directed to 877-ID THEFT.

How To Recognize a Phishing Scam

Scammers use email or text messages to try to steal your passwords, account numbers, or Social Security numbers. If they get that information, they could get access to your email, bank, or other accounts. Or they could sell your information to other scammers. Scammers launch thousands of phishing attacks like these every day — and they’re often successful.

Scammers often update their tactics to keep up with the latest news or trends, but here are some common tactics used in phishing emails or text messages:

Phishing emails and text messages often tell a story to trick you into clicking on a link or opening an attachment. You might get an unexpected email or text message that looks like it’s from a company you know or trust, like a bank or a credit card or utility company. Or maybe it’s from an online payment website or app. The message could be from a scammer, who might

  • say they’ve noticed some suspicious activity or log-in attempts — they haven’t
  • claim there’s a problem with your account or your payment information — there isn’t
  • say you need to confirm some personal or financial information — you don’t
  • include an invoice you don’t recognize — it’s fake
  • want you to click on a link to make a payment — but the link has malware
  • say you’re eligible to register for a government refund — it’s a scam
  • offer a coupon for free stuff — it’s not real

About Online Threat Alerts (OTA)

Online Threat Alerts or OTA is an anti-cybercrime community that started in 2012. OTA alerts the public to cyber crimes and other web threats.

By alerting the public, we have prevented a lot of online users from getting scammed or becoming victims of cybercrimes.

With the ever-increasing number of people going online, it important to have a community like OTA that continuously alerts or protects those same people from cyber-criminals, scammers and hackers, who are every day finding new ways of carrying out their malicious activities.

Online users can help by reporting suspicious or malicious messages or websites to OTA. And, if they want to determine if a message or website is a threat or scam, they can use OTA's search engine to search for the website or parts of the message for information.

Help maintain Online Threat Alerts (OTA).

Advance Fee Scams Being Sent by Online Scammers