A
male
age
41-50,
WizardOfWaz
writes:Most of us have heard of the Nigerian email cons otherwise known as the “419 scams” where in return for a small “fee” the victim is offered a share in millions locked away in a secret bank account. But another (possibly even more callous) fraud the “Nigerian Love Scam” is also becoming increasingly prevalent online.“Nigerian” may be be slightly misleading as although the vast majority of these cons originate from Nigeria similar frauds have been traced back to Eastern Europe and elsewhere. To allay any suspicions the fraudsters often claim to be resident in Europe or America until it comes near the time when they are ready to reel you in. Then they will tell you they have to go to Nigeria (or wherever they really are) on "business" or to visit relatives etc.How it works:The Disguise-The scammer will always adopt a phoney personal identity, often lifting photographs from the internet which he reckons will appeal to his victims. So that handsome all American guy in the Marine Uniform is no more real than the pic of the gorgeous blonde blue-eyed English girl he is pretending to be for the guys. In short he can be anyone he wants to be.The Contact- The scammer then sources his victims by trawling through public user sites such as; myspace, yahoo, msn etc plus any popular sites that have a Love theme such as Dear Cupid are a particular favourite target. He will then multi-send a lovely email/private message just for "you".The Bait-He loves your profile. Even if you don't actually have one. He is “single girl”,”bachelor”,”widow”,”divorcee” etc depending on your sex. But he is nice guy/girl seeking serious relationship and isn't his/her pic wow? Bet you can't wait to tell your friends that you have finally met the dream girl/guy who really appreciates you.The Hook-He is attentive and agreeable over a period of several weeks, which turn into months, in fact it has been known for the fakers to spend over a year hooking their victims. And why not? He has several dozen “marks” on the go all at the same time whom he is hustling wholesale daily at the price of a one hour session at his local internet cafe.The Sting-Oh dear he has a sudden crisis. Baby nephew is sick. Mum is being evicted. Grandma is dying. He has crashed the car. He has been mugged. He's stranded at the airport. His bank account is temporarily frozen. He's not asking for much but would you mind.....? Of course you will help, after all haven't you known your dream girl/guy for long enough and this is the Real Deal right?The Awakening-Eventually he will have either milked your financial teat dry or you may have suggested enough is enough. So now you are wondering why he is not in touch as much before, instead of daily emails you are now lucky if he responds once a fortnight, and funny how you are now the one always contacting him. What happened to your “Christian” knight in shining armour, your “God-fearing” perfect girl, your one and only True Love?The Lesson-Yes you have been conned. And now you realise what a fool you have been, you can now see how obviously fake that very first email was. A complete and total stranger sends a personal email to YOU out of the blue and without knowing anything about you first?Be warned Dear Cupid gets attempted hits from these types.But thankfully there are anti-spam facilities in place so not too many get through the security. But occasionally a few bogus private messages will briefly sneak in before the alarm bells ring. So it is up to us all to be forewarned about what to look for. Here is a sample multi-send scam mail that a few users received last week before the sender was quickly blocked. ---------------------------Hii, I am lovely and cute,Accomodative,caring,Affectionate and very lively,I am of the school of thought that believes in the maxim that says It is good to love and be Loved.Love should be sharing ,True,Honest and caring.I need a man who posses all this Attributes and Qualities.I have all the Qualities that a man desires and Craves in a woman. Thanks, Esther Pls contact me through my email[email address blocked] --------------------------------Convincing? Look again at the absence of any comments, even trivia, about you personally. LazyGuy has posted another typical example of scam spam on the Cupid forums, worth a look if you want to see another email of the same format you should always be wary of.If it looks like a stock letter that can be mass e-mailed then it probably is.Stay alert and stay safe.RegardsWaz
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msn, myspace, period, the internet Reply to this Article |
You can add your comments or thoughts to this article A
female
reader, BigSis + ♥, writes (26 April 2008):
 Take a looky at what I received a couple of days ago.
"Hello
I saw your profile today at (dearcupid.org)
and became interested in knowing more about you for a sweet relationship.
my name is Linda,I will appreciate if we get acquinted as soon as
possible and my e-mail address is([email address blocked])
I look forward to hear from you soonest.
From Ndeye Linda.. "
A
male
reader, LazyGuy  + ♥, writes (5 April 2008):
 Thanks for the warning, was confused by the one I posted on the forum, since it seemed to lack the directness of the nigerian scam where it is obvious what they want. Guess I am still to naive :/
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A
reader, anonymous, writes (4 April 2008): very funny wiz waz!!!!!!
I am a beautiful temptress looking for a wizard with amazing powers to bring me cyber dosh for my one legged cat who needs a special Mercedes to get around! Soft top pref with in built dvd so he can playfully enjoy garfield his favorite movie.....(:0)XXXX
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A
male
reader, WizardOfWaz + ♥, writes (4 April 2008):
WizardOfWaz is verified as being by the original poster of the question Well spotted Danielepew. That is another good example of the type of format that the "Love" scammers use. Perfectly designed for sending out to 100's of different people. And yeah Peterk it is easy to get hooked if we are not careful.
It has even reached as far as Australia now, here is an article from The Sidney Morning Herald from February 5th this year.
----------------------Quote
It's a new scam: beware of Nigerians bearing kisses
Thousands of Australians are at risk from a relatively new online scam targeting the desperate and dateless, Queensland police say.
The state's Fraud and Corporate Crimes Group has noticed a growing number of cases of men and women being lured into online relationships by Nigerian fraudsters posing as prospective lovers.
In the latest case, Gold Coast resident Patricia (surname withheld for privacy reasons) lost $8500 when she became involved with a fraudster posing as an Australian retiree using the name "David''.
After six months developing what Patricia believed to be a loving relationship, David said he had to travel to Nigeria to sell some land, which he promised would set them up for life.While there, he supposedly got mugged and asked Patricia to send money to help him return home.
Superintendent Brian Hay said such "romance scams'' cost their victims about $35,000 on average."Unfortunately, we would be talking hundreds if not thousands of victims every day across Australia,'' Supt Hay told reporters in Brisbane."There are masses of offenders sitting in Nigeria and other parts of the world preying on people.''
Fronting the media today to warn others of the elaborate scam, Patricia said she felt suicidal when she realised what had occurred."He was supposed to come back to Australia on Sunday night, but he didn't arrive,'' she said."That's when I thought I was scammed.''
Police are amazed at the amount of time and effort invested by the perpetrators to build online romances, with victims receiving phone calls and photos from their fake lovers.Supt Hay said there are several obvious trigger points potential victims should be aware of.
It won't happen until they (the perpetrators) think they have the hooks in, and the first thing will always be a request for money and the money will always have to be sent in cash,'' he said."It will normally be preceded by a tragic event, such as a mugging, a bankruptcy, a car accident.
"One of the other triggers, of course, is Nigeria.''
Queensland's anti-fraud officers are working with their Nigerian counterparts to track down the offenders, but they fear victims like Patricia are deeply enmeshed in the fraud network.
"It's an ugly term but her name will go on a suckers' list, and they will sell that to other fraudsters in Nigeria as a commodity,'' Supt Hay said.
--------------------------------Unquote
PS-Ladies thanks for your feedback. I love you all. Really. So please send lots of money to my Nigerian account as my sick old Granny hasn't got a pot to pee in.
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A
male
reader, Danielepew  + ♥, writes (4 April 2008):
 Another example, Wiz, which I received here in Dear Cupid:
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Dearest,
Im a loving lady who is really seeking for my true partner to share the rest of my life with. I know that the race is not for the poor or rich, neither the swift nor strong but time and chances happens... am very gentle, kind, caring and good thinking person that doesn`t like any one who promise and fail, tell lies and someone that is not responsible. HE SHOULD BE LOVING, TRUST WORTHY, CARING AND FUL... I am an interesting woman, to be with, i am down to earth, and i like natural things. My way of life is simple and ideal. I am an outgoing person, and a very romantic woman who loves Romantic Challenges. True love never dies for it is lust that fades away. Love bonds for a lifetime but lust just pushes away. If True Love, kindly reply me through my personal email address: (email address not shown)
I Cherish You,
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A
male
reader, Peterk5699 + ♥, writes (4 April 2008):
 Nicely said. Hopefully this'll open the eyes to someone falling for it and they'll realise they've been scammed.
I almost fell for it a few years ago. luckily I didn't.
Think of it this way - the person is a stranger. Wold yo ever give a stranger in the street some money? No. So why do it to someone online?
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A
reader, anonymous, writes (4 April 2008): Yeah I got one of these through Dear Cupid. Something about an offshore bank account, they offered me thousands of pounds! For perhaps a mili-second, I believed them. Then the rest of my head set in working and I realised it was fake. If only I could remember who sent it to me.. Thats what too early in the morning is!
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A
reader, anonymous, writes (4 April 2008): You are so right hunny Ive had alsorts from "I found your profile and you look interesting I would love to no you more" Then e-mail ad...To the ones were they are asking me to help put some money in my bank as they cant do from there country, And women mostly acting all sexy and the occational dirty mess from a guy then e-mail again I always spam em!!!!! good article hun XXXXXXXXXXXX
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A
female
reader, BigSis + ♥, writes (4 April 2008):
A real eye-opener, Wiz.
Well done for that.
BS xXx
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