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Hi, I work with a procurement company in Africa that deals in car parts and we also help our customers procure used cars of their choice from individuals that are willing to sell. I have a customer that is interested in your car and I will like to know your final selling price. Get back to me so that i can inform my customer. boolker.
So I told him the Kelly Blue Book high book value.
Dear Mike,
I am glad that you are interested in my enquiry and that you are wanting to transact with me, I will to tell you that my client is willing and ready to make purchase for this car and he will like to tell you that the car will like to be shipped to africa, i will like you to give me the name to write on the check and also the address to send the check to so as to make fast and easy transaction because my client is ready to make transaction and your money is $5500 but my client send you the check of $10,000 and the interest is happen to be my shares and when the chack get to you. You shound send me my share and i will like to tell you that my client will make arrangement on how the car is going to be picked from your place as soon as payment is made and the method of payment is with a check so as soon as the check clears my client will arrange for the pickup of the car, so i will like to read from you soon on the information of the name and address to make the payment to with a check. Expecting your reply soonest. Best Regards Boolker.
About this point alarms sounded, but I went along with it...
Many messages went back and forth, a typical one was:
Mike, Thanks for your mail, right now i am on my way to belgium to see my sick mother in the hospital and i want you to make my balance payment to my personal assistance name and address via western union as soon as you receive the check. Here is my personal assistance information, Name: Oscar Brown Address: 107 virgin lane ave State: Lagos state Country: Nigeria Zip code: 23401. I will be looking forward to the western union information as soon as you receive the check as in the senders first and last name, control number, text questions and answers, and the amount sent which will be $4,500 as soon you get the check. NOTE: As soon as you get the check just go to the western union point to wire me back my balance. Best Regards, Cibik.................. (even more typical was to sign the message “God Bless”…)
One close look at the Cashiers Check said the check was counterfeit (I blurred the account numbers in the copy here), and the bank agreed with me. Did you know that you could check with a bank to see if any check, even cashier’s checks, will clear? Not just does the account have enough in it to clear, but also is this cashiers check one that the bank issued? Most modern cashiers checks and money orders use microprinting around the border --- that is the line around the edge is text not a solid line, a scanned and reprinted check from a computer does not have microprinting nor that nice crisp edge that a check from a printer has. And any one can get standard check blanks from a number of suppliers now. So just because it says Cashiers Check or Money Order, even when it “feels” to the touch like a real check does not mean that it is equal to cash, in fact the bank can come back to you even 30 days later and say “sorry that check did not clear, we want our money back.” One couple who sold a piano on the internet found that out, The cashiers check that was sent to pay for the piano and shipping to get it to Nigeria cleared, they really do a good job on these counterfeit checks, almost perfect. Plus the Bank is all automated so it would clear until the second audit. Then the buyers “father” needed surgery and he wrote back, could you please not send the piano, my Father needs surgery and I need the money to pay for it… Of course being the nice person the majority of us are; it was no problem to cancel the transaction and WIRE the funds back. A bit later the bank wanted its money back from the counterfeit check, and they were out all that money. (The words Western Union or Wire should set off every alarm in your mind.)
So what happened to me? Well I called the bank, and sure enough they did not have that check listed, (mind you the account was valid, the location code was valid, even the proper number of signatures for that account) --- so I called the Utah Cyber Crimes Division and they sent Detective Bills to come and get the check.Detective Bills also checked and verified that the check was counterfeit. The whole thing cost me nothing but some time, and I had the pleasure of “tilting at windmills” if nothing else. Unless of course my story hits home with you, or some one that this gets forwarded to. Then I will have done more than Tilt at Windmills. It never fails to surprise me at the jokes, hoaxes and such that we do forward, and how things like this never do get forwarded.
My favorite place to verify if letters such as this are internet hoaxes or are real is to go to http://www.about.com and enter “Nigeria and Scam” (or whatever hoax you are looking up) into the search window. There is a ton of stuff there on the Nigerian 419 Scam.
As an after thought, one of the latest scams is; Fake Escrow Companies, you buy something on eBay (or similar site), the seller suggests using a escrow company that they have used and that was “real good,” (do you see it coming?) A Doctor just lost over $50,000 dollars to this scam a few days ago. eBay suggests using their own escrow service for a simple flat $22 fee. So if you are selling or buying over the Internet and the other party does not want to use known and recommended services from well-known places such as eBay, well you have been warned.
On a funny note: Just the other day a couple in my home town were arrested for trying to cash a check like mine at a "check cashing" company. Turned out they had fallen for the scam, and as they did not have checking accounts thought they would just cash the check. Unfortunately they both had warrants out for their arrest on other charges, so it was doubly misfortunate for them. Still is serves as a lesson, falling for this scam can lead to more than just lost money.