on Sat, Sep 22, 2001 at 08:32:46PM -0700, CDR Anonymizer (cpunks_anon@einstein.ssz.com) wrote:

The cypherpunks list received yet another copy of the "Nigerian Corrupt Official's Bank Account" scam spam. No surprise, though lne.com's filters usually block them. The interesting thing was that this claims to be sent by the CDR Anonymizer <cpunks_anon@einstein.ssz.com>

FYI, info on the scam. This is the tenth instance I've seen this year. Please feel free to distribute the following if you encounter the scam on other NGs or mailing lists. I've compiled a set of rants (frequently repeated essays/posts) at http://kmself.home.netcom.com/Download/rant-o-matic.tar.gz This is an example of the "Nigerian Scam", also called 419 Letters, or just plain 419. Most 419 letters and emails originate from or are traceable back to Nigeria. However, some originate from other nations, mostly also West African nations such as Ghana, Togo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast ( Cote D'Ivoire ) etc. It's the current wrinkle of a decades-old scam that nets tens of millions of dollars per year, and may be the third largest industry in Nigeria. The 419 Coalition believes that it is the elites from which successive governments of Nigeria have been drawn who are the scammers. Expect little cooperation from Nigerian authorities. Information in this notice is compiled from various sources, links below. Keep reading for reporting information. The Scam operates as follows: the target receives an unsolicited fax, email, or letter concerning Nigeria containing either a money laundering or other illegal proposal OR you may receive a Legal and Legitimate business proposal by normal means. Invariably, the proposition involves resources which are somehow locked up: oil or other invoice problems, a bequest, money cleaning, or misallocated funds. At some point, the victim is asked to pay up front an Advance Fee of some sort. If the victim pays the Fee, there are many "Complications" which require still more advance payments until the victim either quits, runs out of money, or both. To report the scam: If you are a United States Citizen or Resident and have suffered NO Financial Loss, write "No Financial Loss - For Your Database" on the documents you received and Fax them to the US Secret Service Task Force handling Scam matters at 202-406-6930. Documents may be emailed to mailto:419.fcd@usss.treas.gov?subject: "No Loss -- 419 Scam" IF you are a United States Citizen or Resident and YOU HAVE SUFFERED A FINANCIAL LOSS write "Financial Loss - Contact Me ASAP" on the documents you have received and Fax them to the Task Force at 202-406-6930 and give Your telephone number(s). A Secret Service Agent will call you back as soon as possible to discuss the matter with you (don't worry, you're Not in any trouble). (Above from http://home.rica.net/alphae/419coal/index.htm) Other countries have their own reporting methods, see above for more info. Additional information: Google search: http://www.google.com/search?q=nigeria+scam Federal Republic of Nigeria, Embassy: http://www.embassy.org/embassies/ng.html Sierra Leone: Nigerian 419 Scam: http://www.sierra-leone.org/scams.html Sample letters are archives as no's 01 - 33: http://www.sierra-leone.org/scam01.html - http://www.sierra-leone.org/scam33.html Nigeria Scam Letter Archive http://www.scamorama.com/ Nigeria - The 419 Coalition Website http://home.rica.net/alphae/419coal/index.htm U.S. Postal Authorities crack down on Nigerian Spam http://www.usps.gov/websites/depart/inspect/pressrel.htm Nigeria - The 419 Coalition Website http://home.rica.net/alphae/419coal/index.htm Urban Legends: Nigerian Scam http://www.snopes2.com/inboxer/scams/nigeria.htm Salon: I crave your distinguished indulgence (and all your cash) http://www.salon.com/people/feature/2001/08/07/419scams/print.html Nigerian 419 Scam "Game Over!" http://home.pacbell.net/jpaladin/ Book describes how the scam plays out. Thank you. Peace. -- Karsten M. Self <kmself@ix.netcom.com> http://kmself.home.netcom.com/ What part of "Gestalt" don't you understand? Home of the brave http://gestalt-system.sourceforge.net/ Land of the free Free Dmitry! Boycott Adobe! Repeal the DMCA! http://www.freesklyarov.org Geek for Hire http://kmself.home.netcom.com/resume.html [demime 0.97c removed an attachment of type application/pgp-signature]