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Phishing and the African scam letter make up two of the top scams on the Internet. By learning to recognize certain characteristics and identifying these top scams, becoming a scam victim can be avoided. The current scam letter is from Nigeria as are many of the Internet's top scams. In the inheritance scam or next of kin scam, the dead person is usually a contractor or consultant to an oil company. This theme can be found in many of the top scams out of Africa. Many of these top scams also state a large amount of money that is going unclaimed in a bank account. The amount is usually greater than one million dollars or pounds. The scammer want the scam victim to pretend to be next of kin in order to get access to the money. A top scam such as this one would also require splitting the money with the scammer and certain expenses. The share ratio varies but is usually around 60:35:5 as in this scam letter. The scam victim is also required to fill out a form to send back or provide the information required.
Greeting to you Dear Friend, Having obtained your contact from the internet that you deserve trust, coupled with my deep interest to invest in your country, I decided to contact and solicit your mutual assistance at all cost. I am Dr. Mark Collins Branch Manager, Oceanic International Bank PLC Nigeria. On January 6th 2004, one Mr. Tom Jennings, a consultant/contractor with Nigeria National Petroluem Co-operation, {NNPC}, made a numbered time (Fixed) Deposit, valued at £9,500,000.00(Nine Million,Five Hundred Thousand Pounds) for twelve calender months in my Bank Branch. Upon Maturity, we sent a routine notification to his forwarding address but got no reply. After a month, we sent a reminder and finally we discovered from his contract employers (Gardiner & Theobald) that Mr. Tom Jennings,, died from an automobile accident. On further investion, it was discovered that he died without making a WILL and all attempts to trace his next of kin was fruitless. On further investigations, it was discovered that Late Mr. Tom Jennings,, did not declare any next of kin or relations in all his official documents, including his Bank Deposit paper work here at the Bank. The total sum, £9,500,000.00 is still in my bank and the interest is being rolled over with the principal sum at the end of each year. No one will ever come forward to claim it. In accordance with the Federal banking Laws and constitution, at the expiration of 5 (five) years, the money will revert to the ownership of the Government if nobody applies as the next of Kin to claim the funds. Consequently, I shall present you as a foreign partner to stand in as the next of kin to late Mr. Tom Jennings, so that you and I can benefit from the fruits of this old man's labour. Upon acceptance of this proposal, I shall send to you the Oceanic Bank PLC "Next of Kin Payment Application Form" as well as detailed information on how this deal would be transacted. We shall employ the services of a solicitor for the drafting of the LAST WILL & TESTAMENT of Late Mr. Tom Jennings, and to obtain all other relevant papers in your name for the necessary documentations for payment approval in my bank headquarters in your favour. The money will be shared in the ratio: 60:35:5 Sixty percent for you, thirty five percent for Me and five percent for any arising contigencies during the course of this transaction. I guarantee that this will be executed under legitimate arrangement that will protect you from any breach of the law as I will use my position as the Bank's Branch Manager to secure approvals and guarantee the successful execution of this transaction you are to send as following.
1 Your full name............... Please be informed that your utmost confidentiality is required. If this interests you, please reply me immediately via the private email address below.
Email: mark_collins012@yahoo.fr This scam letter represents one of the top scams on the Internet. Scam letters such as this one are examples of 419 fraud and should not be responded to. Contact authorities such as email and Internet providers as well as the FBI. Scams from Africa and other countries can be avoided by observing special features that make them identifiable. Some of the characteristics of these top scams include requests for urgency and confidentiality. Sometimes, they list a large amount of money as incentive for the scam victim to act. If the scam victim replies to the scammer, other kinds of top scams can be committed such as the check scam, also known as 419 fraud, and identity theft. These top scams target individuals who think they can acquire millions of dollars or pounds in wealth with very little effort. By recognizing the characteristics of these scam letters, it is possible to avoid becoming a scam victim. Some of these characteristics include professional occupation, large sum of money, words like "greetings," "urgent," and "confidential," along with requests for information. The scam letter above can be classified as the Nigerian inheritance scam and by itself is one of the Internet's top scams. Return to Phishing Internet Scams Home Page » Return to Top Scams Home Page |