419 Scams
on 09.15.06, 06:10am in computers • comments (1)
Every day, I open my Inbox and see messages like this:
Good day,
Am Hamed Fareed, a merchant in Cuba, I am suffering from esophageal Cancer that was discovered very late due to my laxity in caring for my health. It has defiled all form of medicine and right now, I have only about a few months to live according to medical experts. I have not particularly lived my life so well, as I never really cared for anyone not even myself but my business. Though I am very rich, I was never generous, I was always hostile to people and only focus on my business as that was the only thing I cared for. But now I regret all this as I now know that there is more to life than just wanting to have or make all the money in the world.
It just amazes me how many 419 scams (could this be considered a 419 since it’s from Cuba?) are out there. While hitting the delete key on most of my email is almost an automatic habit, I wonder how many people falls for these each year.
Check out 419eater.com for more tales of 419 scambaiting.
Beau (September 15, 2006 @ 10:42 am)
I wrote a series of articles a couple years ago ( http://bmonday.com/articles/498.aspx
) about the “419″, “Advanced Fee Fraud”, or “Nigerian Email” scam. While global law enforcement has taking a more proactive approach to these types of crimes, they still flourish. While it’s still commonly referred to as the “Nigerian Email Scam” and “419 Scam” (the penal code in Nigeria that deals with such fraud), Advance Fee Fraud is a global problem, rising rapidly in Iraq, Cuba, and other impoverished nations.
Remember the pastor who was shot and killed by his wife earlier this year? The reason they were arguing that night is because the couple got suckered into a 419 scam and lost thousands of dollar as a result. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/07/20/419_shooting/