I must admit that from time to time I let my emails kind of pile up here on Gather. I was working away here at my computer on dull boring editing of over a hundred and sixty something photos from a photo shoot I did last month from friends. So decided I should catch up on reading my emails and answering those which require answering.
I opened the one you see below and almost fell out of my seat laughing. Sorry, but I'm an ex-cop and scams are nothing new to my vocabulary. I've heard of the ones from Nigeria and the phone scams from other places but this is a new one on me. I haven't checked yet to see if Hoax busters has it or one of the other hoax sites but figure if they don't yet they will soon hear or know of it.
Now, being dirt poor or actually poorer than dirt I could use some extra money but I'm not so hard up that I would fall for anything like answering anyone who wants me to give them my bank account number etc. to leap at getting part of WOW!!! nearly two million dollars. Sorry I wasn't born yesterday or even a week ago.
Yep I checked the Gather site of this one and they just set it up today. So they are working fast in trying to get a sucker hooked with their fishing bait. Wonder why me? Does my icon look that foolish or dumb? Do I look like I would fall for a scam? Or was I just chosen at random?
Anyone else gotten this one in the emails yet? If so would love to know so I will not be heart broken to find that I'm not her only love interest on Gather. Of course more than likely it is some guy who is just using a females name to hook me or some other likely man or then if a woman gets this email will they have changed it to be a man's name?
Here is the email I got today:
FROM:PRISCA EBAHLAH.
COTE D IVOIRE,
WEST AFRICA.
Dear one,
Permit me to inform you of my desire of going into long time relationship and financial transaction for our mutual benefits.
I am Miss Prisca Ebahlah and I inheritated an important sum from my late father who died in recent crisis in Cote d'Ivoire. I wish to request for your assistance in investing this sum in lucrative venture or manufacturing and real estate management in your country.
I have one million, eight hundred thousand United State Dollars. USD($1.800,000)to invest in this transaction and I will require your assistance in receiving the fund in your account in your country. I will gladly give you some reasonable percent from the total sum for your assistance. Please it is important you contact me immediately for
more clearification on the next step for smooth conclusion.
Awaiting your immediate response and God bless you.
Thanks for your understanding
Yours Sincerely,
Miss Prisca Ebahlah.
PLEASE REPLY TO: priscaebah@yahoo.com
Hmmm, think I should reply to the poor woman?
Or are you like me NO WAY will I even think of replying to her or anyone who sends me something so stupid in my emails after all the scams from Nigeria and other places nope not gonna get hooked by this or any other scam.
I wouldn't even believe a friend who came to me with such a story why would I believe a total stranger that they picked me to help them move a huge amount of money into the U.S. just because my smile was so cheerful...lol. Besides the last I heard it was just a bit illegal to do something like that since it is called Money Laundering.
Was just looking at her last name. It looks like if you say it it would sound close to Ebola the deadly virus from Africa. Aptly named don't you think.
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Comments: 119
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Thanks for the heads up. Hopefully no one is gullible enough to fall for it.
I have over 700 mails (sheepish grin) but I just peeked through and guess I wasn't special enough to get the email. *sob*
On a totally unrelated note: I'm fascinated by your being an ex cop. I have a WIP that is a police procedural novel set in New Jersey. :-)
I personally can not imagine anyone falling for it, but some do. I think it works better on men than women, but that's just my perspective. Ridiculous!
And I am glad to say, I haven't got this one yet!
Emma, sad to say too many fall for them thinking they will make money the easy way when it turns out they loose money...is the old play on the greed of people to make easy money...is a scam that has been around way longer than I've been alive even though sometimes I feel like I'm ten thousand years old...lol.
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I chose that location as one of the plots needed a state that had the death penalty. Well, WI doesn't have it, nor does NY (where I'm from originally) so, I chose NJ since It's close weather wise to NY and I've found myself in Newark a couple times before. Did I mention that I needed a large city for a repeat offender (serial killer in one case) criminal to hide out in? LOL
If I ever need help with procedures I suppose I know who to ask. :) Though most of my procedure issues are forensic related. Ahh all the research it takes to write one novel. Procedure, forensics and psychology of the killer. Thank goodness I love it all!
Though I'm about to start on a new novel on November first - a historical paranormal mystery... even if my characters are being heathens.
Such is life...
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Wow you have alot of hate to show there. What you have to remember is that did this crime really happen did the man really kill the judge and his court reporter? If he did then surely he will ge what he deserves
As of hate don't think I said anything above which could be taken as hateful. Just reporting the facts is all I was doing. I don't hate anyone. It is a wasteful thing to hate since the one who hates is the one who pays for his own hate. I observe, I report, I live my life the best I can without hating anyone.
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Yeah it's a painfully slow process and caused a great deal of problems in a plot for pacing, but I figured a way around that... though it took months to figure it out, lol.
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Report it to MaryAnne F, Director of Member Services at Gather. They will be removed from the site.
http://maryannef.gather.com
Never been in the thank yous of a book before Jennifer...
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Welcome Danielle...I'm always the good boy scout...
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Seriously though, once I responded to one of these and gave them a phone # and fax # (of course the numbers I provided were for a NY Police District. I hope they had fun with them.
Can't say they reached me through Gather yet.
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Yep...thanks Dina...
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What is scarry is that they would not be doing this if there was no one replying to them.
Roses...dang woman my memory for names is terrible and I know I know your name...I received one of those from them for a bank account for a bank I haven't used in years so knew it wasn't from my bank but wondered how they got the info that I had been with the old bank...as for PayPal etc. they never ask for info in an email or letter only when you log onto the account or call them etc.
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Pam, the problem is some people are dumb as rocks...but some are so giving of themselves they don't believe anyone would try to take advantage of them...then there are the ones who are out for a free buck and when the two meet the greedier one wins...
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jail time. I have a question for you, James: Which is worse, being dirt poor or poorer
than dirt?
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I'm going to send it off to the headmistress of Gather, as mentioned above.
Here's the posting for the one I received:
http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977157899
(on, and Angela...being poorer than dirt wins, hands down.)
Holly, some people are too trusting and yes, they give out their numbers for S.S. and bank accounts etc. to the one who is supposedly in authority on the phone or asking for charity etc...and yes, this "person" has an account on Gather or did I turned it in to support etc. and hopefully they are gone...anyone can open an account giving false information...if you notice if you click on their names, icons you will find they have just opened the account and usually have nothing showing other than the icon or name...
It takes all kinds and some personally I don't want to have on Gather with the rest of us...I think you will agree with that...as does any decent person...
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The name in the email is strangely close to mine - yikes
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but like you, I would never ever respond to it.
I would, however, report it to Gather Support
and they can take action to either stop the
sending of the mails and/or put the person off
Gather entirely....depending ona number of factors.
But I would most certainly let Gather know!!
"NO", you do not look stupid in your icon. - LOL
I like your picture.
And, yes, some people do fall for this crap. There has been a lot of such emails going rampant to AVON ladies asking for large quantities of products to be shipped here or there using a credit card or wire transfer. Some have fallen for it and, to their dismay, it has cost them hundreds if not thousands of dollars from their own pockets. If they don't confirm the credit card is valid or if a charge is contested, it is reversed and becomes the Representatives responsibility, not AVON's. So, email scams are everywhere and I guess we really can't trust anyone who is asking us for stuff or money.
Thanks for reminding us of the slimeballs out there!
You got it through your gather e-mail??? If you still have the email send it to support so they can make sure who ever sent it to you is erased from Gather. But then an ex cop would have already done that. :-)
A scam is a scam.
I'm sorry that they picked you but at least you were smart and didn't fall for there tricks.
This is one of those things that have been around forever just with different names and countries a little different story.
Thanks for sharing with us though and helping out others who might not have known better.
I haven't gotten this one yet. Maybe I don't have enough "Friends"
And no, James, your picture does not look stupid. I'm thinking that might apply to them however, especially if they read your profile or any of your articles. I wonder what part of "ex-cop" they didn't understand?
Oh, I may have a question or two about police work in a small town for you as well. My "never-ending-novel" has a small town detective as a principal character. Also my cousin and I were writing a crime novel set in Oklahoma state parks. Most of her contacts were deputies from the sheriffs' department, and mine are Tulsa police officers. We really need a different perspective than either of these, when we get started on it again. (She is half way through chemo therapy for breast cancer and then has radiation scheduled....so, not quite up to writing, and somehow I don't have the heart to work on it alone.) :-(
I promise not to be a pest....just some atmosphere type questions.
Please, people, fellow gather friends...
STAY AWAY from these types of emails, mark them as spam or block sender. They have caused so much heartache and grief.
If it sounds too good to be true it probably is!!
It was ridiculous.
Robert on his flying horse. Now that I want to see. LOL
Your "wasn't born yesterday" comment made me chuckle thinking about similar "southernisms" that I've heard in my time:
*** I was born at night -- but not LAST night...
*** I didn't just fall off the turnip truck...
*** Mama didn't raise no fool...
I guess these spammers are just "dumber than a big ole bag o'rocks"...
ROFL!
Well this old girl made some phone calls to the bank that was on the check, one in California, and talked to them about the account. Yes there is an account there under that name, but that check had had a stop payment on it 2 months before I ever got it.
I then asked for the fraud departhemt for the bank and called them. Then i called the FBI, they asked that I fax them all the things I had gotten, letter, check and what the bank had told me. Then I got a phone call from the bank fraud department asking me to fax things to them too, then a week later they asked if I would please send them the letter and check so they could do some checking up on it. I called the FBI and asked what I should do, and they said that since I had faxed the info to them, that it was ok to mail the things to the bank. I even got in touch with the postoffice but they told me that people get things like that all the time, to just ignor it and toss it in the trash. Well needless to say, I went to all the area banks and gave them copies of the check and letter so they would be able to see it and if anyone else came in with one like it, they would know it was no good.No one is going to just give you money for nothing!
someone into doing this. Of course you aware it was
a sham. I always say 'up to their hip like a pocket', I
never even open email such as that. Thank you for
letting us here on Gather know about this.
Huggers4U
Just Me
Barbie
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I had an email on gather today from someone I blocked weeks ago, under the same name. I wish gather had less glitches.
I did receive a gathermail such as this one a few months ago and I immediately contacted Gather Support and they removed the member who sent the e-mail.
Hmmm, wonder if I had replied to her email address on Yahoo if he/she would have sent me a letter from Africa...would have loved to have the stamp, not that I collect them just to know I cost some scammer a postage stamp...lol.
If I can't get something legally then I don't want it...even feel guilty downloading free MP3s from artists but when I like their music I buy their CDs as I can so support them that way...but being poorer than dirt I usually can't afford to buy many...
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