BS: How does this scam work

Subject: BS: How does this scam work?
From: alanabit
Date: 28 Oct 03 - 11:58 PM

I am just curious. I got an e-mail yesterday inviting me to Amsterdam (about a three hour train ride from here) to collect some money, which I have allegedly "won" on some internet lottery. The e-mail went on to say that if I could not come in person, a certain firm of solicitors could act for me.
I am a big boy now, so I don't believe in fairies or Father Christmas any more. I am curious though. What are they after? Do they want my address to sell to companies to put me on their infernal mailing lists for advertising? Or is it more likely that they will try to get my bank account details and then try to screw money out of me for solicitors' bills? I am sure the scam is not unique and I would just like to find out how they make their money.
It would be really nice to think that someone out there really did want to give me a lot of money. As I said though, I am a big boy now and I don't really believe in fairies. What is it all about?

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: LadyJean
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 12:02 AM

I live in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, but I also get spam saying I've won contests I didn't enter. I'e be interested in how this scam works too.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: katlaughing
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 12:17 AM

They usually try to get your bank info OR they tell you that you have to pay some "fees" in order for them to release the funds to you, etc. At least, that's what I've read.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Little Hawk
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 01:16 AM

My father was assured by some people that he had won a boat. Numerous phone calls and communications followed, but the boat never made its appearance. It was never clear just what they were after. He finally wouldn't talk to them anymore and told them to get lost.

Depend on this...if someone you've never heard of tells you you've won something out of the blue, it is almost certainly a scam and a waste of your time, regardless of what the heck it is.

- LH

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Brendy
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 03:01 AM

I've got them myself, from the Amsterdam people, and from a few people in the African continent.

If you're only 3 hours from the Dam, though, I would be inclined to turn up and call their bluff, if that is the case.

Let us know what you decide, though.

B.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: jonm
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 03:16 AM

The majority of the "turn up here" scams involve you getting the hard sell for a product, e.g. timeshares, before you discover that "You are a winner in our £50,000 Draw" means you are one of 50,000 people receiving a pound each!

If you don't turn up, but use the solicitor, they get money from you that way.

I've had a spate of "You've won a holiday" phone alls recently. Yes, I have genuinely won a free holiday for two, off-peak, somewhere I don't want to go. If I add in the kids and move the date to the school holidays, it becomes more expensive than a normal purchase. I guess they do their market research very well.

The latest scam round our way is the card pushed through the door purporting to be from a private parcel carrier who is holding a parcel they couldn't deliver. The card does not have your name and address on it, everyone in the street got one and no attempt was made to deliver any parcels. If you phone their collection line, at £3 a minute, I'm told you spend forever on hold and then agree a new delivery date, when presumably the process starts again...

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Wolfgang
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 05:01 AM

The idea behind that scheme is to make you invest more (energy, time, travel money) than with a written offer (nigeria type). Those who have already invested are a bit more likely to follow suggestions they usually would not follow.
This way you filter out the more influenceable. The next step could be anything from lousy job offer to renewal of the offer to collect the money you have won but you have to pre-pay just a tiny sum (tiny in comparison to the promised sum, big in comparison to what you usually spend) so the money can be transferred safely to Germany. Kind of bank fee.
A little fraction of those who would have said no to a written offer of that type might say yes after making the investment to actually travel there.
BTW, those people are complete pachyderms to people calling their bluff.

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Brendy
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 05:43 AM

... but, of course, the easiest word in the World to say is "No", pachyderms or not. And a day trip to Amsterdam (especially if you live that close to it) may not be the same investment were you or I to do it, Wolfgang.

I would just be interested to hear the experience of someone who confronted these pople.

B.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Gareth
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 06:00 AM

If it sounds to good to be true then it is not true.

Gareth

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Brendy
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 06:53 AM

True enough... But I won a trip to Florida for a week for 4 people, and a cruise around the Bahamas for 5 days, recently, and all it cost me was a half hour phone-call to the States, which was charged at the normal rate. I gave no credit card details to these people, and I am looking at the tickets now.

The only thing I have to pay for is the flights to Florida, which I will organise myself.

I checked all this with a friend of mine in the travel business, and although he said that there are loads of scams out there, this one was genuine enough, as it came from a reputable company that his firm had done business with in the past.

B.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Mary in Kentucky
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 07:21 AM

Brendy, around here people routinely "win" trips to Florida (three days, two nights free). While there they are required to listen to a sales presentation of condos or land for sale or something. The people I know that have done it go into it knowing what is expected and just suffer through the hard sell presentation.

LH, my mother-in-law "bought" one of those boats. She thought she was getting a "bass boat" (big bucks). I don't know if they told her that or if she assumed it. After she paid a "small shipping fee" they sent her an inflatable toy boat.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: catspaw49
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 07:36 AM

So then y'all are saying that I shouldn't answer that e-mail saying I've won a free sex change operation? Damn!! And I was gonna' give it to Little Hawk for a Christmas present.......

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Brendy
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 08:11 AM

Fair enough Mary, but as none of this is written anywhere in any of the bumf I received about it, I would love to see the salesperson that would require me to listen to him/her on a ship where the only way off is overboard!.
I was, however, 'invited' to join 'Super Savers' clubs of various descriptions, during my phone conversation, but then, I do have a capacity for saying the word 'No' to required effect.

And all this because I was (get this) the 15,000,000th visitor to their web site!

No, I certainly did not come up the river in a bubble, and the only reason I actually rang up the company, was curiousity.
My friend in the travel industry checked it out for me, and it is clean enough.

I would go for it though, Spaw.
After all, if it's not in, you can't win!

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Rapparee
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 08:26 AM

If you visit the website
of one of the best clubs in the world, you'll find a hit counter and what prized you can win -- big prizes! prizes I'm sure you'll want!! Visit often and check the hit counter. (Explore the site -- check out who's played there. Better yet, ask Seamus. They also serve excellent food and GOOD beer -- there's a fifty cent penalty tax on Budweiser, etc.)

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: GUEST,petr
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 12:04 PM

dont go there period.
(like the nigeria scam some people actually respond to the emails
just to see how far they can get-- dont do it-- there is NO money!
people that have travelled to nigeria have ended up kidnapped -with relatives having to send more money in)
I dont know how the above scam works, but if youve won money in a lottery then they should be able to send it to you. If they cant do it
its a scam.
I usually tell them they can have it. its my gift.
petr.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Little Hawk
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 12:39 PM

So...which sex were you figuring to change me to, Spaw?

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Little Hawk
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 12:49 PM

Mary - "An inflatable toy boat"??? Oh, ha! ha! ha! ha! ha! (gasp!)

God, I wish my father had gone for the thing too...I'd love to have seen his face when it arrived!

There used to be an item advertised in magazines that was a 100% effective "bug killer". People who sent in the money for it would receive in the mail a small wooden board and a wooden mallet, with an instruction sheet: "Place bug on board. Strike with mallet."

- LH

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: NicoleC
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 02:56 PM

Anything sent via "bulk rate" or "pre-sorted" mail is clearly NOT a legit firm contacting you for a legit prize...

Funny story about a contest winner, though. Years ago, one of my clients held a contest where they were giving away a brand new computer, monitor, printer & the works. The lady that won, of course, had refused to provide a correct telephone number and wasn't answering my numerous letters asking her to call us and verify a convenient way of shipping her prize to her.

Finally, the client told me to ship it anyway. By then the prize was discontinued and so I substituted with something comparable. A few days later I received a FURIOUS phone call from the lady about how she didn't order the merchandise and wasn't going to pay for it.

Eventually I convinced her she really had won it :)

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Burke
Date: 29 Oct 03 - 08:08 PM

I bet I had phone messages every day for a week telling me I'd won a trip to Florida. I forgot about the listen to the sales talk requirement. Maybe I'll check out the next call. It will be really easy to say no to the real estate deals. No way do I want to live or own land in Florida.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: GUEST
Date: 30 Oct 03 - 01:40 AM

Responded to a Dutch one at the end of last year - tried to transfer it to London -failed - have been pulling 5,000 euro a month with no taxes and will do so for ten or more years. For me it was legit.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Little Hawk
Date: 30 Oct 03 - 01:48 AM

Yeah, no one could sell me land in Florida either...it's not a healthy environment down there, in my opinion. Too damp and too much crime. At least half of Canada disagrees with me on this, it seems... :-)

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: Steve Parkes
Date: 30 Oct 03 - 04:16 AM

Years ago there was a scam in the UK: send a mo9dest sum of money for a device that will "cut all your bills in half" -- you receive a pair of scissors. Another one was for "a steel engraving of the Queen, originally commisioned for HM Government" -- a postage stamp.

Steve

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 30 Oct 03 - 08:23 AM

GUEST
Date: 30 Oct 03 - 01:40 AM

Responded to a Dutch one at the end of last year - tried to transfer it to London -failed - have been pulling 5,000 euro a month with no taxes and will do so for ten or more years. For me it was legit.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
What a load of lying crap from an anonymous interloper! :-)

Robin

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: tartan babe
Date: 30 Oct 03 - 08:54 AM

The dutch scam you are talking about was investigated by bbc radio 4 recently. They sent an undercover reporter out to Holland to try to pick up the money. He had to pay a lump sum as a fee for some reason. The people in Holland were African, quite possibly Nigerian and when the reporter asked for some confirmation that he had actually won any money was fobbed off. The reporter returned to the UK wiht no winnings! It is a scam, bin it!

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: SINSULL
Date: 30 Oct 03 - 09:17 AM

I once won a Grandfather Clock and only had to attend a dinner where they were selling time shares in the desert. Small print: the clock was an assemble your own kit made out of cardboard. I passed.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: M.Ted
Date: 30 Oct 03 - 01:12 PM

We had a family member who responded to a similar ad--believed the part about big money being held for them, and gave them enough money to cover years of "Pay for it and I'll pay you back later"s. No money ever appeared, but the phone solicitations stopped.

A couple of years back, this same person did the inflatable boat thing--"Come up for a visit!" I've just won a new boat!"   We inflated it and were about 250 yards from shore when the rubber oar lock snapped off, taking the air with it.   Fortunately, there was a sandbar.

Subject: RE: BS: How does this scam work
From: GUEST
Date: 05 Nov 03 - 05:52 PM

Last time I had someone phone telling me I'd won a prize, I asked them to send it to me. They hemmed and hawed, I reiterated, and oddly enough it never did arrive. I have ceased waiting. That was 14 years ago. Just tell them to send it to you. If they do, sign nothing and keep it. You didn't solicit anything, and unsolicited stuff is yours (in Canada, anyway). Also, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.