Beware the re-scam

To: <hm-treasury-uk@rogers.com>
Subject: Re: Hello!!!

Top of the day greetings to you. Are you a scam victim?
Have you lost money, property to Internet fruadsters in the past?
This message is only for those that has been scammed in one way or the other.
HM-Treasury UK wishes to compensate all scam victims  beneficiary with the sum of One Million British Pound Sterling, as part of the ongoing promotion.
Contact the chancellor of the HM-Treasury for claim, and further details about this compensation.

Regards,
Jon Thompson

Emails like this are patently transparent to anyone who is even slightly aware of the Nigerian advance-fee fraud, but sadly there are a lot of people out there who are not. Hence this post, which might just turn up for someone who receives the same kind of rubbish and searches around to see if it’s legitimate.

It’s not. it’s a scam. These people want to steal your money.

The British treasury has much better things to do with its funds than give out millions of pounds to scam victims. These slime-covered drones are playing on the hopes and fears of anyone who has already been taken for a ride, thus proving themselves to be gullible pigeons. Sadly, there are some out there who would take this bait.

scam-alerts2

Delete emails like this immediately. Do not respond. Save your money and your sanity.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Kevin Richardson’s “Miracle Cure,” an Infuriating Scam

Oxygen Diet Scam

So here’s the email that showed up in my inbox today:

From: Ultimate.Cure.17690762 <your.miracle.cure@highly-wondercure.com>
Subject: Doctor Jailed for CURING Cancer (see why),  Article No. 10754166
To: <redacted>

Today, you have a 95% chance of eventually dying from a disease or condition for which there is already a known cure right at your fingertips.

Well-respected doctors have been attacked, threatened with losing their licenses and even JAILED for sharing the information you are about to discover…
If you or a your loved one is suffering from ANY, and we mean ANY illness, chronic or acute, especially if you’ve been told it is incurable, then this is the most important message you will hear today.
View This SHOCKING Health Alert in your Browser: http://learnmore.highly-wondercure.com
(they don’t want you to know about this)

Article No. 10754166

We see this kind of thing all the time, but this particular scam infuriates me because it doesn’t just say you’re going to lose weight (açaí berries or garcinia cambogia) – it claims to cure any and all diseases, including cancer and HIV. This is cruel and dangerous – weak-minded or uneducated people will fall for this rubbish and spend their valuable money on a worthless system instead of seeking competent medical assistance. This fraud will kill people.

Have a look at some of the garbage this maddening presentation says:

  • Learn how to oxygenate your cells in a way that makes it IMPOSSIBLE for bacteria, cancer, or any virus to live, and create a miraculous recovery and immunity to any disease – much less the diseases that are killing us in record numbers today.
  • Disease and oxygen cannot be in the same space in your body.
  • Oxygen needs to get inside your cells in order to get rid of disease. (Solution: take a deep breath.)
  • Remember the oxygen therapies you will have access to have been PROVEN to CURE the most incurable illnesses to date like the HIV virus and practically all forms of cancer.
  • Documentation and proof of oxygen therapy curing virtually every disease we know of goes back to the late 1800s.
  • When you use these techniques properly, you’ll be shocked as you see physical reactions that prove the virus, bacteria or toxin is leaving the body – even if you’ve tried every therapy out there.
  • Use your “maintenance routine” once your illness has vaporized out of your body.
  • Many people the world over have been helped and yes even “cured” by these simple therapies. (Note the use of scare quotes.)

The lies and false claims continue unabated for around half an hour – cure eczema, psoriasis, regain youthful skin, whatever, you name it. As I mentioned in a previous post, with thanks to the creators of Lucky Luke:

Petroleum

Buzzwords, vague and oblique references to un-cited scientific studies, dropping names like Atkins, I have never seen a more evil conglomeration of mumbo-jumbo in my life.

Bullshit

Search Google for “Kevin Richardson Miracle Cure Scam,” and most of what you get is shill pages and affiliate recommendations. Yes, they pay people to become affiliates using another multi-level fraud:

Affiliate

… and I’m sure the email that started all of this is from one of their suckers. Notice that they promise up to $118.00 and change commission per sale, but they’re selling their product for less than $40.00. I’d like to see the math on that one.

Order

Original price $97.00, but for YOU, because YOU”RE SPECIAL, and because you’re going to ACT NOW, only $37.00.

Order 2

One other thing to be aware of is that if you do order, you’re giving your credit card number to extremely unethical people, and you stand a good chance of having unauthorized and/or recurring charges applied to your card, with little or no hope of getting a refund if you complain.

Attorney General offices are constantly trying to bring down such fraudsters – click through for an Iowa report on one action against a company promoting the miracle benefits of “marine phytoplankton.” The problem with scams like this is that they are like a hydra – cut off one head, and two more spring up in its place.

I write this post largely to combat all of the fraudulent information out there, in the hopes that a few people might encounter it and save their money. Please, be smart. Stay away from all such snake oil.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Old_Wolf_Curse

Comments are closed for this post.

Phishing Spam

Phishing

Of course, the pox-ridden drones don’t even read their own email, but sadly there are just enough people out there who will fall for their phishing scam and log in to the fraudulent page, happily providing not only their PayPal info but also credit card numbers and pins, their vital information including date of birth and social security number, and then – once they have become the victim of identity theft, will spend years trying to clean up their records.

Oh, and my name’s not “Sean.”

Please be careful out there.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

The things these scammers say…

Time to yank another scammer’s chain. As usual, my side of the conversation is in blue. Notes point out the kinds of red flags that reveal email messages like this as cruel and dishonest scams, just in case you were wondering.

Got this in my email yesterday – no body text, just this in the subject line.

I have a project. If interested. reply,

What kind of project? I would need more details.
-Wolfington X. Analemma

Good day

This is my personal reference number law/chamber/solicitors/je/rs/WILL/928473012 and My Name is Mrs. Bella Fernandez. please send this to my attorney with the contact information below – he would provide all information to you. Due to my Sickness [1], i have been touched by God [2] and want my WILL to be donated to you rather than allow my relatives to use my Late husband hard earned funds ungodly. My doctor told me that I have limited days to live due to the cancerous problems I am suffering from as I will be going in for an operation later today. What bothers me most is the stroke that I have in addition to the cancer. With this hard reality that has befallen my family and me I have decided to donate this fund to you and want you to use this gift which comes from my Late husbands effort to fund the upkeep of widows, widowers, orphans, destitute, the down- trodden, physically challenged children, barren-women and persons who prove to be genuinely handicapped financially. [4]

I am currently sending you this mail from my sick bed in the hospital, I do not need any telephone communication [3] in this regard due to my deteriorating health and because of the presence of my Late husbands relatives around me. I do not want them to know about this development. With God all things are possible. I believe in Charity and I believe your faith is guarantee for me to trust you. Contact on the Attorney Kennedy Email: ( legalconsultantkennedy@live.co.uk) I sold my Inherited All belongings and deposited the sum of All $ 5.2 million dollars with A Security Company. I am diagnosed of cancer and have a time limit to live on this planet.

As for how I got your email, it was gotten after a proper search via your area zip code with the help of the lord leading me. At the moment I cannot take any telephone calls right now and my Doctor knows i have changed my Will.Lord will Bless you Abundantly as you extend the good works to others and Ensure to use a greater portion of the funds for its purpose in fulfillment of my last wish .. My contact on the Attorney Email – legalconsultantkennedy@live.co.uk

Sincerely,
Mrs. Bella Fernandez.

I have been instructed to contact you regarding the disposition of this fund, reference number law/chamber/solicitors/je/rs/WILL/928473012. Please forward further instructions.
-Wolfington X. Analemma

Dear Beneficiary,

It is my great pleasure to read through your mail, I wish to inform you that this WILLED funds claim is at its peak of legitimacy, please if you wish to claim the WILLED Funds, send below information for funds release. In respect of Mrs. Bella Fernandez’s Will, it might interest you to know that Late Mr.Wilson Fernandez and his wife (Mrs. Bella Fernandez) are very honest and a nice family you could ever think of [4], It’s so sad now, to see Mrs. Bella Fernandez suffering from cancer disease for about 2 years [1], I still have the faith that nothing is too difficult for God to do in her case [2]. As a matter of fact, she has told me that anybody that writes me either she is dead or alive and quote the reference numbers, I should not hesitate to deal with the person in respect of the deposited cash of $5.2 Million US Dollars to carry out her Charity assignment on physically challenged persons and orphanage. Right now, the cash is currently deposited with a save keeping Security Company/Security Firm. [4]

If am sure and pleased with your willingness and sincerity to carry the responsibility in accordance to the donor’s good intention, am going to give you proceeding for funds release to you. Please you have to be highly confidential in this transaction [5], till we finalize this project and you now have the funds in your hand/custody because I would not want anything to jeopardize the funds release to you.

However, Attached to this email is a scan copy of The Affidavit Of WILLED FUNDS, you must print out the Affidavit form, fill in the required information [6] in Black or Blue ink with the a passport photo size as required and return back to us as an ATTACHMENT. You are also required to send any form of ID PROOF/DRIVERS LICENCE [6] that will proceed the funds release documents to you and the requested detail will also enable the British High Court Commision to validate the WILL of Mrs. Bella Fernandez. You need not to worry because this transaction is problem free & legit. [7]

I have just been informed earlier today by the doctor that Mrs. Bella Fernandez is in coma. [1] She had earlier told me about you that if situation gets worse I should contact you in order to process all relevant documents in your favor regarding the status of her account to your name. You are being reminded of the task ahead to use a reasonable part of the funds to build a temple of worship and also help the less privileged in your society [4] and also remember that 30% of the fund should be for your personal use. I want you to include her in your prayers. [2]

MY CONDITION
-The total sum of US $5.2 Million Dollars will be transferred/released to you confirm able in 2 working days.
– All correspondence will be strictly by private email / telephone, for security purposes.
– There should be no other third parties [5] as most problems associated with such payments are caused by their agents/representatives/advisers.

Note: You may as well view the attached pictures of Mrs. Bella Fernandez before she went into coma. [8]

Mrs. Bella Fernandez In Hospital

If you AGREE with my conditions, l will advise you to send the requested information earlier asked for action and to enable the British High Court validate the WILL funds transfer Documents in timely manner.

I await your response.

Best regards,
Barr. Kennedy Andrew Esq.
Tel: +(44)7017043832 [9]

affidavit  License

So I fill out the “affidavit” and include a bogus driver’s license from California that I’ve photoshopped together:

Dear Barrister Kennedy Andrew Esq.:

Attached please find my completed affidavit and a driver’s license photo for your consideration.
Please let me know how the funds will be transferred.

Sincerely,

Wolfington X. Analemma

[If these bottom-feeders had any brains at all, they’d see things on the affidavit that would be immediately recognized as red flags that they were being taken for a ride, but the truth is that they don’t.]

———————–

KENNEDY ANDREW AND VICTOR LAW CHAMBER
179 GREAT PORTLAND STREET,
LONDON, W1A 2AW.
UNITED KINGDOM.
Tel: +(44)7017043832.

20/02/2014

Dear Beneficiary,

This is to inform you that Barr. Kennedy Andrew Esq has received your information (Filled Affidavit of Willed Funds)and its content was well read and noted, it will interest you to know that we are working on the preparation of the necessary WILLED Fund release documents in your NAME, and as mandatory by the UK Acts/Laws, we are to submit to the High Court Commission here in United Kingdom, for final endorsement after preparation, so that the funds can now be transferred to your Bank Account.

Further more, You will have to wait a maximum time of 24 hours for the preparation to be completed, once preparation is completed, you will be notified by ordinary email and detail of submission to the High Court Commission will be emailed to you.

I will immediately write an application to the British High Court to grant a letter of authorization which would enable you contact the bank, I will inform you immediately it is granted. And also this project is meant to be kept strictly confidential[5], that is the wish of my client and i hope you honor it until the whole transfer is completed.

I want you to inform me on how you intend to make use of the funds to affect those around you, and also do you have any investment in mind that you would want to put some of the funds into in order to sustain the projects?.

I await your response.

Best regards,
Barr. Kennedy Andrew Esq.
Tel: +(44)7017043832.

Dear Barr. Kennedy Andrew Esq.,

Thank you for your kind response. Aside from using some of the funds to pay for my wife’s long-term medical expenses*, the bulk of the bequest will be used to support cancer research and the support of families who have children in cancer treatment.
I look forward to further communication with you. Thanks very much.
-Wolfington X. Analemma
*I’ll almost always put in some nonsense about how strapped I am for cash because of a loved one’s long-term medical expenses, just to see if it awakens some sense of human decency in the hearts of these sewer-dwellers. It never does.
——————-
KENNEDY ANDREW AND VICTOR LAW CHAMBER
179 GREAT PORTLAND STREET,
LONDON, W1A 2AW.
UNITED KINGDOM.
Tel: +(44)7017043832.21/02/2014Dear Beneficiary ,The content of your last email has been noted and recorded as per your interest in diferent project and how you intend to carry out Mrs Bella Fernandez Will, the Letter of authorization has finally been approved by the British High Court.You are to contact the bank with this scanned copy in order for the bank to effect any change to the account (Change of Account Holder’s Name). I have sent the bank a copy of this document for them to be aware.You are therefore directed to contact the bank with this attached document in order for the bank to commence the relevant processes to enable you have full access to the account. Below is the contact details of the bank:Fibibank London
24 Creechurch Ln, London,
EC3A 5JX. United Kingdom.
Email: fibi-bnk-desk@outlook.comYou are advised to contact the bank immediately with their email as given above, so that the Bank process can commence with the transafer.You are also to update me on the process for LEGAL ADVISE . Please confirm the receipt of this mail. Please try and attend to emails early.

Note: Please fill in the Blank space in the attached document with your information as required before you sending to the Bank.

To: Fibibank London

Good day. I have been instructed by Barr. Kennedy Andrews Esq. to contact your bank with regards to the attached Letter of Authorization, so that the bequest in THE WILL can be transferred to my account. Please contact me with any further questions.

Most sincerely yours,

Wolfington X. Analemma

————————–

Fibi Bank Plc
24 Creechurch Ln, London,
EC3A 5JX. United Kingdom.

Direct Tel: +44 70 10046144
EMAIL: fibi-bnk-desk@outlook.com

APPLICATION FORM FOR CHANGE OF ACCOUNT OWNERSHIP.

24/02/2014

Dear Esteemed Customer,

FIBI Bank (UK) plc is authorised and regulated by the FSA. I am Mr. Thompson Mog, your assigned account officer to assist in the change and re-activating of account.

The account of which its details and ownership will be stated in your name shall be released to you in the earliest.

Please see attachment and download the application form print out and fill in your data correctly and completely then send back to us.

On receipt of the information, you shall be educated on the process
mastered to facilitate this transaction in the earliest.

Yours faithfully,
Mr. Thompson Mog
For FIBI Bank:
CC: GENERAL MANAGER (Fibi Plc)

Fibibank is apparently a legitimate concern, a subsidiary of the First International Bank of Israel. The address given by the scammers is correct, but the phone number is (again) one of those 44-70 redirects which is transferred to some throwaway cell phone in Nigeria. Notice also the email address – legitimate businesses will almost never use a generic email service like hotmail, outlook, or rogers.com – a valid email from Fibi Bank would be something @fibi.co.uk

I send them a form which I have filled out via computer, and get this back:

Fibi Bank Plc
24 Creechurch Ln, London,
EC3A 5JX. United Kingdom.

Direct Tel: +4470 10046144

EMAIL: fibi-bnk-desk@outlook.com

APPLICATION FORM FOR CHANGE OF ACCOUNT OWNERSHIP.

Dear Esteemed Customer,

Thanks for your email to this Bank and on the inquiring about the Funds of Mrs Bella Fernandez, we have all instruction and permit to connect with you on this matter. However, you have failed to complete the necessary document as regards to the Letter of Authorization which is required to be filled in BLACK or BLUE INK PIN and return to us for immediate transfer procedure.

You must fill the Letter of Authorization with a BLACK or BLUE INK (NOT WITH A COMPUTER EDITING) before you send the Document to us, we can only commence further transfer once we have the Letter of Authorization filled and sent by you.

On receipt of the information, you shall be educated on the process
mastered to facilitate this transaction in the earliest.

Yours faithfully,
Mr. Thompson Mog
For FIBI Bank:
CC: GENERAL MANAGER (Fibi Plc)

Now, that’s interesting. I’ve never had one of these drones reject a certificate. Perhaps they are using this ploy to lend a certain cachet of legitimacy to their scam. I’ll never know, but I send them the following form anyway:

unnamed

Since sending this form in, I have heard nothing and it’s been over a month. So I send them the following email:

Dear Mr. Thompson Bog,

I have filled out and returned all the documentation you requested and have not heard anything for over a month. I’m wondering what has happened here.
Sincerely,
Wolfington X. Analemma
Never heard back from them. They either figured out that they were being played for fools, or someone else shut their emails down. Well, no loss. I was able to waste some of their time at any rate, which is the whole point – so they can’t be using that time on others who might fall for their foolishness.

The takeaways, as usual: NEVER send money by Western Union or Money Card anywhere, to anyone, unless you are initiating the transaction and you know your recipient. NEVER give out personal or financial information to unknown parties on the internet. ALL SUCH EMAILS are SCAMS.

The Old Wolf has spoken.


[1] The Pity Pitch – feel sorry for me, I’m dying. This fraudulent email is full of repeated references to terminal illness
[2] The God Ploy – Faith, blessings, prayer, Christianity – all are mentioned and used heavily to influence potential victims into parting with their cash.
[3] Unable to talk by telephone – because “Mrs. Bella Fernandez” is actually some sweaty, flea-ridden scumbag working out of an Internet cafe somewhere in Lagos (most likely).
[4] Humanitarian work – this is what I want you to do with the money.
[5] Plea for confidentiality – don’t talk to the authorities or anyone else (because they would be sure to put the kibosh on the deal.)
[6] Request for personal information. Even if their scam fails, the scumbags will have details that can later be used to defraud you or others via identity theft.
[7] Sincerity – Look, nothing up my sleeve…
[8] Some random picture from the Internet – notice that Mrs. “Bella Fernandez” is decidedly Asian
[9] The Global Redirect phone number: All 4470 prefixes are global redirects; this scammer is probably in Nigeria, or Ghana, or somewhere in Africa.

“Mega Millions” scam from Jamaica

beware_of_876_jamaica-scammers (1)

Had a call today from “Mega Millions Corporation” about a “coupon” that I had filled out at one of my “local convenient grocery stores,” supposedly “last March.” I was told that I had won a bank check for $1.6 million dollars, and a beautiful, luxurious Mercedes-Benz valued at over $125,000.00. Of course, there were taxes to be paid… but thanks to a “special offer,” those would only be $399.00, payable with a Green Dot money card. I’ve got a phone number to call back (1-876-856-8974) when I have that card in my possession, so I can take delivery of all these fantastic prizes.

I kept the drone on the phone for as long as I could… I wasted about 20 minutes of his time, scorched his eardrums with some choice insults, and hung up. I may call the number back later on the drive home, just to see if I can yank their chains some more. The guy’s accent sounded very Indian Subcontinent, with a hint of Nigeria thrown in. Sheesh. Some people’s children.

This is a good example of the Jamaica 876 scam. Another good website about this scam is here. These phone calls originate from Jamaica, even though they look like they are coming from toll-free numbers. Unless you know exactly whom you are calling, stay away from calls that come from area code 876. These calls, like the UK 40 70 prefix, can be routed to other countries, so you have no idea where these scumbags are hiding (beside under slimy rocks, naturally.)

Of course, the basic rules always apply: Never pay money to collect a prize of any sort. If people want you to wire money or use some sort of money card or ask for your private financial information, you are being scammed.

Be careful out there, folks. 

Relentless Spammers

These people don’t give up. Despite my sending them the vilest possible insults in Chinese, along with demands that they cease and desist, I get one of their spam messages almost every week.

From: “Kevin” <cijiajiajiaixoauio33@msn.com>
To: Everybody in the whole flipping world

Subject: [SPAM] Photo Retouching Services – Photo Cut Out

Hi,

We are one of the best digital images retouching team located in China. We provide all kinds of image editing solutions to different companies all over the world.
We Specialize in:
. Cut out/masking, clipping path, deep etching, transparent background
. Beauty retouching, skin retouching, face retouching, body retouching
. Colour correction, black and white, light and shadows etc.
. Dust cleaning, spot cleaning
. Fashion/Beauty Image Retouching
. Restoration and repair old images
. Product image Retouching
. Jewellery image Retouching
. Real estate image Retouching
. Vector Conversion
. Wedding & Event Album Design.
. Portrait image Retouching
We Offer Best Quality; Best Service and the Most Competitive prices.
Every day we process and manipulate large volumes of images from U.S.A and Europe. So you will be in good hands when it comes to quality, service and the most competitive prices.
Waiting for your images for the free trial so that you can judge our quality of work yourself.
We are waiting for your reply.
Thanks & Regards,
Kevin
Kanucssa Imaging Professionals
Contact: <redacted>

Just remember:

Rule #1: Spammers/Scammers Lie.
Rule #2: If a spammer seems to be telling the truth, see Rule #1.

Do NOT do business with these bottom-feeders.

(For more discussion about the nature of spammers, visit this thread at Spamcop.net.)

The Old Wolf has spoken.

There is no “weird trick.”

 

I’ve written about this bit of Internet stupidity before. It boggles my mind that scummy advertisers continue to use this, but it must generate revenue, or they wouldn’t do it.

Lower My Bills [1] is one of the worst offenders.

You see, I never encounter ads on my desktop machine; Ad Blocker Plus and a few other good extensions take care of that. My smartphone is not so lucky. Here’s an example; check out the ad with the little T-Rex running across it as an attention-getter below.

2014-05-13_07-43-47

Now I don’t fall for such rubbish, but today I decided to jump down the rabbit hole just to see where it leads. I was taken to screen after screen requesting my personal information; the usual stuff about what cars I had, how I use them, and what kind of coverage I wanted. They also wanted my address, my phone number, my date of birth, my email address, and a whole bunch of other stuff. Naturally, as with Nigerian scammers, I provided bogus information for everything.

Finally, I got to the last page, where I was promised my free results, and – supposedly – the “ridiculously easy trick”.

2014-05-13_07-37-43

 

Before we click, let’s look at that text disclaimer:

By clicking the button above you agree to be matched with up to 8 partners and/or providers from the LMB Partner Network and their agents and partners and for them and/or us to contact or market to you (including through automated and/or pre-recorded messages/means, e.g. automated telephone dialing systems and text messaging) about insurance information via telephone, mobile device (including MSM and MMS), and/or email, even if your telephone number or email address is on a corporate, state, or the National Do Not Call Registry, and you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You understand that your consent is not required as a condition to purchase a good or service.

Now that’s just scary. If you enter your real data, hoping to learn a “ridiculously easy trick” or even get quotes for low-cost insurance, this is the kind of marketing you will get by mail, by phone, by email, and on your cell phone:

Moving-picture-Niagara-Fall-waterfall-animated-gif

That’s right. A virtual Niagara Falls [2] worth of spamvertising, and you’ve just given these putrescent scumballs your permission to do it.

That’s how Lower My Bills works: T’hey gather your personal information, and sell it to every single possible entity on earth that wants to spam you, who will in turn sell it to the rest of the universe. They offer no other goods or services, even if they claim to do so. This is the height of disreputable, dishonorable marketing, and their ads infest the net like a plague of locusts.

If that’s not scary enough, look at that last sentence:

You understand that your consent is not required as a condition to purchase a good or service.

This means that you have given them permission to sell you their and their partners’ excrement without your explicit agreement, thus opening the door to fraudulent charges on your credit card.

Now let’s see what all that PII got me:

2014-05-13_07-38-26

Yup. Exactly nothing. They suggest a few providers, but no “ridiculously easy trick,” no promised quote, nothing. But they would have had all my information, and that information would result (usually within minutes) in a flood of calls, emails, texts, and other ongoing hqiz from people wanting to sell me everything under the sun.

Do yourself a favor. Any time you see that “one weird trick” or anything like it, realize that you’re dealing with a borderline criminal operation, and stay as far away from such drones and scumbags as you possibly can. If you see Lower My Bills, run like hell in the other direction. Oh, and spread the word, too; if you have vulnerable loved ones who are not terribly computer-savvy, make sure they understand this.

The Old Wolf has spoken.


[1] Have a look at this lovely entry at Ripoff Report; also check the Wikipedia entry on this shady outfit.

[2] Slowly I turn!

Bypassing Spam Filters

The scumbags are getting more inventive.

Thanks to Unicode, many characters will display on the Internet which won’t flag spam keyword detectors, allowing such rubbish to trickle through. Things like this:

——————

From: Ƕσᵯȅ₳ppliaŋce₡overage contact@techas.ws via amazonses.com

First Month₣RḖḖ on ComprehensiveǶσᵯȅWarrantyCoverage .

——-

From: __ɵṹṝ__ᵵᶖᵯe__dᶏᵵᶖng__ contact@cdblu-tk.ws via amazonses.com

Subject: __¶ŋȶeresȶed__¶ŋ__ȿiŋgles__ǿ˅erƼѻ?__

__¶ŋȶeresȶed__¶ŋ__ȿiŋgles__ǿ˅erƼѻ?
t.co/Ddphe5fBRI (This link redirects to an outfit called OurTime; Stay away from them.)
TryAmerica’s__1__site__for___ȿiŋgles__ǿ˅erƼѻ
Joinɵṹṝ__ᵵᶖᵯe.comAnd meetȿiŋgles ǿ˅erƼѻ

—————-

Unicode allows you to uʍop ǝpısdn ǝʇıɹʍ, among other things, or send people clever greetings:

♫♪♥♥[̲̅̅H̲̅][̲̅̅A̲̅][̲̅̅P̲̅][̲̅̅P̲̅][̲̅̅ Y̲̅][̲̅̅B̲̅][̲̅̅I̲̅][̲̅̅R̲̅][̲̅̅T̲̅][̲̅̅H̲̅][̲̅̅D̲̅][̲̅̅A̲̅][̲̅̅Y̲̅]♥♥♫♪ Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ•*¨`*•♥ •*¨`*•

But unfortunately, evil people have a way of turning anything good to their twisted and nefarious purposes. These two things should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway:

  1. Any company that spams you is operating very close to the line of ethicality, and
  2. Any company that spams you in this underhanded way is probably running a criminal enterprise, and should be avoided like the plague.

Depending on what you read, spam can account for up to 90% of all email; at this point, 62% of all web traffic is generated by non-humans, although not all of this is malicious. As for me and my house, any company that spams me is guaranteed not to get my business, and bad reviews in public if they happen to be extra-obnoxious. Halting the flood is like spitting in the ocean, but the best I can do is raise awareness.

No-Spam

The Old Wolf has spoken.

It’s only a Done Deal if you give these scammers your credit card number

donedealscam

Notice the legitimate address for DoneDeal up there? It’s http://www.donedeal.ie, the home page of a legitimate Irish commercial site.

No surprises, then, that when the email leads you to http://recza.com.mx/donedealone/[obfuscated], red flags wave, sirens blare, and bells ring. Why would DoneDeal be using a web host in Mexico?

Of course, they wouldn’t. This is a phishing scam, pure and simple. I’ve received two in the last couple of days, the second pointing to a different website after the first one was shut down. You fill out an innocent-looking survey (and if you believe that they will pay you €150.00 for that 30-second effort, I have a bridge I’d like to sell you) and then you’re taken to a page where you enter your credit card details and other critical personal information:

Survey2

Most of my readers here know how to recognize a phishing scam from miles away, but most of us have loved ones and friends who may not be computer literate. Protect them; educate them; teach them NEVER to give out their financial data online unless they know what they’re doing.

DoneDeal knows about these bottom-feeders; whether they can do anything about them is debatable, but forewarned is forearmed.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Notice to Appear in Court (Scam/Malware)

bigstock-Malicious-malware-warning-mess-41722204-1024x819

(Thanks to Techsrus for the image)

My cubicle neighbor (at the job we just both got laid off from yesterday, but that’s another story) showed me a couple of emails he had gotten in his Gmail account – each sported the header “Notice to Appear in Court.”  I told him they were probably scam threat letters and hoping to extort money.

I got one myself today, and decided to explore it a little further.

—————-

From: “Notice to Appear in Court” <customerssupport231@kaiserarbitrationlawyers.com>
To: <redacted>

Subject: Notice to appear in court SN8157

Notice to appear in court,

Hereby you are notified that you have been scheduled to appear for your hearing that will take place in the court of Detroit in April 03, 2014 at 11:30 am.You are kindly asked to prepare and bring the documents relating to the case to court on the specified date.The copy of the court notice is attached to this letter. Please, read it thoroughly.
Note: The case may be heard by the judge in your absence if you do not come.Yours very truly,
SAMPSON Hays
Clerk of court
—————————–
Attached was a file called “Notice_to_Appear_TY4769.zip”
Unpack this zip folder and you find a file called “Court Notice.exe”. That file lasted less than one second on my desktop, as Microsoft Security Essentials immediately quarantined it. The .exe file contained a Trojan Downloader named Win32/Kuluoz.D, which Microsoft describes as follows:
Win32/Kuluoz is a trojan that tries to steal passwords that are stored in certain applications and sensitive files from your PC. This trojan could also download other malware to your PC, like other variants of Win32/Kuluoz and Win32/Sirefef, and variants of rogue security software likeWin32/FakeSysdef and Win32/Winwebsec. This threat tries to hack your email accounts and file transfer programs.
In other words, really nasty stuff.
This is a perfect example of why you should do the following things on your computer to practice safe computing:

1. Always display file extensions. This option is turned off by default by Microsoft on its newer operating systems, which in my opinion is a dangerous and foolhardy idea. This means that instead of seeing “Notice_to_Appear_TY4769.zip” and “Court Notice.exe”, you would only see “Notice_to_Appear_TY4769” and “Court Notice.” To fix this, follow the procedure below for your operating system:

To show or hide file name extensions (Windows 7)

  1. Open Folder Options by clicking the Start button Picture of the Start button, clicking Control Panel, clicking Appearance and Personalization, and then clicking Folder Options.

  2. Click the View tab, and then, under Advanced settings, do one of the following:

    • To show file name extensions, clear the Hide extensions for known file types check box, and then click OK.

    • To hide file name extensions, select the Hide extensions for known file types check box, and then click OK.

Example

To show or hide file name extensions (Windows 8)

  • Open Windows Explorer and go to “View” and then click the Options button > Change folder and search options
  • Scroll to “Hide extensions for file types is known”
  • Uncheck it and click OK.

To show or hide file name extensions (Windows XP)

  • Double Click on My Computer.
  • Click on Tools > Folder Options… in the menus.
  • Click on the View tab.
  • Remove the check from Hide extensions for known file types.
  • Click the OK button.

2) Make sure you have robust malware detection software installed. AVG Free, Microsoft Security Essentials, and Kaspersky are all good options. The first two are free, the third reasonably priced and somewhat more robust than the other two.

3) ☞ NEVER ☜ open attachments from unknown senders, especially a file that contains “.exe” anywhere in its name.

(Did I make that emphatic enough? I’d make it blink if I could.)

A lot of folks are savvy enough to spot this as a scam in an instant, but this particular email is official-looking enough to scare a lot of vulnerable computer users; the scammers don’t care if you actually appear anywhere – they just want you to open that never-to-be-sufficiently-damned attachment. If you are technically savvy and you have loved ones, either elderly or otherwise vulnerable, watch out for them. Educate them. You don’t want them becoming victims of scams or nefarious behavior like botnets.

This has been an Old Wolf public service announcement.