SCAM... OR NOT?

How many of you have received e-mails such as these?!

Yes, this is actually a screenshot of those e-mails in my inbox. AND CAN YOU IMAGINE I RECEIVE SUCH E-MAILS EVERY SINGLE DAY AND MINUTE? It's freaking annoying, I tell you.

Not unless you are a greedy brat who thinks all the above are real.

Come on, if they are REAL, I won't be sitting down here and shaking my legs. I guess I would be somewhere  around the world, travelling with the unlimited amount of money I've won. (Woo! *feigns happiness*)

*Rolls eyes*

SO FREAKING FAKE. I can't believe if there is/are actually anyone who FELL for them. I would usually send these e-mails straight into the trash bins, but I thought it would be ideal to do a post on them for educational purposes (LOL).
(At least, I hope gullible people can read this post after stumbling upon my blog on search engines and such. Don't worry, I have received such scam e-mails throughout the years and its enough to make me a self-proclaimed "expert".)

This is a screenshot of the e-mail from "POWERBALL LOTTERY".

It writes:
"Your e-mail address attached to e-ticket number: 31475600847 199 winning  Ref: UK/9728X3/62  Batch: 074/06/ZY267, which won you the lottery.You are therefore, been approved to claim a total sum of US$2,500,000.00.(TWO MILLION, FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND US DOLLARS).In cash Contact Us Via E-mail: fidicialcenter@yahoo.com.hk or call            +44702 406 7654       CLAIMS OFFICER : Mr.Philips Graham" 


How does that even sound convincing to you?

First of all, I wasn't even addressed personally in this e-mail. (In fact, MOST of the scam e-mails DON'T address you personally. It's one of the obvious points that is telling you "IT'S A SCAM!" Not only that, its telling you that THIS IS A MASS-SENT E-MAIL. In other words, those scammers actually sent them out in a bulk without knowing who you actually are.)

Secondly, do take some time to analyse the e-mail and how it is written. Was it written in a professional/formal manner? Granted, there ARE indeed many scam e-mails I've seen which the scammers did attempt to sound professional. (I believe they must have copied and pasted from somewhere, DUH.) And sometimes, they do sound so realistic that it's HARD not to believe its all scam.
On the other hand, I've also seen badly written e-mails that scream "FAKE" once you read the first sentence.

Thirdly, NOTICE the e-mail address of the so-called "company". They are using e-mail servers from YAHOO (and some HOTMAIL.) I believe a REGISTERED and DECENT company will have a .com of their own. Using Yahoo and Hotmail just make it look all the more fake.

I was just using the above lottery scam as one of the examples. There is still a common e-mail scam that I MUST post it here. They are called the "419" scammers, whom are mostly based in Nigeria.
Let me show you one of the examples:\
(Screenshot credit:)

Sounds legit? NOT.
There have been many more, with e-mail subjects such as "CRY FOR HELP" , "I NEED YOUR URGENT ASSISTANCE", etc, etc. So many that I can come up with a never-ending list!

Please do not, for once, EVER fall for their scam. They are trying to gain your SYMPATHY for their own advantage. All in all, they only have one motive:

MONEY. MONEY. AND MONEY.

They can go on and on with stories about splitting with you their inheritance, or promising you a "business deal" which will grant you a huge sum of money. YES, I have heard enough stories of people falling for them. Out of curiosity and greediness, they would reply to the e-mails for more details. AND THAT IS THE TIME THE SCAMMERS WILL SEIZE THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE YOU FALL FOR THEIR SCAM.

And oh, if you are ever wondering how those Nigerian scammers look like, visualize no more:
(I've gotten this image from one of the famous scambaiting 419 sites, and this photo WAS actually a real photo sent by the scammer themselves.)

                                   Oh.. look at me... I'm having this loaf of bread on my head and I think I look cute!


Always remember, IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, then it probably is. And if you are still in doubt, GOOGLE the content of the e-mail. You will be surprised at the results.

Now, you may ask... How do those scammers GET your e-mail addresses?
Yes, its all thanks to you signing up for random websites that require you to enter your e-mail addresses. (I'm sure you have done this before... Rriiiiggghhhtt? If not, then you might have been "betrayed" by certain "trustworthy" websites that exposed your personal e-mail addresses to 3rd parties. I might blog about another  SCAM in my next entry. So... Do stay tuned.