US Marine Advance Fee Scam
Sunday, April 27, 2008
A favourite ruse employed by Internet fraudsters is to include a link in their initial scam email that leads to a reputable news website. When a potential victim clicks the link he or she will be taken to a news article that seemingly confirms the claims in the scam email. In this case, the link leads to a 2003 BBC news report about a large stash of money found in Baghdad by the US military. The article notes that several US soldiers were questioned after a portion of the funds was allegedly stolen. The BBC article itself is perfectly legitimate and reports on true events. However, the claims in the scam email are fictitious and have no connection whatsoever with the real incident described. The scammer poses as one of the soldiers questioned over the alleged theft and implies that he is still in possession of these stolen funds. Those who fall for the ruse and reply to the scam email will be promised a large percentage of the money if they are willing to help the "soldier" transfer the funds. However, to complete the "deal" the victim will be asked to provide upfront fees, ostensibly to cover transfer and banking expenses. The victim may also be asked to provide a substantial amount of personal and financial information which may later be used to steal his or her identity.
Don't be fooled by unsolicited emails that promise lucrative deals, even if they contain links to news articles that supposedly relate to the scammers claims. For details about Advance Fee scams, see:
An example of the scam email:
Subject: CONFIRM WHAT I WANT TO SHARE WITH YOU
Attn dear,
Good day to you,I know you would be surprised to read from someone relatively
unknown to you before now. My name is Master Sgt. Edward Ramirez, a soldier in the U.S. Marine, deployed to Iraq in the beginning of the war in 2003. I would like to share some highly personal and classified information with you regarding my personal experience and role which I played in the pursuit of my career serving under the U.S ARMY which was at the fore-front of the war in iraq
However, I would like to hold back certain information for security reasons for now until you have found time to visit the BBC website stated below to enable you have insight regarding what I intend to share with you, believing that it would be of your desired interest in one way or the other. Here is a BBC news listing that confirms what I share with you
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2988455.stm
I need your assistance to secure a certain deposit of funds which originated from the source mentioned in the webpage above. My proposal is of mutual benefit to us and should be treated as such. I must say that I'm very uncomfortable sending this message to you without knowing truly if you would misconstrue the importance of confidentiality in this regards and decide to go public.If you are interested and willing to assist, please contact me immediately to enable me
provide you with further details.Thank you for your understanding.
Kindest regards,
Master Sgt. Edsummer Ramirez
posted by Brett Christensen @ 10:37 AM,
