Molly writes:
1. I posted my laptop for sale on Craigslist for $550.2. Kaynero01@yahoo.com emailed me and said he'd send an extra $150 through Paypal for shipping to his cousin, a student in Nigeria.
3. Paypal sent me an email saying they needed the tracking # before they could post the $700 to my account, to protect the buyer and be fair to both parties. (I've since found out this email was a SCAM!)
4. I emailed the tracking # to the Paypal address they had provided and waited day in and day out. I'd paid $76.05 to ship the laptop.
5. Finally, I got frustrated enough today to call Paypal and demand the money. They said the buyer account did not exist and there was no $700. The only thing they had a record of was my request for $700 from the buyer.
6. So! Paypal couldn't do shit. They told me to call USPS and recall the laptop.
7. USPS said the laptop left the US on September 22nd and cannot be recalled once it leaves. The insurance I'd put on the item was for lost or damaged goods. It does not protect against fraud.
8. So! USPS couldn't do jack.
9. I reported this to the FTC, but what's that gonna do? NOTHING!
10. I'm so livid that I am currently in an emotionless state.
That's right, Molly, you're fucked. Here's a few things to remember so you don't end up like Molly:
That's Getty image #57421614, entitled "Portrait of a delivery man". Humm, time to rename it as "African swindler who steals laptops from stupid people on-line, according to an article written by a white dood."
Oh, pop-up window at Getty came up inviting me for a chat while I was typing! So, I asked if the release rights for Getty purchases include portraying models as thieves. They said *NO* and that the model in question can sue if they feel their image was used in a defamatory way. (sorry, wish I copied and pasted the transcript, good stuff!)
Wellllll, big large red letters that say "How A Nigerian Steals Your Laptop" above his image... black delivery person in the US becomes Nigerian swindler, apparently!
BTW- I'm white and StumbleUpon'ed this page and found it interesting.
I am shocked that you"masterminded"
-anything. It would mean that you were able to have an
"original thought", which for people with less than a
1st grade education is highly impossible.
As a friendly Internet billionaire I feel for you and
would like to give you 1/2 billion $USD as you are a
charity case, But to trust you, you will need to give
me 2 billion as a security deposit, mostly because you
are a......
nigger.
I can not even use your child or you , or your entire
extended family as collateral ....That is because you
are worthless- since niggers no longer have any value
under USA law,
because in the USA we can no longer use them for God's
only intended purpose as slaves.
So contact me when you have an extra 2 billion, which
you can make doing the ONLY thing Ivory Coast men and women can do to earn money- anally fucking diseased truck
drivers for fifty cents apiece. So if you slept with
100 diseased truckers per day (16 per hour non stop
every day for 12 hours a day) you'll have 2 billion in
a little over 100 years.
Or,
you will die of AIDS like ALmighty God intended for
you stupid walking talking monkeys long before the
decade is out. (Be happy he designed AIDS just for
you!)
Keep scratching your infected puss oozing cock like
a monkey with a dirty shit caked asshole. Then sniff
your fingers to see what we intelligent rich white
people smell everytime a nigger enters the room.
Have fun starving!
If you ask Mr Popkin, I'll bet $5 he'll say "I need to protect my sources".
This is something only a "journalist" would say, and being a "journalist" cuts both ways: he can protect his sources, but he also needs to report objectively and strive to tell nothing but the truth.
Instead, he has begun to resort to sensationalistic headlines that distort the truth and has begun to use profanity in an attempt (I assume) to appeal to the younger, non-discriminating audience (read: crank up the advertising hits)
The Consumerists credibility is heading toward the cliff
]]>@LawyerontheDL: "Is it illegal to send dog poop overseas? Yes, it would be more money, but you do have an address" Be sure to include a note saying "Dear Dr. Vet please analyze this stuff." That should make it perfectly legal. (If enough people did this, Africa scammers would leave us alone.)
]]>The person involved in this story is obviously naive and needs to think a little bit more before making the sale to someone outside of the country, even if they are paying with MO's or Cashier's Checks as these are easy to fake as well and you will be left with no money and probably owing your bank for fees and you also have no product...
Just to sum this up... NEVER sell anything to anyone from Nigeria, The Ivory Coast, Nieves & St Kitts just to name a few even if they give what appears to be guaranteed funds up front. It's probably a scam unless you know them.
]]>I have no sympathy for this haddock. Financial Darwinism.
]]>It's common sense. This is why I always urge people to always read the FAQ on any and every site they use to transfer goods or money if they have never used it before.
I know we all took a sacred vow to not blame the victim, and I apologize Consumerist, but I simply must in this case! :/
]]>Start your own blog. It can be a HAVEN of political correctness. Let's see how many unique hits you have after a year compared to Consumerist.com.
]]>I have often wondered the legality of sending feces. Seriously, I'm not kidding. I would have done it A FEW times if I wasn't worried about breaking a law.
Does anyone know if this is legal via USPS or UPS/FedEx?
]]>New headline: "USPS jacks, PayPal shits"
I ended up receiving MANY fake "Ship now!" emails when recently listed my used iPod on Amazon. There is always something that doesn't look right about them (formatting, email address), plus you should never ship anything until you see the money sitting in your account. If you don't trust email, you're fine.
These emails piss me off. I replied to every single one of them with some comments that even made ME a bit ill.
]]>They won't let us package or send things to Nigeria or most places in Africa without us asking a million questions of the person shipping. I actually saved one guy this nightmare 3 years ago when he sold his Laptop online and used their account number.
I warned that this person sounded illegitimate he shipped it anyway, then came in 3 hours later saying how I was right about the guy and he checked his Paypal Account and there was no money. He reported the guy as a scammer. I reported the account number stolen. Guess what, it was stolen from a guy living in las Vegas who also got scammed.
IF YOU USE PAYPAL THEY WILL NEVER CONTACT YOU VIA EMAIL FOR ANYTHING TO DO WITH A TRANSACTION OR PERSONAL INFO!!!!
ALWAYS LOG INTO PAYPAL.. I do not understand people at all that do not understand this concept.
]]>I'm not jumping on the bandwagon of blaming the consumer (or the scam-ee, in this case), but holy smokes - can this transaction have any more red flags on it?
For starters - ANYTHING going to, coming from, or dealing with Nigeria should have killed the deal stone cold dead. While I'm sure there are plenty of legitimate transactions coming from the country every day, there's a reason that every prince than needs getting his money laundered comes from there.
Second - paypal gets it's dirty little hands in the deal. Call me a luddite, but I prefer the old school way where you got a check or money order or cash and had the money in hand before you even thought about sending a package. With Paypal's propensity to screw the end user at every chance they get, it's no wonder that they can't help here. It's not a question of if you'll be fucked by pay-pal, but when.
]]>Blogging is not journalism.
]]>Actually, Paypal/eBay in all their wisdom now have a policy for certain sellers wherein you don't get your money unlocked until delivery confirmation or buyer leaves + feedback.
]]>Some people are so racist!
I am an Irish-Scottish-Native American.
That means I drink a lot and when I am wasted, I sell everything for a trunk of beads. This happens quite often.
sorry.. i missed this before i posted... dropping in 3...2...1...
]]>You just turned this article conversation from phising... to a lame ass race issue. stfu and read the article. Maybe its a black person preparing to ship the item???? Maybe that is an actually picture of Molly's husband holding said laptop.
I'm dying laughing at the "wanna get away southwest post"
]]>@TreyWaters: And what the heck is his problem with HA and AK anyway!?!?!
/pretending to be offended
]]>@Darkkeyboard: I totally missed that meating. I was at the Black Assimilation Conference of Friendly Fellows aka BAC OFF.
]]>@dragonfire81: I dated a white south african girl about 10 years ago, damn was she hot. I mean like really hot.
]]>@jodark: I'm not ethno-centric, but I prefer to be called black. Actually, I prefer to be called American. African-American is so for the media, it also sounds like an airline.
BTW, there's a $25 surcharge for reading this comment in it's entirety. Thanks....I accept paypal.
]]>@LoganAdams: Wanna get away?
www.southwest.com
]]>@SKURRY: Went and re-read, subby said USPS not UPS. I still think USPS is pulling your leg.
]]>UPS can do an intercept even once it is on a truck about to be delivered. I had to one the other week and was able to get it forwarded to my other office. Although this may be because of our corporate account but I would think any shipper could do this.
]]>Maybe you meant 48 CONTIGUOUS states?
]]>@ManiacDan: f u cn rd ths, u cn gt gd jb & grt mny!
]]>@Adisharr: It's not even PC. It's "PC" because it only pretending to be PC.
Insert joke about PC vs Laptop here.
]]>Well... that's awkward. Yes, I realise that a lot of emails like this are scams. But there are also a lot of honest, non-scammers who live in Africa and like to buy stuff on the net (since we don't get the same products you guys do in the US). To say "don't sell to anyone in Africa" is somewhat unfair to an entire continent. Be careful, yes, but don't just write us all off.
]]>Thankfully, the people at the FedEx store let me know about shady stuff going on in Lagos and decided at the last moment to back away.
]]>All this pulp talk is making me thirsty for orange juice.
]]>It's a tough way to learn a lesson, I'll give it that.
Sadly, Craigslist become a real haven for scammers and con artists.
]]>If you get an email saying they put money in your account, go to [www.paypal.com] and CHECK. Paypal has pretty expansive documentation on how they operate on their website, and demanding proof that you shipped the item is definitely not on any of it.
Do some research, take simple precautions. There's no reason for this to ever happen.
]]>@xkaluv: xkaluv, I find your comment so offensive that I want to drive to wherever you are and beat you to a pulp!
]]>Dude she lost a lap top and 70 something dollars she paid to ship it.
]]>Either that or when you place your cursor over the link from whatever website, check to see where it's leading if you're comfortable reading urls.
]]>Have you not seen the voting ad that has been placed in the middle of this site for weeks? It explains that we would really feel like and a**hole if we didn't vote. I emailed Ben, and the advertising person, I think his name was chris. I explained that I let my kids read this site and I was truely offended.
I recieved no reply or acknowledgement of my letter.
Sadly, I think the young people of today consider this to be the norm. I think it's sick.
]]>It baffles me that people STILL fall for these scams every single day. It's been a known fact that anything monetarily Nigerian related is a scam. It's so sad, but true. Wires, cashiers checks, mail. People need to really be more cautious of this. Especially in these economic times, I'm sure there's plenty of new and scary scams created each day to prey on the guillible.
]]>I did not know people actually fell for these scams. Shows why they're still doing it after so long.
]]>* DEAL LOCALLY WITH FOLKS YOU CAN MEET IN PERSON - follow this one simple rule and you will avoid 99% of the scam attempts on craigslist.
* NEVER WIRE FUNDS VIA WESTERN UNION, MONEYGRAM or any other wire service - anyone who asks you to do so is a scammer.
* FAKE CASHIER CHECKS & MONEY ORDERS ARE COMMON, and BANKS WILL CASH THEM AND THEN HOLD YOU RESPONSIBLE when the fake is discovered weeks later.
* CRAIGSLIST IS NOT INVOLVED IN ANY TRANSACTION, and does not handle payments, guarantee transactions, provide escrow services, or offer "buyer protection" or "seller certification"
* NEVER GIVE OUT FINANCIAL INFORMATION (bank account number, social security number, eBay/PayPal info, etc.)
* AVOID DEALS INVOLVING SHIPPING OR ESCROW SERVICES and know that ONLY A SCAMMER WILL "GUARANTEE" YOUR TRANSACTION.
I simply CANNOT feel any sympathy for Molly. She broke nearly all of these guidelines.
]]>You're not alone. I'd bet that quite a few here didn't even see a picture of an African American person - I saw a guy holding a box. Only when people stop viewing people as belonging to specific races and simply see them as people will we make genuine progress.
]]>@bonzombiekitty: That was SO great.
]]>Craigslist? Check.
Email? Check.
More Money? Check.
Paypal? Check.
Africa? Check.
Yep, sure did hit all of the scam requirements.
]]>Best sanity check I've ever read (from a Banker's Forum) to protect yourself against this sort of fraud is to ask one question: "Why is my item for sale SO precious that the person can't pick one up for himself in his home country?"
(The question was more along the lines of, "Explain to me again why some guy in Nigeria just HAD to have your '73 Volkswagon Beetle?")
]]>@Consumerist-Moderator-Roz: WHEW. I was beginning to worry that you weren't going to show up! :)
]]>Take it a step further - the seller takes the items sold list and items to be shipped to the carrier, who packs and ships the items. The buyer get's an email with a filled packing list from the carrier so they know the box isn't empty. Then follow the process above and everyone's happy. Seller pays the fee.
]]>It's worth it to read through the P-p-p-powerbook story, whereby a bunch of SA goons sniffed out and then mocked an elaborate eBay laptop theft scam.
]]>"Item shipped same day I had money. Questions? Email me."
Basta!
]]>Further, again, remember the comment code. Do not insult the victim, e.g. calling them an idiot, stupid, etc. Helpful and constructive suggestions are fine. Let's tone it down and keep the comments civil.
]]>He also asked if I'd take a check... yeah, i'll get right on that.
]]>"That's right, Molly, you're fucked" The consumerist doesnt pull any punches. :)
]]>Nigeria does have legitimate businesses. Unfortunately the amount of fraud even within the country is beyond the tipping point. A large percentage of prescription drugs in the country are counterfeit, for instance, which lends credence to clerics who opposed western medicine and vaccination. It is quite sad, and hopefully increasing world trade ties can help the people who suffer because of such fraud.
That said, if you are just selling an old laptop online, repairing those wounds is not your problem. When you ship something outside the U.S. (or outside your domestic market), you are not just shipping, you are EXPORTING. That is a major step for an expanding business, maybe including eBayers with thousands or tens of thousands of ratings after their screen name, not someone selling their old laptop.
]]>you MUST meet people on CL in a SAFE, PUBLIC location!!!
]]>www.purepwnage.com
]]>This is not PayPal's fault in any shape or form. Blame yourself for not checking and understanding stuff. The Nigerian Scam has been around for a very very long time and if you are that stupid to send something like that, then it is your fault. PayPal does not cover any non-ebay transaction so you are out of luck
]]>@GregGates: One has to think that most Nigerians think that people in 1st World countries are greedy but stupid idiots.
]]>I tell any scam-o-lets that I only accept "INTERNATIONAL MONEY ORDERS PAYABLE IN US DOLLARS" and that I will wait 30 days for the funds to be verified.
Also for the car sales scammers (I will send my agent to pick up your car) I always tell them to send me the "agents" name,phone number, address etc so that I may verify they have the correct dealer license to transfer the vehicle. That also throws the scammers for a loop.
[www.scamorama.com]
[forum.419eater.com]
ebolamonkeyman.com
[www.scambaits.com]
Some of the pictures received during scam baits are true classics...
]]>Wait, what? :P
]]>Remember this next time:Craigslist = meet me with cash
Craigslist = meet me IN PUBLIC with cash.
]]>I would suggest: Email + Africa + Money = Theft
]]>To be offended is usually a rather unpleasant experience...white people, blessed with both time and energy, are not these kind of people. In fact there are few things white people love more than being offended.
]]>@CFinWV: I should have just kept that comment to myself.
]]>stf i would post the same pic or another pic witha black guy holding a box!poeple like you thats so anal about everything,that comes up with these retarded lawsuits...if this ad was talking about a chinese person taking the laptop i would us an asian baby working in a sweetshop hacking away on the comp and have ups deliver it right to him....go do something else with your life.@LoganAdams:
]]>@rdm: Holy fucking shit. Not all Koreans are Asian either. Not all Europeans are white.
Would you prefer he show a white, Dutch African who got pushed off his land? Go back to your sterile, politically correct utopia.
Oh, and it is more pollitically correct to call Black people African-American, so either Africans are black, or 'African-American' is the wrong term for black people in America. You can't have it both ways.
]]>I REMEMBER THAT! Greatest prank ever!
]]>@anker: HAHAHA. Wow, that sure sounds like a great opportunity! You should definitely take the job. ;)
]]>@graffiksguru: YIKES! Woah, that stinks.
]]>@anker: An unemployed family friend got the same deal in Indiana and even got the fake money orders sent to his home. I was able to work with him to understand it was a scam and he reported it to the local authorities. Supposedly the money orders came from within the US (I did not see the envelope as I do not live by the friend) so somebody might be charged though I figure the money orders were sent via a person who had been duped into the "reshipper" business...
]]>@Ben Popken: You ever make a comment that you thought was simple and civil only to realize it was a stupid mistake that stirred up a big angry argument? Yeah, I'm there.
]]>These stories are so numerous and make it seem so easy to scam the dumb and greedy that I'm considering becoming a scammer myself.
How can there still be people with access to the internet that do not know that as soon as you see the word "Nigeria" you should run?
THERE ARE NO LEGITIMATE BUSINESSES IN NIGERIA!
I'm surprised Craigslist doesn't just block all African I.P.'s from their sites.
]]>@m4ximusprim3:
Wow, what are you talking about? It's not the safest way to sell, by a long shot.
Not long ago a good friend of mine had a gun put to his head by someone pretending to sell a powerbook on craigslist.
You might lose your money on eBay, but your life won't be threatened.
TakingItSeriously is not fearmongering at all. Btw, I use craiglist all the time, but I'm not stupid about it.
]]>And as for the excessively PC comments, sit down. Stereotypes exist for a reason and acknowledging them along with profiling help to keep you from being Darwin'd. Africans have dark skin. Nigerians are particularly famous for scamming Americans. If I got an African request to mail something I was selling on eBay? No way in hell. Sorry Africa, but that's the way it's gonna be for now.
]]>@chris101d: Or she could game him via another email address to pay for shipping on a far more valuable (and heavier) shipment of goods. And then provide a concrete block, etc.
Best one was the guy who sent a broken washing machine with concrete chunks in it and mocking printouts of the scammer taped to the outside of the machine. The scammer thought he was getting a load of brand new in box laptops...
]]>Computers and consumer electronics are abundant in Nigeria, look up "Computer Village" in Lagos, there is no legitimate reason somebody would goto the trouble of seeking out a computer from some guy in North America, pay extra, pay shipping and then on top of that pay the fairly high Nigerian import taxes and brokerage fees due on delivery.
]]>Yea, lets get a white person on the pic, because its all the white nigerians that are stealing laptops and sending those letters about how their dad stole all this money you can help them get out of their country. Its not about race idiots, facts are black people are stealing things from nigeria. Its not like its a slam against all black people, there just dont happen to be many people of other races there. Its like having something about china, you'd expect a picture of a chinese person right?
]]>Why do people always pull the race card over everything? Everyone needs a little thicker skin and to stop being sue happy cry babies.
]]>This is a sad story but sadly too common.
]]>I laughed out loud at that one. I feel bad for Molly, but I thought everyone knew about this scam.
]]>With my business, people made online purchases using stolen credit cards. We reported it to the police, but they said that until everything was complete, they couldn't do anything about it. We contacted the credit card owner and alerted them to the fraud and never charged the order.
Be proactive and make sure to use common sense. That will save you time, money, and sanity.
]]>I'd find it much more appropriate to use a photo from the p-p-p-powerbook incident, where someone scammed a scammer with hilarious results.
Link: [www.zug.com]
]]>Who the hell are we kidding here - the last time I watched the Amazing Race and they went to Africa, the place was completely black. It was also a shithole but big surprise there. Most third world countries are.
I'm amazed people are questioning the choices of this picture. Come on people - enough PC already.
]]>@LoganAdams: Get off your high horse. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that picture.
Except that the box he's holding might not be a laptop box. So the box may find it offensive. If that's the case, I stand corrected.
]]>@TakingItSeriously: And in the other 59 million, it was "here's cash, here's item, thanks neighbor!".
Quit that fearmongering shit. Craigslist is the fastest, safest way to sell your old crap and get actual useable currency for it.
]]>Craigslist = come pick it up, cash only.
]]>whenever you sell something online it pays to be careful, I recently tried to sell an ipod on Craigslist, the first two emails I got were scammers. I was selling it for $350.
Here is the first one:
"Hi Do you still have it for sale l wanna buy it for a friend am payingyou $450 and l will also include the shipping cost so get back to me
with your paypal email account so l pay asap.
waiting for response asap"
The other one I got:
"Hello,
I am interested in buying the item and i want you to know that i am located in Oklahoma,But am buying the item for a friend of mine in the USA,So i will want you to get back to me with your full name and addrres where payment should be mailed to....and i will offer you $400 for the item including packaging ..but i will be responsible for the shipment of the item...i will like to proceed with the payment via USPS United State Postal Money Order which is very reliable, fast,safe and secure way of making payment online...payment will be brought to your address for delivery so kindly get back to me with your full name and residential address in order to proceed with the payment...Thanks"
Needless to say I ignored both of these emails, but I might have to tempted to respond, before I became a Comsumerist reader a year ago.
]]>Molly must be new to this planet.
]]>[face palm]
]]>wow, wow...umm, yeah. 1) its Nigeria, 2) they offer to pay over the price stated 3) they demand tracking # before payment. I may be young and a recent college grad, but come on! THis is too obvious.
There's nothing really that she can do now, and Nigeria will probably sue her if she tries to file claims there (since they believe people who fall for these scams are criminals themselves), so tough luck, suck it up, and deal.
Also, hopefully you just formatted your computer so that no single piece of personal information on it at all.
]]>Did anyone hear the story on This American Life about the guys who out-scammed the Nigerian scamster? [www.thislife.org] I have never laughed so hard!
]]>Is "The Consumerist" on the way down the tubes?
I've always gritted my teeth and remained silent when I see your misleading headlines e.g., "Man Jailed After Letting His Girlfriend Eat Off Of His Plate" that SHOULD have read "Man Jailed After Stealing (Even Though He Was Given the Opportunity To Pay Up Before The Cops Were Called")
Now, I'm seeing race-baiting (You assume the scammer is a black man since Africa is part of the story?)
And now, the editor (I assume Mr Popkin is the author of the sage advice following the post?) is flinging the f-word as part of The Consumerist's reply
Classy!
Time to go back and review the Journalism 101 textbooks!
]]>@TheFuzz53: Nigeria has a law against scams like this, it's where we get the term "419 scammers". However, it's enforced very little because officials within the Nigerian government believes that if people are gullible enough to fall for this stuff, then they deserve it.
If that is there position, then my position is, Nigeria = theft, and they can go pound sand as far as I am concerned. Yeah, I hope they feel bad about being generalized that way. Good for them, they deserve it.
On the other hand, I do see your point about correlating theft to the entire continent.
]]>a) Never, ever use your daily use e-mail address. (Let alone your work e-mail address) It is so nice having a service like akapost around that I can just shut off an account when the spam gets to be too much.
b) I got a little peeved off at a guy for sticking his two cents about my "conditions of sale" tag that I attached at the end of my paltry $35 listing. I didn't want to deal with any bullcrap. Lately, CL (at least in St. Louis) has just become a haven of those seeking "something for nothing". I want within 75% of my asking price if I'm forced to haggle - which is already a decent drop from the retail price I paid.
If someone offers to pay more than your listing = fraud.
If someone offers methods of payment other than cash = fraud.
Cash only, local only, meet in public places.
]]>Good grief, people. A story about a Nigerian stealing a laptop illustrated with a black guy holding a box is "racist"? Ugh. I can't even see how it is (no pun intended) off color. What next?
Maybe we should just not have stories about anything but white men, to avoid all controversy.
]]>4 months later the buyer filed for a claim through paypal and took the money back. Paypal asked my roommate to provide proof of shipping, which she had, but the tracking number no longer work when you enter it in the usps website. She went to USPS and they said the number lasts 1 month.
Paypal wouldn't do anything and the jackass took the money and the shoes.
]]>@Mr. Guy: I see no problem with it.
When there is an article about a corrupt DEO (and their actuall pic is not used), I've seen generic "old fat white guy in a shirt and tie".
Then again, we could avoid all this if pics of cats were used (such as a cat with a laptop).
]]>What an Idiot. If she can't read the warnings on Craigs list and is "smart" enough to ship before receiving payment then she did not deserve to have the laptop in the first place.
These scams did not just pop up yesterday.
]]>@LoganAdams: Would you outrage manufacturers prefer something like this??
Ben, please remove this post if it's improper. I apologize in advance.
This is the what I got out of job hunting on craigslist.
Micneal Mollen to me
show details Oct 27 (3 days ago) Reply
Good day ..........,hope you doing great right there,got your response regarding the driving job
Am mike mollen,My Boss(Mr James Walker) will be visiting the state next month on an assignment in your area,he's very new to your area in the state and am in position to arrange a good driver that will take him around the places where those assignment are to be carried out
He will be staying for two week, and you are required to take him around the places where those assignment be carried out
You service needed from Wednesday to Friday (10:30am to 3:30pm) for the first and second week.
You are offered $1200,($500 per week,$100 for gas)an advance payment of $600 will be send to you as soon you agreed on this contract.
Also I've arrange for a hired Mercedes Benz to be used for this process , the first payment to be sent to you will include your advance payment and the payment fro the vehicle.you will have to forward this fund to the Agent in care of the car ,so he can deliver the car to your place before Mr James arrival.All other info will be supply as needed,such as the date and the hotel for accommodation
My Boss will be paying you the balance after satisfactory completion of your service.if you are OK and satisfy with this,do get back asap and include this detail.
First Name:
Last Name:
Gender:
DOB:
Marital Status;
CDL Serial #/group/type
Address:
City:
State;.
Zip Code:
Cell phone;
best time to call;
present work at hand;
Work ID #
Education Status;
I inquire for this information to secure this deal,i hope you agree with me that there are some unreal people out there,be rest assure that any personal information receive are reserved.
I will appreciate a prompt response from you as the payment will only be sent out to you after i receive this info,so you can work things out this week asap
ALL INFORMATION YOU WILL NEED REGARDING THE CAR HIRED AGENT WILL BE FORWARD TO YOU WITH THE TRACKING # OF THE CHECK
A paycheck will be forwarded to you as soon as possible so once you get the payment,you remove $600 as agreed and send remain part to the car hire representative,so he can deliver the vehicle at your place.
NOTE,they will also come for the pick up of the car after the completion of the contract.
I know it was kind of posted above, but it cannot be repeated enough: Unless it's a family member or someone you personally know, do not conduct ANY business with ANYONE in Nigeria.
]]>Though it's true that she could have sent a tracking number without actually shipping the laptop, I suspect she would then have been scammed by a forged "PayPal" email that said her money had been released to her anyway.
]]>Oh yeah, more negative publicity for Nigeria.
]]>Can't you get a tracking number prior to actually shipping the item? I believe with USPS you can do that. Not that it matters, but the thought just came to mind. That way she could have sent the tracking number, and awaited the payment.
]]>@EBounding: really. Who ships stuff before monies have been collected?
I'll gladly pay you tuesday for a laptop today...
]]>so what if this person isn't nigerian. consumerist uses stock art all the time. what if they did a story about some white criminal in maine but somehow ended up using a nondescript picture of a white person that was taken in Sweden? is that an outrage?
]]>Granted, ANYTHING going to or coming from Nigeria should be considered a scam.
]]>More information can only help...not to mention these scammers are usually gullible enough to give more. In the long run if there is a report with the FTC or a fraud report to the bank then it can only help...
]]>Sorry, another thing to remember is call PayPal to verify and not just believe the person that wants the item.
]]>You should spend more money... Get on an airplane and track them down. Then when you find them beat them to a pulp. Then get your laptop and fly back. When you get here, I will be happy to drive over and beat you to a pulp because you make BAD DECISIONS.
If you have ever watched Judge Judy you would know that making bad decisions won't get you rewarded.
]]>Remember this next time:
Craigslist = meet me with cash
]]>@LoganAdams: yikes, ditto
]]>Posting items on Craigslist, I've had just as many people try to scam me into sending the item to the UK or even the US. Perhaps you should have acknowledged that you should not mail anything period and expect to get money back.
]]>Hmm, interesting...
]]>- Old Craigslist proverb.
]]>@chris101d: And then what? The Nigerian Fraud Squad will team up with the Wonder Twins to track down the hucksters? Wonder Twin Power Activate!
]]>You have a story about someone in Africa who stole a laptop, so you pick a photo of some random black man (stock photography, I assume) holding a box and consider this story ready to go.
Are you sure that's a wise art choice?
]]>