Money order scam

This scam comes in many variations. One possible variation goes as follows: the scammer sends an email and offers to send payment for a product or service via money order. Subsequently the scammer sends a fake money order for an amount larger than the asking price, and asks the seller to send the rest back by money order. Once the seller sends the difference the scammer disappears and the seller is left with a counterfeit money order that has no value. This is typically done using money order because it can be completely anonymous.

Often the scammer will be from a different country and will claim that the money sent, was more than the asking price because of a mistake. Sometimes after asking for the excess money the scammer will say that the item for sale is not needed after all and will ask for the whole amount.

The following email is an example of how a money order scam email might look like:

Hello, My name is don i saw your advert on internet iam interested in purchasing your ( item for sale)pls tell me the present condition with your last offer for it,and your phone number. expecting your urgent respons,the mode of payment is money order,also i will like you to give me your home address so that the payment can be send to your location.if this mode of paymnet is ok by you please email me back.....

Nigerian scam

The Nigerian scam or 419 scam is a very common scam these days mostly done by email. It existed even before the Internet became popular, and it was done mostly by regular mail. These scams are very easy to recognize when you know about it. The scammer will offer to transfer a huge amount of money (usually several million) to the victim's account usually from an African country. The scammer will often say he would like to move it to a safe location in the US or another European country because keeping there is not safe and it may be confiscated. To keep the victim motivated the scammer will offer to give the victim a substantial percentage of the money to be transfered.

After the victim agrees to this, the scammer will email back and claim the money got stuck somewhere in the process and that some money is necessary to get it out of there. The victim sends the money to help the scammer solve the problem. Then the scammer will come up with new problems that need money to be solved, and this will go on until the victim realizes he is being scammed.

The following email is an example of how a Nigerian scam email might look like:

grace_kk7@yahoo.ca
MRS GRACE KOROMAH
Abidjan Cote D' Ivoire
TEL 225 05 80 59 64
ATTN
In brief introduction i am mrs grace koromah the wife of the late Dr David koromah Jr of the blessed memory with due respect which i believe you will be of great assistance to me and my children.prior to my husband assasination by forces loyal to corporal Foday Sankoh of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) he was the Director General of National Gold and Diamond Mining Corporation of sierra leone Two weeks before my husband assasination he deposited the sum of (US$15.500.000) fifteen million five hundred thouand united state dollars in a security company here in cote d' iviore .three days before his assasination he instructed me and my son ( George and Henry) to move out of sierra leone immediately to cote d' ivoire a nearby country because of the political crisis before the powerfully economic community of west african states (ECOMOG) forces intervened which eventually resulted into brutal civil war . The trunk box containing the funds was deposited as family valuable and treasures for security reasons in the security company costudy .right now because of the upheaval political crsis , i found it unwise to invest this fund here in african countries i am soliciting for your assistance in transferring of this funds to your country where there is political stability for investment wise for the furure of my family .i agree to give you 20% ot the total sum in question , as your entitlement for assisting us in transferring the said funds and we have mapped 5% of the total funds for any expenses which you may incure in assisting us like, telephone calls bill,travelling and accommodation. please reply me through this private mail
Email grace_kk15@zwallet.com
Your Faithfully
Mrs Grace Koromah
(Prince George and Henry )for the family