Murder-Threat E-Mail Scam On the Rise In 2008
E-mail scam artists and spammers have relied for years on using offers that dangle quick riches in return for access to personal information and bank accounts, but now these messages may be taking a turn toward the threatening. Currently making the rounds of inboxes everywhere is a new scam e-mail that insinuates bodily harm, or even death, if the recipient doesn't fork over money.
This isn't the first time Switched.com has warned about this growing problem with scam e-mail, of course, but this new more intimidating threat seems to be growing larger. (Take a look at our "Top Five E-mail Scams" piece to learn more about how to identify fraudulent e-mail and how to protect yourself.)
As reported in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, this new type of scam e-mail reads, in part, that the sender is "mailing you now ... just to KILL/ASSASINATE you and I have to do it as I have already been paid for that."
The e-mail continues to say that if payment is not made immediately, the sender will follow through on the threat without delay.
One of the threatening e-mails found its way to the e-mail inbox of an employee of the Post-Dispatch, who then forwarded it on to the FBI.
According to Special Agent Zachary Lowe, the scam first started appearing in 2006 and the messages are likely coming from overseas, possibly out of Eastern Europe. The first targets of the scam were white-collar workers, like doctors and lawyers, whose e-mail addresses are easy to find in ads or directories. Lowe says the threat isn't real.
As noted in the Post-Dispatch article, "This is just a new type of fraud."
The old style of scam e-mail was typically an invitation to a business opportunity or to collect lottery winnings. This new kind of scam has the same goal, just a different, and more serious, message.
From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Related Links:
FCC Warns of Fake Do Not Call Registry E-Mail
_thumbnail.jpg "Vintage Keyboards")
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Denise said 8:29PM on 2-11-2008
I just got an e mail from a supposedly e bay customer saying if I don't send them their camera they are going to report me to the FBI. I knew right away it was a scam. Who do I contact and who do I report this to? I would love nothing more then to see this person locked up for fraud. They must think American's are idiots. If you receive an E mail like this, whatever you do, DO NOT press the respond button, they will gain access to all of your banking information if you are a customer of E bay!
Reply
colleen said 8:36PM on 2-11-2008
You can report fake emails to spam@ebay.com
They will respond with an email letting you know it is fake.
Reply
Belinda said 8:40PM on 2-11-2008
Thanks for the warning. I wish many more people would warn about scams. There is so much wrong doing that goes on with computers.
Reply
BlueEyes30101 said 8:43PM on 2-11-2008
Always report anything that you know is fake. I have almost been messed over so many times. Especially from work at home type e-mails.
Reply
Kent said 8:48PM on 2-11-2008
This is the official site address for the US Gov agency on Phishing scams. Put it in your address book as 'Report Phishing'. That way you have only to type Re, and the rest pops up in most programs. ( All of my many ... :)
phishing-report@us-cert.gov
Reply
Molly said 8:55PM on 2-11-2008
Yes, you can report spoof mail to eBay, but they do nothing. I've gotten that camera scam every day for over a week. I reported each one. Nothing stops it. After it stops for a while, I get it again.
Reply
martha said 9:05PM on 2-11-2008
Where do I report scams . On a daily basis I get e-mails about winning the overseas lottery , inheritance funds , dog scams and other stuff
Reply
Mary said 9:07PM on 2-11-2008
Any contact Ebay has with you will be in the mail section of your account when you sign into Ebay -- if it's not in their mail section to you, you should ignore anything else you receive via regular email. That's a pretty good rule of thumb. Ebay will not send you an emails like that -- nor will they ever ask for payment or security information. Report those fraud mails to spoof@ebay.com
OR sign in to Ebay and go to the area IN Ebay that deals with scams and fraud for updates and contact information.
Incidentally I get those scam/phish mails all the time and I send them to Spoof@ebay.com -- who then pursues the ones who are sending them.
Reply
Adore said 9:07PM on 2-11-2008
i think that we should just warn everyone we are in contact with. i know to many people especially older folks who are nor aware of these email things. all they do is chat and dont read up on these scams and they get caught up. so if you have to just mention it in passing arounf family gatherings or just make convo it should be done. i have a friend right now whos mom doesnt speak english well and she is sending some man money every month and this man has told her dont tell her family cuz the family doesnt want them together. im even noticing im getting them on my cell phone also. thats because when someone eneters these sites and they swear they dont do 3rd party selling and you add your info they start texting you and now my niece asked on text who is this and with that they pinged my cell and text over 150 people and i almost got stuck with the bill
Reply
Mary said 9:08PM on 2-11-2008
Go to the FBI's website and click on the section they have for reporting phish or scam emails. They also have contact information for fraud if you want to report it.
Reply
Cookie said 11:43PM on 2-11-2008
I received the death threat email last week. I did feel it was spam but when I read it it was scary. I reported it to the local police here and they put it in the local newspaper. Mine was the first case in our county. The next day the sheriffs office called and said the TV news wanted me to go on TV and talk about this. I felt that I did my job getting the story out there to warn others. I would feel terrible if some one had a heart attach while reading this garbage. These people in foreign countries are trying to get our money. And once they get money there isn't a darn thing we can do about it. I also emailed AOL but I never got a response from them.
Reply
senyurcraphere said 9:10PM on 2-11-2008
It's "spoof@ebay" not spam
Reply
Bjaynebrooks said 9:12PM on 2-11-2008
If the FBI can track down pedophiles and serial killers on the internet, why can't they find the people sending out these bogus emails? They should be tracked down and prosecuted.
Reply
Doctor Bob said 9:17PM on 2-11-2008
To report fraudulent ebay emails, send them to: spoof@ebay.com
To report fraudulent PayPal emails, send them to: spoof@paypal.com
Fraudulent letters from Bank of America should go to: abuse@bankofamerica.com
Fraud letters from Citibank/Citicorp should go to: spoof@citicorp.com
Fraud letters from the internet in general should go to: http://www.ic3.gov
Fraudulent letters from Lloyds TSB Bank should go to: emailscams@lloydstsb.co.uk
Fraudulent letters from Natwest Bank should be reported to: phishing@natwest.com
Fraudulent letters from Royal Bank of Scotland should be forwarded to: digitalbanking@rbs.co.uk
Fraud letters from Wells Fargo go to: reportphish@wellsfargo.com
If you get a fraud email from AOL, don't waste your time trying to get anything done about it. AOL could care less about your welfare or your life.
Reply
Mary said 9:18PM on 2-11-2008
Beware of a cellphone number scam going around. They ask you to sign up for a no-contact list and get your cellphone numbers that way -- do not give out personal information like that. Here are a couple of websites that list the most recent fraud/scams going on.
http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/scamsdesc.htm
http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/nigeria.asp
Reply
Mary said 9:20PM on 2-11-2008
Great post, Dr Bob.
Reply
chislumd said 6:33AM on 2-12-2008
Received an email like this just today. Thanks for providing information on where to send.
Reply
James said 9:44PM on 2-11-2008
There is this remarkable key that handles these types of email. It's called the DELETE key. How could anyone be so stupid to fall for a message demanding money for their lives. If you send money to these extortionists, you deserve what you get. I guess stupid is forever.
Reply
Doctor Bob said 9:48PM on 2-11-2008
Warren, forget your macho stance. The guys making the threats are located in Kazakstan or Belarus or North Korea or Uganda. They aren't afraid of your threats, and they know you can't do anything about them. The LAST thing they worry about is you bursting through their door playing your macho game. And if you did, trust me, they can deal with you, no problem. Just report them to the authorities and forget about it.
Reply
Glen said 9:58PM on 2-11-2008
TO REPORT INTERNET FRAUD, INVOLVING BOTH MONEY AND THREATS, ETC., GO TO THE FOLLOWING LINK:
http://www.ic3.gov/
The INTERNET CRIME PREVENTION CENTER IS A DIVISION OF THE FBI. JUST FOLLOW ALL INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILING A COMPLAINT ON-LINE THROUGH THEIR WEB-SITE FORM.
Reply