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NY Holds Spam Scam Contest 118

Posted by michael from the i-send-you-this-file-in-order-to-have-your-advice dept.
evilquaker writes "The state of New York's Consumer Protection Board is running a contest they call 'Spam and Bologna'. Their goal is to help educate the public, so fewer people will fall for Nigerian scams (and others) in the future. The contest is actually to find the most outrageous example of an email scam, and ends in one month. Yahoo! News provides some more information."
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NY Holds Spam Scam Contest More

NY Holds Spam Scam Contest

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  • This is good. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by bl1st3r ( 464353 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @07:43AM (#8754975) Homepage Journal
    It's good to finally see education being used in an effort to stop spam instead of focusing on legal solutions to technical/educational problems.

    I cringe when I see new laws being passed to limit what you can do on the internet. If you are using technology to exploit, there should be a technological solution. Once you start making laws, you begin heading down a VERY dark, dangerous path.

    • Re:This is good. (Score:5, Interesting)

      by JaredOfEuropa ( 526365 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:27AM (#8755084) Journal
      I cringe when I see new laws being passed to limit what you can do on the internet. If you are using technology to exploit, there should be a technological solution.
      Some laws are made to outlaw on the Internet that which is already illegal elsewhere. And rightly so: scamming, stealing, all those things should be as illegal on the Internet as they are in real life. This is not the US Patent office, where adding "...on the Internet" at the end suddenly turns an old thing into something new, or turns a crime into something legal. However, in some cases the law needs to be amended to take new technology into account. There are many laws that we take for granted governing telephony.

      I do agree with you that bad laws are made as well: poorly drafted laws that inadvertedly curtail our freedoms while trying to achieve something good. An example: a proposed law to outlawing spam would also make legitimate mailing lists illegal. Another one: a law against music piracy (to use the common term for it) might limit what we could legally do with music that we own, such as playing it on different equipment.

      Making laws to govern the Internet can be a "dark, dangerous path" indeed, beset with legislators and lobbyists who have hidden intentions. One sometimes gets suspicious that there is nothing accidental about these laws accidentally limiting our freedom. But that doesn't mean that we should not have any laws at all on principle; it means that any and all laws should pass this criterium: A law should serve the stated purpose for which is was drafted, and nothing else. No "unintentional" side effects.

      • Re:This is good. (Score:5, Insightful)

        by bl1st3r ( 464353 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:34AM (#8755096) Homepage Journal
        You have made some very good points and I agree with you fully. I didn't intend to come off as you may have read into my post.

        Theft is, and always will be illegal; using the Internet for theft shouldn't even be legally questionable. It's a crime.

        However, what I AM afraid of is that laws are being passed specifically to prevent actions which are based on legal foundations, but somehow are misused for illegal practices. An example would be like your mailing list statement. Automated mailing or whatever they want to call it.

        I'm just afraid that once you start using laws to strengthen weak protocols, then you've already set a precedent of using laws to support weakened ideas. The DMCA is a good example of this. You develop a weak protocol/program/encryption scheme and then make it illegal to show that it sucks. Anyone who would want to point out its flaws is a criminal for trying to help, yet the criminals are more than happy to stay just below ground and take advantage of it to its full potential.

        • I'm just afraid that once you start using laws to strengthen weak protocols, then you've already set a precedent of using laws to support weakened ideas.

          Like alarms and cameras are mostly a technological solution for a social problem, these new laws are a social solution for a technological problem.

          I doubt it's possible to use laws to fight spam (World peace would be more easy to accomplish), however a better e-mail protocol would be able to reduce spam to a minimum, just see how (relatively) easy the o

          • these new laws are a social solution for a technological problem

            Unless computers have started sending spam of their own accord, it is a social problem.

      • An example: a proposed law to outlawing spam would also make legitimate mailing lists illegal.

        What "proposed law" is that? I keep up with spam related news fairly closely, and have not heard about any law which would outlaw opt in lists of any sort.

  • Thousands of people get the same spam (Score:2, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    How can someone win such a contest? by definition, isn't spam sent out to hundreds of thousands of people... lots of people will have the same "m4k3 y0ur p3n1s th1ck3r" emails ... (along with any truely outragous things they might also get)
    • How can someone win such a contest? by definition, isn't spam sent out to hundreds of thousands of people...

      And the alternative is, what, "special deliver spam" only sent to a couple of people? Boyo, I should give your email address to my hick cousin Elrod in the Ozarks. He keeps trying to get me to invest in his nutty projects: ostrich farming, beefalo ranching, growing Hawaiian leis in Missouri... heh, who knows, maybe Elrod could win this stupid contest, even if I'm the only one he seems to be spamming

  • My favorite version of the Nigerian style scam (Score:5, Funny)

    by gnugnugnu ( 178215 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @07:48AM (#8754988) Homepage
    My favorite version of the Nigerian style scam [theregister.co.uk]

    IMMEDIATE ATTENTION NEEDED:

    HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL

    FROM: GEORGE WALKER BUSH
    DEAR SIR / MADAM,

    I AM GEORGE WALKER BUSH, SON OF THE FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA GEORGE HERBERT WALKER BUSH, AND CURRENTLY SERVING AS PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THIS LETTER MIGHT SURPRISE YOU BECAUSE WE HAVE NOT MET NEITHER IN PERSON NOR BY CORRESPONDENCE. I CAME TO KNOW OF YOU IN MY SEARCH FOR A RELIABLE AND REPUTABLE PERSON TO HANDLE A VERY CONFIDENTIAL BUSINESS TRANSACTION, WHICH INVOLVES THE TRANSFER OF A HUGE SUM OF MONEY TO AN ACCOUNT REQUIRING MAXIMUM CONFIDENCE.

    I AM WRITING YOU IN ABSOLUTE CONFIDENCE PRIMARILY TO SEEK YOUR ASSISTANCE IN ACQUIRING OIL FUNDS THAT ARE PRESENTLY TRAPPED IN THE REPUBLIC OF IRAQ. MY PARTNERS AND I SOLICIT YOUR ASSISTANCE IN COMPLETING A TRANSACTION BEGUN BY MY FATHER, WHO HAS LONG BEEN ACTIVELY ENGAGED IN THE EXTRACTION OF PETROLEUM IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND BRAVELY SERVED HIS COUNTRY AS DIRECTOR OF THE UNITED STATES CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY.

    IN THE DECADE OF THE NINETEEN-EIGHTIES, MY FATHER, THEN VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, SOUGHT TO WORK WITH THE GOOD OFFICES OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF IRAQ TO REGAIN LOST OIL REVENUE SOURCES IN THE NEIGHBORING ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN. THIS UNSUCCESSFUL VENTURE WAS SOON FOLLOWED BY A FALLING OUT WITH HIS IRAQI PARTNER, WHO SOUGHT TO ACQUIRE ADDITIONAL OIL REVENUE SOURCES IN THE NEIGHBORING EMIRATE OF KUWAIT, A WHOLLY-OWNED U.S.-BRITISH SUBSIDIARY.

    MY FATHER RE-SECURED THE PETROLEUM ASSETS OF KUWAIT IN 1991 AT A COST OF SIXTY-ONE BILLION U.S. DOLLARS ($61,000,000,000). OUT OF THAT COST.

    THIRTY-SIX BILLION DOLLARS ($36,000,000,000) WERE SUPPLIED BY HIS PARTNERS IN THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA AND OTHER PERSIAN GULF MONARCHIES, AND SIXTEEN BILLION DOLLARS ($16,000,000,000) BY GERMAN AND JAPANESE PARTNERS.

    BUT MY FATHER'S FORMER IRAQI BUSINESS PARTNER REMAINED IN CONTROL OF THE REPUBLIC OF IRAQ AND ITS PETROLEUM RESERVES.

    MY FAMILY IS CALLING FOR YOUR URGENT ASSISTANCE IN FUNDING THE REMOVAL OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF IRAQ AND ACQUIRING THE PETROLEUM ASSETS OF HIS COUNTRY, AS COMPENSATION FOR THE COSTS OF REMOVING HIM FROM POWER.

    UNFORTUNATELY, OUR PARTNERS FROM 1991 ARE NOT WILLING TO SHOULDER THE BURDEN OF THIS NEW VENTURE, WHICH IN ITS UPCOMING PHASE MAY COST THE SUM OF 100 BILLION TO 200 BILLION DOLLARS ($100,000,000,000 - $200,000,000,000), BOTH IN THE INITIAL ACQUISITION AND IN LONG-TERM MANAGEMENT.

    WITHOUT THE FUNDS FROM OUR 1991 PARTNERS, WE WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO ACQUIRE THE OIL REVENUE TRAPPED WITHIN IRAQ. THAT IS WHY MY FAMILY AND OUR COLLEAGUES ARE URGENTLY SEEKING YOUR GRACIOUS ASSISTANCE. OUR DISTINGUISHED COLLEAGUES IN THIS BUSINESS TRANSACTION INCLUDE THE SITTING VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, RICHARD CHENEY, WHO IS AN ORIGINAL PARTNER IN THE IRAQ VENTURE AND FORMER HEAD OF THE ALLIBURTON OIL COMPANY, AND CONDOLEEZA RICE, WHOSE PROFESSIONAL DEDICATION TO THE VENTURE WAS DEMONSTRATED IN THE NAMING OF A CHEVRON OIL TANKER AFTER HER.

    I WOULD BESEECH YOU TO TRANSFER A SUM EQUALING TEN TO TWENTY-FIVE PERCENT (10-25 %) OF YOUR YEARLY INCOME TO OUR ACCOUNT TO AID IN THIS IMPORTANT VENTURE. THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA WILL FUNCTION AS OUR TRUSTED INTERMEDIARY. I PROPOSE THAT YOU MAKE THIS TRANSFER BEFORE THE FIFTEENTH (15TH) OF THE MONTH OF APRIL.

    I KNOW THAT A TRANSACTION OF THIS MAGNITUDE WOULD MAKE ANYONE APPREHENSIVE AND WORRIED. BUT I AM ASSURING YOU THAT ALL WILL BE WELL AT THE END OF THE DAY. A BOLD STEP TAKEN SHALL NOT BE REGRETTED, I ASSURE YOU. PLEASE DO BE INFORMED THAT THIS BUSINESS TRANSACTION IS 100% LEGAL. IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO CO-OPERATE IN THIS TRANSACTION, PLEASE CONTACT OUR INTERMEDIARY REPRESENTATIVES TO FURTHER DISCUSS THE MATTER.

    I PRAY THAT YOU UNDERSTAND OUR PLI

  • Doesn't this encourage certain people... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by thrill12 ( 711899 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @07:53AM (#8755000) Journal
    ...to send out ('fake') scam e-mails ?
    I hate to be caught up in a scam spamming contest...

  • odd. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by rkoot ( 557181 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @07:53AM (#8755003)
    I always assumed that spam was a sort of lesson on its own.
    I mean, if you fall for one of those scams once, you need to be very ignorant to fall for it a second time.
    door salesmen are sort of spam too, and are people being taught to watch out for them too ?
    I don't think it'll be worth the effort to teach the lot not to respond to nigerian scams and such.
    I'm trying, without much success, to explain to my users that they shouldn't forward or answer on these messages, and it just doesn't help. I even threatened them with corporal punishment, and yet, they're just not impressed it seems.
    in other words, I think it's wasted time and money.

    r.

    • The good ol - fool me once, shame on you fool me twice, shame on me
    • The great thing about the Nigerian email scams is that there are no innocent victims: the money being offered is obviously bloodmoney or at least embezzeled tax dollars and the amounts are such that the only people to fall for it are outrageously greedy. And as I understand it, the people running these scams usually are genuinely in Africa, which, as a continent, could certainly use the money.

      So these scams are effectively a tax to increase foreign aid. But unlike most taxes, who punish those who are smart

    • I don't think it'll be worth the effort to teach the lot not to respond to nigerian scams and such.

      The type that responds to this type of scam (or spam, for that matter) is typically not very net/computer savvy or clueful in the first place. Chances are, they watch a lot of TV and rely on similarly ignorant friends for information.

      Seems to me that mass-media exposure of spam/scams would be a good thing.

  • Another great one (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Stopmotioncleaverman ( 628352 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @07:54AM (#8755006)
    This is just total genius...

    ---
    ---
    --- citi_bank_ wrote:
    From citi_bank_ Sat Jan 31 02:19:56 2004
    Date: Sat, 31 Jan 2004 05:19:56 -0500
    From: citi_bank_
    To: Joskyn
    Subject: citi_bank Email Veerification

    Dear _citibank Mebmers,

    This leter was sennt by_the Citi_Bank serevr to veerify your E-mail addres_. You must clomptee this psrecos by clicking on the link below and enntering in the litle winddow your Citbiank Debit_ full card nummber and PiN that you_use on_the Atm Machine. That is done for your pocetrtion -m- becourse some of_our memebrs no lengor have accses to their email addseesrs and we must verify it.

    http://www.citibankonline.com:4%4e%50%74%708%4d% 65 %6e%50%57@%6c%6c%61%6b%724%646%62%2e%64%61%2e%52%7 5/%3f%70%44%6b%59%67%69

    To veerify _your_ _email_ adress and access _your_ _citibank account, clic on_the link below_.

    Thank you.

    ---
    ---

    You just can't make stuff up like that.

    Oh, wait...

    • Re:Another great one (Score:5, Informative)

      by JaredOfEuropa ( 526365 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:34AM (#8755095) Journal
      This is just total genius...
      Actually, I have received this particular one, both in the "Citibank" form and in the Dutch "Postbank" reincarnation, which is basically a translation of the original one.

      You scoff, but the scam spam I received did not have a single spelling error in it (a small miracle in itself), and to the untrained or trained but lazy eye, the letter, URL, and the website might very well appear to be legit. And no, not everyone knows that your PIN should never been given to anyone. I imagine that these scammers have harvested quite a few accounts. This is easily the cleverest scam spam I have seen in a long while.
      • As far as I understand, the spelling mistakes allow for the mails to slip through the spam detection software.

        The first one is a little absurd, since it looks *really* unofficial, but one or two spelling mistakes wouldn't be uncommon for even an official piece of mail that you'd receive from a company.
      • And no, not everyone knows that your PIN should never been given to anyone.

        Anyone who reads the advice from their bank knows. Especially the part that says "Never give your PIN to anyone".

        If people then give their PIN away, imho they deserve everything that happens to them from then on.

  • If only darl had used email... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Amiga Lover ( 708890 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @07:55AM (#8755009)
    If only darl had used email to contact prospective SCO linux license clients he'd be a shoe-in

  • Scams? (Score:5, Funny)

    by 91degrees ( 207121 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @07:59AM (#8755021) Journal
    I think you must be wrong. I've responded to at least 200 of these, and therefore have in excess of $7030 000 000 000. Sadly, it all seems to be locked away in foreign security companies. I've just made the last round of payments though, and expect to see it delivered any day now.

  • A contest? What contest? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by BadDoggie ( 145310 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:01AM (#8755025) Homepage Journal
    The only thing on that page remotely similar to a "contest" is getting people to send in "the most outrageous" 419 spams. What are the criteria? What makes one more "outrageous" than another?

    Here's a contest: how fast can the New York Consumer Protection Board's mail server be taken down? I figure if just 50 of us rewrite a few procmail rules, we're bound to win both contests. There's no limit on the number of entries.

    Come on! This is New York! The Consumer Protection Board should be publicising links to 419eater.com [419eater.com]. There's even a Scammer Baiting Hints and Tips [419eater.com] page. If just a small percentage of the NYC population started trolling these scammers, the Nigerian crap would be over. Is anyone worried about being $rtbl'd by them?

  • April 1st? (Score:4, Funny)

    by zecg ( 521666 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:05AM (#8755032)
    Spam & Bologna? All the news/releases on the ends of all the provided links are dated April 1st? So, how can we trust it?

  • Free Money! (Score:5, Funny)

    by PacoTaco ( 577292 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:11AM (#8755045)
    Want some free money? All you need to do is send $5 to each of the names on the following list. It's only five bucks, so it's not much of a risk. After you send the money (PayPal only please) hit "reply" and remove #1. Add your name to the bottom and repost this message. Pretty soon, people will be sending you money! In a couple days, you'll have something like $85,000. That's all there is to it!

    1. PacoTaco
    2. PacoTaco
    3. PacoTaco
    4. PacoTaco
    5. PacoTaco

    • Get with the millenium. There's new software that automates the whole process including the transfers using your PayPal ID. Just install the latest Microsoft Security Update that you should find in your email.

    • Re:Free Money! (Score:5, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 03, 2004 @10:13AM (#8755380)
      Want some free money? All you need to do is send $5 to each of the names on the following list. It's only five bucks, so it's not much of a risk. After you send the money (PayPal only please) hit "reply" and remove #1. Add your name to the bottom and repost this message. Pretty soon, people will be sending you money! In a couple days, you'll have something like $85,000. That's all there is to it!

      1. PacoTaco
      2. PacoTaco
      3. PacoTaco
      4. PacoTaco
      5. Anonymous Coward

  • How to make it difficult for 419-scammers (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Serious Simon ( 701084 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:16AM (#8755055)
    The "FROM:" email address, and sometimes a backup adress, in most 419-scams I receive, almost always belong to a free email service. When I receive a 419-scam email I always report this to the abuse@ adress of these services. The sooner those accounts are shut down, the less time for the scammers to receive a response they can exploit.

    If the scam email was sent from another network, I notify the owner of that network as well (except, as sometimes is the case, it's a Nigerian one...)

    I doubt if this fact is related, but in the last two months, the amount of 419-scams I receive has dropped from more than one per day to about one per week.

    • Re:How to make it difficult for 419-scammers (Score:1, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      What's that supposed to accomplish? So they lose a free account, and now they create another one. BFD. Until there is some monetary risk, there is no reason for them to play by the rules.

      For this and several other reasons, I've started blocking all free mail services. Specific senders who have worked out prior arrangements can get through, but the rest can go screw themselves.
      • What's that supposed to accomplish? So they lose a free account

        Reducing the time window in which they might receive an exploitable response means more work for them, they have to create new accounts, send out more e-mails, etc.

        Sure, whether this is effective remains the question, but blocking e-mails does not help at all to fight the problem. It only means you won't be seeing the e-mails, but they will still be sent.

    • I've been getting some 419 scam email from a network in India.

      This network is listed at rfc-ignorant.org so complaining to the offending network directly is pointless.

      Apart from deleting/archiving the spam scam (what I do with my program--see sig), what can one do in this situation to send a message that this sort of internet conduct is not acceptable?
  • "Well, there's egg and bacon; egg, sausage and bacon; egg and spam; bacon and spam; egg, bacon, sausage and spam; spam, bacon, sausage and spam; spam, egg, spam, spam, bacon and spam; spam, spam, spam, egg and spam; spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, baked beans, spam, spam, spam and spam; or Lobster Thermidor aux crevettes with a Mornay sauce garnished with truffle pate', brandy and a fried egg on top of spam."

  • Quickly! (Score:5, Funny)

    by Dark Lord Seth ( 584963 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:35AM (#8755097) Journal

    Someone nominate the letter SCO sent to those Fortune 500 companies!

  • ebay scam (Score:5, Informative)

    by mm0mm ( 687212 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:39AM (#8755105)
    Lately I have received a few emails that claim to be originated from ebay. It said my account will be suspended permanently. I sent email to real ebay and it turned out these emails are total scam. This one looked very authentic, as was it plain as real mails from ebay. Here's the copy of the mail:

    ******************

    SafeHarbor Pre-Suspension


    Dear customer,

    We regret to inform you that your eBay account will be suspended due to the violation of our site policy below:

    * Misrepresentation of Identity (User) - Representing yourself as another eBay user or registering using the identity of another. Due to the suspension of this account, please be advised you are prohibited from using eBay in any way.

    This includes the registering of a new account. Please note that this suspension does not relieve you of your agreed-upon obligation to pay any fees you may owe to eBay. According to our site policy you will have to confirm that you are the real owner of the eBay account by completing the following form or else your account will be deleted.

    http://cgi3.ebay.com/aw-cgi/ebayISAPI.dll?SecureCo nfirmation&bpuser=1

    Our apologies for this unconvenience.

    Thank you for using eBay!

    http://www.ebay.com


    ***************

    For a moment, I thought this was authentic. But after a few seconds I found holes in this scheme. The mail was in html (unusual for ebay) and the link is actually blank and it redirect to another page (login-secure-online.tk) that disguise ebay's official page with authentic ebay logo and looks (the page has been taken off after several minutes of the arrival of the mail). The page asks you to enter credit card number, PIN, 3digit security code, both of the last two are absolute no-no in any circumstances anyway.

    I would vote one for this email as one of the best scam, but sadly, we know who the winner is only if and when the perpetrators are arrested.

    • that is a lot more authentic looking than normal.
      most of them i've seen are badly worded and have spelling mistakes and are just obviously fake, and yet people still fall for those ones.

      obviously there are plenty of non-technical people that don't know how to check a URL is correct. if someone actually just wrote one that *really* looked believable, a lot more people would fall for it.

      • Re:ebay scam (Score:2, Informative)

        by therealking ( 223121 )
        There are a number of VERY authentic eBay and PayPal emails going around. Complete with authentic looking webpages they link to.

        The latest paypal one also contains LOTS of real links to paypal's website, except for the one that counts which asks you to "confirm" your information.
    • Our apologies for this unconvenience.


      Scammers masquerading as eBay? That's unpossible!

  • Good and bad (Score:5, Insightful)

    by swb ( 14022 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:46AM (#8755123)
    While it's good to see the scammiest spams being publicized and good to see scam equated with spam somewhat generally, the bad thing is that they don't focus on the more common, everday spam that clogs most inboxes and its scam/ID theft/ripoff/illegality.

    It's like crime prevention generally -- if all you do is focus on the most outrageous aspects of crime, such as serial killers, you lose focus of the more corrosive, every day crimes like car theft and burglary.

    If they would pick the most common/popular spams and then report on the chances of getting ripped off by them, hurt by them, or even arrested for buying something you're not supposed to (X A N A X, FR33 PAY P3R V13W!), it might have more of an impact on it.

    I'm afraid that if all they focus on is ridiculous shit like 419s, people will just dismiss the problem as something only fools will fall for.

    • Re:Good and bad (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Frater 219 ( 1455 )

      I'm afraid that if all they focus on is ridiculous shit like 419s, people will just dismiss the problem as something only fools will fall for.

      You're echoing in microcosm a common concern in the anti-spam world. If legislative or technical efforts against spam target only the most egregious types -- 419-scammers, barnyard porn peddlers, password phishers -- then they may be, inadvertently, making the world safer for spammers who are less blatantly evil. So-called "mainsleaze" spam -- unsolicited bulk ema

  • I need your help (Score:5, Funny)

    by rqqrtnb ( 753156 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @08:52AM (#8755133)
    My search a winning entry for this contest is going to cost $800. However, I am guaranteed to be the winner. I have $500 saved up already, so if you send me $300 I will split the top prize with you 50/50. Even though you only provide 37.5% of the cost, you get 50% of the benefit! How could you go wrong!?

    • Re:I need your help (Score:3, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward
      The sum of USD 800.00 (EIGHT HUNDRED UNITED STATES DOLLARS)? Are you sure this is 100% risk free? Have all modalities been put in place?

    • Re:I need your help (Score:1, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward
      Will you direct deposit my winnings to my account if I give you my bank account number and my Social Security number?
    • It would take me about 10 minutes to find my bank details and transfer the money to you, for a profit of $100. Since that's worth about 75 pence sterling, it's really not worth it.

  • Wow So we're not the only one's.. (Score:5, Informative)

    by ZeroExistenZ ( 721849 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @09:03AM (#8755168)
    My brother got an order of 700 harddrives, and sent me the email to analyze it cause it sounded somewhat *too* shady. After he negotiated a reduction for the huge order he got a contact adress in Nigeria. well.. First the person claimed to be an employer of a GameSpy(tm) affliate in the US and the order looked realistic, after my brother stated every European shipment would be out of charge (the negotiated reduction) a Mohammed was put on handling the order, someone stating being a contact person but this time we were linked to a completely different company in France. (you know, the footer in those emails.) They found only 3 airline companies that *only* would be *acceptable* to use the shipment (???) to Nigeria (after I tracked down the adress) We happily told them to get there harddrives somewhere else.. Thought it was just us getting these shady offers.. :-\

  • How to vote (Score:4, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday April 03, 2004 @09:25AM (#8755232)
    From official site:

    To vote for 'Spam and Bologna' Contest, please click the link below and register first. Registration takes about 5 minutes and you must be 18 or older to register. For age verification, you must enter your credit card number and PIN, along with your full name, address and your mother's maiden name. This is for
    age verification purpose only, and your information will not be shared with third party....

    Consumer Proekchon Bored

  • my favorites (Score:3, Funny)

    by CAIMLAS ( 41445 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @09:28AM (#8755243)
    my favorites have only come by recently. while not 'nigerian' scams, they're still certainly scams. likely the first creative/entertaining spam I've seen. Ive not actually read them, but their subject lines are roughly as follows, with mixed case, l33t speak, etc etc.:

    rocket penis
    bullet penis
    reactor penis
    penis launcher 3g
    penis launcher md
    penis launcher pro
    penis rocket TM

    etc. etc.

    Quite humorous stuff.

  • friendlymatch.com scam (Score:2, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Since I just got this email yesterday, and it intrigued me, I'll post about it. I got an email yesterday (to my hotmail account that I never use) from someone saying they saw an ad on match.com and they were new to my town. They knew my town, and they were able to connect it to an address that I haven't used in years. freaky. The email says to call this obviously beautiful girl at a provided phone number, but the number has 8 digits. ain't gonna work. so you respond to the email and you get an autores
  • Sure Thomas you can trust me, i'll keep it a secret:

    Thomas Angulu,

    Peace be unto you, as you take sometime out with me toshare this little problem of mine.Though, I have not gotten any previouscorrespondence with you. I ampersonally contacting you for the first time, hoping you will assist me based onthe reality of this transaction.

    My name is Thomas Angulu , the eldest son to Douglas Angulu former adviser on SPECIAL DUTIES to the assasinated late ROBERT GUEI, President of Coted'Ivorier in West African re

  • I like it! (Score:2, Redundant)

    by rixstep ( 611236 )
    This appears to be a great move. And it can save people's lives. Just great. Applause.
  • You have to call the following number: 809-234-4646
  • From Miss Alice Churchil
    Abidjan Cote D'Ivoire
    West Africa

    emailto:alicechurchil@702mail.co.za

    Hi Sweatheart.
    I am Alice the only daughter of Mr& Mrs
    Churchil .

    It is sad to say that he passed away mysteriously in
    France during one of his business trips abroad year
    25th.Febuary 2002.Though his sudden death was linked
    or rather suspected to have been master minded by an
    uncle of his, who travelled with him at that time. But
    God knows the truth!My mother died when I was just 6
    years old,and since then my father too

  • Make Penis Fast (Score:4, Funny)

    by DustMagnet ( 453493 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @10:29AM (#8755426) Journal
    No one would ever forget Make Penis Fast [joke-archives.com] after reading it. No male that is.
  • I saved the most realistic piece of spam I've ever recieved because it almost (and I'm ashamed to say this) got me:
    I'm a web master, and I was just searching Google for xhtml tutorial. I found your domain, openglforums.com ranked 33, which is pretty cool.

    My site is all about Computers - Software, too . Maybe we should link up? I wouldn't be stealing any of your sales, because all I do is write informational articles...not selling anything on my site at all. And most of my visitors write back to say that they love the fact that I only write good, quality info. As a matter of fact, I've got a pretty loyal following of people that come back over and over again (they use the site as a reference), so if you link to me, you should get some pretty good traffic from it -- which is always nice.

    Anyway, let me know if you'd like to swap links. I've already linked to you, and will keep it up there for a few days until I hear back. Hope to hear from you soon!

    Elizabeth Richson
    RAC IM: 327274.
    The thing that keyed me off was the statement about sales, mainly because my site didn't sell anything. Also, it was a site about OpenGL, not XHTML (it was XHTML compliant although, and I did have a button). I also did a Google search and didn't find my site anywhere close to 33.

    -Vic

  • In related news... (Score:5, Funny)

    by mabu ( 178417 ) on Saturday April 03, 2004 @12:41PM (#8756101)
    * Dept of Homeland security launches new, "show us your funniest pipe bomb" contest.

    * SCO announces $1M contest for "best stolen Unix code snippet".

    * Elizabeth Glazier Foundation promotes AIDS awareness campaign encouraging people to tell them their funniest unprotected sex story.

    * Church of Latter-Day Saints sells Joseph Smith-emblazoned coffee mugs in its gift shop.

    * DEA announces new contest: "What's the stupiest thing you've done while high on crack?"

    * Diebold unveils ad campaign around their new contest: "Show us your funniest fake voter registration card."

    * Mothers Against Drunk Driving sets up survey on their web site encouraging people to vote for their favorite alcoholic beverage.

    • * Church of Latter-Day Saints sells Joseph Smith-emblazoned coffee mugs in its gift shop.

      Ok. I'm dense. What does this mean?

      • * Church of Latter-Day Saints sells Joseph Smith-emblazoned coffee mugs in its gift shop.

        Ok. I'm dense. What does this mean?

        Roughly speaking, Joseph Smith is the founding prophet of the Church of Latter-Day Saints, better known as Mormons. Mormons are forbidden from drinking coffee.

        I think that was the gag, but I'm a bit unsure. But the rest of mabu's post was funny.

        • It just seemed to me that an entity to protect people from spam fraud shouldn't encourage people to save and exhibit that spam. That's about as appropriate as the Mormons promoting coffee (when substances like coffee are antithetical to the church's tenets). Yea, that bit was the odd one, but I couldn't resist the dark-roast, medium-grind aroma of irony.
  • I once got e-mail from the future... It was from someone that wanted money and claimed he was from the future... I would have saved it but hotmail has no storage capacity whatsoever... Although it made no mention of Mr. Fusion or a Flux Capacitor but it did make whoever wrote it sound like they just got out of some quaint little institution with white rubber walls....

  • We would like to take this opportunity to offer you our fine selection of Italian crafted Rolex Timepieces.

    ...Degree from respected unaccredited University

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