Scam Alert !

[Kerryd]

Warning !

There is a new 419 scam going around, that starts with a text message on your telephone. The one I received said I had won $500,000 USD and to send my email address in a return SMS message (or send an email to the address included in the text mesage).

I did that using an email account that I use as a "spam catcher", and received a response this morning.

"Dear winner ,

Congratulations from me and members of the HrvatskaLutrija Lotto staff,for being among the lucky winners in our annual mobile phones lottery promotion.

I am the agent assigned to handle your prize money documentations and money transfer.

The HrvatskaLutrija mobile phones lottery promotion is held annually and is organized by HrvatskaLutrija Lotto in collaboration with various mobile phone operators around the world,to reward mobile phone users around the world.

Your lottery application was applied and processed by our phone numbers extracting and balloting machine,which randomly extracts and screens millions of phone numbers from mobile phone networks around the world.Please note that there were no tickets sellouts in the lottery promotion,all our past and present winners were selected randomly through the phone numbers extracting and balloting machine.

You are the 2nd among our 20 lucky winners and you have therefore been awarded a huge amount of : $ USD 500,000 ( Five-Hundred Thousand United States Dollars ).Your winning number is :

xxxxxxxx

and your serial number is :

xxxxxxxxx

..In this regards,you are advised to forward the following requirements urgently by email scanning attachments to this email-box,for faster processing,to enable us begin the processing of your prize money transfer:

(1.)4 recent passport photographs.

(2.)Acceptance fee payment receipt : $ USD 500 ( Five-hundred U.S Dollars ) This fee should be paid to HrvatskaLutrija Lotto through western union money transfer,addressed to the name of the HrvatskaLutrija Lotto second secretary : PATRICK ASSANA MIZELE in BANGKOK THAILAND.

(3.)Complete the attached claims form.Once we receive the above requirements from you,your prize money will be transferred to you within 24 hours.Awaiting your reply.

Mr Kena BiaHrvatskaLutrija Lotto zonal office Bangkok Thailand

Phone : +66851526290"

Note that the Hrvatska Lutrija Lotto is the official lottery organization of Croatia. Their website makes no mention of any mobile phone lotteries (good thing we have a number of Bosnian employees here !).

The "attached claims form" to be filled out, is actually a .jpg picture ! It uses the Hrvatska Lutrija Lotto logo and "lady bug" images, but it's not a form, it's a PICTURE of a form !

I have forwarded the email to the 419scam.org group. I'm thinking I should send it to the Thai Police as well, as this scam is obviously being run out of Thailand.

Like the old saying goes, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is !

Important Note: I researched Mizele's name and found that it comes up in another scam, worded almost identically, but for a "Green Card" (US Visa) lottery scam.

CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR U.S LOTTERY VISA

Edited June 20, 2008 by Kerryd

[britmaveric]

Well bit obvious, but never the less good to remind people of stupid ploys.

[jimmi]

Rule of thumb, If it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't, but thanks for the warning.

[Kerryd]

Well bit obvious, but never the less good to remind people of stupid ploys.

Hey britmaveric ! Lend me $500 would ya, buddy !

When the 500k is deposited in my account, I'll pay you back $550. That's an easy 50 bucks for you. They say the money will be in my account within 24 hours after I send them the "Acceptance Fee". I'll even buy you a beer at Jenny's on your next trip over !

[PhilHarries]

Rule of thumb, If it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't, but thanks for the warning.

Absolutely!

One of my top ten rules of life inherited from my father. One of these days I'm going to ignore a real message of good fortune and lose a wedge but that will be peanuts compared to what I could have lost to all the scammers.

btw I agree with CS's comment re Nigerian, the name sounds right for emanating from that enema receptacle of a country.

[Cuban]

We wise educated western folk exposed to many such email scams would(?) be on guard when such a SMS arrives, maybe not true of some of our Thai partners and their families. I need to have a chat when I get home later.

That said, my OH is already call screening the "...please press 1 to accept the charges from caller X..."

The first question in my mind would be - how did the sender of the SMS know that your mobile number is owned by an English speaking person?

If it was a wider broadcast would Thai owned phones not already be getting these messages?

What was the exact wording of the first SMS?

[wilko]

Ah, but when I get my winnings you'll all be laughing on the other side of your faces.............won't you? .... duh!

Edited June 21, 2008 by wilko

[britmaveric]

Well bit obvious, but never the less good to remind people of stupid ploys.

Hey britmaveric ! Lend me $500 would ya, buddy !

When the 500k is deposited in my account, I'll pay you back $550. That's an easy 50 bucks for you. They say the money will be in my account within 24 hours after I send them the "Acceptance Fee". I'll even buy you a beer at Jenny's on your next trip over !

No problem mate, let me send you all my credit card details, bank information with passwords so you can assist me in making the extra dosh. Great deal!!

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Well bit obvious, but never the less good to remind people of stupid ploys.

Hey britmaveric ! Lend me $500 would ya, buddy !

When the 500k is deposited in my account, I'll pay you back $550. That's an easy 50 bucks for you. They say the money will be in my account within 24 hours after I send them the "Acceptance Fee". I'll even buy you a beer at Jenny's on your next trip over !

No problem mate, let me send you all my credit card details, bank information with passwords so you can assist me in making the extra dosh. Great deal!!

Have I got a deal for you Brit. The Oz Government wants to sell off the Harbour Bridge. If you are a starter send a 1000 quid off to George ( by way of registration fee )

[Kerryd]

I've been leading this guy along, trying to see how far he'll go before catching on that I'm not going to pay the "acceptance fee". I sent an email asking of the fee could be deducted from my "winnings" and the balance deposited in my account.

His reply was:

"Attn , If the acceptance fee can be deducted from your prize money,we would not have asked you to pay the fee.Due to the HrvatskaLutrija lotto insurance policy,your prize money has been insured to its original value,so the fee can not be deducted from your prize money.I advice you to send the fee today,to enable us transfer your prize money to you tomorrow."

I replied back that I didn't understand why the prize money had to be insured, as it would be electronically transferred to my account once the "fee" was paid. I also asked if I could pay the fee after the prize had been depsoited in my account, because I had no guarantee that it would be deposited after I paid the fee.

I then offered to go to their office in Bangkok and pay the money directly (I had told him earlier that I was in Pattaya).

His response was:

"Dear , I advice you to come to thailand and claim the prize money in person,you will need to book your air-ticket and

furnish us with your travel plans and arrangements,so that our office driver will pick you up at the airport upon your arrival in

thailand."

The first thing that popped into my mind was, how the <deleted> does he know I'm not in Thailand ? I told him I was in Pattaya

(when I asked him if the fee could be deducted from my winnings, as it would be easier than trying to find a Western Union office here in Pattaya).

(The original SMS was to my regular Thai cell #, and the email address I've been using to reply to him is just a generic account set up on my (personal) domain. Nothing that would suggest I'm not in the country, unless he reads Thai Visa as well ? Not likely or he wouldn't still be replying to me, especially after I mentioned contacting the local plod).

I noticed that he never answered my other question (about why the prize had to be insured), and never addressed my

concern that the money wouldn't get deposited after I paid the fee. I guess I'll just have to wait for britmaveric to furnish me with his financial information, then I can get the money for the fee and arrange to meet him (wonder what he'll say if I tell him I can't be there before 7 August ? Will they give my "prize" to someone else ?)

//edited for formatting. Colours and fonts keep coming out all whacked.

Edited June 21, 2008 by Kerryd

[BEENTHEREDONETHAT]

I've been leading this guy along, trying to see how far he'll go before catching on that I'm not going to pay the "acceptance fee". I sent an email asking of the fee could be deducted from my "winnings" and the balance deposited in my account.

His reply was:

"Attn , If the acceptance fee can be deducted from your prize money,we would not have asked you to pay the fee.Due to the HrvatskaLutrija lotto insurance policy,your prize money has been insured to its original value,so the fee can not be deducted from your prize money.I advice you to send the fee today,to enable us transfer your prize money to you tomorrow."

I replied back that I didn't understand why the prize money had to be insured, as it would be electronically transferred to my account once the "fee" was paid. I also asked if I could pay the fee after the prize had been depsoited in my account, because I had no guarantee that it would be deposited after I paid the fee.

I then offered to go to their office in Bangkok and pay the money directly (I had told him earlier that I was in Pattaya).

His response was:

"Dear , I advice you to come to thailand and claim the prize money in person,you will need to book your air-ticket and

furnish us with your travel plans and arrangements,so that our office driver will pick you up at the airport upon your arrival in

thailand."

The first thing that popped into my mind was, how the <deleted> does he know I'm not in Thailand ? I told him I was in Pattaya

(when I asked him if the fee could be deducted from my winnings, as it would be easier than trying to find a Western Union office here in Pattaya).

(The original SMS was to my regular Thai cell #, and the email address I've been using to reply to him is just a generic account set up on my (personal) domain. Nothing that would suggest I'm not in the country, unless he reads Thai Visa as well ? Not likely or he wouldn't still be replying to me, especially after I mentioned contacting the local plod).

I noticed that he never answered my other question (about why the prize had to be insured), and never addressed my

concern that the money wouldn't get deposited after I paid the fee. I guess I'll just have to wait for britmaveric to furnish me with his financial information, then I can get the money for the fee and arrange to meet him (wonder what he'll say if I tell him I can't be there before 7 August ? Will they give my "prize" to someone else ?)

//edited for formatting. Colours and fonts keep coming out all whacked.

I like the August 7 bit. Tell him the reason for the delay is your sick mother is in the hospital and you will have to get the $500 from her. But the $500,000 would even leave a little money after the Dr. and hospital were paid. But until the operation is over she is not able to sign her pension check for you to get the $500. That should be August 7th.

[toptuan]

Well bit obvious, but never the less good to remind people of stupid ploys.

Hey britmaveric ! Lend me $500 would ya, buddy !

When the 500k is deposited in my account, I'll pay you back $550. That's an easy 50 bucks for you. They say the money will be in my account within 24 hours after I send them the "Acceptance Fee". I'll even buy you a beer at Jenny's on your next trip over !

No problem mate, let me send you all my credit card details, bank information with passwords so you can assist me in making the extra dosh. Great deal!!

Have I got a deal for you Brit. The Oz Government wants to sell off the Harbour Bridge. If you are a starter send a 1000 quid off to George ( by way of registration fee )

And Brit, PM me for George's bank account number...I've got it!!!

[Kerryd]

The first question in my mind would be - how did the sender of the SMS know that your mobile number is owned by an English speaking person?

If it was a wider broadcast would Thai owned phones not already be getting these messages?

What was the exact wording of the first SMS?

I wondered about that as well, as only a few people even know my number. After researching a bit though (as I noted above), this guy has been trying other, similar scams, in English as well.

Could be many Thais are getting it, and simply deleting the strange messages written in Farang (like I delete the strange messages that show up on my work phone, written in Pashto (or Dari, or Farsi for all I know).

Here is the wording of the original SMS message as it appeared on my phone:

You won(500,000

USdollars)Contact(xxxxx

xxx*yahoo.com)Send

your email address by

sms text message

to(+xxxxxxxxxx)To get

information on how to

claim your money**

(I "x'd" out the email address and phone number, just in case someone decides to try and alert the scammer that we are aware of what he's doing. Other than that, that is exactly how the message looks).

It just dawned on me, this message came to my Afghani phone number (I left my Thai SIM card with a friend when I went back to work). That means there are even fewer people (in Thailand) that have this number (in fact, I think the g/f is the only one. I know she hasn't lost the SIM, as she sends me texts every 2-3 days using that SIM).

That and the fact he apparently knows I'm not in Thailand (after I dropped a subtle hint that I was), makes me wonder.

Lets see how he responds to the last email I sent to him (I told him I'd just drive up to Bangkok from Pattaya and drop in to their office, and asked him for the address and office hours).

[Guest Bellini]

...I advice you to come to Thailand

...how the <deleted> does he know I'm not in Thailand ? I told him I was in Pattaya

He doesn’t know that Pattaya is in Thailand. He thinks it’s the name of another country.

[Kerryd]

Well, I haven't received a response to the email I sent, offering to drive up to Bangkok (from Pattaya), if they would give the address of their office and their office hours.

No big surprise there I guess.

I've sent another email asking the same again. I suspect that I won't get a response. (Maybe they've seen the GOM thread and are worried that a throng of TV members would show up at their door ?).

I guess the next step is to ask my ISP to trace the email. I'm kind of curious as to the origin, especially seeing as who ever originated it knew my Afghani cell number, and knew I wasn't in Thailand. Almost sounds like it could be someone here in Kandahar (working with someone in Bangkok perhaps ?).

Not that's I'd suspect the one Nigerian we have with us right now (the other one is on holidays). Food for thought.......