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Phony Check Scams
North America Millions Jackpot Lottery,
Andy William at 1-778-883-0173 or Johnny Miles 1-778-552-4593
xxx
Have you received an email from North America Millions Jackpot Lottery of saying "xxx", and that they will send you a check to deposit;
just contact Andy William at 1-778-883-0173 or Johnny Miles 1-778-552-4593?
It is an AFF / Money transfer Scam.
They'll send you counterfeit checks which you are supposed to deposit, take out
some percentage (typically, 10%) for your work, and then MoneyGram or Western
Union wire the remaining 90%. Notice that although you receive checks, they
won't let you forward a check to them, only Western Union or Money Gram. There's
a reason for this: Western Union and MoneyGrams are cashed immediately and are
untraceable and irretrievable. Bank checks can take 1 or 2 weeks to clear!
Of course, since the check is fake, it will bounce a week or so later after
you deposit it. But you have already moneygram'ed the scammers the 90% of
the amount, and that is transacted almost instantly. So you now owe the
bank for the full amount. You may also face criminal charges for passing
counterfeit checks. See
this page for a step-by-step explanation of how the scam unfolds.
Notice the passages in the actual scam email below.
They point out some of the additional clues that it is a scam, such as the email
comes from a free email account (such as Yahoo.com, Hotmail.com, Aim.com, Gmail,
cox.net, etc.). Wouldn't you expect a company to have its own website and
email address (after all, it only costs about $200/year; every reputable company
has its own website these days!) And don't be surprised if the scammers do put
the names of real companies, real websites and events in their scams; it doesn't
mean anything at all!
I have recived a letter, with a check enclosed. It says
that I have won the NORTH AMERICAN MILLIONS JACKPOT with the "lucky numbers"
01-08-11-27-33-45. My win is $250,000 and the enclosed check is $2,988.00 to pay
all the taxes. It also pressurs to collec my win in 30 days. The check certainly
does look real, however I can't be certain it is not a scam. It looks too good.
It ask me to call either Andy William at 1-778-883-0173 or Johnny Miles
1-778-552-4593. The head of the letter states "West Finacial Group". The head of
the check states "Linkvox Inc., 1205 John Reed Court, City of Industry, CA,
91745" and "Bank of the West, Rowland Heights, CA, 91748." I have been checking
the web for information on this scam, but had no luck with finding anything yet,
neither positve or negative.
Possibly "West Financial Group" also.
Quick Summary: What Can you Do?
You can check the name of the issuing bank on the check with the names of
banks that have reported stolen checks
and you can call the bank to
- verify that the account number on the check is legitimate and
- matches the name on the check and
- has sufficient funds.
You can go to this website and
verify the routing number on the check and get the bank's phone number, then
call the bank to verify that the account is real and the check is real.
If you believe you may have fallen victim to this type of scam and wish to
report it, please file a complaint
with the U.S. government
Internet Fraud Complaints
Center
Here is a
summary of this type of fraud, from the United States Postal Service
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