US Treasury Nigerian 917 Scam Email

[doug]

I recently got this spam in my inbox from the 'US Treasury' .. sounds a lot like a nigerian 917 scam..

Dear Fellow American:

I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationship
with a transfer of funds of great magnitude.

I am Ministry of the Treasury of the Republic of America. My country
has had crisis that has caused the need for large transfer of funds of
700 billion dollars US. If you would assist me in this transfer, it
would be most profitable to you.

I am working with Mr. Phil Gram, lobbyist for UBS, who will be my
replacement as Ministry of the Treasury in January. As a Senator, you
may know him as the leader of the American banking deregulation
movement in the 1990s. This transactin is 100% safe.

This is a matter of great urgency. We need a blank check. We need the
funds as quickly as possible. We cannot directly transfer these funds
in the names of our close friends because we are constantly under
surveillance. My family lawyer advised me that I should look for a
reliable and trustworthy person who will act as a next of kin so the
funds can be transferred.

Please reply with all of your bank account, IRA and college fund
account numbers and those of your children and grandchildren to
wallstreetbailout@treasury.gov so that we may transfer your commission
for this transaction. After I receive that information, I will respond
with detailed information about safeguards that will be used to
protect the funds.

Yours Faithfully Minister of Treasury,

Hank Paulson

Hehe..

[RocketFoot]

I recently got this spam in my inbox from the 'US Treasury' .. sounds a lot like a nigerian 917 scam..



Hehe..

I can't think of one good thing that comes from Nigeria...and this sure ain't it either!

You know...I keep hearing about all these $100 laptops they want to give these 3rd world shit holes...this is the kind of results you get!

[Michele]

I got the exact same email.

I felt so bad that I was only able to send a check for 600 billion dollars.



I read it, I laughed and sent it to the trash.

[D-FENS]

I can't think of one good thing that comes from Nigeria...and this sure ain't it either!

You know...I keep hearing about all these $100 laptops they want to give these 3rd world shit holes...this is the kind of results you get!

Joke is here: <------------------->

Your head: ..............

[RandomTask]

"Minister of Treasury"... LOL
Email scam Rule #1: Get the job titles straight.

I got a similar email from "Merril-Lynch" today.

[RocketFoot]

Joke is here: <------------------->

Your head: ..............

I get it...I was just reiterating that so many of these scams do come from 3rd world countries like nigeria and they may get worse if we start giving them those cheap laptops! Just an inside poke at "The USA...helping the world help themselves!"

[HiredGoon]

Greedy bastards...not only do they want your bank account, IRA and college fund
account numbers and those of your children and grandchildren.

Wipe out several generations of life savings with a few keyboard strokes.

I cannot in my wildest imagination see anyone falling for these scams, but I guess some do

Michele, you should be ashamed of yourself... sending only $600 billion

[str8shooter]

Hysterical! If I collected all the money from my rich relatives in Nigeria who have been dying in plane crashes at an alarming rate, I might just have $700 billion in loose change.

[HiredGoon]

LOL...just found this. An experiment where a guy actually responded to one of these scams to see how it worked.

Here's an excerpt, it's kind of long to post here. For the full story and to see the final result, click on the above link.

Having received the initial email, silicon.com's Will Sturgeon set up a Hotmail account under an assumed identity, and replied.

Dear Madu Frank, Thank you very much for contacting me with this wonderful offer, it sounds almost too good to be true. It's amazing, only this morning I was saying how I could do with having a bit more money - I must be a very lucky man.

Of course I would be interested in helping, but would also be very interested to hear who recommended me, as you say you have been told that I am a "reliable" and "trustworthy" person. I assure you I am, but would like to know who I have to thank for this wonderful opportunity.

Just to clarify, you say I stand to get 30 per cent of the total money transferred - this is £6.75m, right? Wow!

I look forward to hearing from you.

Overnight a reply from Mr Madu arrived.

Thank you very much for finding time to reply to my mail. We have to begin this transaction fast, so that the fund will be in your account in about 14 banking days. First of all, you have to transcribe the letter below in to your letter headed paper, or plain paper, and send it back to me so that I will submit it to the INTERNATIONAL REMITANCE DEPARTMENT of the bank...

...I will require you to also send me your private telephone and fax numbers, I will submit this also to the bank, and they will contact you directly. When they contact you, I want you to act as the real beneficiary of the fund in question. Do not be intimidated by anybody. I will also want you to send me the front and back photocopy of your international passport or driver's licence, so that I will know who I am having a deal with. For further enquires on what you should do, call me immediately you receive this mail on my telephone number... I will be expecting your call.

[Ten*K]

i think the whole email is a joke. some spammer got it in his head to try and be funny about the current financial disaster, and this "email" is an attempt to make the thieves in our government look like the Nigerian scammers. a satirical parody, if you will.