A cruel scam or for real?

[Fran]

I am a bit concerned about a friend of mine who is well known in Caithness , I wont say more, who i have received emails from saying she is in Contonou, Benin (I think this is Africa), and that she has been mugged and the hotel wont give her belongings and passport etc till she pays the bill so that she can fly home. She has asked me for £1,700 which she will pay when she gets home but no address to send it to. There is no reply from her mobile or her home phone in Caithness.
I am quite worried now. Is this some sort of scam or is it for real.? Have any of you had similar experience?

[Sandra_B]

I have heard of such a scam.

[Allsorts]

I have had the same email too Fran and I think its a scam, after all how would she have all our email addy's with her for a start. I am assuming that someone has managed to get hold of all her email addy's. She would have been out all day today as usual. They want you to pay the money to western union, which was in a scam I know about, that's what made me think this was a scam as well.

[Tubthumper]

Unless you can think of a good reason why your friend would be in Benin, I would steer well clear. Not an expert but it sounds like a scam to me, like someone's got hold of her mailing list.

[dragonfly]

I;ve had that same email Fran - would the first name begin with C?

[dragonfly]

I have had the same email too Fran and I think its a scam, after all how would she have all our email addy's with her for a start. I am assuming that someone has managed to get hold of all her email addy's. She would have been out all day today as usual.

its same person then! yes its a scam, probably got a virus on her email thats sent the email to all in her address book

[Kevin Milkins]

I think you might want to hold fire on that one one, Fran.

There was a copy cat type scam going on in London a little while ago, but can't remember the details or were I read about it.

[cuddlepop]

If in doubt do nout,works for me.

[oldmarine]

Sounds like it could be a scam. There are all kind of scams. Yesterday, I received a notice from someone who wanted to sell me an anti-virus program with the information that my computer had 4 different viruses on it. They kept trying over and over again and again to sell me their anti-virus program. I already have sufficient anti-virus protection. I checked it out with my ISP and they replied that there are some unscroupulous ones out there on the internet trying to sell their programs in that manner. I have a firewall and did find that it blocked 4 different viruses trying to get into my computer. I am not a computer expert, but I am a very suspicious person.

[carasmam]

It is a scam. Someone hacked her email account and she is gutted.
She sends her apologies, even though it isn't her fault, to everyone that got the email.

[Phill]

There are a few of these kind of things going about, a virus/trojan affecting the likes of Hotmail accounts.

[carasmam]

There are a few of these kind of things going about, a virus/trojan affecting the likes of Hotmail accounts.

I'd heard of the hotmail accounts being hacked, but this person was yahoo, so was quite surprised.

[toodiemac]

I got one as well, and I was just about to reply to let her know she had perhaps been hacked into, when I noticed the spelling of the surname - two t's instead of one.

The grammar was so poor as well, it was obvious as a scam. Not a nice thing to happen though.

[Fran]

I was so pleased to speak to her by phone at her home and know she is ok. what a cruel scam. i too had noticed there were 2 extra letters in her name instead of the 1.ThANKYOU to you all for your replies.

[DanaFlett]

I got the same e-mail,just ignore it.

[M R]

Thes kind of people recieve nice emails in return from me........ I lure them into thinking i am suckered, and then treat them to a nice attachment in form of a screenshot (to prove i have sent them money). Pro active i like to think.

Glad you lot didn't get sucked in.

As said above, one of the 1st give aways, is the terrible grammer.

Gumtree is targeted by lots of these scammers also. beware.

[achingale]

Fran, thanks for sharing that with us. What a horrible thing to happen to you and to all the others, but the Org is a great place for these kinds of warnings.

[Phill]

http://www.scambuster419.co.uk/


Some of these tales had me in stitches.

I had my business number briefly hijacked by these types, ended up with people from Pakistan trying to fax me their details in the belief they would be getting billions in return.

[poppett]

Similar scam happened a few months ago using one of my dad`s carers as the supposedly mugged person, but she was with him when the email came, so they knew it was a scam, but some other friends were taken in by it.

[Dog-eared]

Next time you get an email from a friend in trouble in deepest Africa, or anywhere else, first ask yourself "Are they really there ?"
Friends dont just dissapear off to funny destinations.
I can see your concern, though.
Lots of scams about like this.
If its out of the ordinary, check - as you did .