Saturday, September 09, 2006

Internet Fraud Goes "Old School"


I've been informed by a couple of people that they have received letters, postmarked in Spain, which they believed to be associated with "my company", due to the expropriation of a logo from the ExpertLaw website:

The letter itself is one that most reading this have received by email - the representation that somebody who happens to share their surname died in Africa, and the law firm is so eager to find an heir for their multi-million dollar fortune that they'll give it to anybody who happens to have the same surname. (The letter I was sent was carefully personalized - the recipient identified as "Dear UHIRIG".)

The letter indicates that Mr. PETER UHIRIG and his wife were killed in the Madrid train bombings, for some reason leaving $14 million in the hands of Mr. Cook. If you know the drill, Mr. Cook has searched exhaustively for heirs, but can't find a one. So because you share the last name, you win the lottery!

I like how they even included the ® symbol - but can you really expect participants in advance fee fraud to extend a great deal of respect to intellectual property law? I doubt that there is truly a "Christopher Cook & Co Solicitors" in Madrid, and if there is I truly doubt that their email address is "barristercook@aim.com". If that's the case, perhaps Mr. Cook needs to devote some time to figuring out if he is a solicitor or a barrister.

6 comments:

  1. These letters (and emails and faxes) are so prevalent, it's hard to find a legal agency that wants to accept any type of report unless there has been an actual financial loss.

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  2. I cannot believe people actually fall for these! My "older" father called me the minute he got it (in the State of Nevada) and I immediately told him it was bogus. He still wanted me to check it out "just in case" so he sent the actually letter to me. When I found "Brenda's" post above, out letter was EXACTLY the same (except Peter "OURLASTNAME"). I called Dad and he was finally convinved it was bogus. Why can't the government go after them or something? Isn't that like mail fraud being that they used the USPS to deliver it??

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  3. Just received one myself - PETER mylastname. I'm being offered the entire 14 million dollars - '100% risk free'. Wow, hold me back. Who do these idiots think they're kidding?

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  4. HAD ONE MYSELF BUT THEY WANTED 1500 EUROS TO TRANFER THE MONEY INTO A ACCOUNT WHO DO THEY THINK WE ARE STUPID

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  5. I recived one yesterday with Peter then my last name I then thought I would send a email to them and recived one back saying I had to give 1500 euros to them for transfer fees. The thing is every one else on here lives in the US and i live in the UK so how many more people has he actully coned with this

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  6. i just recieved one today..similar but from Denisa Dorky (LLB/MBA) says a farmer/client wife and daughter died leaving 22 million and no heirs....left phone numbers and email address...where can we turn these in?

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