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Crime

The Five Nigerian Gangs Behind Most Craigslist Buyer Scams 160

itwbennett writes Five Nigerian criminal gangs are behind most scams targeting sellers on Craigslist, and they've taken new measures to make their swindles appear legitimate, according to a study by George Mason University researchers Damon McCoy and Jackie Jones. In a new innovation, they're using professional check-writing equipment plus U.S.-based accomplices to not raise suspicions among their victims. McCoy and Jones will present their paper on Sept. 24 at the IEEE eCrime Research Summit in Birmingham, Alabama.
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The Five Nigerian Gangs Behind Most Craigslist Buyer Scams

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  • by Ihlosi ( 895663 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @10:52AM (#47852997)
    ... is really old news. At least if you look at other parts of the world. These "agents" are duped into thinking they're involved in a legitimate business, and end up going to jail while the scammers laugh.
    • I wonder how much they are duped. I repeatedly see spam-ads in forums for "moneyrelative.com" except that isn't what it is. It's money ... ummm... something else.

      And the spam ads always look like somebody misplacing a comment from a completely different forum, "uhh, yeah, what kate said, it's amazing how you can earn yada yada dollars in only a month..."

      But they never say what you do for the money.

      Now, I *DO* earn yada yada dollars in a month, because I am drafting working drawings for real bridges that g

      • by Ihlosi ( 895663 )
        I wonder how much they are duped.

        Quite a bit. Most people haven't memorized money laundering laws.

        And unlike the jobs you mentioned, this kind of "financial courier" job leaves an electronic trail a mile wide to the "payment agent", with little to no chance of escaping arrest, trial and jail time. It's something only really clueless people would sign up for, and yes, they get duped into it.

        • Clueless people and greedy people. It's amazing how many people will do something they know is shady just because of the allure of the money they are promised.

      • by NoKaOi ( 1415755 )

        I wonder how much they are duped.

        It's not that hard for them to find a dupe. They blast out messages through email and Yahoo chat all the time from textile companies looking for "agents" in the US. They usually have some excuse about how they got your contact info. They blast out enough so the hit ratio can be minuscule. Not everyone is savvy about things related to technology. Most who fall for it are probably idiots, but even people who are intelligent in other things have fallen for it.

        The scam goes something like this: You're dupe

  • by NotSanguine ( 1917456 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @10:59AM (#47853089) Journal

    So, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

    If you've got some time on your hands, toddle over to 419 Eater [419eater.com] and get educated. If you have even more time on your hands, become a scam baiter.

    • A friend of mine has a game where he responds to the "free vacation" guys with just "yes" for every question. He then posts the results to his FB along with how long he managed to bait the faux-telemarketer, and what their last words were (usually profanity).

      Quite entertaining

  • by gameboyhippo ( 827141 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @11:00AM (#47853099) Journal

    When I list something on Craigslist, I only accept cash or debit. While not foolproof, cash can be checked for legitimacy with a counterfeit detector pen. And while cards can be stolen, checking their ID will stop most cases of fraud.

    • by Schezar ( 249629 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @11:10AM (#47853195) Homepage Journal

      cash can be checked for legitimacy with a counterfeit detector pen

      "Counterfeit detector pens" don't exist. They're just iodine: they have no special detection properties whatsoever.

      "Counterfeit pens are fairly accurate and save a lot of time, but they aren't foolproof. For instance, if the counterfeit is printed on paper with a low starch content, the pen won't detect it. If someone managed to steal a roll of unused currency paper and printed it themselves, the pen wouldn't detect it. If someone washed a $1 bill until the ink was gone and re-printed it as a $100 bill, the pen wouldn't detect it. All the pen really detects is whether the paper is made from wood pulp or an alternate, less starchy fiber."

      • I can tell from your comment that you're far more enlightened than us normal people. So while I find your explanation of why counterfeit pens don't work fascinating, I even more interested in your solution to this problem. If an old lady wants to buy shelves from me that I'm selling on Craigslist, how should I make that financial transaction?

        • by Artraze ( 600366 )

          The best way to do it is just look at the watermark and or security ribbon. That detects even washed and reprinted bills, though those are more the realm of, say, Russia than someone off the street. If you get a UV light, the security ribbon will fluoresce different colors depending on the bill. It's quicker than looking through the bill, but might not actually be as effective in the sun (I gather that the $100s are particularly troublesome to fluoresce/see).

        • How about stop using archaic old paper notes? Here in Australia we invented a plastic polymer for our currency which is next to impossible to counterfeit. It has transparent windows in it and holograms and all sorts of complicated stuff that only a govt would be able to reproduce. You can't rip it with bare hands and you can put in in washing machine and it comes out like new. American money by comparison is so primitive that it's laughable. Last time I was there on holiday it felt like I'd gone back in ti
  • the Nigerian 411 scammers is to simply give yourself the following test: "If it's too good to be true, it most definitely is." No one in their right is just going to wire several million dollars into your account in exchange for a small transaction fee. The best thing to do is just delete these emails. Or, if you feel intrepid, it might be fun to bait them along for a little bit.
    • by Anonymous Coward

      the Nigerian 411 scammers is to simply give yourself the following test: "If it's too good to be true, it most definitely is." No one in their right is just going to wire several million dollars into your account in exchange for a small transaction fee. The best thing to do is just delete these emails. Or, if you feel intrepid, it might be fun to bait them along for a little bit.

      411 is the telephone number for "information" in the US. You're thinking of 419 [419eater.com].

      Have a good day!

    • Re:One way to avoid (Score:5, Informative)

      by jfengel ( 409917 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @11:21AM (#47853311) Homepage Journal

      This isn't your usual 419 scam. They're not offering millions of dollars to suckers.

      What they're doing is buying stuff from Craigslist sellers with bogus checks that look awfully real. There's another step where they send a too-large check and ask for a partial refund. The checks are so good that they clear, and the fraud isn't discovered until weeks later, at which time your bank yanks the money back.

      There's still hints of the usual 419 stuff in there, but you don't have to be either gullible or greedy. You simply have to misunderstand the idiotic system under which checks are processed, which is most of us. The idea that a certified check could fail, a month after you deposited it, is baffling to the majority of people who think of a certified check as practically good as cash.

      The checking system is so screwed up that most sellers need to treat all checks with suspicion. But credit cards are expensive to process, and Paypal... is Paypal.

      • Re:One way to avoid (Score:5, Informative)

        by Peter Simpson ( 112887 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @12:26PM (#47854007)
        If the buyer is not able to meet in person (I don't care why), a US Postal Money order is available anywhere, up to $100 per m.o. If the buyer or his agent) wants to pick up in person, cold cash. If they can't or won't agree to either of the above payment methods, sorry, but I won't sell to them. I've never had a legitimate buyer unable to pay in one of those two ways, and everyone I've bought from on Ebay will accept a Postal MO.
        • by jfengel ( 409917 )

          The scam in this case involves more expensive items, in the $1,500 range. (The limit is $1,000 rather than $100; I assume that's just a typo, but it's still above that range.)

          And apparently the scammers are also on that: they're starting to work up fake money orders as well. I gather that's used more on stores than on Craigslist buyers, where the store can't validate the money order before they hand over the merchandise, but I assume it'll develop.

      • Re:One way to avoid (Score:5, Informative)

        by Registered Coward v2 ( 447531 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @01:37PM (#47854699)

        This isn't your usual 419 scam. They're not offering millions of dollars to suckers.

        What they're doing is buying stuff from Craigslist sellers with bogus checks that look awfully real. There's another step where they send a too-large check and ask for a partial refund. The checks are so good that they clear, and the fraud isn't discovered until weeks later, at which time your bank yanks the money back.

        There's still hints of the usual 419 stuff in there, but you don't have to be either gullible or greedy. You simply have to misunderstand the idiotic system under which checks are processed, which is most of us. The idea that a certified check could fail, a month after you deposited it, is baffling to the majority of people who think of a certified check as practically good as cash.

        The checking system is so screwed up that most sellers need to treat all checks with suspicion. But credit cards are expensive to process, and Paypal... is Paypal.

        True, and that is what scam artists depend on to run their con. Banks in the US have to make the funds available after a set period even though the check has not cleared; i.e. the issuing bank has not yet accepted the check and verified that it was a valid check and the funds are available in the account. Most people think that because the bank has deposited the funds in their account that the check is good; a not unreasonable expectation because most checks do not bounce and thus they never realize the bank may not have actually cleared the check before the funds were made available. The law was designed to prevent banks from putting excessive holds on checks but a side effect was to give scammers a new way to cheat people.

      • by mjwx ( 966435 )

        The checking system is so screwed up that most sellers need to treat all checks with suspicion. But credit cards are expensive to process, and Paypal... is Paypal.

        You seem to be forgetting the obvious option here... Cash. The only cheques that shouldn't be rejected out of hand are bank cheques (because the bank who issued the cheque is holding the money in escrow). The bank cheque has a serial number you can ring the issuing bank and verify. Personal cheques are to be rejected absolutely, business cheques are to be rejected from all but the most trustworthy of clients.

        • by jfengel ( 409917 )

          In this case, these are bank checks. They happen to be fake, but it takes a while to determine that, and most sellers don't realize that.

          • by mjwx ( 966435 )

            In this case, these are bank checks. They happen to be fake, but it takes a while to determine that, and most sellers don't realize that.

            Vendor Emptor.

            Bank cheques are easy to verify and, at least in Australia, hard to forge. If you're suspect of a bank cheque you can ring the issuing bank to verify them (again, at least in Australia).

            If I couldn't do this, they'd be as trustworthy as personal cheques.

      • If you fall for this scam you're nothing but a dope and you deserve to lose your money.

        It isn't about understanding how checks work. It's about understanding how buying and selling work. If you accept a check for any item you sell, you're taking a risk that the check is bad- either fake or insufficient funds in the account to pay the check. If someone wants to write you a check for more than your selling price and then wants you to send them money, you're an idiot if you do it. Period. You're giving th

    • Bah! You don't know what you're talking about. Why I put all of my Dead Nigerian Prince money and International Lottery winnings into this giant Scrooge McDuck-style vault. I shall now swim in it.

      *jumps into money vault*

      *horrible thudding sound as I hit the bottom of the empty vault*

    • Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • by Anonymous Coward

    Craigslist provides seven tips for avoiding fraud. The scam in this article involves ignoring three of those tips. The funny thing is that those three tips have nothing to do with the ambiguous "too good to be true" line that people throw around. All of those tips involve how (not) to conduct transactions on a site that provides minimal protections for fraud.

  • by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 08, 2014 @11:10AM (#47853189)

    I was selling off an ATI 9800 high-end model (was old by then though) & sent me $5,000 in money orders (wells fargo type): I was only asking for, iirc, $100 or so for the videocard too...

    Right then, This crook began to attempt to "push me" into going to the bank immediately after I wrote him back via email & called him stating "Hey buddy - you sent me a *wee bit much* for this vidcard!"

    He stated "It's a gift for your help"... lol, "yea, right"

    So, right then, I called WellsFargo & they determined the money orders were part of a scam online + a known "bad" run of them that were stolen &/or duplicated...

    Did this by their "MICR #'s" / "Routing Numbers" (for lack of a better expression - it's what I used on checks to do that in my old job back in the 1980's is why & it's similar enough here too) when I went to verify the funds being actually available or not!

    They weren't, needless to say... however, were *I* to cash in on them? I WOULD HAVE BEEN LIABLE!

    That's WRONG: Banks ought to be the ones doing THAT part of it, NOT I, as a depositor in good faith!

    Now, I have a background in my past as a loss prevention mgt. figure & I had to verify personal checks A LOT on that job - that's pretty much HOW I did it too (bank calls, & verify funds etc. - et al) - so I did the same here.

    Glad I did.

    The bank it was drafted on THEN instructed me to call Wells Fargo to verify funds!

    AGAIN - THE BANKS THAT ACCEPT FUNDS OF ANY KIND IN CHECK OR MONEY ORDER FORM SHOULD HAVE DONE THIS, as well as my OWN bank too, upon receipt of myself attempting to cash them in & deposit them!

    However - Apparently, NOWADAYS @ least, THEY DON'T... & THAT, people, is TOTAL BULLSHIT!

    Why?

    Heck - It puts the depositor @ risk, & all it TAKES is a phonecall to the bank or money order company involved to check for funds being actually present, OR, if the money order or checks involved are stolen, or counterfeit, etc.

    To me @ least?

    It seems like banks are "in on the scam" by dodging THEIR DUTIES here, in not verifying check or money order funds being present OR if they are legit (not stolen or counterfeited etc.).

    APK

    P.S.=> In the end, I went to the local FBI office with the forged/stolen checks, with the email information the crook (a "reverend" out of Atlanta, no less) gave me, along with his phone number (disposable cellphone) - needless to say, the crook stopped calling me RIGHT after I did that... apk

    • by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 08, 2014 @11:52AM (#47853675)
      I thought a good host file could protect against this?
    • Re: (Score:2, Troll)

      Banks don't have time to make a phone call for every check you deposit, it is your responsibility to only accept checks from people you know so you can recover the funds if the check bounces. Your bank's job is to submit the check on your behalf to the bank it was drawn on and request that it be paid. You clearly are gullible and were fleeced, that isn't the bank's fault it is your fault. But because I'm a really nice guy I'd like to let you know that I have many contacts in the scammer community and bel
      • by operagost ( 62405 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @12:46PM (#47854207) Homepage Journal
        LOL... but seriously, the Check21 law helped checks "clear" faster, and ushered in the era of check-less bill pay, but have mostly only helped the banks. They'll "clear" a check, then suddenly the bank it's drawn on will discover fraud a week later and do a chargeback. That doesn't sound clear to me.
        • Check21 created the legal framework to allow for check truncation. Your bank never "clears" a check, checks are only paid at the bank they are drawn on. My bank gives me instant access to all my check deposits but I don't labor under the delusion that means the checks have cleared. The bank a check is drawn on generally doesn't do much more than see if the account has enough funds and relies on its customers to inform them if a particular check that was presented was fraudulent, this can take some time.
        • If that's Check21, then I can't wait for Check22 and I hope that I shall live to see it!

      • by Anonymous Coward

        "You clearly are gullible and were fleeced, that isn't the bank's fault it is your fault." - by naughtynaughty (1154069) on Monday September 08, 2014 @01:12PM (#47853865)

        See subject-line above: I didn't get "fleeced" - I caught it w/ the FBI helping me STOP from getting ripped off!

        APK

        P.S.=> YOU, however, are CLEARLY a miserable little troll w/ nothing better to do than make sockpuppet disposable accounts to *attempt* to mess with others online, & YOU FAIL @ that since you cannot read, illiterate as you are... apk

    • by Jason Levine ( 196982 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @01:14PM (#47854479) Homepage

      It seems like banks are "in on the scam" by dodging THEIR DUTIES here, in not verifying check or money order funds being present OR if they are legit (not stolen or counterfeited etc.).

      I don't have an experience with this, but my identity was stolen once and I got the same impression about the credit card companies and credit agencies. If your identity is stolen, it's no big deal for them. They just push back and bad charges to the companies they came from. e.g. If Crook steals your identity, opens a credit card in your name, and goes on a spending spree at Electronics Hut, Electronics Hut will be caught having to pay for all of that equipment that Crook "bought."

      The same seems to be true about this check fraud. The bank doesn't care if the check you deposit bounces horrendously. After all, if it does, it doesn't hurt them. It hurts you. Since they aren't hurt, they see check fraud as something for their customers to worry about instead of something that they could work to reduce. Now, if a "cleared" check gave the person that money, the money couldn't be yanked back once the bad check bounced, and the bank was stuck covering the deficit, you can guarantee that banks would have a fix in place for this scam within a week.

      • Banks facilitate the payment of checks drawn on other banks. They are not in the business or compensated for taking the risk that the check you give them is bad.
  • There are several ways to accept money safely, but a Certified Check has never, ever been one of them.

    Seriously, how can everyone not know this?
  • by roc97007 ( 608802 )

    This might help explain all the "your cv is being attractive to us" spam I've been bombarded with recently. Maybe they're recruiting (perhaps unknowing) accomplices.

  • Checks (Score:5, Funny)

    by genka ( 148122 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @11:53AM (#47853679) Homepage Journal
    I gladly accept Nigerian checks on CL. This way the scammers are out of FedEx/UPS fee and I add another fake check to my office collection.
    • I gladly accept Nigerian checks on CL. This way the scammers are out of FedEx/UPS fee and I add another fake check to my office collection.

      Not a good idea. You are dealing with crooks who may or may not have accomplices near you and you are giving them a real address. Check out 419eater.com for safe ways to do that if you want to bait scammers.

    • They don't pay the FedEx fee, they use stolen FedEx account numbers.
  • by tekrat ( 242117 ) on Monday September 08, 2014 @12:11PM (#47853847) Homepage Journal

    how did the scammers get professional check writing equipment? Did they buy it on craigslist with a fake check??

  • > they're using professional check-writing equipment plus U.S.-based accomplices to not raise suspicions among
    > their victims

    Funny I was just posting my little anecdote about these groups on slashdo recently ( http://slashdot.org/comments.p... [slashdot.org] ), not only does this jive exactly with my limited exposure to these gangs, but, I even got them to try and recruit me to thelp them. Thing is.... this was a room in my house....I have not been a landlord in several years, and this was several years before I sto

  • Every grocery store and quickie-mart I go to that does wire transfer has signs, brochures, etc. warning you about all the most common scams, of which this one is most certainly on the list. Those that persist in not yet getting the memo that using WU/MG to send money to anybody you don't actually know is insane are beyond help.

    Hint: Why would somebody send you a huge check and expect you to forward the money on to their "agent"? Why would they just not pay the "agent" themseleves?

    You can't fix stupid... w

    • Guess what happens when you tell people they are gullible or fools? They get defensive and mad at you. Part of me wants the scammers in jail, the other part realizes that we don't have enough jail cells and it wouldn't matter because a fool and his money are soon parted. I Person X doesn't scam them out of their money then Person Y or Z will. It's just a matter of when and for how much, not if.
  • A tech billionaire should hire a team of mercenaries to track down and kill scammers, spammers, and malware authors.

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