Scammers, Haiti + Crisis in Jos

In line with the plea for donations to help the Haitians after the devastating earthquake that rocked Haiti on, many Nations (including Nigeria) and Individuals all over the world have been sending monetary donations and relief items such as food, water, clothes, medications and other medical equipments to recognised Charities such as the Red Cross.

It is rather very unfortunate that while good hearted people are trying to give life, hope and love to the survivors in Haiti, some bad and evil minded people are using this as an opportunity to defraud the people with good intentions, who are genuinely sending aid and relief materials to Haiti. These scammers are capitalizing on the relief efforts to help rebuild Haiti. How can people be so wicked as to enrich themselves this way!I feel that such an act is heinous!

Please before making any donation towards rebuilding Haiti, take the extra precautionary step to ensure that the Charity is a genuine and recognised one. Please find below some tips on how to avoid such scams as posted on NowPublic.com:

Rely on expert opinion when it comes to evaluating a charity.
Donors are advised to consult experts when deciding which charity to donate to. Charity Navigator compiled a list of organizations operating to help the Haiti earthquake, among them are CARE, Doctors Without Borders, World Vision, American Red Cross.

Be wary of claims that 100 percent of donations will assist relief victims.
While administration cost may be minimized, processing fee is almost inevitable. For example, donations from credit card will incur service charges.

Find out if the charity has an on-the-ground presence in the impacted areas.
It will be difficult for charities to help the affected areas if they don't already have staff on the ground.

Find out if the charity is providing direct aid or raising money for other groups.
If the charity does not directly helping the Haiti earthquake, donors can consider skipping the "middleman" to reduce the processing cost when money is passed along to other relief organizations.

Gifts of clothing, food or other in-kind donations.
It is best to give direct monetary support instead of food or clothing because it is much more difficult to distribute such donation. It requires organizations to have the staff and infrastructure to handle donations of good properly. Be ware of inexperienced organizations asking for goods donations.

May the Almighty God, Jehovah Jireh continue to provide for all who have (and are still) sent some form of donations towards rebuilding Haiti. For those who can not send physical items, please continue to pray for the survivors of the earthquake.

While the international community are discussing on ways to help rebuild Haiti, people in Jos, Plateau State in Nigeria are also counting their loses as the recent crisis has left several dead and several others homeless. I pray for my people in Jos. I call them my people because I feel I am part of them. During my stay in Jos, in the 80s, I experienced the hospitality nature of the people of Jos. I have been asking myself  "where did all these hatred come from?" Anyway, my prayer is that God Almighty will heal the broken hearts and fill them with LOVE!  Amen!

Still on Scam Messages...

These scammers have refused to give up! After my previous post, I have received tons of messages from the scammers. I have even heard of stories of some unfortunate "victims".

They go under the cover of the Central Bank and any other commercial bank. They are now coming under the cover of "Guaranty Trust Bank Plc." I am beginning to get worried o! The following messages below were sent to my email some days ago:

Dear Valued Guaranty Trust Bank Customer,
Guaranty Trust Bank Internet Banking,is hereby announcing the New 2009 Security Upgrade.

We've upgraded our new SSL servers to serve our customers for a better and secure banking service,against any fraudulent activities.Due to this recent upgrade, you are requested to provide your account information.

For secure transaction also include your Transaction Id; password by following the reference below
http://atmcardupgrade2009.justfree.com/GtbAccount.html

Regards,
Guaranty Trust Bank Customers Service.
Guaranty Trust Bank Plc.
   ------------------------

Dear ATM card Holder,

Because of high rate of fraud, Central bank of Nigeria (CBN) has decided to put extra security to all ATM card to secure you and your money while you use the ATM card for WD. This measure will include an Email/SMS verification code which shall be sending to your Mobile Number or Email addresses anytime you used ATM card.

Verification codes will be sent. The new ATM card Verification codes will ensure you to have access and use of your ATM card. Kindly assist us by filling the individual customer form, the form will be made available by clicking on
http://http://www.cenbank.org/new/verification/code.html

Failure to Upgrade your ATM card will result in ATM Machine rejecting your ATM Card, which means you will no longer be able to use your ATM Cards with any ATM machine or ATM card) be notified that all ATM card must be upgrade on or Before November 30, 2009. After verification and upgrading of your ATM card a 3 digit code will be sent to you within 1 days either through phone or via email signifying that your ATM card has successfully been upgraded.

We appreciate your prompt attention to this important message.

WARM REGARDS
Central Bank of Nigeria
Address: Zaria Street Garki Abuja
Nigeria.

Unsuspecting victims would fall for these scams o! Why?! I thank God that I know better! But my problem is how to ensure that people are "educated" on steps to avoid falling victims to these scams/scammers? How can these scams be stopped?!

The other day an elderly man went to an ATM to withdraw some cash. He had some problem with the machine and so he sought the help of a young boy. The boy inserted the card, asked for the PIN and after sometime, he removed the ATM and told the man that he was told to go inside the Bank. The boy asked the elderly man to wait for him by the machine and then, he went into the banking hall.

Mr. Elderly Man waited for almost thirty minutes for Mr. Young Boy to come out from the Bank. Mr. Elderly Man, went into the Banking hall in search of Mr. Young Boy. Mr. Young Boy was NOT in the Banking Hall! After all said and done, Mr. Elderly Man later discovered that his account had been cleared! His hard earned money was no longer in his account!

Yes! Mr. Elderly Man had been scammed by Mr. Young Boy.

That is just one out of many scam stories. When I heard the story, I just felt pity for Mr. Elderly

PLEASE DO NOT REVEAL YOUR PIN TO ANYONE!

PLEASE DO NOT GIVE YOUR ATM CARD TO ANYONE!

PLEASE DO NOT FILL ANY FORM ONLINE TO UPGRADE YOUR ATM!

PLEASE DO NOT USE AN ATM IF YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE TECHNIQUES!

NO BANK/BANK OFFICER HAS A RIGHT TO KNOW YOUR PIN!

Scam Messages (1)

A scam is a "dishonest scheme". It follows therefore that a scammer is a person who performs dishonest schemes.

It is not news that there are scammers every where and everyday they (scammers) come up with new "schemes". For the past 7-8 months I have been receiving emails from a group of scammers posing to be "Interswitch" officials. In Nigeria, Interswitch is the premier transaction switching platform. When the word "Interswitch" is mentioned, the first thing that will come to a lay man's mind is ATM cards.

One of such mails read was notifying their "valued customers" that their services are currently being upgraded to a more secured system. In that same mail, the reader is expected to click on a link to register all debit cards, X-change cards and ATM cards. The email further warned that only registered cards will work on the ATM machines.

At first I panicked. But when I remembered that I do not have a functional ATM card at that time, I just ignored the message by deleting it immediately. By the next day when I opened my mail, I saw 2 more of such scam messages. Are people this desperate? Na wa o! Anyway, this time around I took my time reading through the message, thinking it could be true after all. I put my cursor on the link and a very different web address was displayed on my tool bar! It was then I confirmed it was a scam mail.

Some days later, while I was discussing the issue with some friends, I discovered that some people have actually fallen prey to this bait and their accounts were "cleaned" by these fraudsters! But come to think of it, why would anyone reveal his/her PIN to anyone??!!

Although these mails go directly to my bulk mail, some still filter into my inbox. I even received one purportedly sent from the Central Bank of Nigeria. Here are some of the recent scam mails I have received:

Message 1:

Dear value customer,


You have received 1 new message waiting in your inbox folder.


click here to read


PS: To switch off email notifications of new messages, go to 'My Account' after you've logged in.


Regards


Message Depertment.


INTERSWITCH LIMITED.

Message 2:

Dear value customer,


We regret to inform you that access to your ATM CARD "POWERED BY INTERSWITCH"


has been temporarily limited.


To restore your account please click the link below and provide us with the required information:


click here to restore your account


PS: Your account will be restore in the next 48hrs.


Regards


Online Services.


INTERSWITCH NIGERIA LIMITED.

Message 3:

Verify Your ATM Account Statement Now..
Mon, October 19, 2009 7:09:20 AM
From: Central Bank Of Nigeria


Dear ATM Card User,


This is to hereby notify you of the recent Central Bank of Nigeria Directive to all banks to switch to the new and secured chip ATM cards.


With this directive,all old ATM cards shall be inactivated. With the new Cards,there shall be no more transaction charges when you use your ATM cards and it is more secured.go to the website below to register for your new card;


http://atmcardupdate2009.4t.com/online/cbn.html


You are getting this mail because you have not updated.


REGARDS


Mr.Tony Ede
Assistant Director,
LAGOS OFFICE
Office Address:Tinubu Square,Lagos
Postal Address:P.M.B. 12194,Lagos.
Fax: +234(1)882 617

So I guess since I did not "update", by clicking the link, the messages will not stop. The most recent is this one:

Please note that Your Interswitch ATM Card is about to expire
Please note that Your Interswitch ATM Card is about to expire.
In order for it to remain active, please Use the button below to
Activate and get Unlimited Access on your ATM Card.
click here to re-activate your account


PS: Your account will be re-activate in the next 48hrs.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Notice that the messages are laced with gramatical errors. This show how "literate" the scammers are Also, when I put my cursor on the links, different web addresses are displayed. Some of the links have the following addresses:

"tanway.cz/components/login.html"; "tatarmoscow.ru/html/images/forum/login.html"; "ussonline.free.fr/uss/administrator/components/com_remository/login.html".

Now, note that the above addresses have no link to the real interswitch web address which is "interswitchng.com".

Interestingly, Interswitch has denied ever sending any of such messages. The caveat is found on the real interswitch website.

Some banks have also published and circulated several warnings, advising that no one should disclose his/her PIN to anyone. For instance, I received a mail that read thus:

Dear Friends,


We have been alerted to a fraudulent email purporting to originate from Central Bank of Nigeria and advising customers to log on to the following website http://onlinecbnservice09.t35.com/CBN-OnlineService.html to download individual forms that must be completed to upgrade their ATM cards to the new ATM machine code including your mobile number and email address where verification codes will be sent.


Please note: On no account should you visit any website in order to upgrade your ATM card based on an email purporting to either represent Interswitch, the bank or Central Bank of Nigeria . Such an act would immediately compromise your ATM card and render your account vulnerable to fraudulent withdrawals.


The claim that failure to upgrade your ATM card will render the card unusable is totally untrue and is merely a way of luring you to divulge your ATM card details.


If you have already responded to such fraudulent email, immediately notify your relationship manager or call CIC on (01 – 2800822, 01-2644754- 59, 08035606000, & 08025606000) to disable your card to prevent fraudulent withdrawals from your accounts until such a time that you can safely change your PIN.


Forwarding this alert to friends and family members would also help inform them and combat this fraud.


Thank you.


IT Risk Management

I can not asertain the authenticity of the telephone numbers, since I have not had cause to call them. However, my advise to all is this: DO NOT DISCLOSE YOUR PIN TO ANYONE!

Gist

Sometime ago, I was informed that there was in circulation, contaminated beans. Immediately, I ensured that the proteinous legume was not included in any meal I eat or prepare! That means no more "moi-moi", no more "akara".

Just as I was adjusting to a non-beans diet, I received a text from a friend of mine. The text reads thus:                    

"Pls avoid eating apple for now.

        News said there are so many people

        in d hospital now. Pls pass it on."

All I could say was "very soon there will be nothing left for us to eat". As if to buttress this "fact", I received an email that the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has warned that nobody should eat apples for sometime. This really got me worried because I love apples, afterall, "an apple a day keeps the doctor away".

Well the good news here is that there is a press release from NAFDAC stating that they never issued any alert warning the public against eating apples! In a statement by the Director-General of NAFDAC, Dr. Paul Orhii, NAFDAC promised to launch a full-scale investigation into the matter. Please read full story here.

OTHER GISTS

In another story published in the Vanguard newspaper recently, a couple were accused of "plucking" out the eyes of another man because he refused to move out of the flat. This, I call "man inhumanity to man". For more on this, click here.

In another strange but true story, I read about a 61 years old American woman, Penelope Sharon Jordan, who hid the body of her dead mother for almost 6 years! She did this to enable her collect her mother's pension! What was she thinking of? She is 61 years old! Read the full story here.

Scams!

Why do people waste their time on scams? Are there people out there who still fall for scams? Well I'm just wondering. . . and I sincerely hope nobody is still that gullible.

Two days ago I received a text which states thus:

"Congratulations, you have won N150,000 your no. is among the 42 lucky winners of la casera drink bonaza ticket no. 60.call 08069049283 to claim your prize"

Imagine! The scammer(s) must be . . . I am looking for the right word to post here . . . but I am short of words. The first thing I thought of doing was to send a text back for the scammer to try again! Well, I just chose to ignore the text.

Then again, some minutes ago, I received another text that reads thus:

"Congratulation you have won 10 000dollars or one gsmpaklogo you r pass is 0789 ; Call Now this number 0043820899395"

Now I know for certain that these people have lost it! O! After trying me with N150,000 they thought I'd move for 10,000! Chei! I really pity them. Another thing that turned me off was the fact that the scammers have a poor command of English language and grammar!

How can these fraudsters be brought to book? Any ideas?

SCAM ALERT! FAKE JOHN CHOW

Why would anyone in his/her right senses impersonate another human being!? That is very heinous! Why?

I just read a post on John Chow's website titled Scam alert - Watch out for a fake John Chow. This fake John Chow is targeting people on the Digital Point forum and telling them that he is gathering people for a new project with Shoemoney!

Below is an excerpt from the post on the real John Chow's website. Read on and I pray no body falls a victim of this scammer!

I guess I should expect these kind of things. Someone is going around MSN pretending to be me. He is using the email webmaster@johnchow.com and adding people for the purpose of scamming them. Now, why MSN doesn’t confirm an email before it lets someone create an account is beyond me.

The fake John Chow is targeting people on the Digital Point forum and telling them that he is gathering people for a new project with Shoemoney. I don’t know what this project is but whatever it is, Shoe and I have nothing to do with it.

If this fake John Chow message you on MSN, tell him to take a hike. Thanks to One Tweak and Lushable for bringing this to my attention. It’s good to see you guys can tell who the real John Chow is.

For those of you who do not know the real John Chow, permit me to introduce to you the most talked about, the most admired internet guru ... John Chow. John Chow is one of my mentors on the internet. Feel free to check him out at www.johnchow.com. You'll be glad you did!