Jack Marry

[Dusty]

This is the first one I have had for a long time.

Hi, Your property is so attracting. I am impressed. May I have some more pictures, and a detailed quotation. Is there any additional costs? Please let me know. Kind Regards,we are going to have a time out and I think your property is excellent. Please send me the detailed pricing information so that I can analyze or compare with my wallet Looking to hear from you.Thanks in Advance, Jack Marry

[kevsboredagain]

So what's the scam?

[joddle]

This is the first one I have had for a long time.

Hi, Your property is so attracting. I am impressed. May I have some more pictures, and a detailed quotation. Is there any additional costs? Please let me know. Kind Regards,we are going to have a time out and I think your property is excellent. Please send me the detailed pricing information so that I can analyze or compare with my wallet Looking to hear from you.Thanks in Advance, Jack Marry

I've had enquiries with worse grammar than that but which have turned out fine. - I agree with Kev - unless there is more you are not telling us - where is the scam?

[greenbarn]

The made up name stinks, the gushing praise stinks, the fact that it's written by someone with a supposedly English name but whose first language isn't English stinks.

Apart from that it's absolutely fine.

[kevsboredagain]

No comment

[joddle]

Well there are loads of Jack Marry names on Facebook and yes it is gushing but I have had such requests which were genuine - If we knew where the person had said they are from and it was the UK then yes I would be much more worried - but if they come from another country where English is not spoken, and the email address looked genuine then I would reserve judgement.

[e-richard]

The arithmetic is as follows:

"May I have ... a detailed quotation" + "Please send me the detailed pricing information" + "analyze or compare with my wallet" = Scam * 99%

[greenbarn]

So in what way is the following not a scam?

Hello ,

I will like to make a reservation in your hotel for three guest coming on vacation,We need three single rooms.They will be Arriving on the 5th Feb 2015 to depart on the 12th Feb 2015.

If you have availability for these dates, kindly get back to me with the total cost of accommodation for the period of stay and confirm if you accept credit card for prepayment. Looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Best Regards
Robert Coleman

[joddle]

The arithmetic is as follows:

"May I have ... a detailed quotation" + "Please send me the detailed pricing information" + "analyze or compare with my wallet" = Scam * 99%

Indeed you may well be right - but even you are quoting 1% of doubt! - and sometimes there is genuine doubt. We are sometimes too quick to dismiss everything that does not confirm to our ideals and I know that when trying to book a holiday in France, my French is appalling and may well seem scammy to people there.

Some scams are very well known - "Newly ordained priests", "Welsh Engineers", "Groups of of newyweds" - and sometimes the combination of telephone numbers, email addrsses along with bad english is a dead givaway - but some people out there do make mistakes or dont know how to phrase good english - an in such cases perhaps caution is a better tactic then outright rejection.

[Dusty]

To describe it as a scam is probably incorrect, its probably more likely a phishing attempt. The reason I found it suspicious was firstly because of the wording, it is gushing, as some people have already stated, but it is also clearly cut and paste as the wording following the 'Kind Regards' closing was followed by further wording, hence his desire to stay in 'attracting' accommodation had been sent to multiple people.
But the main reason I put it down as suspicious was he wanted to book it in January, in the Dordogne, for a family holiday? I don't think so.
Anyway, I did send him a reply (I know how to live on the edge) and am eagerly awaiting his response.

[joddle]

Whilst I remain convinced that not all badly written requests are scams I think in this case you are likely to be proven correct - (I had missed the "regards" bit in he middle which I think is the clincher here) - Let us know the follow up!

[Bree]

I have had this one also same wording same name wants to holiday in the Algarve also...

[Gettingthere]

I had this from someone called Cladys Warren yesterday (although the email address said Gladys rather than Cladys). Does it look familiar? Same wording, different sentence order.

"Hi, We are going to have a time out and I think your property is excellent. Please send me the detailed pricing information so that I can analyze or compare with my wallet . Looking to hear from you. Thanks in Advance, Cladys Warren"

These are a real pain because there is (was) enough doubt about it being a scam to warrant a reply. What do these phishers get out of this anyway?

[Bunny]

I know that when trying to book a holiday in France, my French is appalling and may well seem scammy to people there.

- but some people out there do make mistakes or dont know how to phrase good english - an in such cases perhaps caution is a better tactic then outright rejection.

I think this is key to recognising a scam/phishing attempt. If you have poor command of a language and you wish to make an enquiry, you would stick to very basic facts and would not try to embellish your enquiry with unnecessary/irrelevant statements, and jovial comments etc knowing that it could complicate matters if you had worded it completely wrongly.