GreatRentals Newsletter with Scam Info

[rich_sipe]

Hopefully this is helpfull to all of you, i thought it was.

- EMAIL SCAMS THAT CAN COST YOU MONEY -
Email scams represent an ongoing situation that everyone needs to be aware of. It seems there is a new version being sent out almost daily. There are some similarities - the grammar is poor, they use lower case 'i', and many of the fraudulent attempts come from a Yahoo or Hotmail email address, which are free to set up. Sometimes they portray themselves as being from Nigeria, or as new graduates, ministers, newlyweds, travel agent or widows. The first email inquiry may not mention the need to send payment via cashiers check, but the second one usually does - stating an amount to be paid, which is more than enough for the rental, then requesting that you send back the overage.

The following scam is described in the Money Magazine August, 2004 edition:
"Let's say you wanted to rent your house this summer. You place an online ad and get a response from a South African honeymooning couple asking if your home is available for the month of May. Enticing: four weeks $4,000. So what if the finances sound a little complicated? The groom-to-be explains in the email that he is a sailor at sea and can't get to a bank. But he'll happily send you what he has: 'a casher's check for $10,700, after which you will deduct the cost of your rental and have the excess amount sent to the agent that will be responsible for my transportation'.

Stop right there.
It may look and feel like a cashier's check, but it is counterfeit. Deposit it, write a check to the 'agent' for the $6,700 and that money will end up coming straight out of your pocket. A transparent scheme to some, no doubt, but it's also the latest incarnation of the Nigerian scam...This particular twist is relatively tame - most of the bogus money orders are around $10,000......... If you suspect you've received a Nigerian scam letter, go to secretservice.gov/alert419.shtml for word on what to do about it."
-- by Joan Caplin

EMAIL SCAM EXAMPLE 2
Good Day,
Am interested in renting your aprt i mean ( apartment) i will like to know the cost of the aprt per month or week of the aprt ,.my client that needed the aprt want to buy a bike that he want to be using in the aprt,and also my client said that any thing concering the aprt rentel applicationform will be fill when you might have recieve the payment,well I will also like to know the date and month that the aprt will be open my client will like to rent the aprt for a year or six months or week, well I will like to know the cost of the aprt for three months.i hope to hear from you asap.
Kelly&Rose..

EMAIL SCAM EXAMPLE 3
Thanks for the details on the Home.Pls do reserve the Home for me.My company (sending me for an official assignment) is responsible for payment of my accomodation which will include my Travelling expenses,Rent,Allowances,Feeding e.t.c.All these sums up to a total amount of $7,000 for the period of my stay in US. I will contact my Supervisor now telling him I have gotten an accomodation for may stay in US.So they will be sending you the full payment of $7,000 (which includes your rent payment).You will then deduct you rent fee for 2 weeks of the home which i know it will be of $3,800 And send the balance.To My Personal Assistant (who will be responsible for Booking of my Travelling Air Ticket and other Personal luggages) via Western Union Money Transfer.So I will want you to immediately send your details like Full name (as you will like it to appear on thecheck)....... Address (where the check should be sent to)
..........Telephone number ..................................................
So i will forward it to my supervisor for immediate payment to be made outto you.
Hope to hear from you soon.

EMAIL SCAM EXAMPLE 4
That is acceptable by me and my clients. But i want to make known to you my payment terms. I strictly make payment via Cashier's Cheque. And
you must also understand that the cheque that will be sent to you will be of $5,000 for a week's reservation and you will have to deduct your $1,150 for the reservation. I want you to know that the cheque that has to be sent to you is from a client of mine who is owing me $5,000. And there is actually no other better way to do this than to have him send the cheque to you as i am outta of town and to make the reservation faster. I want you to know that the remaining fund of $3,450 will have to be forwarded to me upon clearance of the cheque. I hope you well and clearly understand this. If yes, Do reply with your full contact details with which the cheque will be drafted and sent to immediately.

We have even heard of scammers that send the exact amount of the rental using a bogus check, and then ask you to return the entire amount. If you receive one of these emails, there is no need to send it to us. We just want you to be careful. The bottom line is this: Never send any money back to a prospective renter unless you know for a certainty that their payment to you has cleared your bank.
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[musicmonkey]

Thank you for posting that Rich. Some of it looks so familiar!