Day +1534 : Instant millionaire

I am fine today.

A hacker-cum-scammer hacked into the email account of PPP president M Kayveas and then sent out SOS emails to 5000 contacts in his email account. He estimated RM2 million had been transfered to the hacker-cum-scammer's account, making him instant millionaire.

I was almost cheated the same way which I blogged through the following posts:

1. Day +1476 : Almost get cheated by Internet scam (1/4)
2. Day +1477 : Almost get cheated by Internet scam (2/4)
3. Day +1478 : Almost get cheated by Internet scam (3/4)
4. Day +1479 : Almost get cheated by Internet scam (4/4)

So please be careful, don't simply transfer money to friends who is "in needs".

The news about "Bogus 'Kayveas' rakes in RM2m in e-mail scam" appeared in malaysiakini yesterday. It was reported as follow:

A conman, posing as PPP president M Kayveas after hacking into his e-mail account and sending an SOS email asking for money, is said to have raked in more than RM2 million.

Kayveas told Malaysiakini that the international scam operator sent the SOS message to about 5,000 friends listed in his e-mail address last Sunday, stating that he was stranded in London and wanted US$2,500 banked into a Western Union account immediately.

Some of his friends, he said, later called him to say they had deposited the money soon after reading their mail.

The e-mail sent read: "How are you? Please I need your assistance. I made an emergency trip to London and I am having a little problem. Please can you loan me Two Thousand Five Hundred Dollars to enable me to finish what I am doing here. I will pay back as soon as I return home. Send it via Western Union money transfer or money gram with this information... (Western Union account reference) London. Thanks. Kayveas."

Kayveas (left) said he had traced the sender, a Nigerian who had hacked into his e-mail account. "My software experts have even located his whereabouts through Facebook and we are in the process of lodging a report on the matter."

He said he was shocked when friends called and e-mailed him, saying they had deposited monies immediately. He estimated from his friends who had remitted money that about RM2 million had already been deposited into the Western Union account.

The politician urged the public not to fall for any SOS e-mail. "It is unfortunate that my friends have fallen victims to the scam," he said.

Anyone who has experienced or is suspicious of any e-mail scam should report it to the International Fraud Reporting Center, which is linked to the FBI.

Reporting scams on the web

The centre website states: "If you have observed a scam or been the victim of a scam, spam or fraud and want to report it for enforcement, here is a list of where to report different types of scams in the US, UK, Canada and many other countries. In some cases there is more than one agency to contact. Some scams fit into more than one category, also.

"Of course, in all cases, you can start by reporting it to us, using this form. We will use the information to warn other consumers and help you to direct it to law enforcement agencies."

A catch-all for bringing Internet scams to the attention of the FBI and Federal Trade Ccommission (FTC) is the US government'sInternet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at the Internet Fraud Complaints Center.

The International Fraud Reporting website states that Nigeria is notorious for lottery scams, money transfer frauds, lawyers with deceased clients and several other scams.

See you next post :-)