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Plasterer who claimed magic powers arrested in UAE
An Egyptian man has been arrested in the United Arab Emirates for claiming to be a witch doctor and having magical powers.
The 38-year-old plasterer for a construction company in Abu Dhabi said that he had powers to solve relationship problems, undo curses and ward off the effects of the “evil eye”.
The man, who because of UAE privacy law can only be identified as AA, was alleged to have cheated customers out of as much as US$1,900.
He was caught by Al Ain CID who posed as a punter after receiving a tip-off.
An undercover female officer called the suspect, claiming to have problems in her relationship and asked for his help to restore the intimacy in her marriage.
AA told the woman he could help her relationship by casting a spell for $800.
He asked the officer to bring him some special ingredients so he could make the spell.
According to reports, a police raid on his home revealed books that invoked the presence of jinn (evil spirits), amulets and pieces of deer skin, as well as underwear from his female clients – a necessary part in completing any spell.
Upon arrest, the man confessed to the charges and admitted to defrauding six women in the last five months.
He met his clients in shopping malls and other public areas after they came to him on the recommendation of friends.
AA said he regretted what he had done and claimed that the "the devil was able to manipulate him".
Lt Col Mohammed al Rashdi, the head of the Al Ain CID said he was concerned women in a modern, well-educated and ethical society had been driven to follow such practices that contradicted logic, Islam and the law. An Egyptian man has been arrested in the United Arab Emirates for claiming to be a witch doctor and having magical powers. ... more -
Scammers Ride the Gustav Wave
August 31, 2008 (Computerworld) Nearly 100 domains related to Hurricane Gustav have been registered in the past 48 hours, security experts said Sunday, some of which may be used by bogus charity and relief scams after the storm strikes the U.S. Gulf Coast.
According to television station KTAL in Shreveport, La., the office of Louisiana's Attorney General Buddy Caldwell has warned residents of Gustav phishing attacks already in progress.
On Saturday, Marcus Sachs, the director of the SANS Institute's Internet Storm Center (ISC), noted that numerous domains containing the word "gustav," "charity," "hurricane," and "relief" had been recently registered.
"On the day [Hurricane] Katrina hit New Orleans [in 2005] hundreds of donation sites appeared online, many if not most were scam sites," said Sachs in a post yesterday to the ISC research blog. "Well this time around it looks like the people who like to register domain names in anticipation of a storm's arrival have already started registering them for Gustav."
By Sunday, Sachs had listed almost 100 Gustav sites culled from the DomainTools' Web site. "Most of these sites are parked domains and many of them are for sale," he said. "They will be worth monitoring, particularly if 'donate here' messages appear."
Several of the domains, in fact, do appear to be parked, or registered but not fleshed out with content. Others, including helpgustavictims.com and helpgustavvictions.net, were for sale on eBay as of mid-day Sunday.
A few, however, led to legitimate charities. The domain gustavcharity.com, for example, redirected users to the Web site of the evangelical Christian organization "Samaritan's Purse," while contributegustav.org took users to the Baton Rouge Area Foundation's site.
Another security expert, Gary Warner, director of research in computer forensics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, also posted a list of parked domains that may be used for scamming purposes. "Anytime we've seen a natural disaster, we've been on the lookup for domains which might be abused for fraud," said Warner Sunday on his blog. "It was only natural then that I retuned my settings at DomainTools yesterday to alert on Gustav domains."
Warner also pointed out a handful of domains that led to legitimate content.
Three years ago, before and after Hurricanes Katrina slammed into New Orleans, security researchers noted a similar run-up of domain registrations. Enough were used for phony relief scams, often by identity thieves hoping to trick consumers into divulging personal information, that the U.S. Department of Justice set up a Katrina anti-fraud task force.
More than a year later, two brothers were convicted on federal charges for running a fake Salvation Army site that solicited money, supposedly for Katrina relief efforts. The pair, Steven and Bartholomew Stephens, were sentenced to more than 100 months in prison for the scam last December. August 31, 2008 (Computerworld) Nearly 100 domains related to Hurricane Gustav have been registered in the past 48 hours, security exp... more -
Nigeria blames scam victims - anyone falling for scam should be jailed
People who fall for so-called "Nigerian scams" aren't victims at all—in fact, they're greedy and should be jailed, according to Nigerian high commissioner Sunday Olu Agbi. He said today that Nigeria has gained a bad reputation because of the scams perpetrated by a minuscule number of people, and that those who find themselves involved with the scams are equally as guilty as those running them.
"The Nigerian Government frowns very seriously on these scams... and every day tries to track down those who are involved," Olu Agbi told the Sydney Morning Herald in response to a previous article on Australians falling for Nigerian scams. "People who send their money are as guilty as those who are asking them to send the money." People who fall for so-called "Nigerian scams" aren't victims at all—in fact, they're greedy and should ... more -
Facebook scam artist takes money; poses as Greyhound Murder Victim's Sister
A person pretending to be the older sister of the 22-year-old man murdered on a Greyhound bus in Manitoba was fraudulently trying to collect money on a Facebook site created in B.C.
The unidentified fraudster posted messages on the social-networking site last week requesting money to be sent to a PayPal account to help the family of Winnipeg's Tim McLean, who was stabbed and beheaded July 30 while he slept on the bus about 15 kilometres west of Portage la Prairie. Vince Weiguang, 40, of Edmonton has been charged with second-degree murder.
McLean's real sister, Amanda, visited the site and discovered someone was using her maiden name to collect money."If you would like to make a donation to help our family, we have set up a PayPal account to do so. Contact for more details," wrote the fraudster on the site.
Family members contacted the RCMP and the person posing as McLean's sister was removed from the Facebook site last week. A person pretending to be the older sister of the 22-year-old man murdered on a Greyhound bus in Manitoba was fraudulently trying to c... more -
Gas 4 Free - Convert Your Car Using Gas4Free Water-Fuel Conversion System
A car that uses ordinary water as fuel? NO it’s not science fiction, it is NOT waiting to be rolled off the assembly line and it does NOT cost thousands of dollars.
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Keep on reading to find out even more about how you can use water to save fuel, clean out your engine and most importantly SAVE MONEY! A car that uses ordinary water as fuel? NO it’s not science fiction, it is NOT waiting to be rolled off the assembly line and it does ... more -
A new and dangerous twist in the Nigerian Fraud scams...
I have just received this email which I have traced to Vietnam and sent to Interpol. It has taken Nigerian Fraud scams to a new level - death threats and extortion are serious criminal offenses. Should you receive the same mail, I advise you to forward it with full headers to your local police department. You can find the appropriate police department in your area/country here: http://www.interpol.int/Public/Links/PolJust.asp
Here is the email in question (without the full headers):
from AL-QAEDA SUICIDE NETWORKS <deadlykillers2001@gmail.com>
reply-to deadlykillers2001@gmail.com
to
date Fri, Aug 1, 2008 at 2:16 AM
subject KILL
Attn,
I am very sorry for you, is a pity that this is how your life is going to
end as soon as you don't comply. As you can see we are the members of the
Deadly Networks in the world, which is responsible for the bombing of twin
tower’s in America on Sept. 11th and the bombing of London transport
services on July 7th (AL-QAEDA NETWORKS), I don't have any business with
you, my duty as I am mailing you now is just to KILL you and I have to do
it as I have already been paid for that.
Someone whom you called your friend wants you dead by all means, and this
person have spent a lot of money in this venture, This person came to us
and told me that he wanted you dead and he provided us with your name,
picture and other necessary information's we needed about you. So I sent
my boys to track you down this including bugging of your phones with
satellite tracking devices and they have carried out the necessary
investigation we needed for the operation on you, and if you doubt this
information am going to give you all the necessary information about you
back to you in your next reply so that you can believe me, and my boys are
really on you but I told them not to kill you that I will like to contact
you and see if your life is important to you and the one of your family. I
called my client back and ask him of your email address which I didn't
tell him what I wanted to do with it and he gave it to me and I am using
it to contact you now. As I am writing you this mail my men are monitoring
you and they are telling me everything about you.
Now do you want to LIVE OR DIE? Since all program has be made and draw to
kill you. Get back to me now if you are ready to pay some fees to spare
your Life, $25,000 is all you need to spend in this process you will first
of all Pay $15,000 and then I will send a tape to you which I recorded in
every discussion I had with the person who wanted you dead and as soon as
you get the Tape, You will pay the remaining balance of $10,000. If you
are not ready for my help, then I will carry on with my job straight-up.
WARNING: DO NOT THINK OF CONTACTING THE POLICE OR EVEN TELLING ANYONE
BECAUSE I WILL KNOW ,REMEMBER, SOMEONE WHO KNOWS YOU VERY WELL WANT YOU
DEAD!
I WILL EXTEND IT TO YOUR FAMILY, INCASE I NOTICE SOMETHING FUNNY ABOUT
YOUR TELLING THE SECURITY ABOUT IT BECAUSE A GOOD LOOK IS OUT YOU AT THE
MOMENT.
DO NOT COME OUT ONCE IT IS 7PM UNTIL I MAKE OUT TIME TO SEE YOU AND GIVE
YOU THE TAPE OF ALL DISCUSSION WITH THE PERSON WHO WANT YOU DEAD THEN YOU
CAN USE IT TO TAKE ANY LEGAL ACTION. GOOD LUCK AS I AWAIT YOUR REPLY I have just received this email which I have traced to Vietnam and sent to Interpol. It has taken Nigerian Fraud scams to a new level ... more -
Canoeist's wife guilty of faking husband's death
Anne Darwin will be jailed for six years, having been convicted of assisting her husband to fake his own death in a canoe accident, in an elaborate plan to fraudulently gain life insurance benefits worth £250,000. Ms Darwin, of Hartlepool, denied her involvement in court, claiming her husband, John, coerced her to see the ruse through.
She was found guilty on separate counts of deception and money laundering, following a four-hour deliberation by the jury. Her sons were kept ignorant of their father's existence after the staged disappearance. He then lived in a room adjoining the family house for six years.
Macabre details at the link. Anne Darwin will be jailed for six years, having been convicted of assisting her husband to fake his own death in a canoe accident, in... more -
Fake news headlines are the latest spam Storm
Be careful when you open your email at work today. Over the weekend, your inbox may have become inundated with messages carrying links to news stories with lurid headlines about Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Britney Spears and other celebs. Don't even think about clicking on the link. If you do, you will instantly join millions of others duped over the past 18 months into turning over your PC to the operators of the Storm botnet. Your PC will then be used to spread fraud spam; you'll help these guys sell fake drugs and carry out pump-and-dump stock market scams. For good measure, the Storm gang will gleefully harvest all of your usernames, passwords, credit card numbers, Social Security number -- any sensitive data you type into web page forms. Your personal data will be sold to the highest bidder in a thriving, eBay-like underground market. And to add salt to your wounds, the only way to get Storm off your PC is by reinstalling a fresh copy of your Windows operating system. Be careful when you open your email at work today. Over the weekend, your inbox may have become inundated with messages carrying links... more
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Boy band promoter must repay scammed $300M
Former boy band promoter Lou Pearlman will have to repay victims of his decades-long investment fraud at least $300 million in restitution.
A federal judge on Wednesday asked lawyers to draw up the order for his approval.
It's unclear whether the creator of the Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync will be able to raise those funds while behind bars. He's serving a 25-year sentence on federal fraud charges.
Prosecutors also wanted U.S District Judge G. Kendall Sharpe to tack on interest, making the repayment $424 million.
Pearlman's defense says that's unfair because the money was never invested. The judge said he'd make a decision after Pearlman returns at least some of the principal.
So far investigators have recovered few assets remaining from Pearlman's former entertainment empire. Former boy band promoter Lou Pearlman will have to repay victims of his decades-long investment fraud at least $300 million in restitu... more -
Russian faith healer sentenced to jail
A Russian man has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for deceiving mourners by promising to bring their loved ones back to life.
Grigory Grabovoy, sentenced by a Moscow court to 11 years in prison with hard labor, was found guilty of 11 counts of fraud, Reuters reported.
The court passed its judgment on Monday, while dozens of Grabovoy's supporters, who continue to believe he can help them with his powers and has been unfairly persecuted, crowded outside the courthouse.
"We think the sentence is based on speculation and is absolutely unfair," said Grabovoy's lawyer, Mikhail Tsyganenko.
In one case, Grigory Grabovoy received 39,500 rubles from a man to cure his dying parents and in another case he asked for 118,000 rubles from a woman to resurrect her two dead sons. A Russian man has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for deceiving mourners by promising to bring their loved ones back to life. ... more -
'Russian Brides' are actually dudes in the Mafia
Thousands of people, including many lonely and gullible British men, have lost large amounts of money after entering into correspondence with women on websites, naively beguiled by their warm words, suggestive chat and the sexy pictures they attach to their emails.
When they were asked to send money, which the women claimed was needed for British visas or to buy tickets for travel to Britain, the men readily agreed.
They never saw the money or heard from the women again.
In a final humiliating twist, they found out, usually far too late, that many of the sensuous "women" with whom they had been corresponding were actually men - part of one of the many sinister Russian mafia rings making a fortune out of such scams. Thousands of people, including many lonely and gullible British men, have lost large amounts of money after entering into corresponden... more -
Infomercial scams
I am sitting at my laptop in a hotel in Portland right now on vacation. My television set is tuned in to CNBC, a broadcasting station that, at least until now, I thought was a legitimate broadcasting station. I am watching an infomercial called "John Beck's Free and Clear Real Estate System," which claims that for a small fee, Beck will send you a collection of CDs from his "personal vault" of the most up-to-date property foreclosures available.
Typing his name in on Google quickly revealed that this deal, like many other infomercials was too good to be true. Complaints ranging from people accusing him of having multiple spelling errors in his literature, to empty promises of being able to meet Mr. Beck in person if they are willing to shell over thousands of more dollars to take part in his "private classes."
The thing that irks me the most about this infomercial is that repeatedly throughout the program "actual customers" pop up on the screen saying "I know this seems to good to be true, but this is national television, HOW COULD WE LIE ON NATIONAL TELEVISION!?" What has our country come to that these scams can be aired on major national television channels? 1,000s of reports have been filed with the Better Business Bureau against this guy, yet his program is still aired freely. I am a libertarian and I am all for 1st amendment rights, but blatant lying and taking poor innocent consumers is just plain wrong and frankly I am deeply disappointed. I am sitting at my laptop in a hotel in Portland right now on vacation. My television set is tuned in to CNBC, a broadcasting station... more -
The Six Pack Abs Scam which Rules the Fitness Industry
An entire industry that many argue is based on myths and misinformation. What is the ultimate scam in the fitness industry?
Any time a fitness product is purchased the myth grows and grows... An entire industry that many argue is based on myths and misinformation. What is the ultimate scam in the fitness industry? ... more -
ScamBaiting: Getting back at those email scammers!
If you've never received an email from someone in Nigeria looking to transfer millions of dollars into your bank account, then you must not have an email address. This is a site dedicated to getting back at those scammers!! If you've never received an email from someone in Nigeria looking to transfer millions of dollars into your bank account, then yo... more
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The Danger of Magazine Scams
Magazine scams are not what you'd consider traditional identity theft. In a magazine scam you pay for a subscription, but the publisher keeps sending you renewal notices. To avert a magazine scam, pay careful attention to who is selling you the subscription. Magazine scams are not what you'd consider traditional identity theft. In a magazine scam you pay for a subscription, but the pub... more
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Looking for love? Keep an eye on your wallet
"Julia Abrantes spent hours cleaning her house and primping in front of a mirror before heading to John F. Kennedy airport in New York. She was there to pick up the love of her life, whom she had met on the Internet.
Six hours later, she was still waiting. Nobody arrived.
Abrantes was the victim of romance fraud: a scam designed to prey on her emotions to get her money.
"I was devastated," she said. "He wound up winning my heart."
Abrantes isn't alone. Dating sites like Match.com, which says it has a membership of more than 15 million, are growing in popularity. But with the increased interest in Internet dating comes more people willing to prey on those looking for love online." CNN
Read the rest and please let me know what would you do if you were the one dating someone online?
Dating in person is already complicated now imagine online, I don't know how to deal with that :) "Julia Abrantes spent hours cleaning her house and primping in front of a mirror before heading to John F. Kennedy airport in New... more -
Who will stop the ethanol boondoggle? The Great Cornholio?
Ethanol: It's Unethical.
The whole process of growing, transporting, and converting the corn to fuel requires more energy than is produced. This is only economically possible because of obscene agricultural subsidies given to North American corn producers, subsidies which have added to third-world poverty while creating a surplus of corn -- soon to be deficit... Ethanol: It's Unethical. ... more -
Old ladies caught after murdering homeless men for the insurance
This video is laugh out loud funny but it's horrible too, because it's real life. One old lady calls the other one stupid and greedy for taking out extra life insurance policies on the homeless man they had killed for the money. The tape is what the defense is using to prove their complicity in the plot. It's a modern-day ancient Greek tragedy being played out before your eyes. Hollywood doesn't get any better than this. This video is laugh out loud funny but it's horrible too, because it's real life. One old lady calls the other one stupid an... more
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Internet Fraud
Internet fraud, it's a scary thing that you hear about all the time but until it happens to you it's not as surprising. The Company; tradeelectronics.com aka www.tradelee.org wants you to work for them and they offer a salary of up to 200K. That should ring a bell but for some people it takes a few more warning signs before they realize this is a scam. Karina Knausederova is her name and she will never pay you for the work you do for her website. Don't believe me? call her yourself and ask her what her last name is. She'll give you the run around if she thinks you can do the work she needs. 786-274-3846, 1800-319-3635, 1888-270-1170. It's amazing what people will do to take advantage. Turns out she's been scamming people for years, one guy even quit his full-time job to work with her. It's March of 2008 and I imagine she'll keep at it until she gets her business license revoked or shes put behind bars.......Again. Be careful people, she almost got me but I was one step ahead of her which mad her very angry. Internet fraud, it's a scary thing that you hear about all the time but until it happens to you it's not as surprising. The ... more
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Reality Show Contestant or Alarm Salesperson?
A Utah company promised a $1M prize, but students ended up in Fresno selling home alarm systems.
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