Where is the flaw in this scam?
Raive
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Afrikarnak Posted messages 17653 Registration date Status Contributor Last intervention -
Afrikarnak Posted messages 17653 Registration date Status Contributor Last intervention -
Hello
After posting an ad for a WoW account on Vivastreet, I received several emails from interested buyers, but they are from Ivory Coast. Surprised, after checking with an accountant who found no flaws, I'm wondering how they might try to scam us out of money, as I currently have not a single euro to spend.
Here are the emails from the transaction:
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First email
Good evening
We are interested in purchasing if the ad is still current.
Please send me your email address so I can contact you directly because my Vivastreet has some technical issues.
Best regards
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Second email
Hello
I acknowledge receipt of your response and I agree to the purchase, but I want to let you know that I am currently out of the country for professional reasons.
I am ready to send you money to reserve the item because my husband will return in a month.
So if you are in agreement with me, please let me know regarding the payment.
I will send you an instant cash transfer as soon as I do it, then I will send you the references that you can cash at the nearest post office in cash.
Note: regarding the pickup, don't worry, it will be done by my husband as he is currently completing the administrative formalities at the French Embassy here; please know that these formalities take a lot of time in African countries.
For it to be reserved for me, I need:
- your complete address
- full name
- landline and mobile number
- final price to avoid mistakes at the post office.
But I am counting on your good faith since you will receive the money well before the pickup.
See you soon
Best regards.
Mr. and Mrs. BOILEVIN
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Third email
Hello
Back from the post office bank, I confirm that your mandate has been issued for 950 Euros due to an unforeseen event. However, the issue is that the mandate is currently blocked due to non-payment of the tax which serves as insurance and bank collection on the funds transfer. This tax is a law that has been enacted by the Ministry of Economy and Finance to verify the financial traceability of all funds transfer operations to the West.
However, the transfer director, Mr. COLART SEVERIN, must give you a password that will unblock your cash mandate worth 950 € (600€ +350€). Furthermore, I want to inform you that our portion of the tax has risen to 325 Euros including various fees on the funds transfer tax that affect my status as a European expatriate employee and yours 285 Euros, which is why we took the liberty of adding 350 Euros to cover the 285 Euros you will have to pay for the said tax.
Please strictly follow the instructions below to verify that your cash mandate is indeed registered.
1/ Go to the Western Union website: www.westernunion.fr
2/ Once you are on the homepage, scroll slightly down, you will see a part not far from the flag of France where it says: transfer status. You must click on it.
3/ You enter the information below:
First name: severin
Last name: colart
Money transfer control number:********
4/ Finally, click on the yellow icon where it says: check status
5/ If the mandate is registered, you will see: Money available for withdrawal by the beneficiary
After completing this status verification operation of your cash mandate, please immediately contact the transfer director, Mr. COLART SEVERIN at 00225 44 09 02 25 to guide you on the procedure to follow for the immediate withdrawal of your funds.
Note: THE TAX IS HIGHER FOR A CHECK, WHICH IS WHY WE HAVE MADE A QUICK CASH MANDATE. YOU CAN COLLECT YOUR FUNDS TODAY, BUT FIRST CONTACT MR. COLART SEVERIN TO LET HIM PROVIDE YOU WITH THE PROCEDURE TO FOLLOW FOR WITHDRAWAL OF FUNDS.
Best regards
Mr. and Mrs. BOILEVIN
00225 58 62 13 55
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And here I will add more later and I would like the opinion of professionals on African scams, thank you in advance.
After posting an ad for a WoW account on Vivastreet, I received several emails from interested buyers, but they are from Ivory Coast. Surprised, after checking with an accountant who found no flaws, I'm wondering how they might try to scam us out of money, as I currently have not a single euro to spend.
Here are the emails from the transaction:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First email
Good evening
We are interested in purchasing if the ad is still current.
Please send me your email address so I can contact you directly because my Vivastreet has some technical issues.
Best regards
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Second email
Hello
I acknowledge receipt of your response and I agree to the purchase, but I want to let you know that I am currently out of the country for professional reasons.
I am ready to send you money to reserve the item because my husband will return in a month.
So if you are in agreement with me, please let me know regarding the payment.
I will send you an instant cash transfer as soon as I do it, then I will send you the references that you can cash at the nearest post office in cash.
Note: regarding the pickup, don't worry, it will be done by my husband as he is currently completing the administrative formalities at the French Embassy here; please know that these formalities take a lot of time in African countries.
For it to be reserved for me, I need:
- your complete address
- full name
- landline and mobile number
- final price to avoid mistakes at the post office.
But I am counting on your good faith since you will receive the money well before the pickup.
See you soon
Best regards.
Mr. and Mrs. BOILEVIN
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Third email
Hello
Back from the post office bank, I confirm that your mandate has been issued for 950 Euros due to an unforeseen event. However, the issue is that the mandate is currently blocked due to non-payment of the tax which serves as insurance and bank collection on the funds transfer. This tax is a law that has been enacted by the Ministry of Economy and Finance to verify the financial traceability of all funds transfer operations to the West.
However, the transfer director, Mr. COLART SEVERIN, must give you a password that will unblock your cash mandate worth 950 € (600€ +350€). Furthermore, I want to inform you that our portion of the tax has risen to 325 Euros including various fees on the funds transfer tax that affect my status as a European expatriate employee and yours 285 Euros, which is why we took the liberty of adding 350 Euros to cover the 285 Euros you will have to pay for the said tax.
Please strictly follow the instructions below to verify that your cash mandate is indeed registered.
1/ Go to the Western Union website: www.westernunion.fr
2/ Once you are on the homepage, scroll slightly down, you will see a part not far from the flag of France where it says: transfer status. You must click on it.
3/ You enter the information below:
First name: severin
Last name: colart
Money transfer control number:********
4/ Finally, click on the yellow icon where it says: check status
5/ If the mandate is registered, you will see: Money available for withdrawal by the beneficiary
After completing this status verification operation of your cash mandate, please immediately contact the transfer director, Mr. COLART SEVERIN at 00225 44 09 02 25 to guide you on the procedure to follow for the immediate withdrawal of your funds.
Note: THE TAX IS HIGHER FOR A CHECK, WHICH IS WHY WE HAVE MADE A QUICK CASH MANDATE. YOU CAN COLLECT YOUR FUNDS TODAY, BUT FIRST CONTACT MR. COLART SEVERIN TO LET HIM PROVIDE YOU WITH THE PROCEDURE TO FOLLOW FOR WITHDRAWAL OF FUNDS.
Best regards
Mr. and Mrs. BOILEVIN
00225 58 62 13 55
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And here I will add more later and I would like the opinion of professionals on African scams, thank you in advance.
9 answers
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Afrikarnak Posted messages 17653 Registration date Status Contributor Last intervention Ambassadeur 14 520
Hello friends!!
As mentioned above, you will need to pay the dubious 'Tax' before hoping to receive the coveted W.U. Mandate.. (We could be waiting a long time for that..).
I am currently dealing with this little beginner scammer.. MOUARF!
Have a good day..
See you! -
All this mess for a WoW account?
Western Union?
My husband's blah blah out of the country blah blah fees blah blah
I'm saying scam, but let's wait for Afrikarnak, he's the boss ^^ -
Hello.
Well, if you allow me before showing you the flaw, I'm going to do a little recap.
1. Subject to all reservations, I don't know if the accountant who examined the emails has a lot of experience; in my opinion, he needs some updates in his field, but let's move on.
2. Do you find it normal that they want to impose a tax of over 50%, even for an expatriate? At this level, it's ruinous for all foreign workers who would go to work in Côte d'Ivoire.
Now let's move on to the flaw: "BUT FIRST, CONTACT MR. COLART SEVERIN SO THAT HE CAN GIVE YOU THE PROCEDURE TO FOLLOW FOR WITHDRAWING THE FUNDS."
So before doing anything, you must communicate with the respectable Mr.
Colart, who will ask you to pay the taxes immediately so that he can give you the code that will allow you to retrieve the mandate. He will tell you that this is a normal procedure because the poor Ivorian government has been robbed several times and cannot do otherwise; otherwise, he might lose his job.
Very touching, so you pay the tax immediately with a Western Union mandate; anyway, good old Colart has assured you that there will be no problem, and Western Union will protect you in case of fraud.
Well, no, it is strictly forbidden to make commercial exchanges with Western Union; this is reserved for transactions between people who know each other. It is clearly stated on their website.
And there you are, 350 euros poorer, while good Mr. Colart can live like a king for a month with that money.
So beware. -
The flaw is you, if you answer :-)
Otherwise, the scam lies between the words "good evening" and "boilevin"
--
If God were a villain, it would be me (Mr. Benedict) -
Not complicated...
"However, the risk is that the mandate is currently blocked due to non-payment of the tax that serves as insurance and bank recovery on the fund transfer."
You are going to pay to unlock funds that do not exist.
Honestly, paying someone who wants to buy something from you is so... absurd. -
I agree with the scam
Moreover, the accountant you questioned doesn't seem to be aware of this kind of thing (just a personal opinion)
Already €950 for a WoW account purchased by married adults, I find it so obvious...
And as soon as we talk about Western Union, you can be sure that there's a possible scam
In short, it’s becoming so classic that there's no difference between a car, a WoW account, and a pair of mittens
--
Say no to oppressive laws (Hadopi, SOPA, PIPA, Arjel, ACTA, IPRED) and to digital censorship!!! -
It's not really the account that interests me, and I understood that it was a scam.
No, the real question is at what point can they extract money from you, knowing that supposedly they cover the tax fees, and you only send the account once it's been paid.
PS: The time investment in playing on WoW can greatly increase the value of an account, and time isn't necessarily something that can be bought. So €600 for an account or for something more material, the issue stays the same. -
Hi,
Look, we already know him, and I think Afrik has already taken care of him,
Forget it, and keep your money "JEALOUSLY"!
See you later
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Always think carefully before acting -
The flaws are numerous.
As soon as you provide your name and address, they have an address in France.
(and a photocopy of your ID will be requested at some point)
As a result, they can scam other people, who will turn against you..
As Blackwolf said, sooner or later, you will have to pay to unlock a situation: export tax, corruption tax, scam tax, etc...
(don’t worry, the seller will refund you 100% they say...)
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Stop failing the Turing test!
