Beware of fraud through Internet

[Tayeb]

Assalamu-alaikum ya Muslimeen and greetings to all others:

I have copied and pasted an email that I received that depicts how far this type pf fraud is prevalent on the Web. In case you don't know there are a number of schemes that rely on the inherent greed of whoever receives this type of messages. It all started in Nigeria where these authors of misusage of Internet could act with relative impunity. They have grown in sophisitcation and must be denounced and our Muslim brethren, and not only Muslims, made aware of such schemes.

What they offer? They offer money for nothing, or in other words easy money. Innocent victims fall prey to these schemers. I watched some months ago on CNN, an Iranian couple that was convinced that could make easy money and they ended up loosing hundreds of thousands of hard-earned US dollars.

My request is that you ought not believe at all that you can somehow make a fortune without ever working for it. These are schemers that want to milk your money and before you realise you'll have lost hundreds of precious euros, dollars or sterling pounds. Just delete messages that offer you easy money - it's just a fraudulent scheme!

Here's the message I received. Do read and appreciate how "clever" these people are, that even used bonna fidae email services like that of ummah.org and news from BBC. This is no Prince Hakim (if he exists!), but somebody impersonating him:

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Date: Mon, 6 Dec 2004 22:18:58 +0100
From: hakimbolkiah <hakimbolkiah@ummah.org>
Subject: THE SULTANATE

Hello,

Assalaamu 'Alaikum.

I hereby request your investment assistance confidentially and further explicit investment information about your country confidentially. I need you to read this email message carefully because it is very imperative.

I am Prince Hakim F. Bolkiah, the eldest son of Prince Jefri Bolkiah who was the former Finance Minister of Brunei, located in the northwest of the island of Borneo. Brunei Darussalam is a small country governed according to Islamic values and traditions by His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Muizzaddin Waddaulah.

The country’s official name is Negara Brunei Darussalam (abode of peace). It is a member of APEC, ASEAN and BIMP-EAGA as well as the United Nations and the British Commonwealth.

I will save your time by not amplifying my extended Royal Family history which has already been disseminated by the international media during the controversial dispute that erupted between my father and his stepbrother, the sultan of Brunei Sheik Muda Hassanal Bolkiah.

As you may know from the international media, the sultan had accused my father of financial mismanagement and impropriety of US$16.8 Billion. This was as a result of the Asian financial crisis that made my father company Amedeo Development Company and government owned Brunei Investment Agency to be declared bankrupt during his tenure in office. Prince Jefri was relieved of his post as Finance Minister of Brunei and was stripped of his chairmanship post as head of the nations international investment arm, the Brunei Investment Agency in February 1998. The Agency controls 13 companies & Bruneis overseas assets. In July 1998 the Sultan barred trading by Amedeo when the worlds biggest corporate debt of US$16 Billion came to light.

In September the 1998, the Sultan ordered an investigation of the BIA by accountants KPMG after the Brunei government alleged that large sums of money had been misappropriated to companies controlled by Prince Jefri. The Sultan then asked the Bank of England to help track down an alleged L28 Billion of state and family funds said to be missing. On the 02/10/1998 Prince Jefri Bolkiah flew from London in a private jet and was going to settle matters directly with Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.

Prince Jefri drove straight to his seaside palace at Jerudong, about 10 miles south of the capital, Bandar Seri Begawan. He was due to meet with officials of the Amedeo Development Corporation and visit the sultan. Relations between the Royals appeared to deteriorate quickly. However, my father was kept under house arrest, his bank accounts and private properties including a crude oil export refinery & the sultan also strip my father of control over three large oil wells which were later confiscated by the sultanate.

Furthermore, during this unfortunate period i was advised to evacuate my immediate family outside the sultanate to avoid further prosecution from the sultan and his security operatives, but before I could do that I was placed under house arrest by, the Sultan. I have a Palm V hand-held computer from which I am sending you this mail.

You could get through these below listed websites for more references:-
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/681413.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/747468.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1494944.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/670959.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1489354.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1484496.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/821815.stm

Before my arrest, I went ahead to dispatch the sum of US$500 Million in cash under special arrangement into the custody of different Private Security and Trustee Companies for safe keeping abroad. The money where split and kept in the following countries in this proportion: US$50 Million is in England, US$100 Million is in Spain, US$100 Million is in The Netherlands, US$80 Million is in United Arab Emirate and the balance US$170 Million is in Indonesia.

I am unable to reach my friends & associates whom would have provided all the much needed moral and financial assistance i require because my diary have being seized by my uncle Sheik Muda Hassanal Bolkiah who is also the Sultan of Brunei. Hence, I seek your good assistance to receive and invest these funds into profitable investment in your country to facilitate future survival for my family abroad. I will compensate adequately for your strong cooperation.

I am counting on your absolute confidentiality and transparency while looking forward to your prompt reply towards a swift conclusion of this business transaction.

Please you can include your direct Mobile phone number why replying. Also, direct all correspondence to my E- mail address correctly.

Warm personal regards,

Prince Hakim F. Bolkiah,
Brunei Darussalam.
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Don't be fooled. This is a fraudulent scheme! I have posted just to alert as I found this email amazingly funny and crude at the same time. May Allah protect us from evil and unscrupulous schemers.

Ma'a-salaama,

[lubna]

Assalamoalykum brother
Jazakallah for the info , very interesting and sad at the same time. how the love/greed of money can make people evil at one side and fool on the other side.
and especially if muslims get fooled than it is really sad cos islam tells us to be contented with what we have and dont go for the easy money and for this reason gambling is haram.
and sadly we muslims have become so jahil that we measure the success and blessings in terms of how wealthy we are!! which is totally wrong according to Quraan. Allah test us by giving and taking money . and the real reward will be in the next life. so money itself is not a reward at all!! if it was then how come prophet muhammad saw didnt have lots of it?

may Allah save us all from the all kinds of fitnahs Ameen.
wassalam
lubna

[macmuslim]

Assalamu alaikum

I've been getting 3 of these per week, most weeks for the past 2 years!

I've also had a few posing a devout Christians as well

muppetry!

[Sadika]

Salaams:

In another plot perhaps to collect muslim email addresses is qurantoolkit.com.

What they do is to send an asking to help test their script, which is for Holy Qur'an. The author's name is dr. rashid, and he is from Kenya, Africa, the email contains a link to qurantoolkit.com.

You'll read there testimonials of how great this "program" is, and you are asked to enter your email address to get the free copy of it. You'll never get a free copy of course!

It's a scam to collect/verify email addresses. How more imaginative will be these scammers? May Allah protect us from fitnah and evil doers!

[Tayeb]

Assalaamu-alalikum:

The following link shows some ways of avoiding falling into trap of schemers.

These schemers have a very big imagination and you may fall into their trap so be suscipious of any easy money earning offers.

Internet Fraud Preventive Measures:
http://www.ifccfbi.gov/strategy/fraudtips.asp

Ma'a-salaama,

[Tayeb]

Assalamu-alaikum and greetings:

I think this is the "funniest" one as yet!

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From: "Mrs. Suha A." <suu43@hotmail.com>
Subject: salaam/greetings
Date sent: Sun, 20 Feb 2005 22:41:14 +0400
Send reply to: ssha_43@yahoo.it

Dear Friend,

I am Mrs. Suha Arafat, the wife of Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian leader who died recently in Paris. Since his death and even prior to the announcement, I have been thrown into a state of antagonism, confusion, humiliation, frustration and hopelessness by the present leadership of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and the new Prime Minister. I have even been subjected to physical and psychological torture. As a widow that is so traumatized, I have lost confidence with everybody.

You must have heard over the media reports and the Internet on the discovery of some fund in my husband secret bank account and companies and the allegations of some huge sums of money deposited by my husband in my name of which I have refuses to disclose or give up to the corrupt Palestine Government.

In fact the total sum allegedly discovered by the Government so far is in the tune of about $6.5 Billion Dollars. And they are not relenting on their effort to make me poor for life. As you know, the Moslem community has no regards for woman, more importantly when the woman is from a Christian background, hence my desire for a foreign assistance.

I have deposited the sum of 21 million dollars with a Security financial firm in whose name is withheld for now until we open communication. I shall be grateful if you could receive this fund into your bank account for safe keeping and Investment opportunity. This arrangement will be known to you and I alone and all our correspondence should be strictly on email alone because our government has tapped all my lines and are monitoring all my moves.

In view of the above, if you are willing to assist for our mutual benefits, we will have to negotiate on your Percentage share of the $21,000,000 that will be kept in your position for a while and invested in your name for my trust pending when my Daughter, Zahwa, will come off age and take full responsibility of her Family Estate/inheritance. Please, if you are honest, I am going to entrust more funds in your care as this is one of the legacy we keep for our children.

May God bless you and your household.

Yours sincerely,

Suha Arafat
Reply to : ssha_43@yahoo.it

[lubna]

Assalamoalykum brother
:D :D :D :D indeed very funny,
this also shows the craze of making money has made them so stupid, that they cant even come up with cunning ways to con people....but then again after all they are lazy people who want to become millionair in seconds, how can they put pressure on their tiny brain to come up with something harder to catch!.... :)




. As you know, the Moslem community has no regards for woman, more importantly when the woman is from a Christian background, hence my desire for a foreign assistance.



now this is alone enough for putting in the guiness book of record for the joke of the year, and at the same time for being the stupid person of the year, for exposing that the author of this mail is a non muslim, cos only a non muslim can make such an ignorant comment!

any way jazakallah brother for sharing this with us..... :) :)

wassalam
your sister
lubna

[Tayeb]

Assalamu-alaikum and greetings:

Am usual ploy which works onto the greed of one reads it. I've no relative in Nigeria and for that matter my surname has nothing to do with a family. It was the first name of my late father.

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Date: Thu, 03 Mar 2005 03:32:00 +0000
From: williams kacy <kcwilliams_1312@hotmail.com>
To: tayeb.habib@aliatron.com
Subject: Can I Trust You Habib?

Dear Habib,

I am Mr.Kacy Williams,a banker with union bank plc. I happen be an account officer to Mr.Hen. Habib,whom I presume must be a national of your country, who used to be a contractor/supplier to a multi-national Company in Nigeria. On the 21st of June 2001, my client, his wife and their only daughter were involved in a car accident along Kano/Kaduna,express road in which all occupants of the vehicle unfortunately lost their lives.

Since then the bank and I personally, have made several enquiries to your embassy here to locate any of my clients extended relatives, this has also proved unsuccessful.After these several unsuccessful attempts, I decided to track his last name over the Internet,who I can present as the next of kin for our mutual benefit,hence I contacted you.

I have contacted you to assist me in recovering the fund valued at US$5.5 million left behind by my client before it gets confisicated or declared unserviceable by our bank where this huge amount was deposited.According to banking policy here,any account that is not serviced within five years without a pre-notice from the account owner to the bank will have that account declared unservicable and what ever in the account confisicated by bank.

Since I have been unsuccesfull in locating the relatives for over four years now, I seek your consent to present you as the next of kin to the deceased since you have the same last names with my client as the banking policy implies here for qualification in this kind of claim,so that the proceeds of this account can be paid to you for our mutual benefit.

on receipt of your positive response,we shall then discuss the sharing ratio of disbursement of the fund after successful claim and mode of claim/ transfer. I have all necessary informations and connections needed for us to make this claim in a risk-free atmosphere.

All I require from you is your honest cooperation to enable us see this transaction through. I guarantee that this will be executed under legitimate arrangement that will protect you from any breach of the law.

I will also want to invest some part of what ever aggreed percentage to come to me in your country considering my position as a civil servant,to avoid suspicion.

Please contact me on my email address above or via my alternative e-mail: kcwilliams889@hotmail.com.

Kacy Williams