Worldwide Slump Makes Nigeria's Online Scammers Work That Mu

Interesting article in the Washington Post yesterday. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/06/AR2009080603764.html?hpid=sec-tech

Worldwide Slump Makes Nigeria's Online Scammers Work That Much Harder
By Karin Brulliard
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, August 7, 2009


I can't paste the entire article here due to copyright laws, but here are some interesting bits:

U.S. authorities say Americans ... lose hundreds of millions of dollars a year to cybercrimes, including a scheme known as the Nigerian 419 fraud, named for a section of the Nigerian criminal code. Now financially squeezed, Americans succumb even more easily to offers of riches, experts say.

Though statistics are fuzzy, the FBI-backed Internet Crime Complaint Center says that scam reports by Americans grew 33 percent last year, and that after the United States and Britain, Nigeria housed the most perpetrators. Ultrascan, a Dutch research firm that investigates complaints of 419 fraud, says online scam offers from Nigerians in and outside their homeland have mushroomed this year.

Of course Nigerian officials dispute their country's prominence in online fraud.

One scammer claims that his most lucrative swindle is the work-from-home scam, which authorities warn is flourishing as the world sheds jobs. In U.S. newspapers and on the Web, he places ads for "pickup agents" or "correspondents." They print out counterfeit corporate checks -- Honeywell is one company whose checks Banjo said he faked -- at $10 apiece and mail them to other unsuspecting folks.

Those victims then cash the checks and wire the funds to the scammer's accomplice in Britain or South Africa. Days later, when the bank deems the check phony, the casher must pay.

"There is another thing scammers always say in Nigeria," Banjo said, "that every day, another maga is born in America."

Another intersting article that I suggest people dont believe too much of

It seems to have a few things that dont line up with my own observations

"scam reports by Americans grew 33 percent last year"
There is no reason to doubt that statistic and I certainly haven't been compiling numbers but do wonder if reporting of this crime has increased more than the incidence of the crime

"after the United States and Britain, Nigeria housed the most perpetrators"
This looks to me like they are trying to suggest that the US and Britain each have more 419scammers than Nigeria, I dont know what they are basing that information on but I have found the incidence of 419 scammers in The US and Britain to be relatively quite rare.

Large concentrations of scammers from my own observations can be found in;
(In no particular order and not at all complete)
Russia,
Ukraine,
Nigeria
Ghana

Also popular but perhaps less so
South Africa
Canada
Spain
Malaysia

Scammers of course are happy to operate from anywhere they can find an internet connection but prefer locations where it is easier to hide from the law.


Days later, when the bank deems the check phony,
From my experience it could be weeks or even months when the banks realise


wire the funds to the scammer's accomplice in Britain or South Africa
The place the funds are wired to is irrelivant, the money can be picked up by persons baring some form of ID (even if fake) from anywhere in the world including Nigeria which I would have thought would be more common than a British accomplice


every day, another maga is born in America
I am picking out this one because that is certainly the way the African scammers I have dealt with think, they treat their victim with such a lack of respect and humanity, it is as if their victims are a lessor species.
The term "maga" by the way, it is a nigerian word that litterally translated to fool or idiot and it is what they call their victims

I didn't like this EFCC quote

"These things are giving Nigeria a bad image," said Babafemi, adding that scammers' overseas partners and victims lured by promises of wealth should share blame.

Only a minority of scams now promise wealth. Jobs, loans, romance, etc seem more common, and possibly more profitable.

Sometimes, Banjo said, he has so pitied victims that he returned their money.

Very very unlikely.

There is no reason to doubt that statistic and I certainly haven't been compiling numbers but do wonder if reporting of this crime has increased more than the incidence of the crime

Ralph, That was my thought as well. I think awareness is increasing and therefore more scams are being reported.

This looks to me like they are trying to suggest that the US and Britain each have more 419scammers than Nigeria,

I wonder if that statistic is being skewed because of the number of Nigerian scammers who claim to be in the US or the UK.