Interesting start of what smells like a scam...somehow....

[Meghan54]

OK.....I advertise on Craigslist for my humble repair shop. Get a few new customers this way.

So, get an email yesterday asking if I can handle repairing a quantity of laptops.

The email reads:

I have been contracted to fix up ten
Dell laptops but at the moment i am in far away Hawaii attending to
some other jobs.In view of this i want you to handle the fixing of the
laptops on agreed terms.

This are what need to be done on each laptops.

1 Format Hard Drive
2 Instal Win Xp with Service Pack 2
3 Microsoft Office Package
4 AVG Virus Software (Free Lifetime Updates)
5 Adobe Acrobat
6 Laptop Cleaning of the keyboard, screen and other case.
7 Diagnostics of the entire system after to check hard drive, cdrom,
floppy, etc.

If you are capable of handling this get back to me with the total cost
for handling each unit based on a total cost of ten units.Please get
back to me as soon as you get this so we can proceed and i can go
ahead to arrange moving and payments.

Let's see....broken English, person wanting the work done located nowhere near me, etc.
Reads like the typical scam on Craigslist.....but I fail to see what it is.

Anyway, funny reading it and honestly thinking anyone would ship 10 laptops to an unknown and out-of-town shop.

 

[lxskllr]

Maybe you'd be some kind of intermediary for hot laptops?

 

[JJChicken]

Dunno, that actually sounds pretty legit. The way I distinguish spam/scam is how generic they are, whereas this is a specific reply to you. Furthermore, you will be receiving payment so I don't see how he can scam you (he has to send you the laptops and you can withhold return of laptops until after receiving partial payment or through other means).

 

[highland145]

Weigh out the costs of doing the work with the potential profit/loss of having to sell them yourself if he doesn't pay.

 

[bignateyk]

Probably trying to "launder" stolen laptops...

 

[Meghan54]

Probably trying to "launder" stolen laptops...

Other than being a legit offer, that's about the only thing I could come up with........

 

[kranky]

I might be too cynical but I can think of a few potential problems.

Laptops could be stolen.
He might give you bootleg software for the installation, putting you in a bad situation.
He might tell you to buy the software and you'll be reimbursed.
Some or all of the laptops might have problems that you get blamed for. ("They were working fine when I sent them to you.")
You do all the work and are paid with a bad check.

I suppose it would be easy enough to protect yourself by getting a 50% deposit up front (+ cost of software if you are supposed to supply it), finding out where the software is coming from, and working out a system where you can ensure you get paid safely at the end.

I would draft an agreement that sets out the terms and conditions you are willing to accept, including the protections you need, and have him sign it before committing to anything.

It smells funny to me.

 

[Meghan54]

It smells funny to me.

Smells funny to me, too. It's written just like the "I like your item. I send check, you cash check, send item. Item is for relative in another town, so I arrange pick up of item after you cash check. I send too large check, you keep some for item, send rest back with item..." scam emails I get from Craigslist.

They're almost as bad as the "I used to sell on Craigslist until I found this secret work-at-home thingy that will make you rich" crap.

 

[nick1985]

Sounds fishy. I would pass

 

[MotionMan]

I have been contracted to fix up ten
Dell laptops but at the moment i am in far away Hawaii attending to
some other jobs.In view of this i want you to handle the fixing of the
laptops on agreed terms.

This is that part that shouts SCAM!!!

Not worth the risk. Move along.

MotionMan

 

[DrPizza]

How much time are you willing to spend up front trying to determine 100% for certain that this is legitimate?

Besides the Hawaii part (which may or may not be legitimate), the other thing that sounded fishy was "Please get back to me as soon as you get this so we can proceed and i can go ahead to arrange moving and payments."

"arrange moving"??

 

[blackdogdeek]

you left out this part of the email:

Sincerely,
Prince Outanabe of Nigeria

 

[Cuda1447]

Broken English = don't waste your fucking time.

 

[Meghan54]

How much time are you willing to spend up front trying to determine 100% for certain that this is legitimate?

Besides the Hawaii part (which may or may not be legitimate), the other thing that sounded fishy was "Please get back to me as soon as you get this so we can proceed and i can go ahead to arrange moving and payments."

"arrange moving"??

I know....it's written horribly, as most scams are.

you left out this part of the email:

Sincerely,
Prince Outanabe of Nigeria

That made me laugh some coffee out my nose! Now stop that!



But, I quoted a ridiculous price and got back this email in return, from a Mary Brown:

Thanks for the reply, I am okay with the price, but understand that am
sub-contracting it to you so i can only pay you XXXX for all and i have all
the necessary software and licenses needed for the service installations,
So i will want you to send me your full names and address immediately so
that i can direct the project manager to prepare a check in your name for
payment immediately.Please send me your full names,address and phone number
immediately.
Note that i have a reliable shipper who will be responsible for the
delivery of the laptops to you and also the pick up after you have completed the job.

Getting weirder and weirder. Shall see what happens, I suppose. And the "counter-offer" was still an acceptable four figures and not bad considering all the software will be provided....if this is real at all, which I seriously doubt.

 

[OutHouse]

Thanks for the reply, I am okay with the price, but understand that am
sub-contracting it to you so i can only pay you XXXX for all and i have all
the necessary software and licenses needed for the service installations,
So i will want you to send me your full names and address immediately so
that i can direct the project manager to prepare a check in your name for
payment immediately.Please send me your full names,address and phone number
immediately.
Note that i have a reliable shipper who will be responsible for the
delivery of the laptops to you and also the pick up after you have completed the job.

i always find it amusing that scammers always use some sort of title in their emails. ooooo project manager!!! im sure he has a LOT of power and responsibility. Hey he used the word project MANAGER!!! it has to be real! i better comply before the PROJECT MANAGER gets mad!

 

[Meghan54]

i always find it amusing that scammers always use some sort of title in their emails. ooooo project manager!!! im sure he has a LOT of power and responsibility. Hey he used the word project MANAGER!!! it has to be real! i better comply before the PROJECT MANAGER gets mad!

Yeah, I know. But it's fun playing with it as it goes.

 

[kranky]

OK, I'm now 100 percent convinced it's a scam. "Mary Brown" indeed.

I predict it's going to be the check made out for too much money/return the excess scam.

 

[Meghan54]

OK, I'm now 100 percent convinced it's a scam. "Mary Brown" indeed.

I predict it's going to be the check made out for too much money/return the excess scam.

I've been waiting for that to pop up myself.

 

[nick1985]

Yeah, he will mail you a check thats for way to much and will ask for some back.

 

[Meghan54]

Well, the scam was finally revealed in the latest email.

Below is a section from that email:

In view of all this i discussed with the project manager and we have reached a conclusion that all payments for this project should be issued to you in your name to save time and cost. I will let you have the tracking number as soon as the check is sent out.

All you will have to do is to receive the check,remove your own amount as agreed and send the rest to the shipper via western union as i will instruct you later on.

Issuing the payment together will save both time,stress and
also save cost of additional bank charges on check stock.

I do love the "save cost on check stock" crap.

Now, has anyone thought about doing the following.....take one of these crap scam checks to one of those check cashing places? Wonder what the outcome of doing that would be? Certainly wouldn't dare put this crap into my own bank account.

 

[nick1985]

Now, has anyone thought about doing the following.....take one of these crap scam checks to one of those check cashing places? Wonder what the outcome of doing that would be? Certainly wouldn't dare put this crap into my own bank account.

I bet they would

 

[ChairShot]

do it, film it and youtube it!

 

[Ancalagon44]

Please cash the cheque, draw out all of the money, and then wait a week.

If a scammer wants to give you money, make sure they never get it back.

 

[JoeBleed]

It is going to be a fake check. Stop protection will not help you.

Those check cashing places, i would think, take down your information so they know who you are. I know some banks even make you finger print your check, don't know of the check cashing places would or not.

This info comes from reading the 419 scambait forums.

It also seems, even in todays tech world, checks can look cleared for 2 months then the bank can still come back and take the money out of your account. In the check cashing places, they would have your ID and likely report you for fraud. If they wold even handle a check as large as the one the scammers probably want to send you.

If you want to screw with them, the best i can suggest is just keep them wasting time with you, but never cash their checks. They would likely never send you any laptops as that would actually cost them shipping money for a scam they don't need to actually spend.

 

[Meghan54]

Please cash the cheque, draw out all of the money, and then wait a week.

If a scammer wants to give you money, make sure they never get it back.

Putting a scammer's check into a checking account is the wrong way to play this....the bank will want their money back when it bounces as the account it's drawn upon probably doesn't exist and you'd get hit with an overdraft fee on top of that. That's why I wondered about one of those "we take 25% of the check's face value to cash it" check cashing places.

Heck, I could print up any sort of check you'd like...check printing software abounds and all you'd need is a good routing number for a bank.