Weirdest Email Scam Ever: Part II
By pyewacket
@pyewacket (43903)
United States
July 31, 2009 8:47pm CST
Yes there's a part two to this from my original discussion here and feel the need to do a part two as this is getting "stickey"
http://www.mylot.com/w/discussions/2087729.aspx#
This is really getting alarming. It DOES seem that my "real" friend Betty's email account has been hacked, and I don't know if I'm talking to the real Betty or fake one. The reason is this.
When I first got that email scam of a "Betty" posing as my real friend Betty, I emailed the real Betty---she had no idea this was happening. She had gotten an email SUPPOSEDLY from Yahoo telling her to reset her password-----THIS SOUNDS LIKE A SCAM IN ITSELF, but she took it as real and did so. The thing is, the scammer seems to be tied to the real friend of mine's email and is now aware on any correspondence...how do I know? When I hit the reply button instead of getting the real Betty's addy, I automatically get the FAKE ONE. As mentioned in my other discussion, the differences between the real Betty's email and the fake one are very slight...thankfully I've noticed it..but it still doesn't change things as it seems the fake person is still getting my friends emails and is aware of our correspondence. I suggested to her to completely change her email addy and contact the REAL Yahoo..and who knows the FBI???
Thing is, is now I'm paranoid about writing to the real Betty since the fake one is receiving my emails as well and watching everything and aware of everything--have any of you had such a problem?
9 people like this
20 responses
@blackbriar (9076)
• United States
1 Aug 09
Is there any other way of contacting your friend? Alternate email addy, phone, snail mail? She should definately contact the real yahoo and give them a heads-up on her situation. Yahoo might be able to help her out. Definately set up a completely new email account but this time don't give on her password to anyone. Think she should contact the police as well.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
1 Aug 09
Unfortunately I don't have her snail mail address nor phone and don't dare ask her to send it to me via email as then the fake Betty would know about it--a definite no-no--I do have outside outlets to contact...like that website I developed (you're a member there remember?) but the same thing would happen...the notice of it would appear in her email and the fake one...sheesh--since she's a member here I could PM her..but one gets a notice in one's email about a PM...kind of stuck, no?
@blackbriar (9076)
• United States
1 Aug 09
Is Betty actually able to read her emails even thou the imposter can read them? If so, maybe send her an email to contact you at the other website with an alternate email so you can talk still without the imposter knowing about it. Just trying to think of some other way you can talk to her.
2 people like this
@scarlet_woman (23463)
• United States
1 Aug 09
found it-
check your mail pye,sending you something.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
1 Aug 09
I got a scam email just the other day supposedly from Paypal to update my info...right away I knew it was a fake
@BarBaraPrz (47342)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
1 Aug 09
Forward all fake paypal emails to: spoof@paypal.com
1 person likes this
@gabs8513 (48686)
• United Kingdom
1 Aug 09
If I where you I would not write to that Addy anymore, if she has her addy as her Paypal addy she needs to change this fast
I suggest she opens a new Email account and not with Yahoo either as I came away from them because they are not secure enough, I have gmail, she needs to change her email addy for everything including here
She needs to report this to
I hope she takes fast action on this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
2 Aug 09
I managed to message her at a private site I have (my ning thing)...and did suggest to her to do just that...but haven't heard back from her yet
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (160696)
• United States
1 Aug 09
Thankfully, I have not, but I appreciate the discussion It gives real meaning to the security warnings that we get about fake messages from Yahoo, PayPal and EBay and various banks. Bad things DOhappen when we slip up and get too trusting.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
1 Aug 09
I got a scam email from supposedly PayPal the other day and of course I knew it was fake
@jerzgirl (9291)
• United States
1 Aug 09
She probably got "phished" where they send a legitimate looking email that opens to a legitimate looking web page, but it's really a fake web page where they have collected her password and others. Now they've probably gone in and changed her password so SHE can't get into her account, but they can. She does need to tell yahoo and she needs to create a new email address to send out and tell everyone what's happening. If she has a copy of the original Phish mail, then she needs to forward that to abuse@yahoo.com, spoof@yahoo.com and admin@yahoo.com to alert them to her hacked account. One of them is the right one, but I can't remember which. She also needs to go here: http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/security/forms/phishing.html to get her account deactivated and back in her control.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
1 Aug 09
Yeah, it does sound like she got phished with a scammer making it look like a legit Yahoo website...I just privately emailed her from a private website I have (mmm..forget if your over there..will invite if not)--and told her to contact the places you mentioned
@tamarafireheart (15384)
•
1 Aug 09
Hi oye,
This is sounding more scarier by the minute, is ther now way you can get in thouch with your real friend Betty other then the e-mail? is there nothing you can do? she she on other forum that you are on so you can get inouh with their? this is too horriable. Hope things will work out soon.
Bright Blessings.
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
1 Aug 09
Too bad Ciao still doesn't exist anymore...one could message each other there with complete privacy--all other places we both belong to, gives an email alert that a message is waiting...sheesh--so that would mean the fake would take notice
@mari61960 (4893)
• United States
4 Aug 09
So have you heard from her yet? Do you know if she has figured it out, I mean what to do about finding out who it is? I sure hope it's only her e-mail that's been gotten into. I have had scams that say you need to change your password. I separately log into the site and see if it gives me a message. It never has so I just report them.
Here is a link that will give information.
http://www.consumerfraudreporting.org/phishing.php
Blessed be,
Mari
@carpenter5 (6782)
• United States
4 Aug 09
She definately needs to contact Yahoo and close that account immediately. Yes hackers are very clever. This is definately a scam and one that needs to be reported! You need to forward the original email to your states attorney general and Betty needs to do so as well, along with a copy of the response she gets from yahoo. This way she is not held responsible for anything that appears to be coming from her and her e-mail address.
@walijo2008 (4644)
• United States
1 Aug 09
That is weird and scary to know someone is reading your emails you write to your friend. I've gotten an email supposedly from Yahoo one time telling me that I need to update my account or it was going to be canceled, and I had read somewhere before that about someone else getting that email and it was a hoax, so I never payed attention to it, I'm glad I didn't or somebody might of hacked into my email account. Is anything being done about it, what does Yahoo say about it? I hope it gets all worked out and they find who's doing it.
@paula27661 (15811)
• Australia
3 Aug 09
I would be inclined to change my email address altogether if I was her. It may even be worth changing to Gmail or Outlook or something. That is amazing; how do these scammers manage things like this? They are obviously clever people; it’s a shame they waste their talents. Hope you friend sorts this out, how unnerving!
@kprofgames (3091)
• United States
4 Aug 09
Yeah that's crazy and honestly if I knew both of them were receiving the same e-mail I would NOT fill it up with FBI this or FBI that. I would play along with it. All that would be used as evidence and can be passed onto the FBI. Ask her for amount of funds again, western union transfer numbers and the important question of why it can't be fedx or UPS overnight to the hotel. I'd keep all this information and help her build her case.
Parnoid? Yeah I would be too, but I'd counter with question after question after question to get as many details as neccessary to put this assswipe away.
Just saying.
@dolphin2406 (1224)
• Poland
1 Aug 09
She must change her email now or at least the password since the scammer has had access to it now. That is called phishing, we must be very aware of these emails as they tell you that you need to give them details again as they are updating their database when in fact you will be redirected to a fake copied website and you are giving them what they need without easily.
One must log on the the site itself by typing the address and not following the link. There are some good information on the internet on how to recognize a fake website address. Banks and other companies never ask you for your password if they need you to change it you will see a notice when you log in their website.
1 person likes this
@dolphin2406 (1224)
• Poland
1 Aug 09
here is a good guideline
http://www.antiphishing.org/consumer_recs.html
and below is a link to an online test to see how much you can recognize such emails, then it will give you explanation and what you need to be aware of. it's very good
http://www.sonicwall.com/phishing/index.html
1 person likes this
@savak03 (6684)
• United States
1 Aug 09
That was a great test. I actually aced it but I have had a lot of experience recognizing the fake emails. Ever since I became a member of Ebay an pay pal I have been receiving them. I always forward any emails I get that appear to be from pay pal to spoof@paypal.com. That way I get verification if the email is legitimate or not. So far none of them have been.
A little common sense goes a long way. The government (IRS) is not going to do any business in emails. They require the paper trail that email can't give. No legitimate company is going to tell you there is a problem with your account and then ask you to give them your account information in an email. Also no legitimate business is going to send an email with bad grammar, punctuation, or misspelled words.
2 people like this
@dolphin2406 (1224)
• Poland
1 Aug 09
I knew about these emails but then I learned more when I received one myself after a transaction was done with my paypal which I didn't do myself. I received an email and followed the link to paypal as I was a bit panicked and did not check if it was a scam email or not, but thankfully paypal arranged everything and my money was refunded.
1 person likes this
@prinzcy (32305)
• Malaysia
1 Aug 09
Those scammers are getting more and more creative. Once they figure out those old tricks won't work anymore, they'll figure another really quick. If those effort being pour on their real life, they can be billionaire in a short time!
So have it been settle? Has the real Betty contact you and figure out what happen? Maybe you and the real Betty need to change method of correspondence. I dunno, via phone or messenger?
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
1 Aug 09
Problem is, is that she thinks her messenger has been hacked into as well--nope hasn't been settled yet
@Lakota12 (42600)
• United States
1 Aug 09
NO I havent as I stopped opening yahoo when I kept getting a thing in IM that my SIL was trying to get me in a diet things and he wasnt even on his wife my daughyter weas
aslo a frined of mine was also sending this thing when she wasnt on at all .
Called her she hadnt been on for day.
So I dont use yahoo at all any more!
@twoey68 (13627)
• United States
1 Aug 09
I think your advice is sound. Your friend should go to either a whole new email address or even to a whole new email site, like switching from Yahoo to Gmail. A good way to stop a hacker though is to get a new email address, make a list of her email contacts and then email them directly from the new email address. In other words don't send any emails out of the old account. I'd also suggest she change her user id, at least enough to make it easy for ppl to tell the difference between the old and the new. It's a hassle but it's better than having someone going through your mail.
[b]**AT PEACE WITHIN**
~~STAND STRONG IN YOUR BELIEFS~~[/b]
@KATRINKA (1624)
• United States
1 Aug 09
I've never experienced anything so weird or scary. I've received the Nigerian email scams, and emails from names I don't recognize, but never from anyone I thought I knew. This is alarming. Keep us posted on this.
@daeckardt (6237)
• United States
1 Aug 09
That is freaky. Do you have contact with her in any way other than email? If you have a phone number, you might want to use it and tell her your concerns. You might want to make contact with her in some other way until you get to the bottom of this. If I get something like that, I steer as far away as I can. I hope this gets resolved. Take it easy.
@savak03 (6684)
• United States
1 Aug 09
Do you have a phone number for your friend? Seems like she needs to do a scan and dump all her cookies on her computer. Then she needs to get a new email address and if I were her I would pick another provider and skip yahoo all together since that is where the fake one is. She might also want to change all her passwords and start checking on any accounts she manages through her computer. It sounds like she may be in a real fix but telling her these things over the net may be telling the fake as well and that will make any changes she makes null and void.
