The world is full of artful scamsters

YESTERDAY someone from Cape Town attempted to lend me R15000.

I have never heard of the company but he had my name and my number, which he said he acquired from a direct marketing company. He also had the cheek to ask why, when the offer was declined.

Besides that phone call, my inbox is flooded with offers from loan sharks, at least eight a day; with messages from Mr Woo wanting to do business with me, (he seems to think I sell handbags), and from someone offering me a job, but it is not mentioned what the job is.

In one day this week I had five different people asking about a photo on my Facebook page. The first one I took seriously. Fortunately that little voice warning against opening dodgy unsolicited mail won the day and the mail was deleted. When the fifth arrived it was obvious there was a scam in progress and someone, or an organisation (as in organised crime), was attempting to get my details.

Among the other suspect mails are a number from a Norwegian man working on an oil rig in Mossel Bay who is looking for love. He’s been a widower for five years and is lonely. Yeah right. Mossel Bay is a long way from Pinetown.

If I had all the money that I won every day I would be lying on the beach on my own private island, being served drinks by someone interesting.

What is perturbing is that these things come in batches, a sudden rush of spam, which makes me wonder if my name is suddenly out there, because the majority do use my name. So when did I give out my details? On competitions and raffles, at security gates and when buying books and seeds online.

The thing about these fishing expeditions is that, while most of us are cautious, there are people so desperate that they fall for this bait.

Scamsters are becoming more and more sophisticated. By now most of them realise that the multimillion dollar prize trick is no longer too successful and they are trying new lines, many of which are quite plausible. While social media and the internet have revolutionised our lives it is a dangerous thing. Be suspicious of everything unsolicited.

Other “scams” which make me really angry are those poor little child dying of cancer stories.

These are the most sick fabrications because they play on people’s emotions.

Before you forward a message 100 times so that the American Cancer Association will pay 3c a message towards the child’s medical bills, check out snopes.com. The site will tell you that the sad, sorry story is a lie. What people get out of these hoaxes beats me, but it does illustrate that they are heartless. and rely on your kindness to spread this virus around the world.