Vosman police have warned the public about the 419 scams.
The police reported that recently four cases have been reported to them.
The 419 scams are a type of fraud and one of the most common types of confidence trick. The scam typically involves promising the victim a significant share of a large sum of money, which the fraudster requires a small up-front payment to obtain. If a victim makes the payment, the fraudster either invents a series of further fees for the victim, or simply disappears.
There are many variations on this type of scam, including advance fee fraud, Fifo’s Fraud, Spanish Prisoner scam, the black money scam and the Detroit-Buffalo scam. The scam has been used with fax and traditional mail, and is now used with the Internet.
Online versions of the scam originate primarily in the United States, the United Kingdom and Nigeria, with Ivory Coast, Togo, South Africa, the Netherlands and Spain also having high incidences of such fraud. The number “419” refers to the section of the Nigerian Criminal Code dealing with fraud.
Vosman communication officer Captain Klaas Maloka said the indications are:
*The communication sounds too good to be true
*The promise of large sums of money for little or no effort on your part
*The victim is requested to provide money upfront as a processing or administration fee
*The request usually contains a sense of urgency
*The victim does not know the person who has sent the communication.
*The sender at times requests confidentiality
*Lottery, inheritance or prize themes are popular in the communications
*Payments are often requested to be made by moneygram
*In some instances genuine companies’ letterheads are utilised to convince the victim of the authentically of the request.
He warned victims that if they receive a scam e-mail or phone call they should not reply. They can also forward the copy of the e-mail to the internet service provider from where the email originated. The e-mail must also be forwarded to the South African Police Services at 419scam@saps.org.za. The victims must also immediately contact the police.
