Percentage

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Not quite a Newb Joined: 26 Jan 2009 Posts: 77

I know this site is called 419eater due to the Nigerian legal code, but scam artists exist everywhere. I was wondering what percentages of "Distance" scams origonate in different locales. I realize there are a tonne of domestic scams that use mail and email, just wondering how much and from where most of the scams that cross borders come from. (My grandfather got hit for a VERY sophisticated domestic scam back in the early 1990's, for a cosmetics "company" called Sonoma. They even had actual cosmetic samples, but turned out to be a scam. He lost tens of thousands of dollars to that one.)

Well, we all know Nigeria and Russia are on the list, but I hear about many other countries, including the US, Netherlands, UK, etc. here.

Just curious about what the major international email/mail based scams countries are, and who are the ones doing the scams. Also, would like to know what the different types of scams are dominant in each demographic. (Like I said above, the domestic scam in the US was for a product line that would appeal to women, but it seems that many Russian scammers do the romance thing, often appealing to single women, as well as single men.).

Just wondering out of curiosity.

EDIT: Maybe I should have titled this thread "Prevailance of distant scams by geographic location and motive". :shrugs:

Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 4:49 am

I think you should ask your government for a grant to research this type of detailed answer. We deal specifically with advance fee fraud type scams and scammers, and variations.

I would think law enforcement or government agency would have some public access statistics they could throw your way on other scams.

Hello I'm New here! Joined: 24 Jan 2009 Posts: 19

This is a good question, I have wondered something similar myself. I have baited scammers for a while but didn't find this website for quite awhile, partly because I never knew the "name" of the scams.

I have read on different places on this site that only somewhere around 50% of scams or so originate from Africa?(could be wrong, going off memory)

This being said the general description for advanced fee scamming (419, and not just this site) is based off Nigerian code. Is this because in the past a higher percentage came from Nigeria?

Just in case: Please don't take this as criticism or rudeness, I am genuinely curious.

Not quite a Newb Joined: 26 Jan 2009 Posts: 77

Nurse nasty: Yeah, I know this sort of thing isn't totally in line with eater, and is prolly a much bigger thing than I can ever wrap my mind around, I was just figuring that someone here would have had experience with this kinda data and would be able to pop off a few stats. If I COULD get a grant for such a thing, I wouldn't spend it on number crunching, as that is only of limited use. I would spend it on actually fighting the problem. Not that I have a snowball's chance in hell of getting a grant like that Wink

EDIT: Mondayne: Glad to see I am not the only one curious about the basic stats. Scams are everywhere, not just in Nigeria.

Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 5:17 am

I remember when I was starting out here that I only got scam emails from Burkina Faso but then eventually Ghanas, Brits, French-language lottery prostitutes, Nigerians, and a lad from Mali (whose IP later pointed to a town near Paris, France). This is my guess on the countries that have the typically have 419 scams:

UK
USA
France
Russia
Bulgaria
The Czech Republic
Nigeria
Burkina Faso
Ghana
Togo
Benin
Senegal
The Netherlands
Somalia?

South Africa (I got a lad from there!)
Ivory Coast/ Côte d'Ivoire
Uganda (I received one from here years ago but the lad's may have lied.)

EDIT: I found this website> http://419-scams.the-world-in-focus.com/?p=1657

Hello I'm New here! Joined: 24 Jan 2009 Posts: 19

The IP's in my catcher accounts resolve from all over the place as well, but I'm wondering why the common name for these scams originate around the Nigerian criminal code.

That is why I'm wondering if it was more centered in Nigeria in the past.

Master Baiter Joined: 23 Jan 2009 Posts: 241

More recently, the modality has changed a bit. The lads go door to door. Could be a lottery winning or cell phone or NOK.

They then collect

a. money/valuables on the spot

b. bank deposits.

before vanishing

Elite Baiter Joined: 19 Jan 2008 Posts: 1043

Can you provide a source for that info Ramsey?

A few points that pop up in my sleep deprived mind are;
1. Domestic fraud can be more easily dealt with by the police, trading standards, and the judicial system. Foreign AFF is almost impossible to police.
2. Domestic AFF is much harder to bait. Dodgy builders coming to your house quoting you for jobs that “need” doing could not be baited safely. Also, they don’t advertise by sending out thousands of easily recognisable adverts.
3. It is known as the Nigerian scam and as 419 because whilst Nigeria wasn’t the first place to perform advance fee fraud, it was the first to industrialise it and mass mail companies and individuals. The other nationalities you see sending out formats are either expatriates of Nigeria, or Johnny come latelys who know a good horse to back.

Master Baiter Joined: 23 Jan 2009 Posts: 241

>Can you provide a source for that info Ramsey?
From a news site that i subscribe to, see my post in Miscellaneous Scams

>1. Domestic fraud can be more easily dealt with by the police, trading standards, and the judicial system.

That's what i thought as well but sadly no This type of scam has flushed, accelerated even in teh last few years and sadly many/more people are conned and the cops are too busy chasing other/bigger crimes .

Elite Baiter Joined: 19 Jan 2008 Posts: 1043

The key word in that sentance is more.

I'll look for your post now. I start at the top of the forum and work my way down.