I am so lucky.......

[joestein]

I am so lucky.....

I just got an email from Charles Koch - one of the billionaire Koch brothers. His brother decided to leave $2,000,000 Million Dollars (Is that $2 Trillion?) to random people because he is such a great all around guy and philanthropist. All I have to do go the website and submit all my information and bank account info and they will just wire the money to me. Do you think it is ok to pay the wire fees upfront?

Here is the email:

Hi, My name is Mr. Charles Koch, an elder brother to the late Mr.David Hamilton Koch, a philanthropist and the founder of Koch Industries, one of the largest private foundations in the world. Mr. David Hamilton Koch believed strongly in giving while living and had one idea that never changed in his mind, that you should use your wealth
to help people and he decided to give USD2,000,000.00 Million Dollars to randomly selected individuals worldwide before his death on the 23rd of August 2019.

On receipt of this email, you should count yourself as the lucky individual. Kindly get back to me at your earliest convenience, so that I will know your email address is valid. Email me at (mr.charleskoch1@aol.com) you can also visit the web page of the late Mr. David Hamilton Koch to know more about the Hamilton Foundation and this grant: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_H._Koch

Regards,
Mr. Charles Koch.

- All kidding aside. Who falls for these things?

 

[buzglyd]

The Crown Prince of Nigeria sent me a pile of cash a few years ago. I say go for it.

 

[Dori]

Why oh why can't I be as lucky as you folks?

Dori

 

[Brett]

Why oh why can't I be as lucky as you folks?

Dori

you can be as lucky - look in your spam email folder

 

[emeryjre]

Unfortunately these emails work with people with failing mental health. Generally known as dementia. Had it happen to an acquaintance's father. Son had no idea that his father's mental health had fallen so deeply. The mother had died several months earlier and dad was living on his own. They checked in with him regularly and thought all was ok given the circumstances, Dad was lonely and sad about his wife's death, but that was to be expected.

When bills started going unpaid, the son checked further and found out that Dad's bank account had been cleaned out. Fortunately Dad did not provide brokerage account info so the loss was not catastrophic.

So we can joke about who falls for the emails, but their is a dark side to the emails.

 

[dioxide45]

Unfortunately these emails work with people with failing mental health. Generally known as dementia. Had it happen to an acquaintance's father. Son had no idea that his father's mental health had fallen so deeply. The mother had died several months earlier and dad was living on his own. They checked in with him regularly and thought all was ok given the circumstances, Dad was lonely and sad about his wife's death, but that was to be expected.

When bills started going unpaid, the son checked further and found out that Dad's bank account had been cleaned out. Fortunately Dad did not provide brokerage account info so the loss was not catastrophic.

So we can joke about who falls for the emails, but their is a dark side to the emails.

Sadly they do work, thus why these scammers continue to send them. Their cost to spam millions of emails is low and even if they get two or three people to fall for it, they come out ahead.

 

[Luvtoride]

Yes, what a shame that these scams prey on mostly older folks whose mental capacity is fading. Very sad.

 

[Jodyv]

I got a phone call from Jamaica last week. They left a message. It said (in a heavily accented voice) that I won the Publisher's Clearing House Sweepstakes!!!!

 

[DaveNV]

Congratulations, Joe! Let us know when the celebratory party is being held.

I think enough people fall for it that they keep sending them out. Otherwise, why bother?

I got a phone call yesterday from a number spoofed to be the Police Department in my old town in Washington. I answered it, and after a few seconds delay, without even a salutation, a badly recorded electronic female voice said, "The first time you hear this message you need to set aside your work, and pay attention. This is regarding the charges filed against you..." It went on, but I just hung up. Surprisingly, they didn't call back. I expect a Washington state police car will arrive to arrest me shortly. If I disappear from Tug, you'll know I'm in the slammer.

Dave

 

[joestein]

Congratulations, Joe! Let us know when the celebratory party is being held.

I think enough people fall for it that they keep sending them out. Otherwise, why bother?

I got a phone call yesterday from a number spoofed to be the Police Department in my old town in Washington. I answered it, and after a few seconds delay, without even a salutation, a badly recorded electronic female voice said, "The first time you hear this message you need to set aside your work, and pay attention. This is regarding the charges filed against you..." It went on, but I just hung up. Surprisingly, they didn't call back. I expect a Washington state police car will arrive to arrest me shortly. If I disappear from Tug, you'll know I'm in the slammer.

Dave

I got the same phone call recently.

I'll send you a cake with a file if you'll do the same for me.

 

[DaveNV]

I got the same phone call recently.

I'll send you a cake with a file if you'll do the same for me.

Perfect solution! Make my cake chocolate. Because, you know... Cake.

Dave

 

[Talent312]

I'm reminded of the Snapple ad which says the first spam was sent by telegraph.
"We're gonna be rich... Horses for everyone!"

Snapple TV Spot, 'Telegraph'

Some folks in the 1800's anxiously await important news from the telegraph in this reenactment of a Snapple cap "Real Fact." It's not the cure for malaria or news of the war - it's spam.

ispot.tv

.

 

[amycurl]

Everyone knows that the Koch brothers' endgame was a return to serfdom....pretty much the opposite of this scam, LOL. *sigh* *headdesk*

 

[DrQ]

I got a call from Publisher's Clearing House saying "I was a winner". I said: "I know, F*** off."

 

[Laurie]

Funny! BUT ... some years ago I'd gotten a few voice mails saying I'd won tickets to US Open, lodging and flights included, just call such and such phone #. Sounded like robo call. I ignored, because scam, right?

But it was real! Turned out I'd entered an AA sweepstakes, just hoping to get the bottom prize of a hundred extra AA miles just for entering (I'd read about this on TUG in fact!), and I'd really won a prize further up the prize ladder. By the time I figured it out, when they contacted me a final time, it was too late for me to get off work, other family things had come up, yada yada. Prize was non-transferable to friends who yearned to go in my place. So I didn't even get that hundred extra FF miles. Moral of the story is just pay attention, it actually could be your lucky day!

 

[Talent312]

Today, I got a call from from a company about scheduling an install.
I looked at my calendar and said, "I thought you were calling about my car warranty."
They thought it funny.

.

 

[northwoodsgal]

Everyone knows that the Koch brothers' endgame was a return to serfdom....pretty much the opposite of this scam, LOL. *sigh* *headdesk*

I'm not sure where you are getting this information from, but it isn't true. They believe in letting a free market run its course and pay their employees market wages.

 

[TheTimeTraveler]

I got a phone call from Jamaica last week. They left a message. It said (in a heavily accented voice) that I won the Publisher's Clearing House Sweepstakes!!!!

Really? I did also.

I told them to deduct all their fees and send me whatever is left. Can't understand why they hung up on me since I was a winner!


.

 

[mdurette]

- All kidding aside. Who falls for these things?

It is unfortunate, but people do, or else they wouldn't do them. DH on occasion has to take reports for scams. It is amazing how many people who I would assume are at least semi-intelligent fall for the craziest things and end up being out of $$$.

 

[mdurette]

I got a call from Publisher's Clearing House saying "I was a winner". I said: "I know, F*** off."

Dang, I would be all over that call, just in case. This has been a running joke in my house for about 10 years. Every time the envelope comes in the mail, I affix my little stickers and send it in, knowing darn well I won't win anything. My family laughs at me, I tell them when they show up at he door with balloons they get nothing and we all have a chuckle.

 

[Tkhalaska]

We have a family friend who was notified he won the Canadian lottery. Of course there were fees and taxes that had to be paid prior to the disbursement of the winnings. He lost his wife a couple of years before this, and handled all his own financial and life affairs. By the time his kids suspected anything was going on he had already lost everything. There may have been some cognitive decline but it was mostly shame and fear, once he got in past a certain point he too suspected something but chose to convince himself it was real rather than write off what he had already put into it.