Scam? What Will YOU Do If You Receive This Sort Of Email?
By gemini_rose
@gemini_rose (16264)
August 24, 2008 5:49am CST
To me, I personally think that this is a scam, to me everything that comes through email that I do not recognise is a scam! However, I know that there are good people in the world who may not be computer wise but also have very kind hearts who would read this mail and feel heart sad about it, especially as they are using God in the equation. In fact I know of a couple of people who have had these mails and have believed them to be real. This is the fourth one of these I have had this week, all from people with different names but essentially the same content. Has anyone else received these sorts of mails? Would you see it as a scam or would you feel sad and want to help this person? And does anyone know, just out of curiosity, what the actual scam is with this, what are they really after?
This is the actual email I received, word for word:-
My dear,i am here because i read there are people here, to make a lot
of difference in this life.i think you can make a lot of difference if
we talk,become god friends in our lord,and see that with greater
power,comes greater responsibility.you can make a change in the life
of others,most especially the poor at heart,and the less privileged.
first,i think i would start all with a proper introduction of myself.
I am Missionary Allison Robinson, a widow to Late Craig Robinson. I am
57years old,suffering from long time cancer of the breast. From all
indications, my condition is really deteriorating and is quite obvious
that I may not live more than two months after my next surgery,
because the cancer stage has gotten to a very severe stage.My personal
physician told me that I may not live for more than 2 months and I am so scared
about it. I have no child of mine, even though i wish i had.it is late
now you know, since i can not get married again,and age is no longer
on my side.
Psalms 119:116
Uphold me according unto thy word, that I may live, and let me not
ashamed of my hope.
Psalms 138: 7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou will revive
me......
Psalms 145:18
Psalms 57: 7 My heart is fixed. O God my heart is fixed, I will sing &
give praise.
Psalms51: 17 The sacrifices of God are broken spirit, a broken &
contrite heart, O God thou will not despise.
psalms 41: 1 Blessed is he that considereth the poor, the Lord will
deliver him in time of trouble.
Two of my favorite verses: Philippians2:27: For indeed he was sick nigh
unto death, but God had mercy on him & that on him only, but on me
also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.( I always say this in my
mind)
So, I now decide to divide part of my wealth, by contributing to the
development of the motherless baby homes, needy, poor, charity homes
and widows too. i am willing to donate the sum of $5.000,000.00, which is
still the major inheritance i have left.i wish you could be someone who
i could trust with all my heart, to make this wish of mine come true.
Please note that, this fund is lying in a Security company. so i need
you to use the funds to help the poor.i know this is hard, and it take a
very strong heart to get this done.but you should keep this saying in your heart,I am like Moses in the
Bible. He came to the Red Sea and Pharaoh behind him and no way to
turn but God delivered him all by a miraculous deliverance. It will be a
miracle from God to be able to help all the dear people God has laid
on our hearts. This is why with God in my heart, i contact you,and i want you
to contact me,so we be in contact with all the poor souls out
there.give new lives,hopes and days.I have come to find out that wealth acquisition without Christ is
vanity" and i hope you will agree with this also. I will be praying
hard that Satan will not stop this effort. Do contact me and i will
tell you more of what you wish to know.till you write me God bless you.
10 people like this
26 responses
@msedge (4011)
• United States
24 Aug 08
Hi Gemini_rose!I had received an email like this several times.At first i was a little tempted but i tried to figure out that what my husband always told me not to believe much in the internet because there are alot of scam.Analyzing what the person wrote its hard to believe on it although he was using the name of God for his personal intensions.So everytime i receive such email i just ignore it and delete.
1 person likes this
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
24 Aug 08
And this is what they are preying on, peoples beliefs in God they are taking that in vain and it is wrong. I am not a preacher or big believer in God so this would have no effect on me, but I think that to a lot of people they will think that it cannot be a bad email because of the fact that they have quoted things and used God in there. But it means nothing, I have had four of these emails in just one week, all the same content but from different people, keep deleting and ignoring them.
1 person likes this
@msedge (4011)
• United States
1 Sep 08
Right!People easily believe on this email because of the name of God.I do believe in the existence of God but i am not easily tempted of this email because i don't spread it, i pray by myself and i don't use his name on anything else.Its just within me.
@tessah (6617)
• United States
24 Aug 08
i get these emails all the time. not usualy with the whole holy roller angle.. usually the request is to use forged documents to say im someone im not to claim monies held in some faraway bank waiting on an heir to claim it. i honestly dont see how anyone "honest" would get taken by such a thing really.. considering they tell you right from the get go they want you to commit fraud in order to claim said money.. so personally i think anyone that WOULD get taken by it.. deserves to be ..;nod;..
1 person likes this
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
24 Aug 08
no, this seems to be a new thing that I am getting with the whole quoting from the bible thing, which does not impress me at all anyway, if they new me at all they would know that they lost me at the first mention of it. But anyway, I would not fall for it, but no doubt some will.1 person likes this
@slavezero (833)
• Philippines
26 Aug 08
I receive lots of those kind scam stuff on my email account. when I see that kind mail on my inbox I just report it at as spam and delete. I don't waste my time reading and entertaining those kinds of mails, when I see that it is not a valid mail I delete it or when I sense that mail is a spam I report it as spam. I think we have to wait until we have a perfect anti-spam security protection on our mails to prevent those unwanted mails from entering our inbox.
1 person likes this
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
26 Aug 08
Just lately I am getting sh!tloads of spam through, normally it goes into the junk folder but a lot is getting through just lateley.
@Elixiress (3878)
•
24 Aug 08
I would agree with you that it is a scam, anything that is asking for money for nothing is a scam. I think that mentioning God and religion takes away my sympathy more than if it was just a sob story, but either way I would not accept it as a fact. I would report it as spam and like you if someone is emailing me and I do not know who they are or how they got my email address then I rarely take what they have to say seriously.
1 person likes this
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
27 Aug 08
I just report it as spam now, they are a nuisance though, I get a lot of them.
@rshartist (161)
• United States
25 Aug 08
It is definitely a scam. As others said that people target people who have beliefs. It upset me when people are using people with beliefs. It is best to ignore those emails. They are using believers because they knew that believers would do anything to help people to serve God that is why they are the target.
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
25 Aug 08
Shame though that people actually do this sort of thing to others and do not care less about what they do.
@pitstop (13065)
• India
24 Aug 08
Scam email - people using God, religion, charity, wealth and emotions to scam people are sick.
I would press the report spam/scam button and delete it.
There are apparently sites on the net where you can submit these scams so other people will be aware but I am not sure of which sites these are.
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
24 Aug 08
I deleted the one I was sent, but yeah next time maybe i will look for somewhere to submit it. It might make people more aware.
1 person likes this
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
25 Aug 08
I delete them, I mark them as spam. One thing I never do is email them back, you are letting them know that your email is active and also putting yourself at risk to them.When they send you the email, they do not know whether your address is active or not, they buy the addresses from other websites. They can send viruses through your emails too.
@know21 (1250)
• United States
24 Aug 08
I always get these, and they want me to send them money so they can transfer the money over here to my account. If its inheritance then why do I have to send them money; is the question I always ask myself. Or they want me to put it in my account until they get here, and then they can take it; because they can't take the money of their country.
@checapricorn (16061)
• United States
24 Aug 08
Hi gemini,
[i]I had tried entertaining once email last Month and after listening to some friends, I decided not to be part of it anymore!
This letter is very sad and pity but again, we are not sure if it's real! I guess a lot will say it's a scam! So, maybe just forget about it and if that person realy needs some help, maybe even a single friend will bring her story to any Tv program or Radio Station so people will see and hear him which is a good proof really![/i]
1 person likes this
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
24 Aug 08
Exactly, it sounds very sad and makes a person feel pity and that is what these sorts of people rely on. They hope that whoever gets it will feel so sad and sorry for them that they will want to help, and that is why when i get these sorts of emails i just delete them. No one should ever respond to these emails if they get them.
1 person likes this
@saivenkaat802003 (4823)
• India
24 Aug 08
Any mails which i seem appear to me as scam one.. i definitely delete it and mark them as spam.. No yielding to sentiments in a mail..
Last time i received a lottery winning mail.. i made a curt reply to them..
"I hereby give my consent that you have all the money which i have won. Why are you so graceful enough in informing me.. haha.. "
1 person likes this
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
24 Aug 08
I have considered responding to them myself, but apparently you should not do this as they can glean information by you responding. I was told that they do not know if an address is active before they send a mail and that by someone responding they then know that the address is active but what else they can get I do not know,so just be careful.1 person likes this
@ellie333 (21016)
•
24 Aug 08
Hi Gemini_rose, I would just press the report spam and then delete buttons, I haven't received this one but I receive similar daily and they all equate to the same and they want your bank details etc for these funds to be sent. Unfortunately there must be a few who do believe or they wouldn't keep sending them out to people eh! Ellie :D
1 person likes this
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
24 Aug 08
I always do ellie, they make me laugh to be honest because I am not that naieve with things like this. However I read this one and when I read it I thought, someone else somewhere has probably found this really sad and may actually believe it. Also being the curious kind I just wondered how they go about scamming once someone responds to their email.
1 person likes this
@littleowl (7157)
•
26 Aug 08
Hi Gemini all of those sorts of mail I delete,unsubscribe to or report as scam they are just emails preying on other peoples money for their own benfit from people as you say who will beleive them..I hate those sorts of emails and sometimes wonder how on earth did I get my email when I haven't even subscribed to their mail...littleowl
@littleowl (7157)
•
27 Aug 08
Thanks gemini lately I have been getting a lot of emails through that I don't recognize a few I have unsubscribed from though in the beginning have never subscribed to them..I just hope that hasn't infected my computer..thanks for the info will remember just to delete them in future..bright blessings littleowl
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
26 Aug 08
Hello littleowl, they get your email from places you have registered with, so wherever you have left your email that place will then sell it on. The con artists will buy them not knowing if they are active or not, they then send their spam mail out and hope that they get a bite. By not responding and reporting no one knows if your email address is active or not, they wait for you to tell them by either replying telling them to leave you alone or for you to say yes to their offer.
@seasons1981 (299)
• United States
24 Aug 08
those things always come to me!! I have actually just started pressing junk mail (incredimail) on all of them so I stop getting them... I was getting so many a day it was crazy!!!
@tigerdragon (4297)
• Philippines
25 Aug 08
it is very very simple, just simply ignore it. if you let these things affect you then you are in sin because you get affected. don't let it affect you, it is like in real life yo do not bother to talk to people that you do not like. do not respond, put them in your spam box or better yet get rid of your email so you won't get any and stick with a snail mail. this part of having our informations scattered in the web where everyone can access it. i would strongly suggest that you learn how to live with it and learn how t manage these things. remember, the world is not perfect but we can make it so by starting from ourselves on how we view the world around us.do not think of it so you won't attract it.
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
25 Aug 08
I do ignore them, any mail that comes through asking me for something or offering me something gets deleted.
@jwfarrimond (4473)
•
25 Aug 08
This is just another variation of the Nigerian "inheritance" scam. This is particularly despicable as it's targeting people who are soft hearted enough to believe their lies and is using religion to help them in that.
@MsTickle (25180)
• Australia
2 Sep 08
I think you will find that most people will not bother to respond. Anyone who does is sure to be a patsy who will believe anything they are told. The scam will be that to put the money in your account and you will have to give your account details. Doing this will allow these people to have access to your banking details as well as possible your full name and address. This will give them access to all sorts of things on-line I believe - basically, I think a person will lose their identity.
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
2 Sep 08
Yes I reckon that it will be to get bank details, I have had a few more since this one, just deleted them.
@mummymo (23706)
•
29 Aug 08
It really does tug at the heartstrings doesn't it? i have received many such letters and i have gotten to the stage where I do not even read them , just automatically delete them. It is sad that we have to be cynical but there are so many people out there trying to scam us and this is just the latest rendition! I think you would find if you did answer that you would have to give all your details including date of birth , bank account etc and/or you would have to send the money to pay the fee to transfer the funds. Such a mixed up world we live in where people will say anything to fleece another of every penny they can , I find it very, very sad! xxx
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
29 Aug 08
It is sad I agree I just wish that everyone was wise to these scams then those horrible people would stand no chance.
@lexus54 (3572)
• Singapore
25 Aug 08
I have received such emails in the past months, and I'm absolutely sure behind these are scammers at work. In fact, in the past two or three months, I have been receiving scam emails very regularly and it seems to me that the regularity has increased compared to previous years. It is regrettable that scammers will want to prey on unsuspecting people by using God, religion and faith to cook up a convincing story to tug at people's heartstrings and sympathy. Shame on them. But then, scammers have no conscience and will use any means (ethical or otherwise) to bait their prey. They do a grave injustice to the people who are genuinely in need and who may in desperation send out such emails requesting for financial assistance or help with any monetary means. Who would really dare to take the risk and believe their case in the face of regular scams circulating around the internet world these days?
@gemini_rose (16264)
•
25 Aug 08
I think they are all scams, the problem is though if someone genuine did email me to ask for my help I would not believe it now anyway. Too many dodgy emails come through now for me to ever believe,so you are right there.
@jdyrj777 (6530)
• United States
26 Aug 08
I recieve many letters like this everyday. I have gotten some that claim to be from a central credit union, one even claimed to be the IRS. I usually just spam them without looking at them anymore. But when i 1st got computer it really tripped me out. till i saw they were comimng like everyday. if i get one that claims i inherited thousands i sent 1 answer saying you have my email just send it via paypal coz its international. Or coarse they dont answer. And im still broke.
