Advanced Fee Fraud (419) Props/Documents

A look at some of the props scammers can use to dupe potential victims.

One of the main reasons why Advanced Fee Fraud is one of the most successful and prolific scams in cyberspace today is because the scammers don’t just con their victims just through wishful emails. Scammers often come from African nations such as Nigeria, meaning their grammar and spelling is hardly articulate, meaning they need other props to sucker their victims into handing over their hard earned cash.

So let’s take a look at these other props that you will come across in your typical advanced fee fraud scam. All the screenshots you will see are genuine props used in advanced fee fraud scams we have encountered in the past.

The certificate!

Well… victims feel a lot more comfortable and susceptible when they have a certificate showing them their “winnings” – the only problem these “certificates” can be created with a simple software application and a mere 15 minutes!



Our very own Froyd O’Lante (from our scambaiting section) “won” the UK national lottery and received this certificate confirming his winnings. At first glance one could be impressed by the document but take a closer look…
First off the signature isn’t scanned it is a digital signature and the fonts used are basic fonts you can find in any software package. There are no identifying features to prevent it from being duplicated and the UK Lottery logo which is used twice can be found freely on the Internet for anyone to download.



This “certificate of deposit” is supposed to show that the lottery board from the first scam have despotised the lump sum into the bank and this certificate is supposed to prove it. First off, look at the amateur nature of the whole document. This is the sort of standard that most scammers documents adhere to. It may look professional to some, but to others with even a little design experience, the document screams fake. Second of all, the City Bank of London doesn’t exist, and the poorly constructed logo is likely just made up. The faces on the top right has likely been downloaded from another website.

Application forms and questionnaires!

Most advanced fee fraud scams require you to fill out some form, or forms. They don’t really need them, but use them to make the transaction feel official and to get your personal details for possible identity theft. Here is an example of an application form –



Other than the poor attempt at duplicating the real Bank of Africa’s logo, it may be hard for many to determine this application as a fake. The stamps and signature give the form an authentic feel, so this serves as a warning not to believe documents like this at just a glance. This document is a pure fake, and the details written on it are our own fake details we used to lure the scammer. The main giveaway with this one is the header that appears to be a rush job.

Similar to the application form and popular in the "rich dead client" genre of 419 fraud is the questionnaire form. Usually these are there to make the transaction appear more legitimate as opposed to the scammer actually gaining any other advantage by using it. This form below is sent by the "bank" to the victim in order for the victim to prove he really knows the dead client. The victim then passes the form to the scammer who initied the fraud for them to answer the questions on behalf of the victim. This in turn builds a false relationship of trust between the victim and scammer.

Deeds!

This was the deed Froyd O’Lante received when he was beneficiary to a large sum of money from an arrested manager of an African oil company. The grammar was poor and also note the tacky “clipart” of a set of scales in the background. Hardly a groundbreaking forgery.

Other forms

The form below just serves to sucker the victim in further. It is masquerading as an approval form from the Bank of Africa. The form itself may appear believable to some, but to others it will look amateurish and corny. The stamps and signatures just serve as smoke and mirrors to distract the victims from seeing a poor “clipart” like document pretending to be a genuine form from the Bank of Africa. It is a pure fabrication.



The above forms just show what – from our experience – is the typical standard of forged documents that scammers will send. For those who have experience in the relevant fields of design, this will only serve as a needless reminder that these forms are fake, but for people not so familiar with this – this is the standard that many scammers can reach without much effort, so don’t get suckered in my official looking documents.

There is another important point worth looking at, and that is when scammers send you “their” proof of identification. These look completely genuine, even to professionals, and that is because they are genuine. They don’t belong to the scammer, but they are real.

You see, as part of the process to claim whatever “winnings” or “inheritance” the scammers claim you are beneficiary to, they will often ask for your identification (usually a photocopy of passport of drivers license) for security purposes. Victims that get suckered into the scams not only give their money away, but their identity to. This is known as online identity theft. Once a scammer gets your money, they can use your photocopied ID to dupe other victims. They will send your ID to other victims claiming it to be their own. When victims see that the scammer has offered their ID they will usually be more willing to believe and ergo comply with a scammer’s demands.

So the point is just because the scammer has offered ID, by no means does this lend legitimacy to the transaction. In fact, one could argue that this is merely a red flag pointing to a scam, because the process of sending ones ID to legitimise a business transaction is not commonplace, other than in online scams.

Hopefully this article has shown you that no matter what documents or identification a person sends you online, don’t take it at face value. It is not our intention to make people paranoid online, but it is better to be too safe, than not safe at all.

Craig
ThatsNonsense.com