By Michael Dorausch, D.C.
Add another name to your list of Scammers and Fraudsters, Mark Nicholas of the UK is emailing people in hopes of separating them from their money.
Thankfully, the very active (love the emails sent our way) chiropractic classified advertising community came through this morning with multiple reports on suspected fraud and scams talking place.
This morning 2 arrived from a Mark Nicholas ([email protected]) in the UK.
This email differs from ones we’ve seen previously but it still comes from the same region (see Daniel Monday Scam Alert).
It’s a form email sent to those posting Equipment For Sale classified ads. It’s a very common scam approach, and fortunately chiropractors using classifieds have been keeping an eye open and reporting suspicious activity as soon as they see it.
The IP address used in this case was 81.222.64.211 which is registered to RETN Ltd. in London, England. They have been notified of the activity.
The form letter reads as follows (which includes spelling errors left unchanged)…
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Hello
I am Mark Nicholas.How are you doing today and also your family,Well hope everybody is fine.Meanwhile,I came across your advert on the web for sale and will like you to know that i have someone(my boss) who is interested in buying something of this type but dont have the time to search around,He deals in used item but i do the searches.So please get back to me if it is still for sale and with the following.
The last asking price.
The present condition..
The current Pictures.
Please i want you to get back to me once you finish reading this mail so that
i know what next to do.
Mark Nicholas
[email protected]
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AFTER RESPONDING (something not recommended) to the email, the seller of items will receive the following…
Hello xxxxx,
Thanks for your mail response.
I want you to know one thing that he will pay with BANK CERTIFY CHEQUE OR INTERNATIONAL MONEY ORDER.He will like you to know that he will be responsible for the shipping and changing of ownership informations.Some additional charges will be added to your last asking price which is for me and you will send it to me via WESTERN UNION as soon as your bank has confirmed that the money has been credited into your account,the information that you will send it too will be given to you later on.If you are okay with this, i will like you to get back to me with the below informations;
Your Full Contact Name:
Your Full Contact Address:
Your Home Phone Number:
Your Mobile Phone Number:
Your Least least Price:
As soon as this is given to me, i will forward it to him so that he can issue your payment and send it to your address and also forward it to his lawyer for further preparation and for record purpose.Hope to read from you soonest.
Best Regards.
Mark
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The above SCAM is similar to the Smith Matt 419 Scams and Fraud which has been mentioned a 1000 times. It’s important to keep a Constant Watch on Fraud and Scams because scammers know that someway, somehow, someone will eventually fall for them, and profits will be made.
If you’re going to sell items online (ON ANY WEBSITE) use caution and do your homework on who you are dealing with. I simple googling of someones email address or name can be an easy 1st step.
Chiropractors selling online should read these posts as well…
Actual Email Attempt – Chiropractic Classifieds Scam
Use Common Sense When Buying and Selling Online
OK, have a great day!
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