E-mail fraud

Fraud has existed perhaps as long or longer than money. Any new sociological change can endanger new forms of fraud, or other crime. Almost as soon as e-mail became widely used, it began to be used to defraud people via E-mail fraud. E-mail fraud can take the form of a “con game” or scam. Confidence tricks tend to exploit the inherent greed and dishonesty of their victims; the prospect of a ‘bargain’ or ‘something for nothing’ can be very tempting. E-mail fraud, as with other ‘bunco schemes’ relies on naïve individuals who put their confidence in get-rich-quick schemes such as ‘too good to be true’ investments or offers to sell popular items at ‘impossibly low’ prices. Many people have lost their life savings due to fraud.

Forms of E-mail fraud:

Spoofing. E-mail sent from someone pretending to be someone else is known as spoofing. Spoofing may take place in a number of ways. Common to all of them is that the actual sender’s name and the origin of the message are concealed or masked from the recipient. Many, if not most, instances of E-mail fraud use at least minimal spoofing, as most frauds are clearly criminal acts. Criminals typically try to avoid easy traceability.

Fishing for data. Some spoof messages purport to be from an existing company, perhaps one with which the intended victim already has a business relationship. The ‘bait’ in this instance may appear to be a message from ‘the fraud department’ of, for example, the victim’s bank, which asks the customer to: “ confirm their information ”; “ log in to their account ”; “ create a new password ”, or similar requests. If the ‘fish’ takes the ‘bait’, they are ‘hooked’ – their account information is now in the hands of the con man, to do with as wish.

Bogus offers. E-mail solicitations to purchase goods or services may be instances of attempted fraud. The fraudulent offer typically features a popular item or service, at a drastically reduced price.

Items may be offered in advance of their actual availability, for instance, the latest video game may be offered prior to its release, but at a similar price to a normal sale. In this case, the ‘greed factor’ is the desire to get something that nobody else has, and before everyone else can get it, rather than a reduction in price. Of course, the item is never delivered, as it was not a legitimate offer in the first place. Such an offer may even be no more than an attempt to obtain the victim’s credit card information, with the intent of using the information to fraudulently obtain goods or services, paid for by the helpless victim, who may not know they were scammed until their credit card has been “used up”.

Requests for help. The “request for help” type of E-mail fraud takes this form. An E-mail is sent requesting help in some way, but including a reward for this help as a “hook”, such as a large amount of money, a treasure, or some artifact of supposedly great value.

This type of scam has existed at least since the Renaissance, known as the “Spanish Prisoner” or “Turkish Prisoner” scam. In its original form, this scheme has the con man support to be in correspondence with a wealthy person who has been imprisoned under a false identity, and is relying on the confidence artist to raise money to secure his release. The con man tells the “mark” (victim) that he is “allowed” to supply money, for which he should expect a generous reward when the prisoner returns. The confidence artist claims to have chosen the victim for their reputation for honesty.

Other forms of fraudulent help requests are represented by romance scam. Under this, fraudsters (pretended males or females) build online relationships, and after some time, they ask for money from the victims, claiming the money is needed to the fact they have lost their money (or their luggage was stolen), they have been beaten or otherwise harmed and they need to get out of the country to fly to the victim’s country.

This confidence trick is similar to the face-to-face con, known as the “Stranger With a Kind Face”, which is the likely origin of at least the title of the vaudevillian routine known by the same name, as “Niagara Falls”, or “Slowly I turned…”

The modern E-mail version of this scam, is known as the “Nigerian scam”, “Nigerian All-Stars”, etc., because it is typically based in Nigeria, as an advance fee fraud. The lottery scam is a contemporary twist on this scam.

(http://www.dom-da.ru/doma)

NOTES:

“con game” or scam – мошенничество; жульничество; обман

spoofing – надувательство

bogus offers – липовые предложения

If the ‘fish’ takes the ‘bait’, they are ‘hooked’. – Если «рыбка» захватит «наживку», она «на крючке».

TASK 17. Answer the following questions:

1) Why has fraud existed as long as money?

2) What qualities of character does e-mail fraud exploit?

3) Why are people so much attracted by get-rich-quick schemes?

4) What are the forms of e-mail fraud?

5) Characterize the main forms of e-mail fraud.

TASK 18. Replace the words and word combinations in brackets by their equivalents from the text above:

1. (Мошенничество) has existed perhaps as long or longer than money. 2. Almost as soon as e-mail became widely used, it began to be used (одурачивать людей с помощью интернет-мошенничества). 3. (Мошенничество на доверии) tend to exploit (врожденную жадность и нечестность) of their victims: (перспектива совершить выгодную сделку) or “something for nothing’ can be very tempting. 4. E-mail sent from someone (претворяющимся кем-то другим) is known as spoofing. 5. The actual sender’s name and the origin of the message (скрыты или замаскированы от получателя). 6. Criminals typically try (затруднить прослеживаемость). 7. (Если «рыбка» захватит «наживку» - она «на крючке») – their account information is now in the hands of the con men, who do with as they wish. 8. E-mail (запросы о покупке товаров или услуг) may be instances of attempted fraud. 9. Of course, the item is never delivered, as it was not a (законное предложение) in the first place.

TASK 19. Match the English expressions with their Russian equivalents in the table:

1) fraud	a) врожденная жадность и нечестность
2) a confidence trick	b) предполагаемая жертва
3) inherent greed and dishonesty	c) мошенничество
4) to put confidence in get-rich-quick schemes	d) запросы о покупке товаров или услуг
5) to be concealed or masked from the recipient	e) собрать деньги для обеспечения чьего-либо освобождения
6) fishing for data	f) затруднить прослеживаемость
7) to try to avoid easy traceability	g) спрятаться или замаскироваться от получателя
8) the intended victim	h) Это было незаконное предложение.
9) solicitations to purchase goods or services	i) выуживание информации
10) prior to release	j) довериться схемам быстрого обогащения
11) It was not a legitimate offer.	k) мошенничество с выплатой денег авансом
12) a generous reward	l) еще до выпуска в продажу
13) to raise money to secure sb’s release	m) щедрое вознаграждение
14) an advance fee fraud	n) мошенничество на доверии

TASK 20. Translate the following word combinations into English in writing:

мошенничество с выплатой денег авансом; щедрое вознаграждение; собрать деньги для освобождения; мошенническая просьба о помощи; мошенническим образом приобрести товары или услуги; незаконное предложение; до выпуска в продажу; запрос о покупке товаров или услуг; снижение цены; по невероятно низкой цене; врожденная жадность; потерять свои сбережения; намеченная жертва; выуживание информации; зацепить на крючок; захватить наживку; прослеживаемость; притворяться кем-то; скрыты или замаскированы; довериться схемам быстрого обогащения.

TASK 21. Match the English expressions with their Russian equivalents in the table:

(a)

1) to have an alibi	a) «железное» алиби
2) to raise an alibi	b) сомнительное алиби
3) corroborated / substantiated alibi	c) установленное алиби
4) dubious / questional alibi	d) иметь алиби
5) established alibi	e) подтвержденное алиби
6) ironclad alibi	f) заявить алиби

(b)