BBB of Greater Houston & South Texas

News Release: For Immediate Release

The Better Business Bureau Serving:
Brazoria, Ft. Bend, Galveston, Harris, Matagorda, Montgomery, & Wharton Counties. (Texas)

Better Business Bureau Tips:
Editorial Ideas From Your Better Business Bureau

Contacts:
Brent Rogers:
Office: 713-341-6122, e-mail: brogers@bbbhou.org

www.bbbhou.org * bbbinfo@bbbhou.org * Council of BBBs: www.bbb.org *
24-Hour Information: 713-868-9500, (800) 275-3626 (from area code 409 only)

NIGERIAN LETTER SCAM ARTISTS GO HIGH-TECH!

The wording is very familiar to Better Business Bureaus (BBBs) nationwide … only the method of contact, and country of origin have changed:

"We respectfully invite your kind attention to the transfer of U.S. $25 million into your personal/company offshore account."

"…you will receive 20% of the total sum, 10% for miscellaneous expenses and the remaining 70% is for me and my colleagues."

"It is our sincere conviction that you will handle this transaction with absolute confidentiality, maturity and utmost sense of purpose."

"…such transaction to commence within 10 business days."

These statements are typical of the lures contained in what’s commonly referred to as "Nigerian Letter Scams." The Better Business Bureau (BBB) warns that these scams have recently gone high-tech and are emanating from several countries throughout Africa, as well as New Zealand, Brazil and Great Britain. Members of the BBB report that such pitches now arrive unannounced and uninvited in their fax and e-mail boxes.

The letters are usually signed by someone who "represents" the relevant country’s Ministry of Commerce or Finance or the Department of Petroleum Resources. The writer claims that huge funds are left over from a deliberately inflated contract or purchase order and he’s seeking to ship the funds offshore.

"Now that the Nigerian letter scam has gone high-tech and is being perpetrated via fax machines and e-mails, it’s more critical than ever that we educate business people and home computer users to this scam," said Dan Parsons, president of the BBB. "If you receive an offer from a stranger who promises a large payoff in return for assisting in transferring millions of dollars out of Nigeria or any other country, ignore it."

Some letters request copies of business letterhead; others request the name and address of the company and details about its business activities.

"Any response to this fraudulent offer will bring the con artist one step closer to being able to plunder your bank account," Parsons said.

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