Hello

In the last few years, I have found that there is a new scam that now seems to be more and more popular. It's the "Business Proposition". These quick one liners are attempts to intrigue you into their little web, where you well get so comfortable with with the scammer that you would give them anything they ask for. You feel you know them on a personal level. You know about what they want from you, but you also know about their family, and their troubles. You are safe in their hands, and they know what they are doing. You must only remember this is a game for them, and their personal info, it's only from a character they have made up to play this game. If you can't afford to roll the dice, I would advise ignoring them all together. These people always play for keeps, and they don't stop just because you have nothing left. They ask for your info, money, families money, friends money, they well even ask you to take out a loan. All so they can get theirs.

It starts with the one line email. "I have a business proposition for you, if you are interested, please reply to this email." They tell you nothing at first contact. The second email always assumes you are going to do it, if you feel the reply was taken as an acceptance, you well feel far more pressure to help them however they ask. you must also note at this point that in their minds "no" is not an option. They tell you what the business is. This, in my experience boils down to three wildly different tacts.

1. "I am a business professional (usually banker) who has found a surplus of unclaimed money in my company budget the last two years and need help getting it out. This must happen now"

2. "I Am a widow(er) and now I am dying too. I want to give my millions to charity but my family won't let me." This one seems, in most cases, to refer to the family members in question as "non-christian".

3. "My business professional relative has been put in jail, and we need help to quietly move their assets before Blank government finds, and liquidates them."

These particular types of scams are, more often then not, set up to take place in another country. Like most other scams, they use the names of well known figures. They even create fake ID, and official documents, which are usually scanned into a computer, then altered. Some of these documents are done so well, that you almost don't find their 'tell'.

If they do not tell you about their live and family in their second email, and you aren't quite convinced yet, you will most assuredly be hearing their live story in the third letter. This is where they tell you their heart wrenching woes. They tell you why they feel they they should have this money, or why their family doesn't want it to go where they want it to. They tell you how they feel like you are family to them. they may even start the letter by telling you that they prayed for you in last night's evening family prays, or this morning's. Lastly they invite you to share your story, to tell them everything. So that you can feel they know you like family, the way that you now know them. Once they start using this info to make you feel that they understand you, it's time to reel in.

Again the object for them, in any scam, is to get your money or personal information. If money is the goal, They won't go directly for it. It's the bank account they look for. With banks, permission to access your account goes both ways. This means, if they are given your bank info, so that they can put millions in your account, they also have access to take it out too. In most cases you won't have the money in your account to handle what was taken out, and your on the hook for it. You could go after them. Take to pursuing them by legal means, but by the time the money is gone,  they have already closed all accounts used. The email account, the bank account, even the name of the person disappears forever.

Once in awhile their goal is to get your personal information. In which case, they may tell you right off, not to give them your bank info. They would want to send a check, ATM, money gram, or other money courier service. Some will even ask you to 'reconfirm' personal information you don't remember giving to anyone. They are simply hoping one of two conclusions. Either you had given your info to someone, and assume that they had something to do with that person, or you will assume you just forgot that you gave your info. If you feel unsure, even if you think you have dealt with this person before, it's always ok to ask for proof. First thing for sure is that you should always keep a record of your actual dealings with banks, agencies, and any other time you need to give your info, personal or account. That if you don't know, or remember them, ask for proof to remind you of your past dealings with them. Any legitimate business person well not only understand that you want to protect yourself from any of the scammers out there, but they will also appreciate how professionally you conduct business in your personal live. If someone initiates an email dialog with you asking for any of your info, the safest bet is to give them no more then they already know. Yes that means, if they have yet to use your name, don't even give them that.

The last thing I ask you to remember is that their are many of us out there posting on hundreds of sites. We post scam emails for you to compare your emails to. We post advice for those who feel that they are being scammed. We are creating a dense web of information to keep email users safe from those who would take advantage of any innocent user. So remember, when in doubt, check it out.