A lot of people have fallen victim of several scams on Nairaland and its quite unfortunate that this trend doesn’t look like it’s about to stop.
Nairaland has proven to be a very great place for business. Many millionaires have been born out of Nairaland and it’s quite unfortunate that some bad eggs are trying to ruin it for us all. Yesterday, I read a thread in the business section about a guy, Emmanuel Awaritete who has been scamming Nairalanders consistently and successfully since 2006! And is still doing so till today.

One of his latest victims, a student who collected money from his colleagues at school to help purchase 2 laptops, was duped to the sum of N300, 000. There are also dozens of other attempted cases by this guy, who seems to be omnipresent and untraceable and some other bad eggs like him.

It has now become necessary for all Nairaland users transacting business on the forum to protect themselves. Of course, you cannot stop transacting business on Nairaland completely; where else would you get al those cheap deals and services if not the largest online forum in Africa?

However, you must be very careful and also, follow this guide to avoid becoming a victim of cheap scams.

But first, a memo to Seun;
Seun, we really do appreciate you for giving us this forum that has changed a lot of lives. The truth is that you and your moderators are trying your best, but you must understand that Nairaland has gone beyond an internet hangout spot where we all come to chat, joke and make fools of ourselves.

Nairaland is fast becoming a major commercial hub in Nigeria. One of the reasons why people find it easy to transact business on Nairaland is because they trust the system therefore, Seun, you must take serious, practical and pro-active steps to protect your visitors as much as you can.

You may say that you didn’t create Nairaland to be a business forum or an e-commerce platform for exchange of goods and services, but remember, millions of Naira exchange hands on Nairaland daily. If you doubt me, check the autos section. I would also be right to say that a significant percentage of your advert subscribers are Nairaland business men who also transact business on Nairaland. So, this is a problem for us all and not just one person’s headache.

Therefore, I would strongly suggest an immediate verification exercise to be carried out on all existing and intending sellers on Nairaland.

They should all submit their personal details, e-mails and phone numbers and these should be verified.

An international passport, driver’s license or National Identity Card should also be provided.

Because it’s easy for people to clone these Identity Cards or make fake ones, real-time video call verification system should also be introduced. Skype is a very good one; the sellers should be called via Skype and a Video snap shot should be taken. The picture in the video snapshot (the face of the person calling) must match the one provided in the ID Card.

A NEPA Bill verifying the address provided in the I.D Card would also help.

The collected data would be uploaded to a Database for reference and action in case of any fraudulent activities.

Each Nairaland user that passes the verification process would have his/her name included in a verification thread that would be placed at the top of the business section on Nairaland and all market places on the forum; Autos, Technology, Phones etc.

You would then post a banner on the front page, warning members and advising them to only do business with verified members.

An e-mail blast to all members, informing them about this new development, wouldn’t be a bad idea either.

Any member who chooses to do otherwise, and transact business with unverified members, does so at his/her own risk and has no right to come and cry to us if they get scammed.

I’m sure your moderators can handle the verification process (please, only the trusted ones o). However, if they can’t, I’m sure there’ll be some willing Nairalanders who can volunteer to do it. However, these volunteers have to first go through the verification process themselves. This would help to ensure that the system is solid and reliable.

However, if you find it difficult to find someone to do it for you, contact me, and I’ll share some ideas with you on how to go about it without stress; I would be glad to help.

Seun, I’m not in anyway teaching you how to run your forum; I’m just a business consultant who is concerned about business men and innocent Nigerians losing their money to these idiots every time. Please kindly consider these suggestions.

Now with that being said, my fellow Nairalanders, this is how to spot and avoid scammers on Nairaland.

Check next post.

Always Patronize Popular Sellers

There are some sellers here on Nairaland that are well known within and outside Nairaland. People have transacted businesses with them off-line severally and know a lot of details about them- where they have their office, where they live and what they look like in real life. These are the sellers you should patronize. it's hard for someone like InspiredAutos on the Autos section of Nairaland to run away with my money successfully because i know what he looks like and have enough details to fish him out. Plus, he has done businesses with a lot of people off Nairaland and has been around for a long time. This is just an example; i'm not saying Inspired is the only reliable or popular auto dealer on Nairaland,there are a lot of them, i just used Inspired as an example.

What I'm saying basically is that, it's always safer to deal with people who are well known sellers.

Ask/Search For Reviews

Another thing that helps is to always make sure the seller has a lot of REAL positive reviews. I said real reviews because a lot of these scammers are drama kings/queens. They register several fake Nairaland Usernames and start to chat with themselves, drop reviews about themselves, patronize themselves and even pay themselves.

You should be able to see through all that- Ensure that you can spot at least 5 REAL Nairalanders with positive reviews.

Real users would usually-:

Have registered an account for at lease three-six months before the sales thread was opened.

Would have made several posts and topics on various ideas and topics related to other subjects apart from the business being discussed.

May be very well known contributors on Nairaland.

May have 'friends' or 'cliques' he hangs out with on Nairaland who may also know him offline.

When you spot at least five of such members, you could try to obtain reviews from them via PM If you wish, or on the thread. Please, make sure you verify these users before sending the PM, because one of the methods V.I.P Scammer, Emmanuel Awaritete uses is to send a PM to an innocent Nairalander and obtain their real e-mail addresses when they innocently reply. He then goes ahead to clone popular sellers e-mail addresses and uses it to scam unsuspecting buyers.

It's welcome.


Keep it up.

Look out for Cloned E-mail Addresses

This is another major tactic they use. They clone addresses of popular sellers on Nairaland. For instance, if Seun was a very known seller on Nairaland, and his e-mail address was say, seun@yahoo.com, the scammer goes ahead to create a look-alike e-mail address, something like seunn@yahoo.com; notice the double n? a person that is not very observant or an unsuspecting person would easily fall victim. So, look out for e-mail addresses used to contact you on sales information and compare it with the one provided by the seller on Nairaland.

Cloned Nairaland Usernames are not uncommon either. My Nairaland username is obviously, cremeandchic but a scammer who wants to pretend to be me and use my name to rip people off would just go ahead to create similar monikers like cremeandchic1 or cremendchic; notice the differences in spelling?
Be observant, look at usernames carefully and be sure you are dealing with the same person.

Use Search Engines

If a seller has been involved in a shady deal or scam in the past, the best way to reveal this is by using search engines.

First, use the Nairaland Search Engine on the home page to search for the sellers Nairaland username. Add phrases like 'fraud', 'scam' 'fake' and other similar phrases to the username and click search.

For instance, to find out more about Seuns business activities on Nairaland and if he had ever been reported for scam or fraudulent practices on Nairaland, you could use 'Seun Scam' 'Seun Fraud' etc. If Seun had been involved in any scam in the past, the search engine would bring up related results.

Next, if the person has a company name, do the same thing with the company name, still using Nairaland search engine.

Now, obtain the seller's account number and name and head to Google or any other reliable search engine. Type in the account name and number and add the phrase 'fraud' 'fake' 'scam', just like you did with the nairaland username and company name.

Trust Google to bring up related search results if any.

Avoid Sellers that Rush You

This is one of their strongest tactics. They try to create an artificial scarcity and try to rush you into taking actions so that they can quickly close the deal before you realize it's a hoax.

They use words like;

'The stock would soon finish so, pay latest by Tomorrow morning or i'll sell to someone else'

'I have only one piece left, if you're lucky enough to pay early, you can have it'

They try to push you to make spontaneous decisions without thinking deep. Try to recognize and avoid falling for this.

Also, don't expect to hear a jittery or scared person on the other end of the line when you call them; they always sound confident and most times, a little arrogant. They act like 'ogas at the top' that it would be hard for you to suspect them.

Some of them would take time to make friends with you and be all nice in a bid to make you trust them and fall for their cheap scam. As soon as the money exchanges hands, they vanish into thin air.

Ask for Video Calls

Look, any seller that has something to hide is probably not worth your patronage. No genuine seller hides himself, instead, they are always proud to show that they are the ones behind their successful businesses.

Dangote dey hide?

Abi you no dey see Adenuga photo everywhere?

Any seller who would refuse to reveal their identity to you is probably not too confident in himself/herself.

With that being said, you should ask for a video chat; most phones these days can do it and while the call is on, make sure you take a screenshot of the sellers face and save it. That's your first weapon in case he decides to run away with your money. Even if he gets someone to make the calls for him, that person would still be in trouble if anything goes south. He would either answer for the thief, or produce the thief.

Verify and Re-verify Account Numbers

During the video cal, ensure that you verify a sellers account number. Do so again on the Nairaland thread used for advertising the product/service you want to buy and lastly, head over to the customer service section of your bank and present the account name and number to you for verification.

Emmanuel Awaritete's method is to place popular Nairaland seller's business names in front of his own name and then send his account number to you. The bank only needs two names to be correct so, would usually ignore the third inconsistent name.

For instance; he would send you an account detail that looks like this;

Cremeandchic Emmanuel A.
12354678910
or
Cremeandchic Micheal Awaritete
10987654321

Also, you should avoid sending internet money transfers to unverified bank account numbers.
He basically uses a name you identify and then adds his own name to it so that you don't suspect.

So, go to your bank's customer care section and ensure that the account name FULLY matches the account number. You could explain your reasons for wanting to know to them so that they can co-operate with you.

You can also try to ask them if there aren't any existing or past cases of fraudulent activities on that account.

Although banks are prevented from releasing private information about their customers to third parties without a court order, they are also mandated to protect other customers as well. So, don't be afraid to ask questions.

Also, avoid sending money online to unverified accounts.

Use Social Media

Check to see if you'll find Facebook accounts, Twitter handles, Instagram pages of the seller.

You can either make use of the account name provided or the e-mail address to search.

Most of them have fake social media accounts; check those accounts, are there any real comments and activities? Discussions from friends and colleagues?

You should be able to recognize fake/fictitious accounts especially on Facebook.

Don't Be Greedy

Nobody is going to sell a Blackberry Passport to you for N14,000. If it looks too good to be true, it probably isn't true.

Always verify deals and bargains and don't be in a rush to grab the 'awoof' make e no go run your belle.

Request for a Physical Meeting

This may not be possible, as most of us transact business online. But if you can, it's always better to meet with the seller face-to-face.

Download Trucaller App

There's an interesting app you can download on your phone. It works with most operating systems; Android, Ios, Windows 8, JUST NAME IT.

IT REVEALS THE TRUE IDENTITY OF YOUR CALLERS.

So, if someone calls, hiding their number or pretending to be someone else, it immediately reveals their real names.

http://www.truecaller.com/services/truecaller

Look at some of what is written on their website to understand how it works.

So, with this APP, no more Emmanuel Awowhatever pretending to be someone else

After reading this, some scammers will retire.

Pavore9:
After reading this, some scammers will retire.

I hope they do. We won't sit back and watch them anymore.

Anyone one that still falls victim after reading your post has his/herself to blame. This is an awesome analysis. Good job Op

Very detailed. An ultimate guide indeed.

A simple and effective Escrow service will do the trick. Nairaland should simply integrate an escrow service in the business section and cases of scam will immediately plummet by as much as 97 percent.

FP please

Most people scammed are usually in a hurry to finish the transaction. I'm never in a hurry.


Wish the super mod will stick this topic in business section

I have met all types of scammers, they usually are the one to stop pestering me as my slowness to transact business drives them bunkers

Well done OP. Great job. Just hope future magas reads this

Great one. Reason I do tell my customers to only pay into our company corporate account. But some customers will be looking for GTB. Naturally hate payment into a personal account. I can deal with millions with you if company Corporate account. If anything happened, your bank will fish you out when the heat is too much. Abi them wan clone corporate account or mail?.

Nice writeup. .. God bless the op.

Great piece.

Guys, in as much these efforts are very much appreciated by me, what still bleeds my heart, is that STILL MANY WILL END UP BEING SCAMMED and will only later try seeking these quality info after the harm has been done to them!

Commendable though.

Don’t fall victim to these totally avoidable job scams. Here are some ways to identify false job postings and avoid them:

1. Wonky Language
This is a definite no no. Companies take extra time to proofread their job postings. If you find grammatical or spelling errors in a jobs ad, it is most likely fake. Always verify any posting or call for interview you come across.

2. No online visibility
In this digital age, companies know that they have to have an online presence. In fact, no online presence means you’re not serious about getting your product/service to your target audience. When you get an call for interview email or see a job posting online, Google the company. If you find nothing about the company, don’t waste your time with it anymore. Some scammers could go the extra mile and create an online presence. Look out for companies who have suspicious domain names, have no contact address/phone number, have no real information about they what they do. In any case, to be extra sure, copy the job ad or website here

3. Non Branded Email
Branding is key with companies these days. If you have taken note, you would see that companies usually have their employees assigned to their company’s name. So, if a company’s names WriteAssit, an employee’s email would be esthersmith@writeassist.com. If a job posting says you should send an email to an @gmail.com or @yahoo.com email, think twice and verifybefore applying.

4. WhatsApp Interview Notification
We get that the professional world is working hard towards making the job application process more friendly, but this ain’t it. No real call for interview would be sent to you via WhatsApp. Companies would rather email, call, or send you a text message with enough details about their company including a website. If you are scheduled for a remote interview via Skype or phone call, that’s acceptable. Anyway, confirming would keep you safe.

5. Miracle Jobs
These scammers know that people are desperate for employment. Unfortunately, they play on that and release mouth-watering offers that seem too good to be true. Be careful of job postings with extremely high salaries for jobs that usually have lesser pays. They also siphon email and phone numbers from the internet and randomly send interview emails or text messages. If you did not apply for a job, you most likely won’t be “miraculously” called for a job interview.

6. They want money
Think about it; they need you to pay them to pay you? It’s a big no. Don’t apply. Companies usually won’t require you to pay for an interview.

An advice for you is that you should not sign up on every job platform you see. A lot of the time, your details get siphoned that way and you become a prey to scam job posting and call for interviews. Also, trust your instincts. If you feel something is not right, do your research. [url]Itarj.com[/url] (Is this a real job?) is a great tool that allows you to verify if a job posting is real or not.

Use it now share with friends and family! You would literally be saving lives!

How do you avoid business scams, now that technology has grown so much https://www.ngbusiness.com.ng/how-to-avoid-business-scams/