Thousands of hackers from all across the world go to Las Vegas each year for the Def Con and blackhat, which are security conventions where those who attend are warned not to send any confidential information across their wireless networks.

It’s traditional for computer hackers to showcase all their best exploits at these conventions, which ultimately leads to a ton of press attention, creating awareness to exploits that others were previously unaware of.

In this article, I’ve decided to list 5 reasons why you should be wary of computer hackers in today’s society.

1. They can use GoPro to Spy on You

Imagine going mountain biking with your GoPro device attached to your helmet, oblivious to the fact that someone has hacked into it and can now spy on your every move. Professional and amateur video makers love to use the GoPro portable video camera, because of its internet connectivity. But this one feature that makes the device appealing is its biggest vulnerability.

Hackers have worked out tons of different ways of exploiting the GoPro device, with methods of controlling it and recording what is being displayed on the device. This could prove to be a serious security risk for military personnel who decide to use such cameras while on duty.

2. Hackers Love Lazy People

You should never be afraid to be that individual that has tons of different passwords but chooses to remember them instead of using one of those password managers. The safest place for your passwords is in your head. If you were to use one of these password managers, like LastPass, then it’d be in your best interest to ensure that the passwords are not stored in a cloud or on the internet.

3. Mobile’s Map Your Every Move

There was a security researcher that went by the name of Brendan O’Connor, who planted sensors all across a city, for the cost of $60 per sensor. These sensors were used to track signals, including mobile devices and cell phones, sending all this data back to a central database which mapped the signals. Because most people tend to travel around with at least their mobile phone, it meant that the sensor was able to track their every move.

This device went by the name of CreepyDOL, which wasn’t the most intriguing thing about it. The most intriguing thing was the fact that his project was government funded, and these sensors were just one of many ways that you can be monitored while out and about.


4. You’re Not Invincible

Even if you’re a careful individual, that doesn’t mean you can’t fall victim to one of these hackers. Even the best of them get hacked. Phishing seems to be one of the most common ways that even the most experienced computer users are hacked, by receiving emails that appear to be as authentic as can be.

The more intelligent scammers tend to think long term, they’re thinking about their gain over a considerable length of time. Hackers will steal credit card numbers, but the theft of such data has its short-term benefits and long-term. In the long term, they’d hope to use such information to steal one's identity.

You don’t want to fall into the trap of thinking your invincible. It’s this thought that can make you fall prey to one of these hackers; you want to be cognizant of all the things these people can do.


5. They Can Hack Your Vehicle

Car hacking, over the years, has become a very big trend. Hackers are capable of breaking into your vehicle using remote access and then tweaking things that are under your dashboard. You could be driving somewhere only to find out that your brakes are not working, or your wheels start acting up, or your fuel tank indicator is showing your fuel levels are full when in reality it’s empty.

A security research at Twitter was able to showcase these feats, just to let others know how real and terrifying this stuff actually is. If you visit one of these Def Con security conventions, then you should get an up close and personal demonstration of these vehicle hackers, and how they can adversely affect you.

Definitely, something you should be aware of, given the fact that these hacks are applicable to more and more cars.


Culled from https://www.mazinoweb.com/2018/08/top-5-reasons-to-fear-hackers.html

According to Glassdoor 2019 Best places to work, facebook has dropped significantly from No1 To No 7. This is as a result of sharing personal information of its users and being hacked easily by online scammers.

Google also dropped from No 5 to No 8, while BAIN tops the list. Read more https://queensconsult..com

Hello moderators this is the reason I still said I don't trust this guys (Nairaland.com/raysolo) motives. He asked me to send my account number for refund, only to reply with this. Please add this guy to the scammers list

Cc Dominique
FOD
Naijacutee
Puskin

klassd:


Thank you Dominique, anti spam bot banned me. I wanted to update it on the scammers list. I have all the screenshots.

Raysolo aka Richard Sunday Edobor


Bank name: sterling bank

Account number: 0027554565

Phone number: +234 907 909 3214

Thank you

dominique:


You were accused of scam by same person on this post, what do you have to say about it?

https://www.nairaland.com/4852491/how-old-when-made-first/63#73227677

Thank you Dominique, anti spam bot banned me. I wanted to update it on the scammers list. I have all the screenshots.

Raysolo aka Richard Sunday Edobor


Bank name: sterling bank

Account number: 0027554565

Phone number: +234 907 909 3214

habib483:


if you're trusting yusufmuhd with your money and believing every word that comes from his mouth then you stand a chance of ending up as i ended up. just tell this foolish guy to pay me back my money.

If you haven't been settled, it's about time you tell nairalanders. There is a black list for scammers. I will advice you check the business section & include his name & details so as to tarnish his image and if possible some guys will follow it up so he gets caught

Report the page and forget about it, it was hacked, sold and to be used for fraud.

Do you see that guy that post, Buy your rdp, pof, Facebook, Vpn, US phone number etc here, they are the once who hack people fb account and sell for as much as 5k to 7k to other scammers for fraud related activities.

Tell your friends to call and inform other people on his Facebook friend list to report the account as hacked, you too, do the same. when you do it repeatedly, the fb would be flagged for AI to take it down or a moderator could as well take down the account. This is what I did when my brother's own got hacked about 2 months ago.

To change Facebook page name to a new desired name or maybe you bought a Facebook page and decide to change it to your desired name is most times hellish because Facebook hardly approves change of name if your delete the old name and input a new name.

Facebook believes you knew the main purpose of the page before and during creation and hence you shouldn’t change the name of the page easily and also to avoid some scammers from using their platform for scam.

To change Facebook page name, follow the simple steps below:

Login into your Facebook account
Go to your Facebook page list and choose the page you want to edit the name (that’s if you have more than one page you are admin).
Click on about
Under ‘General’ locate name and click on edit to edit the page name.

ON the page name edit column, add the desired name you wish to append or change to the existing page name, but be sure to take note of the words count. (for instance, I want to change my page from Web Tech Garden to Africans forum).

Don’t delete the web tech garden to add Africans forum rather simply append the Africans forum to the web tech garden and apply for a name change. With this method, Facebook will easily approve the name change and your page name will now be Web Tech Garden Africans forum.

After 2 to 3 days, you can now remove the Garden and re-apply for a page name change with Africans forum. Facebook will now see it as a page name edit and will approve it.

Congratulations, you’ve successfully changed your Facebook page name.

Note; the ultimate rule and guide to change Facebook page name is:

Don’t remove your old Facebook page name and add a new one instead append the new name to the old name and apply for a change of name.

For Descriptive Image Directives Visit: http://webtechgarden.com/sure-way-to-change-facebook-page-name/

Hello my people!

I am confused. I hand registered 2 domain names yesterday on 1and1.com and godaddy.com respectively, but I didn't list nor park any of the two for I was still contemplating the best parking company to go with, and where to list them as well.

However, when I typed in the 2 domain names separately on a browser's address bar to see what comes up; to my surprise, I discovered that the one I registered with 1and1.com has been parked to sedo and the other I registered with Godaddy.com has an inscription page that reads "buy this domain". "This domain is for sale". Again, it has "this domain has been parked free, courtesy of godaddy.com".

I even received an offer email for IslamicReligion.org. I don't know if I should reply or ignore it for scammers are too many out there looking to snatch domain names from people.

Hey gurus here, what does this imply? I want to list them myself and park them anywhere I deem fit. Is this normal with these companies(1and1 & Godaddy)?

The 2 domain names are IslamicReligion.org and TertiaryInstitutions.com registered on 1and1 & Godaddy, respectively.

Please, I need possible appraisals for both.

Gurus you can help me suggest best price tag.

Ethics demands that you do not trade your money for an Adsense account. In the event that Adsense cannot approve your site for one reason or the other, your last resort may be to buy one . Though unwise, it is always important you apply caution before buying an account. I listed some below .

1. Make sure you review the account before purchasing it. Ask the seller to invite you to the account so you can assess the account. Make sure the account has been fully approved, is domiciled in your desired country, is non-hosted, etc.

2. There are many fake accounts- it takes only a professional to detect clone accounts. The surest way to see if an account is really genuine is by creating a new ad unit and pasting the code on your blog . Check back after a few hours to see if ads are displaying on your blog. If it does, you can buy it of course.

3. Look out for any previous warnings and inflated earnings. An account which has unresolved warnings has a high chance of getting banned. Similarly, an account whose earnings are inflated ( either by self-clicking or deceptive placing of ads to increase CTR or CPC) is sitting on a time bomb and will, sooner than later be banned. There are many reasons people inflate their earnings. One is to hype the market value of the account

4. Before you pay, ask the seller to add your email to the primary contact list. This is very important as Adsense's latest update only allows admins whose emails are added to the primary contact list to edit their payment information. If the seller is not able to do this, request for the original email that was used to apply for the account so that you can have access to all the privileges like editing all the editable areas of the account.

5. Lastly, look out for scammers. What I cannot guarantee you in the era of internet trade is not being scammed. To reduce the chances of getting scammed, always ask questions. Check the track record of the seller for any fraud. Facebook and Nairaland is my best tool. There are also trusted sellers on Nairaland but I cannot recommend any to you neither will I promote myself- Find them yourself.

If you're still in doubt and need assistance, drop your concerns below and I'll attend to them.

PRESS RELEASE:

Persistently, the scourge of online scams has been a problem in Nigeria, and indeed Africa. Unsuspecting citizens have been sleeved of their funds online by fraudulent persons who pose with one shady business transaction or the other and those who set up fake ecommerce platforms or offers.
While the problem has persisted over the years, there have been attempts to curb it’s nuisance but the scammers have had the better laugh as they seemed hard to track, majorly because of their pseudo identities which sometimes can be more than one.
It was to this end that a young Nigerian called a team together and they began work on a startup platform known as SCAM ALERT NG ( www.scamalertng.com). The platform is poised to tackle online fraud head on and is indeed solving one of the persistent problems in the continent.
SCAM ALERT NG boasts of a robust database of online scammers and is made available to the public and anybody who wants to verify an ecommerce platform, seller or people making an offer to them that involves money before going ahead with such transactions. The database has the names, phone numbers, account numbers and other details of confirmed scammers in Nigeria and users are given the privilege to report persons that may not be on the database already.
Speaking about this, the founder of the platform, Mr. Kalada Belema Meshack-Hart said that ‘the number of reports that reach me frequently about the activities of these online fraudsters is quite disturbing, especially the ones posing as sellers on Instagram. I thought of what to do about it for some time before the idea for this website came. We are calling out to everybody to use it to verify those that pose online with an offer or more. The site is user-friendly and quite simple for anybody to use”.
The Scam Alert NG team believes you shouldn’t work so hard for your money and then lose it to greedy people online. They want everyone to take advantage of the website and be sure to verify people on it before going ahead with transactions.
With the site, authentic sellers online will be able to get a verification badge and thus buyers can patronize them with a guarantee from SCAM ALERT NG. Sellers are advised to get verification from the website to enable them do their transactions knowing that more people will trust them with such transactions having been verified by the scam vigilant website.
Users will also be able to see verified stores and know which to trust for transactions online.
To use the site, visit www.scamalertng.com.
To know more about it, read it’s FAQ below;
What is Scam Alert Ng- Scam Alert Ng is an online platform dedicated to exposing fake online ecommerce platforms in Nigeria that have defrauded Nigerians for a long time, with scam alert Ng you have the most robust database of online scammers in Nigeria and we are focused on the ecommerce industry where Instagram scams leads the way.
How to use Scam Alert Ng- Before you make a buying decision online, use our search box on the home page to verify if the buyer is genuine, simply type any details you have of the business (Business name, phone number, bank details, BBM pin etc and click search, if the buyer is fraudulent you will immediately see the details by clicking on the result of the search, while we know these scammers change daily we try to update the database daily. We advise you search through our verified sellers to see if anyone meets your needs, this will save you time and potential loss as we have taken time to scrutinize them to ensure they are genuine.
Read scam stories- Read what other people have gone through so you don’t have to pass through the same, like the saying goes “other people’s experience is the best teacher” don’t fall a victim
Have you been scammed before? You can report the scammer to ensure others don’t get scammed, to report a scammer go to the home page and click on report scammer, then if it is your first time click on register, next fill the form, agree with our terms and click on sign up now, if you have registered previously just log in, it will then take you to another page where you will now fill details of the scammer, please fill accurate details and upload enough evidence, then submit, our team will go through the details and if confirmed as accurate will add it to the database.
SHARE YOUR STORY-You can share your story and let others learn, we do believe scammers use mainly the same strategies, to share your story just click on the menu tab, then click on scam stories, then click on share your story to share your experience with others.

HOW TO VERIFY YOUR ONLINE STORE ON SCAM ALERT NG - Genuine online businesses can verify their store using our platform and be listed among the verified shops on our page. This serves huge credibility for the store. To verify your store, click on verified stores, then on verify your shop, fill the form and submit, we will get in touch with you on how you can be verified.
Users can also visit our list of verified stores to pick which to patronize as they go through heavy scrutiny and appraisal before entering the list of verified stores. This will save you loads of time and money.

Get Almost A 1 billion Real Active Email list Of Active Citizens Worldwide Plus Bulk SMS Sending Software And Also Powerful Marketing Ebooks All At A Give Away <<<>>>Limited Offer Now

Email Marketing now is the way forward for bloggers and entrepreneurs,most of the successful bloggers and online marketers use email marketing for their business and there are successful only because of it,but most of them won't tell you the truth,they buy huge email list to reach their audience and they get to where they want to be.

Imagine having just a 1 million email addresses of real USA residents and just sending an email to them attached with a blog post link or your online business offer,if atleast 800,000 of them view your blog imagine the kind of traffic you will get,imagine the kind of boost your blog will receive, imagine the kind of money you will make through Adsense where Adsense pay more than $1 per click for a USA citizen.

It's time to wise up fellas,you have to use money to find money...with this my over 900 million email database of different countries you will reach out to the world and be the person you always wanted to be, if you take proper use of these 900 million email you will be getting nothing less that 50,000 traffic daily to your blog and you know what that means.

Alongside these email addresses is a bulk email sending software free of charge ,also some very important marketing ebooks also for free as a bonus to our clients.

Each country has its own folder of emails, so you just target the country you want to reach and get traffic from,use our free email bulk sending software to reach them and in no time you will be the future Linda Ikeja.

This package is at limited supply now so it will be on a first come first serve basis ,the package is worth a hundred thousand but due to the situation of our country we are giving it at a take away price of just N5000,yes you heard me right just N5000. while some people are selling just 20 million email for same price we are giving you a 900 million email list with some other bonuses.

Heaven help those who help themselves...we are just helping you, you know that if you buy this package at a cost of N100, 000 you are still not a t lost because the benefits of this package can not be estimated#NO MUCH TALKING.

It's upto you to decide your future, BE A BOSS OR WORK FOR ONE... place your order as PACKAGE is at limited supply,and scammers please stay off, there is no place for you here. CONTACT ME AT 07067836964 OR Aliyusaidu5@gmail.com

2016 NEW ILLUMINATI WORLD MEMBER list=JOHN HARRISON=MARK WILLIAMS=PATRICK KIOKO KYALO=DANIEL PEACE=STEVE LAWRENCE=MARKUS DAVID=PRINCE OJO=NICKY GOLD/ THAT IS ALL AFRICAN RECRUITED NEW MEMBER FOR THE YEAR 2016: BEWARE OF scammers NO ILLUMINATI RECRUITMENT FOR NOW TILL 01/19/2017/THIS list IS list IS LICENSE UNDER WORLD (ILLUMINATI CHURCH OF WEALTH AND POWER)

adekennis:
Dear Nairalander,this is just to inform whoever that may intend to deal with this guy called Hilary,he goes by hilarywens05 and PulseWeb on Nairaland..His facebook name is Hilary Brain Iwenofu

https://www.facebook.com/hilary.b.iwenofu?fref=ts

He's a fraud and not a honest person.

@OP, I usually do not comment on threads like this but I just couldn't hold back on this. You made some mistakes.

1. You need a professional website that should represent you and your business to the whole country and the world at large, then you need an experienced developer. And an experienced developer who understands what it takes ain't cheap. The reason I say this is because there are a lot of things involved in setting up the kind of website you need. Like getting the website to attract and retain a database of potential clients, for this you need an effective email subscription program installed in it, you also need a livechat, you need notification systems, etc. And lastly, you need someone who can expertly set up a Google adwords campaign to run for at least one month (before your card is billed). After all these you should be able to analyze your website traction after 30days.

A web developer should let you know this process and give you a possible statistical projection of your website success after a period of time. It's not just building a website, but building a website that actually increases your profitability. But am afraid such developers aren't cheap. Personally my charge rate would be nothing less than N100k. There are good agencies like ckdigital.net, Greenmouse (also a NL member), etc. All these guys won't collect anything less than N200k. BUT they know how to get the job done.

2. Your second mistake was after chatting with him on Whatsapp, you hurriedly concluded he is your man especially with the fact that he is close to you in Lagos so your money is safe from online "scammers". From the chat you had with him, I guess you did not observe his erroneous English language. If I where you I won't do business with someone who can't write good English (How is he supposed to create content for your website?). Don't let a list of past jobs fool you. Personally I detest giving links to my past job. From our discussion, you should be able to deduce if I know how to do the job or not. If you want links, anybody can give you links.

So, be ready to spend good money to actually get what you want. It's like setting up a new business. If buying equipment and renting a shop, maybe plus goods can cost you between 500k - 1 million, why on earth do you think carrying that same business online should cost just 30k??

I wonder why StumbleUpon released such an article several weeks ago. The article quickly went viral because hackers, scammers, etc. would be interested in such.

Yes, there are people with lots of criminal energy who would be pleased to get hold of default a long list of admin login and passwords. You can see the article here: http://ituglobalforex..com.ng/2016/03/default-admin-username-and-password-list.html

Happily, SumbleUpon realized the gravity of this kind of article and quickly removed the article. Thanks to them.

Even if the article was not removed, I am not interested in looking for admin login details of websites. I have more productive things to do.


Neteller here: www..com.ng

A domain name is an identification string that defines a realm of administrative autonomy, authority or control within the Internet.

These are the things to consider before buying a domain name:

1.Go for a Top level domain name :
Make sure the domain name you are buying is a top level one e.g. .com,.ng,.org e.t.c.
It is very easy for your users to remember

2.Avoid buying a contradicting domain name :
For example,you website niche is on sports,you are now in need of a domain name and you buy .edu.ng extension,always know that your guests and members will be the one looking for admission or other sort of education aspirants and they will bounce back when they see your Posts mainly on sports.

3.Check if the domain is not existing:
The perfect way to do this is to go to any domain registrar website and type the domain name if choosen or not,don't rely on that,type the url on search engines too and see if it already existed before to be totally relieved.
Some webmasters are scammers,they will close their website for a while and when it had been sold to you,they retrieve it back again when you gain much traffic.

4.Make sure the domain name you want to buy is short and memorizable :
FOr example,you want to buy a domain name for a website with music niche and you name it :
naijamusicplentyhere.com

that is wrong,it suppose to be naijamusic.com,it is easy for everyone to remember.

5.Don't advertise your unpurchased domain name :
Don't go to forums and ask for opinions on the new domain you want to purchase,before you wake up the next day,it would have been purchased by a hungry scammer,you will have to pay them before they sell it to you and the money will be doubled for you

6.Avoid replacing words with letter :

If you buy a domain name and make it 9jamusic.com instead of naijamusic.com,if the second person with that naijamusic.com your competitor,he can wipe you away within days,your visitor may just mistype that 9ja to naija and fall for naijamusic.com immediately

7.Avoid going for a plural domain because the singular had been taken :
Adding s to the back of your domain name is very risky.
For Example,if Nairaland.com forum was used as Nairalands.com ,Nairaland would have been wiped off by the owner of Nairaland.com,people will always remember Nairaland and forget Nairalands except devoted visitors and they are scarce.

8.Make Sure the domain registrar you want to use are reputable and reliable :
There are some hungry registrars,hunger lead them to domain business,if you fall for such registrar,your money is waisted,search thoroughly about the hoster you wish to use and their years of service
.
Source : http://mediapace.wapka.mobi/forum2_theme_112572675.xhtml?tema=11

cc lalasticlala Seun

webmasters,make the list complete,add the last two!
writer : Mediapace

A crude but effective online service that lets users deploy keystroke logging malware and then view the stolen data remotely was hacked recently. The information leaked from that service has revealed a network of several thousand Nigerian email scammers and offers a fascinating glimpse into an entire underground economy that is seldom explored.
The login page for the BestRecovery online keylog service.

The login page for the BestRecovery online keylog service.

At issue is a service named “BestRecovery” (recently renamed PrivateRecovery). Brain had a difficult time understanding why anyone would pay the $25 to $33 per month fee to use the service, which is visually quite amateurish.

But that was before he shared a link to the site with a grey hat hacker, who replied in short order with the entire username and password database of more than 3,000 paying customers.

Initially, Brian assumed his source had unearthed the data via an SQL injection attack or some other database weakness. As it happens, the entire list of users is recoverable from the site using little more than a Web browser.

The first thing he noticed upon viewing the user list was that a majority of this service’s customers had signed up with yahoo.com emails, and appeared to have African-sounding usernames or email addresses. Also, running a simple online search for some of the user emails (dittoswiss@yahoo.com, for example) turned up complaints related to a variety of lottery, dating, reshipping and confidence scams.

The site was so poorly locked down that it also exposed the keylog records that customers kept on the service. Logs were indexed and archived each month, and most customers used the service to keep tabs on multiple computers in several countries. A closer look at the logs revealed that a huge number of the users appear to be Nigerian 419 scammers using computers with Internet addresses in Nigeria.


check video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDRirwA9L3w&feature=player_embedded

More info: http://acestechsupport..com/2013/09/419-boys.html

Acknowledged to Brian

2s£xy:
Wow... This quite different from what my friend has often done.

But I will like to know, when sell pays, sedo often alert you via personal email right?

You get some email similar to this one below from sedo. For me, i never click on the link provided for scammer sake, i just login into my sedo and view the message from the trasnfer section.

Dear Bleep

A personal message has been posted regarding the transfer of Bleep.com.

Please login through the link below or select the domain from your Transfer Center.

https://sedo.com/member/transfer/overview.php?id=1774679

To contact your Transfer Specialist, please do not reply to this message, but log into your Sedo account and submit a message.

Best regards,

Lozan Yohannes
Domain-Transfers
--
Sedo GmbH :: Im Mediapark 6 ::50670 Cologne (Germany)
tel +49 221.34030.180 :: fax +49 221.34030.109
http://www.sedo.com

District Court of Cologne HRB 35019
Board of Management




......
This is a general security information when doing transaction online

When you get this message, please do not click on the link.why? Most scammers use this method to scam you. They prepare a fake sedo site that makes you believe you are on the official sedo website. When you click on the link, you are been directed to the phising site which is similar to sedo site and when you login with your email and password, they automatically gain access to your login infos bcus the phishing site sends your login details to the scammers. You know what happens when a thief has the key to your home?

So for me, i login to the site by typing godaddy.com/sedo.com or which ever site, then i am sure im not on the fake site.

For domaining, if the scammer has access to your login info, it could be possible that your email and password is the same with your registerers login info. So they can lo unto your domain registerers account and transfer your domain to their own acc, or they could login unto sedo or othermarketplace, and confirm that you have recieve the domain/money depending on your situation.

So be wise,

If possible use different login info for different site.by doing so, if the scammers were able to get your sedo login, they are still not able to login to your domain registerers.
If you get an email from person claiming to be interested in your domain or any of your product online, suggest the person to sedo, escrow or paypal depending on the situation.
Dont try to be smart online when you confirm an email is a scam, the scammer might be smarter than you. There is usually a botton called "delete" on your email.
Escrow service commision might be costly, but the ability to be guaranteed by escrow is something nigerian banks cant do.


Below is an example of likely to be a scam email you should expect as a domainer


Hello!

I'm interested in buying fileclouder.com.

I've found it through Sedo.

Please respond with how much you are looking for it. Just specify this price in the subject line.

If you have other names for sale please email me your list with prices.

Regards,

Robert Feinstein, Ph.D.

ASP Web Hosting Services

***************************

CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: This email communication may contain private, confidential, or legally privileged information intended for the sole use of the designated and/or duly authorized recipient(s). If you are not the intended recipient or have received this email in error, please notify the sender immediately by email and permanently delete all copies of this email including all attachments without reading them.





After i replied, i got another reply



I offer 2000 usd. I have 45,000 usd budget for 12-15 domain names.

How can I pay you (PayPal, Western Union, escrow.com etc.)? If this is your first time domain sale I may help you with the sale/transfer process.

Are you a member of domain seller communities/forums? Probably, we know each other under some nicknames?

Best regards,

Robert Feinstein


I............


I hope this few examples could be helpful and i wish you all the best that you deserve

How to protect yourself and bring down an internet scammer

This is information I received from someone on another board who was successful in his attempt to bring down an internet scammer. While it appears to be good information, I haven't had the opportunity to try it out. As always, YMMV.

This is most effective when used prior to initial contact in order to offer you the most protection. After that, the rest is pretty cut and dry. The biggest hurdle will be production of acceptable evidence for a warrant to be issued. Be sure to give me feedback on the contents and results.

Here it is:

Covering your own rear in an internet/long distance transaction is vital. When answering an ad, get all information that you can about the seller. Be sure to read the instructions completely before acting in any way. The info that you need is as follows:

1. HOME phone number. It is easy to reverse trace, where a cell number is not. If you get a cell number, casually bring up the conversation of cell service. Is theirs good, what package and carrier? record and save the information both of home and cell.

2. Get the seller's street address and mailing address if different. (ask if it is the same). Record and save the information.

3. It is helpful to get the seller's work address and phone number through casual conversation. Record the information and save.

4. Find out the seller's internet provider. Hotmail accounts do not count. The conversation could go like this: "Can you e-mail me a picture of the part? Then again, my server is so crappy lately it is a wonder that I get any e-mail at all. Who do you have for service? is it as slow as _?" Record and save the information.

5. When sending payment, use a money order with enough room to put your name and address as well as the name and address of the seller. It is vital that you get a money order that allows you to put a description of what the money order is for. I use First Union Bank money orders because they have provisions for the above information. Keep a photocopy and receipt of the Money Order.

6. Send payment via usps and use delivery confirmation. This allows tracking the shippment. This way the perp cannot claim the funds were not received and provides proof of USPS involvement. Keep the receipt.

7. Keep a record of all phone calls (phone bills would be great) , keep all e-mails and print them out in paper form as well as a backup disk.

8. Keep a record of the for sale ad location, and make a printed copy/disk backup.

It is vital that you follow the above steps. The information above will give you an iron tight case and all of the information will be put to good use if the need arises. The following information centers around what to do in case of being ripped off. Assuming that phone calls and e-mails are getting you nowhere, you must now be a private investigator for a day or two.....

1. Using the perp's address, do an internet search or whatever other means available, find out what law enforcement agency has jurisdiction over the perp's mailing/street address. Record and save the information.

2. Find out what local law enforcement agency has jurisdiction over the location in which your first contact with the seller's ad took place from. Example: If you answered the ad from your computer at home, then the jurisdiction must cover your home address. Record and save the information.

3. Find out the perp's Internet Service Provider's page and contact information, record and save.

4. Find out the perp's cell/home phone provider, contact information. Record the information and save.

5. Find the address and contact information of the perp's local post office. Record the information and save.

6. Call the seller's work location at a time that the perp cannot answer the work phone and find out who runs/owns the business. Record the information and save.

If all the above steps have been completed, Congrats! You are ready to wage war.......When doing so, it will be most effective if the perp doesn't know that the war has started, It is essential that the complaints be filed all in the same day with referance to all other complaints. Example: The post office complaint should contain a referance to the FBI complaint, ISP complaint, etc......

1. Start a negative thread explaining the situation.

2. Draft a letter of complaint with plenty of copies that outlines the transaction, as well as all copies of information that you gathered. This can be a basic form type letter and may look as follows:

Dear (perp or agency),

I am the victim of an internet scam involving the sale of auto parts.

Here is a synopsis of what has occured. (time to give the facts here)

I also have the following information that will be relevant: ( give as much of the perp's information that you have found including websites of negative info, ISP info, post office info, police dept. etc.

So in a recap, I contracted to buy parts via internet from: _ (include address)

I sent a money order in the amount of _through the US postal service to the above person.

The perp will not answer e-mail, phone, etc.... and I need help. Can you provide assistance?

Than you for your help,

(signed)

3. Gather all related information including web pages and the negative thread, and file a report with:

a. The local agency that had jurisdiction over your first contact. IT IS IMPORTANT that all information in copy form be submitted to your local agency first. Be sure to include the perp's ISP provider, phone number,and the perp's local law enforcement agency that would pick him up. The local agency will take the report and foreward to the perp's local agency for their dispatch of an officer.

b. The FBI internet fraud site http://www.ifccfbi.gov

c. The perp's ISP provider stating that the perp is using their service to commit internet fraud. Send via regular mail and e-mail.

d. The perp's phone service/ cell provider for using their service to commit internet fraud. Send via regular mail AND e-mail.

e. The US postal service for using the mail to commit mail/ internet fraud. Do two reports, one to your local office and one to the perp's office. Do both regular mail and internet e-mail. www.usps.com

f. File a report with http://www.trollhunters.com

g. File a report with http://www.fraud.org/info/contactnfic.htm

h. Send a complaint form copy to the work location of the perp that is addressed to the owner/manager. Make sure to include the phrase: " While you do not have any control over this individual when he is not at work, you should make sure that internet fraud is not being committed by the perp using company equipment or company internet access."

i. Notify the perp and provide a list of all reports filed, that you have been forced to take action and that it is now completely out of your hands. The only way that proceedings can be dissolved is by the perp making restitution. Make it known that you gave him every chance, and now the authorities will take over. (at this point negotiating is pointless, the perp knows what to do.) End of discussion. Sometimes the most stubborn crook will do nothing until they get the knock at the door from the police. If that is what it takes, so be it.

What to do when dealing with a minor:

Everthing above works fine, but additional work in the area of intelligence gathering is needed. Usually if all the above information is obtained, internet searches can usually point the way to the parents. The parents are to be notified in the same manner as all the other agencies, including copies of complaints to other agencies. It is important that you do not threaten a minor via e-mail or phone conversation. Leverage can be used, but to physically threaten with voilence will affect your position when pressing charges.

In closing,

The lawmakers in this nation have realized the importance of a seperate task force dealing with internet fraud. Most police agencies have a seperate division that deals strictly with internet fraud. This helps speed up the process, being seperated from the kid up the block that steals a skateboard. I cannot stress enough, the importance of a strong determination to win. Failure is not an option and you must persist with the vigilance that the rotten little perp has stolen food right from your starving family's mouth and that THIS WILL NOT BE ALLOWED. Persistance and a strong outward display of confidence is required. Some of this is a simple game of Poker. Sometimes you bluff, other times you have the decisive hand. The above information and proceedures will give you the best possible hand, use it wisely and satisfaction will be your reward. Remember, the perp already has your money, you have nothing else to lose. You will cause the perp great stress by unleashing the dogs of war on all fronts and at the same time. Often this is enough to make them make restitution swiftly. For those that still think they can get away with it, using the above proceedures, a man wearing blue WILL show up on his doorstep, offering him a free ride downtown. Not only that, his ISP will cancel his service, the US Postal Service will dispatch warnings and may press for a warrant.

This is how I normally do to identify scammers, with this, you should be ok for quite some time.

First of all, I do Google search with the name of the company and the word scam. Normally, there should be no page with the company listed with the word scam next to them but if you see at least one, maybe it is a scam. No need to have several pages, only one is neccessary.

Secondly, I go on a very good website, www.fraudwatchers.org who have a list of all website and company listed as scam. They just saved me from sending sample to a scam company.

And thirdly, just ask people around on forums just like this one. I saw a mate who've done that.

Fourth steps is that you can verify the address they gave you and find out what's really on this. Go on www.whitepages.com and enter the address they gave you to find out if the address is really registered as their business address or at least at their names.

Fifth test is to ask them to phone you. Normally scammers won't do this but beware, some also tries to call you. Please be aware that some scammers uses call redirection which is call callback (I'm not sure of that) or they can use fax to email. Using this, they get number that are listed in U.S.A., U.K. or any European country where in reality, they are located elsewhere.

Sixth, always inquire about the mail address. This is a mistake scammers often made. Try to see whether the email address comes from a free mail server. Suppose you get a mail from economicdevelopment@mail2cameroon.cc, be sure this is a scam. The mail address (it truely exist and they tried to scam me) is not from the Cameroon government, but from a free mail server. This is how I caught my first scammer.

Seventh and last advice for the time being; JUST COME To THIS GREAT FORUM AND ASK PEOPLE. Yes, you can come here and ask and many people will help you. I've been for so much time victim of scammers, who fortunately failed in their attempts, that I've got some pretty much experience.

This is approximately all I can remember for the time being but again, if you need advices, please post them here and am sure other forumites will give you quick answers!

God bless!

Well yes. I am just not going to break your morale but I am going to list some facts over here. .

If you think webmastering is easy then it isn’t. Believe me. It isn’t. .

If you are going to make a content based site then you have to either hire content writers who will charge heavily or you have to write your own content as I am writing it now on my sites. Even after that there are troubles of getting banned for no reasons from the PPC ads providers and getting low CTR or low earnings per each clicks.


If you are going to provide some services on your own then even after doing a lots of work your clients will file a charge back on you and then you lose it all for nothing. There are scammers and cheaters every where and you can’t control them all.

If you are working for someone then they hire you till they have their work done and they they fire you within a second or make false promised to promote you or get you nice earnings. Which I would say is a scam.

There are such people everywhere in every corner so you can’t take it easily.

My best advice would be to start your own stuff. Do it on your own. Because there is no one who was born with you and there will be no one who will die with you. Everyone is on their own.

Think properly and then invest your time as your time is money and money is important thing in life. After all we are doing it for money as commercial webmasters are concerned.

Weather its SEO, coding or designing. Your workers try to cheat you or if you are a worker for someone then they try to cheat you by not paying what they promised.