Don't fall for this scam

I am extremely concerned that the citizens of this area will be targets, such as I was, for the latest in mail fraud scams. I did the necessary checking to find out how fraudulent this truly was, but have concerns others will not take the time to check out this offering, as right now money is tight for many and this looks like a way to earn some.

About 5 days ago I got an e-mail from a Michael Smith, asking if I wanted to be part of Mystery Shoppers. I have done this in the past, where you are paid by a company to go to different retail locations, as if you are a normal customer, and report back to those who hire you of your observations regarding employees, product satisfaction, prices, service, cleanliness of site, etc. Even "Good Morning America" had recently done a segment on this kind of work.

First mistake: I should not have downloaded his e-mail as my computer is now infected with a virus; I have little doubt it is from "Mr. Smith," as the timing coincides. But like I stated earlier, I had legitimately done this is the past so thought it an opportunity to once again participate.

Second mistake: All they initially asked for was my name, address, e-mail, and phone number. Since they already had my e-mail, and my address is listed in the phone book or online for any who search, I gave them an artificial phone number and e-mailed them back.

When they e-mailed me back almost immediately, asking for almost the identical information they had earlier, I deleted the whole thing and thought it was over. Imagine my surprise when I get another e-mail about three hours later, stating I had been hired, and would be hearing from them soon on my first assignment. I ignored and deleted this e-mail, thinking it was now definitely a mistake to have ever responded to the first communication.

Then this morning, UPS pulls up to my house with an overnight envelope and inside is a postal money order for $950.25, with instructions for my first "assignment." The letter with this money order had no letterhead, and no signature, but told me specifically to cash the money order, take $860.00 of the $950.25 and go to a Western Union outlet and send said amount to a supplied address - in Malaysia! I was then supposed to write up a summary of my experience with Western Union and send that to them. Oh, and I was also told to go spend up to $20 at a local Walmart and relay that experience to them also. There were some pretty basic questions about these businesses they wanted me to answer. The rest of the money was mine to keep.

Now this all sounds so good initially, until one does some checking and thinking about the whole situation. First off, when one cashes a money order that does not clear, just like a check that bounces, that money is taken out of your account and charged against you. If you have sent $800 overseas, that is money you will never re-coup.

I called the postal service, and found that the money order number was a number of a money order that had already been cashed - for just over $100. The postal service warned me this was a money laundering scheme and wants my paperwork on this, which I will willingly provide. Then I called UPS, and the routing number was checked against the return address, and surprise surprise - this envelope was mailed from South Carolina with no name, yet the return address was a generic name in Ohio. They suspect the UPS account number used was also stolen, and will check this out. (Did you know UPS has an investigation for fraud department?).

So, beware out there. It's always amazing how creative and innovative these schemes get. This one actually has someone going to a lot of trouble to scam folk, but the signals were there among their well-thought-out scam:

a. Use an existing and/or known business that is legitimate.

b. Make persons work a little to get their confidence it is not a "free" offering. Avoid the "if it's too good to be true, it isn't" syndrome.

c. Deliver a real-looking money order by a reliable business method (UPS) to gain confidence and credibility.

d. Keep all money amounts under $1,000 to keep government rules from running red flags and checks.

e. Work fast so those who might have apprehensions aren't able to find the truth in time before they are duped.

I was lucky not to have gotten further involved, but I have little doubt others may find themselves with a bigger mess than a virus in their computer. Please spread the word on this one.

Bev Twillmann is a resident of Harrison.