Get Rich Scams Exposed!

The internet is a wonderful and here to stay. Every day, more people are turning to the internet in search for answers, and the sheer volume of information that is available online means someone has always been looking for a solution when their problems arise. Unfortunately, there are some unscrupulous individuals who try to take advantage of these people by offering just that—a solution. The problem gets worse when they demand money in exchange for information that you may not even need or get what you paid for in the first place.

Two such examples are the get rich quick scams. The first is the Nigerian Get Rich Scam, where the victim is contacted by a person who claims to be from Nigeria and have a large sum of money that he needs to transfer out of the country. In exchange for your assistance in transferring these funds, you will be rewarded with some percentage of it. The second scam is known as the Spanish Prisoner Scam, where the victim receives a letter from someone who claims to be a Spanish prisoner held captive in North Africa or Spain and needs financial help to escape prison so he can start his life anew. The problem here is that both scammers are universally based in Nigeria—the internet just makes it seem like they aren't. In both cases, the scammers will tell you to keep their correspondence a secret; all so that you do not spoil their plans.

In addition to these, there is also the Nigerian 419 Scam, but that is another topic for another day.

If you follow through the process in transferring money or financial assistance or if you actually send money over to these scammers as per their request, then chances are they will not be able to transfer your funds. Unfortunately this means that despite your diligence in helping them out, you will end up losing your money without even doing anything illegal. 

To prevent yourself from becoming a victim of this scam, always be skeptical of any offer that sounds too good to be true. The chances are that it actually is. Use something like the Nigerian Scam Checker at https://www.nigerianscamchecker.com/ or, in the case of the Spanish Prisoner Scam, visit https://www.scambusters.org/patience-is-virtue/. If you notice any red flags, then chances are that it is a scam. In addition to those two sites, please visit http://www.rgemonitor .com for a comprehensive analysis of Nigerian Scams.

The internet is a wonderful and here to stay. Every day, more people are turning to the internet in search for answers, and the sheer volume of information that is available online means someone has always been looking for a solution when their problems arise. Unfortunately, there are some unscrupulous individuals who try to take advantage of these people by offering just that—a solution. The problem gets worse when they demand money in exchange for information that you may not even need or get what you paid for in the first place.

Two such examples are the get rich quick scams. The first is the Nigerian Get Rich Scam, where the victim is contacted by a person who claims to be from Nigeria and have a large sum of money that he needs to transfer out of the country. In exchange for your assistance in transferring these funds, you will be rewarded with some percentage of it. The second scam is known as the Spanish Prisoner Scam, where the victim receives a letter from someone who claims to be a Spanish prisoner held captive in North Africa or Spain and needs financial help to escape prison so he can start his life anew. The problem here is that both scammers are universally based in Nigeria—the internet just makes it seem like they aren't. In both cases, the scammers will tell you to keep their correspondence a secret; all so that you do not spoil their plans.

In addition to these, there is also the Nigerian 419 Scam, but that is another topic for another day.

If you follow through the process in transferring money or financial assistance or if you actually send money over to these scammers as per their request, then chances are they will not be able to transfer your funds. Unfortunately this means that despite your diligence in helping them out, you will end up losing your money without even doing anything illegal. 

To prevent yourself from becoming a victim of this scam, always be skeptical of any offer that sounds too good to be true. The chances are that it actually is. Use something like the Nigerian Scam Checker at https://www.nigerianscamchecker.com/ or, in the case of the Spanish Prisoner Scam, visit https://www.scambusters.org/patience-is-virtue/. If you notice any red flags, then chances are that it is a scam. In addition to those two sites, please visit http://www.rgemonitor .com for a comprehensive analysis of Nigerian Scams

Art: "Get Rich Quick"

"The money transfer company I used was Western Union. I used the information given to me: Name, Address, phone number, and bank account. As soon as I sent the money, I received a call from Nigeria. It was a female who told me she was calling from Africa and that she had been kidnapped by people working for the family of Osama Bin Laden. She needed $2 million dollars for her freedom. She explained it like this: "I know that you are not Osama Bin Laden's wife but when they called me they told me to give you all the money you need as much as you want because we know he is having problems with his family right now." And she said all of this in perfect English with an American accent. "So I deposited the money in my bank account and she was going to call me every day and tell me how much more $2 million dollars she needed for her freedom. I have been funding her for nearly six months now." Source: http://www.cracked.com/article_1876_5-amazing-nigerian-scams-that-youve-probably-not-heard-of.html

"The money transfer company I used was Western Union. I used the information given to me: Name, Address, phone number, and bank account. As soon as I sent the money, I received a call from Nigeria. It was a female who told me she was calling from Africa and that she had been kidnapped by people working for the family of Osama Bin Laden. She needed $2 million dollars for her freedom. She explained it like this: "I know that you are not Osama Bin Laden's wife but when they called me they told me to give you all the money you need as much as you want because we know he is having problems with his family right now." And she said all of this in perfect English with an American accent. "So I deposited the money in my bank account and she was going to call me every day and tell me how much more $2 million dollars she needed for her freedom.

Conclusion

In conclusion, we have seen a few examples of Nigerian Scams such as the Nigerian Prisoner Scam. This type of scam will be recurrent because it is very easy to manipulate people who want to help someone from a foreign country. The scams we have looked at today, ranging from the biggest scams in Nigeria, are all commonly used in order to obtain money for something that may never happen. The internet is a wonderful and here to stay. Every day, more people are turning to the internet in search for answers, and the sheer volume of information that is available online means someone has always been looking for a solution when their problems arise.