Andy Dolich Victimized by an E-mail Scam

Exactly 1,398 of Andy Dolich's best friends or contacts got the same spam e-mail on April 13 (2011) that Andy was in some kind of problem and he badly needed their assistance, as reported by Mercury News on May 19, 2011.

Remarkably, Andy Dolich is an American sports executive, and presently runs a sports consultancy, Dolich & Associates, in Los Altos, California.

The alleged e-mail notified readers that Dolich was in London, where his passport and credit cards were stolen, and he was looking out for some "quick funds" to return to his home.

To send him financial help, which he guaranteed to pay back, he could be contacted at his listed e-mail id or at a cited phone number at the "hotel's help desk."

Commenting on the matter, Dolich stated that, he had a friend in London who believed this (e-mail) was sent from London, and who attempted to find him said that, he will help him. He further stated that, his 2 other affluent friends, not the kind to be influenced, were about to send financial help, but didn't. He further highlighted that, he was quite sure that few people must have sent money, as reported by Mercury News on May 19, 2011.

Dolich later found out that his Google account has been compromised by cyber criminals.

Unluckily, the scam that targeted several of Dolich's friends and contacts was the 419 scam or the notorious Nigerian scam.

There are diverse variations, but majority of them have the similar technique. A web-based e-mail account is compromised (similar to that of Dolich in the above mentioned instance). Then the cybercriminal imitates the victim (as Dolich in above mentioned instance), dispatching an emergency help to the victim's all the contacts and friends. Further, the security experts highlighted that, the message generally has few variation on getting attacked or robbed and urges the recipient of the e-mail to send money to a location the criminal can access.

Due to the maliciousness related to the scams of the above mentioned kind, security experts suggest users that, if they are actually concerned regarding a friend being troubled abroad, then they should firstly try to confirm the incidence through phone to check if they left the nation in the first place. Additionally, always keep in mind that, if a friend is in some overseas location, all foreign nations host embassies and consulates of other nations will help travelers who are trapped abroad.

Related article: Anti-Spam Laws may not Solve the Problem

» SPAMfighter News - 5/26/2011