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Beware of a new "student" scam!
Thread poster: Gudrun Wolfrath
Sandra Kischuk
Sandra Kischuk
United States
Adolescence scam Jul 17, 2014

I am a writer/editor and received a request today to edit a poorly written article on adolescence. I googled the first sentence and found your site.

From: [email protected]

SERVICES NEEDED

Morning,

Am Dave Jones

Writer and Editor Needed
Can you edit or proofread the document attached
Get back to me if you are available for details and i will
... See more
I am a writer/editor and received a request today to edit a poorly written article on adolescence. I googled the first sentence and found your site.

From: [email protected]

SERVICES NEEDED

Morning,

Am Dave Jones

Writer and Editor Needed
Can you edit or proofread the document attached
Get back to me if you are available for details and i will like to know how much you charge per page or words also the document is attach to this mail.I will be waiting till i hear back from you.

Kind Regards,
DJ.


Dave Jones
240 Tours Street
Lafayette, Louisiana 70506
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Rita Pang
Rita Pang  Identity Verified
Canada
Local time: 08:03
Member (2011)
Chinese to English
+ ...

MODERATOR
I am Rita by day, Superman by night. Jul 18, 2014

Gudrun Wolfrath wrote:

"I'm Jessica by name and a student. Well i just want you to know that
my uncle will be responsible for payment since his the only one left
for me as the breadwinner. He will be sending you a Check so kindly
get back to me with your Full name and address so that he can make the
payment to you as soon as possible. Moreso i will be submitting the
assignment in 20days time so i want it to be ready before then.
Looking forward to read back from you.
Jessica. "



When they tell you their life story and they use this kind of Shakespeare-like prose to ask you for translation (unnecessary and rather unprofessional), you hit the spam button and be done with it.


 
Olga Evkucheva
Olga Evkucheva  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 06:03
Russian to English
+ ...
Adolescence scam Jul 23, 2014

I have received the same exact request today! What seemed fishy right from the start was the poor English and his inquiry about what language I translate INTO!!! WHAT? You are contacting me and don't even know the language you are requesting the translation for?! Please, dear translators, do not fall for people like that! I was once a victim of scam that robbed me of a lot of money and I do not wish for anybody to go through the same fate. I wish there was a way to send out a mass email warning ... See more
I have received the same exact request today! What seemed fishy right from the start was the poor English and his inquiry about what language I translate INTO!!! WHAT? You are contacting me and don't even know the language you are requesting the translation for?! Please, dear translators, do not fall for people like that! I was once a victim of scam that robbed me of a lot of money and I do not wish for anybody to go through the same fate. I wish there was a way to send out a mass email warning people of such dishonest enterprise! Wishing all good jobs!Collapse


 
Peter Leeflang
Peter Leeflang  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 08:03
Member (2014)
French to English
+ ...
Did you check if a keylogger was installed by scammer? Jul 23, 2014

After opening the Word file, did you check if a keylogger program was installed by the scammer? The moment you open any file sent, they can invisibly install that and record an key stroke you make on your computer and that program will report it back to them. Don't think your security software will catch it. Most do not.

[Edited at 2014-07-23 16:24 GMT]


 
Oliver Walter
Oliver Walter  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 12:03
German to English
+ ...
AV scan Jul 23, 2014

Peter Leeflang wrote:
After opening the Word file, did you check if a keylogger program was installed by the scammer? The moment you open any file sent, they can invisibly install that and record an key stroke you make on your computer and that program will report it back to them. Don't think your security software will catch it. Most do not.

I think AV (anti-virus) programs can detect malware hidden in Word files. I'm not sure because, although I have, on occasions, asked AVG to scan Word files, it has never reported finding anything. Probably that's simply because all of those files were "clean".
(My AVG is set so that it doesn't automatically scan any files - if I want a file scanned, I find it in Windows Explorer, right-click and select "Scan with AVG" from the pop-up menu.)
Oliver


 
Sylvie Chartier
Sylvie Chartier  Identity Verified
Canada
English to French
+ ...
I guess the scammers are hungry... Jul 24, 2014

I received the same text on adolescence.

Hi,

I saw your translator Advert on American translator directories, and would love to know if you're available to translate+proofreading the above language from English to French and make the attach copy available by 30th of August. kindly let me know the total cost either you charge per page or words.

Eivor.

Also, how do I go about finding the IP address of the sender AND check if a keylogger program
... See more
I received the same text on adolescence.

Hi,

I saw your translator Advert on American translator directories, and would love to know if you're available to translate+proofreading the above language from English to French and make the attach copy available by 30th of August. kindly let me know the total cost either you charge per page or words.

Eivor.

Also, how do I go about finding the IP address of the sender AND check if a keylogger program was installed by the scammer? I ran the file thru Bitdefender but it found nothing.

Thank you all for your quick response so I can check my computer.

Regards,

Sylvie
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Steve Rainwater
Steve Rainwater  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 08:03
Portuguese to English
Working on Dave's Project Now Jul 25, 2014

Hey, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm taking advantage of this. I'm working on Dave's project now. We are rewriting and editing 6,660 words in English, then translating to Portuguese. It's a really good document. Best of all Dave mailed me a check today for $2,900. It was an overpayment of my requested project deposit, so he is going to work with us to donate the excess to storm victims in the Philippines.

When you get lemons...make lemonade.


Have a
... See more
Hey, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm taking advantage of this. I'm working on Dave's project now. We are rewriting and editing 6,660 words in English, then translating to Portuguese. It's a really good document. Best of all Dave mailed me a check today for $2,900. It was an overpayment of my requested project deposit, so he is going to work with us to donate the excess to storm victims in the Philippines.

When you get lemons...make lemonade.


Have a good weekend everyone.

Steve



(look...you know I'm kidding, right. Dave's check is on the way, and I hope it arrives. If I can find out something about him that will lead to his demise, that would be great. My guess is he will stay wherever he is in the ¨fim do mundo¨ and we will live to translate another day.)

Cheers.

[Edited at 2014-07-25 22:33 GMT]

[Edited at 2014-07-25 23:35 GMT]
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BuenosAires
BuenosAires
Local time: 09:03
Spanish to German
+ ...
I received a request from [email protected] through a translator friend Jul 26, 2014

A friend of mine passed a request on from someone with the following data:
Dave Jones
240 Tours Street
Lafayette, Louisiana 70506
'D. J. Sounds Unlimited'

After I'd contacted him with my address to send a check prior to starting the translation, he said a check of $3,100 had been sent instead of the $600 check that was due, and that I should return the extra money. Who would do that anyway?

Regina


 
mjragland
mjragland
United States
Local time: 05:03
German to English
Scamming the scammers? Jul 26, 2014

What prevents the translator / service provider from cashing the check at a seedy "Checks Ca$hed" place that doesn't require ID?

Not that I'm considering doing this, but it seems like the scammer could lose out this way, unless I'm understanding the scam incorrectly.


 
Tony M
Tony M
France
Local time: 13:03
Member
French to English
+ ...
SITE LOCALIZER
I think you are! Jul 28, 2014

mjragland wrote:

What prevents the translator / service provider from cashing the check at a seedy "Checks Ca$hed" place that doesn't require ID?

Not that I'm considering doing this, but it seems like the scammer could lose out this way, unless I'm understanding the scam incorrectly.


I think you are!

Since the cheque is fake, the scammer won't lose a penny — only the poor 'cheques cashed' place! And seedy or not, they're probably savvy enough to spot a dodgy cheque when they see one.

What you would be doing would, of course, also be illegal! Would you really want to put yourself in the position of breaking the law, all for the sake of NOT wreaking vegneance on a scammer?


 
Steve Rainwater
Steve Rainwater  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 08:03
Portuguese to English
I am holding the check Jul 29, 2014

I kept playing the game...and I just received a $2,900 check this morning, for my 500.00 deposit, as promised.

The scammer's original address was LA, now the O/N letter with the check came from UTAH, the check is drawn on Mellon Bank from Pittsburgh and the check is from Time Warner Banking Services in TX. So he / she was completely relying on my stupidity to cash this. I don't know how this kind of thing could even go undetected by a bank.

I doubt we could ever get t
... See more
I kept playing the game...and I just received a $2,900 check this morning, for my 500.00 deposit, as promised.

The scammer's original address was LA, now the O/N letter with the check came from UTAH, the check is drawn on Mellon Bank from Pittsburgh and the check is from Time Warner Banking Services in TX. So he / she was completely relying on my stupidity to cash this. I don't know how this kind of thing could even go undetected by a bank.

I doubt we could ever get this guy / gal, but I am actually going to take the check to my bank today and ask the branch manager if there is any recourse.

I am currently exchanging emails...at this very minute, with the scammer about edits we need to make to the document prior to translation. Brazen.

Stay tuned.
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Gudrun Wolfrath
Gudrun Wolfrath  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 13:03
English to German
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Good idea, Steve. Jul 29, 2014

Please keep us posted.

Gudrun


 
Steve Rainwater
Steve Rainwater  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 08:03
Portuguese to English
Wrapping up my experience with Dave...or whatever his name is Jul 30, 2014

I was trying to string Dave along until I could find out of there was any recourse. I actually took the check to my bank today and showed the branch manager. He said this kind of thing happens with a frequency that would surprise us, but there is little recourse because of how he sets up all the contact info, etc. He said the bank won't go after him but the post office would have if he had sent the check regular mail...which he didn't, it was UPS.

So..it thinking Dave probably has G
... See more
I was trying to string Dave along until I could find out of there was any recourse. I actually took the check to my bank today and showed the branch manager. He said this kind of thing happens with a frequency that would surprise us, but there is little recourse because of how he sets up all the contact info, etc. He said the bank won't go after him but the post office would have if he had sent the check regular mail...which he didn't, it was UPS.

So..it thinking Dave probably has Google and could locate this thread as easily as I did and as easily as he located me, and not that we have exchanged more than 20 emails together, I proudly display my closing email to Dave...as I simply don't have time to mess with this any more if there is not a chance to identify and prosecute Dave. Hope you will enjoy my attempt at humor, and I hope Dave was at least a little frustrated that he did not succeed, even though he may have felt he was coming close as he coached me several times today to please hurry up and deposit the check so he could tell me where to send the refund.

Here's my message to Dave-----

Thank you for the info Dave.

I actually just returned from the bank a few minutes ago with your check. The asset managers at the bank who manage our several deposit accounts with huge enormous gigantic mucho big balances recommended we not process your check as they could not verify funds. I told them we only work with honest clients we know well, who give us honest projects, even some who want to help charity. I tried to tell them that our clients, who we know well, would never send us bogus emails with fake information, because we know them well but they seemed to think otherwise. You know howst those bank people are.

So Dave...even though it has been a great pleasure to work with you, Global Orange administrative upper higher managmental administration has instructed me to cancel your project and not process your check. They of course alwayst listen to the bank people. Of course we are also not sending the check back to Utah either, since you are located in Louisiana, because then you would not be able to receive it. So we will simply put it in your file.

Thanks again for your interest in working with us and please accept out humblest Brazilian closing remarks.

Vai chupar meia.

Tchau,
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elkelove (X)
elkelove (X)
Canada
Local time: 09:03
French to English
Fake cheque received Aug 15, 2014

I posted mid July that I had fallen for this scam too. However, I became suspicious and found this page. I discontinued the correspondence and didn't do the work. Just received an envelope sent via Priority Post (Canada), enclosing a cheque for $2850, with no details about the sender, and which the bank involved (Toronto Dominion) says is a fake (they checked the security features and they weren't there). The scammers are waiting for you to pay it in to your account, then they'll go after your b... See more
I posted mid July that I had fallen for this scam too. However, I became suspicious and found this page. I discontinued the correspondence and didn't do the work. Just received an envelope sent via Priority Post (Canada), enclosing a cheque for $2850, with no details about the sender, and which the bank involved (Toronto Dominion) says is a fake (they checked the security features and they weren't there). The scammers are waiting for you to pay it in to your account, then they'll go after your bank details.
I've printed off the email messages I received, including the full embedded headers, and will pass those along to the bank, in case they wish to investigate.
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finnword1
finnword1
United States
Local time: 08:03
English to Finnish
+ ...
the scam continues Sep 3, 2014

except the "university student" this time called herself (?) Sarah Maxwell.

 
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Beware of a new "student" scam!







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