Scammers Also Use Dating Services To Look For Easy Marks
A reader received a weird message from a fellow Match.com member last night—it was a fairly transparent attempt by someone to establish contact with her via a false identity.
I recently signed up on Match.com and last night got an embarrassingly long and oddly worded email from someone there. At first I was weirded out by the detail in the letter—I mean, let's face it, most people on dating sites send very tentative short flirtations in case they get rebuffed.
I noticed some of the details were off—like this dude's profile says he's in Michigan and he states in his letter he is from Empire State, NY. Even if he's indeed from NY, who says that? Also, you can see a lot of the grammar is off. I looked at his actual profile and it seemed even weirder—his personal description read very strange about how he lost his father when he was 5 to a very oddly specific description of an illness.
In the profession section he literally says this: "Sgt Mark Edwards, Stationed in Iraq, As you know we are being attacked by insurgents everyday..." So of course I Googled the name and found that that Sgt Mark Edwards is a name used in conjunction with a version of the Nigerian 411 scam. In fact that phrase appears in some versions of the emails sent out.
[Note: a real Staff Sgt. Mark O. Edwards died in Iraq in 2005 from a "non-combat related cause"; it appears certain scammers have randomly picked up his name and started using it. -Ed.]
The guy didn't actually ask me for any money because I didn't engage him in conversation at all—but I did report him to Match and they seem to have already removed the profile.
The reason I wanted you tell you is that it freaked me out that these guys are preying on lonely women and I guess men as well in this way. Being single sometimes can suck and it just makes it all a little worse to encounter people like this. Thought your readers should know.
Fortunately, there's still enough of a cultural and language gap between most of these scammers and the average American that they're easy enough to spot—but yeah, these people suck.
Below is the message our reader received:
How are you doing. It is a Pleasure sending you an Email My Name is Mark Edwards by name I am from Empire state NY ... i am 46 years old,with 1 kid that live with me. I have been single for few years now and Ever since then I have not dated anyone. I am Searching for someone to be with me for the rest of my life,It is better to find a woman that will live with you forever than a woman who will Just be with you for a while..I am Really looking for a soul mate.Well I believe in every person on Earth there is a Perfect soulmate.i love watching movies,dancing,camping,fishing and making new friends... I am a romantic and very content with my life, I just think it would be a lot more fun if there was someone to share it with. I'm a strong, independent man with a great sense of humor and have managed to remain a kid at heart.I like candles and flowers... music and reading bible... (whether it be a lake,stream or the ocean)...sunshine and rainy days...falling leaves (Autumn is my absolute favorite time of year), holding hands...cuddling...walking in the evening and kissing under a street light. I am honest and expect the same in return. I don't play games or care much for people who do so give me a way to get in touch.... I am looking for a true companion,the missing link in my life. and i am looking for this kind of lady Please, be happy and have a positive attitude. I'm sorry if you've had a bad divorced or childhood, but hopefully you will have put that behind you. I hope you will be honest, sensitive and affectionate (being a romantic would be great!).Be prepared though, I may want to take you away for a surprise romantic If you have a strong shoulder for me to lean on and allow me to cry on You ,well,that would be a real bonus! But you should know that I will be there for you a partner (in every sense of the world) who will be there to share the laughter and the tears. If you hold my heart,there is nothing I won't do for you. I read a profile once that says it all perfectly someone I am excited to spend my the rest of my life with and even more eager to spend my days and nights with"...i am a gentle Man and a kind soul i am looking for a Lady that will be my best friend and my love some one to be with forever plus more if it goes that way, someone who has a positive out look on life,caring,loving, not boring likes to go out and do things even if its just a walk..Am interested in you that's why i sent you this Message...to tell you that the age does not matters when there's love...And if u are interested you can add me to your yahoo messenger {markedwards492002} so we could chat more and more or you should send me an email Directly to my personal mail .....here is my yahoo I'm online right now... [match.com address redacted] so bye for now and take good care of your self hope to hear from u soon.
Mark.
Here are some other examples of fake Mark Edwards emails from 2006, 2007, and 2009.
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Comments:
But he sounds so sweet, how could any of you ladies not go for a scammer like that?
I know these people are con artists and thieves but using the identity of a dead soldier is really low.
@geoffhazel: Unfortunately, there are so many illiterate Americans that don't realize his spelling and grammar is all wrong.
BTW I always wondered where Nigerian scammers picked up the "Am" thing. Am Mark Edwards, am interested in meeting you. Am needing you to send me $1000 for travel expenses.
i get this stuff a lot, like in the included text below. i have no problem putting the email address on here since it was in the text of the message sent to me on a free dating site that allows communication with no restrictions - clearly an attempt to get me to reply from my regular email address
"Hi
I am Mido 22 years .. living in Egypt right now & studying for medical school ..
I am preparing for the USMLE ( Us Medical license ) to be ready to be a doctor in USA
& get the License next year or 2011 at most ,,,
I saw ur profile & I really like it
I wish we can be friends
I am looking forward your reply
this is my Yhoo : a7medreda2010 "
My dead grandmother could tell that's a scam, do they honestly think people will fall for it? Why do they bother? It's like how you get spam in your email box from China about cheap pills. Do they honestly think they'll get a response?
I don't get scammers. :/
what hapened to meeting people the old-fashioned way, going out to clubs and bars, and meeting people at the store? (then again, i'm a young 20-something, so things might change as you age... honestly, if someone can explain the allure of dating websites, please do inform me)
I got contacted by a fairly obvious scam artist supposedly from Russia through Match, but I played along for my own amusement. We exchanged something like 5 emails each before she got down to it and asked me to wire her $1,000 for a plane ticket to the US. It was then that I sent her the fun email, although I kept from her the mistakes that I had found (tracing emails is a new skill that I have now).
@gStein: The short answer is that it's easier to get to know someone online than by shouting over Lady Gaga.
Also, you go to the store to meet people? You must have a high tolerance for disappointment.
@gStein: I'm not single but I can figure this one out. It's easy for a 20-something to find 20-somethings in clubs and bars because they are full of single 20-somethings. Not so full of 30, 40, 50+ -somethings and even less full of somethings that you'd actually want to meet there. And that's assuming you have the time and inclination to go to a club or bar. There's nothing wrong with finding friends and companions using any method that works for you. Even clubs and bars have their scammers and whack jobs.
@geoffhazel: I almost feel like if your grammar is that bad, you deserve to get scammed.
Of course scammers suck and should be shot on sight, but it should be obvious with that kind of writing who's behind it (to anyone with a high school diploma).
@sanjsrik: Take note, this is a blog, not a news site. Consumerist isnt about news, its about sharing information to people with similar interests. Often, they will put news on the blog because its related, but they are not strictly a new service. If you want news, go turn on CNN.
@Eldritch: People DO fall for it, and the scammers get rich. You only need to find one sucker (hence why they bait thousands of hooks), and there is one born every minute.
@kduhtoe:
He does sound cute. Might be fun to have him neutered & kept in a cage under the big screen tv.
@gStein:
Because going to clubs and bars by yourself feels weird. Plus, if you live (recent move, etc.) where you don't really know anyone and most of your immediate social circle isn't the club going type anyway, either from lack of inclination or having a family, it can be difficult to meet new people when you end up in a new place. Once you're out of college, it gets harder to meet new people, especially if you aren't the churchgoing type.
Heck these guys are on Skype too.
Last week I got a call that I rejected from a strange name. When I refused their call they started a chat and said they didn't know me, but I'd know them if I answered the voice call and that it was a very important matter and I'll lose my chance forever if I don't answer their call.
The "important matter" he said he could only say in voice. I answered with LOL and blocked them and changed my settings so that only people on my list can call me.
@gStein:
You'll find that most middle-aged women don't go to clubs to find a relationship. They go there to escape one.
If you're looking for damaged goods or maybe a one-night deal, fine. Otherwise, forget it.
@gStein: One sign of Alcoholism is drinking by yourself. And no, God does not could as a person.
I have met all of my past GF's in either work or college. Sadly, I work in an office with two older women who are either married, or getting within the year, and neither have daughters my age. As for clubs, I tend to make horrible first impressions. I'm kind of like George Costanza/a jingle. I grow on people.
@OMG!ToOMG!,ByMyPonies!_GitEmSteveDave:
Kitteh is named Commando and kindly requests that you buy a pair of non-living fur-lined underwear NOW! (and those of us that pet your kitteh have noticed your hygiene)
@gStein:
Maybe some people use dating websites because the clubs and bars are full of dimwitted twenty-somethings like you.
@geoffhazel: I don't know if it counts as illiterate when it's not their native language. My Nigerian is a lot worse off than their English.
Wow, I get about one a month. Is it newsworthy? Does Consumerist want to hear about it???
D y KNW hw mny ppl wll fll fr ths nd thn cnsmrst wll wrt bt t? 'm fndng mr nd mr tht th rtcls n cnsmrst r thr nvrfbl r thrws bgs. Sr, thy r rprtng "nws" rtcls bt ftntms nly ftr thy hv bn rprtd lswhr.
xctly wht s th pnt f Cnsmrst f ll thy d s rwrt cpy frm lswhr r thrws hwk vr nd vr gn, "Fr 30-dy trl t Cnsmr Rprts.rg"?
Man, talk about NEEDY!!
that gut just came on way too strong. no man on earth looks for a woman with strong shoulders so that he can cry on them.
he's gotta play it cool...
"Hey baby, I'm B1663R, what's your sign?"
"awww, c'mon baby! don't get mad!"
like these dudes need to watch some early 80's tv shows and study under the masters like Lee Majors
@OMG!ToOMG!,ByMyPonies!_GitEmSteveDave: Good lord, that photo is wrong on so many levels...made me LOL, though.
So just where HAVEN'T scammers infiltrated?
As it is you can "work" at a scam job, "buy" a scam car, "rent" a scam house, and "date" a scam profile...
Aren't most dating scammers looking for US and UK addresses for reshipping goods to Nigeria? That was what it seemed like for the Dateline MSNBC "To Catch an Identity Thief" show...
@KarlB: Well said. I actually met my guy online, though we live in the same town and even knew some of the same people. We'd both just gotten out of hideously bad relationships and figured online meet-ups would introduce us to people. Emailed and talked on the phone only a couple of times before meeting in person. Worked for us - in August it'll be 6 years, and we're living together as we prepare to get married.
Oh, and by the way - we were "twenty-somethings" when we did this. Neither of us wanted to meet people in bars (or stores, for that matter.)
Point is: different strokes for different folks. I'm not saying it's without dangers, but so is meeting someone any other way.
Foreigners. First they were taking our jobs and now they are taking our women.
I was once given a love letter in high school by a guy with that literacy level. As he had a girlfriend already, I felt hugely embarrassed for myself and him. Several years later, I get emails from a guy I met volunteering and the situation repeats itself, except this one didn't abbrev. everything like he was writing a txt msg on ppr. And no, it wasn't a scam - he talked like he wrote, and also had a girlfriend. I can't blame anyone else for their capacities, but it's so painful to see. But for God, there go I.
Unfortunately, there are Americans that write like this, but thankfully, they do know where they are from. And any staff NCO would at least know that "bible" does not come in "lake,stream or the ocean" varieties. And if I was trying to take care of a child living with me in Iraqi barracks, I would want a shoulder to cry on, too.
@winstonthorne: That's very true, but if you're pretending to be an American in order to scam people out of their money you'd think you'd try a little harder to write the language correctly.
Of course if writing like that still results in scams I guess you don't NEED to improve your English.
@wvFrugan: or BBC, CBS, MSNBC, ABC, Headline News, Associate Press, Twitter (I dunno.. could be news)... oh it goes on and on my friend...
@SybilDisobedience: There's also the tried and true method of having your parents hook you up. Really popular in some parts of the world (and some people really do ask their parents to find them someone). I know, there are a million reasons why it doesn't work well with our society (generation gaps, geographic separation, you know your parents, etc). Just sayin...
"I like candles and flowers... music and reading bible... (whether it be a lake,stream or the ocean)" I love it. It's like a cliche factory exploded onto his letter.
@gStein: Some people don't actually like going to bars and clubs, believe it or not.
I hate going to dance clubs or loud bars. They are not fun for me, and good luck attracting someone of the opposite sex if you're having a miserable time. Plus, why would I seek out people who are participating in an activity I dislike doing myself? That's like someone who hates baseball deciding that going to baseball games is a great way to meet someone they'll have a lot in common with. The stigma of meeting someone online is long gone for most people.
You mention "meeting people the old-fashioned way, going out to clubs and bars..." Isn't the "old-fashioned way" really meeting someone at church or at a bake sale? Or maybe an arranged marriage? It's not as though bars and clubs have been the established, mainstream way to meet people since the dawn of time.
I understand you were asking an honest question. The short answer is that the allure of dating websites is that you might meet someone you like. There are dozens of ways to do that. So the real question is why are any of those other ways more valid to you than dating websites?
Wait! Are you suggesting that all the 22-year-old hottie nymphs who email me through dating sights are really not interested in a 46-year-old guy who is as old as their father? For real?
@korybing:
There are many Americans who can't spell or use correct grammar, so I'm not surprised they would fall for a scammer who doesn't either.
@gStein:
The allure of dating websites is not having to deal with the club/bar scene. That may be fine when you're in your 20s, but it gets old really fast. Also, my mom always told me that if you meet a guy in a bar you can't really complain when he continues to drink and spend time in the bars.
I met my honey online, and it's the best relationship I've ever had. Don't let a few horror stories scare or prejudice you. I know lots of folks who met spouses, boyfriends, companions, and friends via the net.
@gttim:
"Ur so Hott! Id luv 2 meat u! but I cant email u from
my puter, so u need to check this website to get my # [www.suckerisborn.com] call me soon hotttee!"
I love craigslist!
yeah, I've seen a couple obviously fake profiles like that on yahoo too. It's kind of a disappointment because yahoo was always much better than match. But the ads are funny. Some random, obviously professional photograph of a hot model along with some horribly broken english describe what someone from Africa assumes an American man would want in a woman. I think they'd have better success if they didn't even try to emulate Americans. Talk about how you love ugly, poor men and how you live to cook and clean for them and it's pretty obviously fake. That's no American woman I've ever met. Just come right out and your dad will give me three goats if I marry you and I might be inclined to read further.
ummm.. duh?
@tbax929:
I've considered replying to the scam e-mails and offering to correct the spelling and grammar in the messages for a fee. Might be a profitable side business.
@catastrophegirl - brand new homeowner:
Next time:
"You're a doctor? Can you help me out and look at this?
: insert goatse pic:
Thank goodness for illiterate Nigerians.