Top Email Hoaxes by MSNBC News

[Ladyzekke]

Saw this and thought to copy it and share it here: [img]smile.gif[/img]

The Basics
The top 9 e-mail hoaxes:

Income taxes are optional, Neiman Marcus has an expensive cookie recipe and more financial fictions that crowd in-boxes. These e-mail hoaxes are designed for one thing: to drain your wallet.

By Amy C. Fleitas, Bankrate.com

Ever wondered if anyone makes the money promised in those work-at-home advertisements? Or if each forwarded e-mail will really mean a donation of 10 cents from Microsoft to an orphan's organ-transplant operation? The answer is no. These stories are urban legends, e-mail rumors and scams. They are but a few of what we like to call financial fiction. The following are some of the most popular and most creative examples waiting in in-boxes.

Neiman Marcus' expensive cookie recipe:

Here's what happened. My Aunt Cynthia was having lunch at Neiman Marcus with my cousin. For dessert, they had these delicious cookies and my aunt asked the waitress for the recipe. The waitress said they the recipe sold for "two fifty." My Aunt thought that meant $2.50 said OK. But when she got her bill they charged her $250. She was furious but they wouldn't refund her money. So in revenge, she's giving away the recipe to anyone who wants it.

Can you believe that? You can? Sucker. It never happened. But this rumor has been circulating for decades. A similar story about a $25 red velvet cake recipe has been traced as far back as the 1940s. If you want the cookie recipe, Neiman Marcus has gotten so sick of the bad press about this false rumor that the company posted the recipe on its Web site.

Forwarded e-mail for money or donations:

Microsoft and Disney are both beta-testing an e-mail tracker and will send you money if you forward this e-mail. The Gap is testing an e-mail tracker and will send you a gift certificate. The Red Cross is using its e-mail tracker and will donate money for some poor kid's operation or to raise funds for an orphan of Sept. 11.

If you believe any of these stories, I have some bad news for you. There is no such thing as an e-mail tracker. Coke won't send you free cans. Gerber won't send you savings bonds. Cracker Barrel won't send you gift certificates. A Britney Spears' video won't pop up as the result of you forwarding an e-mail. And AOL has a public relations department that gets news out a lot more efficiently than any chain mail ever could. You get nothing but the embarrassment of knowing that everyone you forward this e-mail to will think you're a fool.

Nigerian scam letter:

Greetings, sir. I got your e-mail address from a very confidential source -- the Internet. I am the prince, minister and Grand Poo-ba of one of many foreign nations that you stupid Americans have never heard of. There is a billion, kazillion dollars in an account here that rightfully belongs to my family and my people. Due to some horrid-bloody military coup in which my entire family, several accountants and various goats lost their lives, I cannot reach this money. But you, an American who has never heard of my country, can march right into the corner branch of God-Forsaken-War-Torn-East-of-Nowhere-Africa and deposit this money right into your fat American bank account. For your trouble, I'll give you a few million off the top -- because what's a few million between confidential best friends who have never actually even heard of one another?

OK, let's start from the top. Do not kid yourself. You are not so important that the High Priest of Anywhere will e-mail you requesting help. Rid yourself of your delusions of grandeur -- or as we say back home, you may sing "Like a Virgin" into your hairbrush every night, but that doesn't make you Madonna.

Here's what will happen when you give strangers your bank account information: They will take your money. Period. End of story. You get nothing, but you lose a lot.

Work at home:

Old scam, new format. You should immediately run from anyone who promises lots of money for little work that requires no experience. While there are companies that allow their employees to work from home, they require job skills and interviews, just like regular jobs. Work-at-home scams will ask you to purchase supplies and equipment from them to perform the "job." That's how they make their money. You will lose -- not make -- money.

You won! And you didn't even enter! :

How can you take anything seriously that uses so many exclamation marks?!!!!! Guess what!!!!! You didn't win anything!!!! These people will try to finagle money out of you by saying you need to pay taxes or fees to collect your prize!!!!! Or they will give you a free trip that requires you to buy very expensive airline tickets through their agency!!!! Don't be a sucker!!!!!

You'll receive $5,000 for sending $25:

Here's how it works. Send $5 to the five people on the list or to the address that will send you the "reports." In return for your money you'll get -- nothing -- because this is a scam. Well, maybe you'll get something -- a conviction for mail fraud because this is illegal.

Tricking the traffic court:

The Web-watching site Truthorfiction.com reports that a rumor is currently circling e-mails accounts claiming that there's a sneaky way to keep a traffic ticket off your driving record: pay a little more than the amount on the ticket. The court will send you a refund check. If you don't cash the check, the computer won't mark your case as closed and the ticket will never show up on your record. This idea is great in theory, lousy in reality. It doesn't work. Here's a way to keep tickets off your record that does work: slow down.

Tax or long-distance charges on e-mail:

You got a forwarded e-mail from your friend that says you will soon be charged for your long-distance e-mails, just like you are charged for long-distance phone calls. Oh, really? And what will the phone company use to compute your bill -- its e-mail tracker? Calm down. No one is going to charge you long distance for your e-mails. This is an e-mail myth.

Clinton got rid of the IRS -- no more taxes:

That sneaky Bill Clinton -- did you know that when he wasn't gallivanting about with interns he was busy getting Congress to pass secret legislation that would forgive all debts and abolish the Internal Revenue Service? Alan Greenspan was going to announce it on Sept. 11, 2001 but didn't because of the terrorist attacks. Oh, wishful thinking -- or maybe not. A move like that is the equivalent of tossing what's left of our economy into a vast financial toilet and flushing with the combined might of the National Football League. In the plausible department, this rumor, reported by Truthorfiction.com, is right up there with alien cattle mutilations and Cameron Diaz spending a Friday night alone at home, eating Ben & Jerry's because she couldn't get a date -- completely ridiculous.

[Firestormalpha]

People have actually bought into these schemes?

[Downunda]

the nigerian mail scam one made me laugh ^^ sorta sad that people have bought into those scams though

I live by the rule that if it looks too good to be true... it usually is

[Ladyzekke]

I've gotten one or two of those. The Nigerian one I've gotten several times, with other countries too besides Nigeria, same exact scenario though in the emails. "Please don't tell anyone about this!!!!!!!!! Top Secret, I am trusting youuuu!

[Bungleau]

The Nigerian email scam is apparently big business in Nigeria. Some of those who fall for it get asked to make trips to Nigeria as part of the scam. Some of those return in airplanes... others return in pine boxes.

Be very skeptical of anyone offering anything for free. Just ask yourself why...

[Harkoliar]

Microsoft and Disney are both beta-testing an e-mail tracker and will send you money if you forward this e-mail. The Gap is testing an e-mail tracker and will send you a gift certificate. The Red Cross is using its e-mail tracker and will donate money for some poor kid's operation or to raise funds for an orphan of Sept. 11.

i actually got this one. haha

[Kakero]

I've gotten the Nigerian email scam a few times, the first time though I nearly fell for it. luckily I remembered back just in time that someone I know has lost $20000 from this scam.

[Intrepid]

I got the Nigerian email scam, wow it was so well researched and worded, i was amazed, whoever put it together (or at least the version i'd seen) must have been brilliant they thought of every detail, almost perfect, so i just copied and pasted a line or to into google and found it was a scam that way. I hate to say it but these scammers did a great job.

[Faceman]

The only answer I can give to that is a post I got from a newsgroup three years ago and have been keeping (and laughing about) ever since:


Hello, my name is Basmati Kasaar. Iam suffering from rare and deadly
diseases, poor scores on final exams, extreme virginity, fear of being
kidnapped and executed by anal electrocution, and guilt for not
forwarding out 50 billion chain letters sent to me by people who actually
believe that if you send them on, then that poor 6 year old girl in Arkansas
with a breast on her forehead will be able to raise enough money to have it
removed before her redneck parents sell her off to the travelling freak
show.

Do you honestly believe that Bill Gates is going to give you and everyone
you send "his" email to $1000? How stupid are you?

Ooooh, lookyhere! If I scroll down this page and make a wish, I'll get laid
by every Playboy model in the magazine! What a bunch of bulls**t.

So basically, this message is a big STOP IT to all the people out there who
have nothing better to do than to send me stupid chain mail forwards. Maybe
the evil chain letter leprechauns will come into my apartment and sodomize
me in my sleep for not continuing the chain which was started by Jesus in 5
A.D. and was brought to this country by midget pilgrims on the Mayflower and
if it makes it to the year 2000, it'll be in the Guinness Book of World
Records for longest continuous streak of blatant stupidity. If you're going
to forward something, at least send me something mildly amusing. I've seen
all the "send this to 50 of your closest friends, and this poor, wretched
excuse for a human being will somehow receive a nickel from some "omniscient
being" forwards about 90 times. I don't f*****g care. Show a little
intelligence and think about what you're actually contributing to by sending
out forwards. Chances are it's your own unpopularity.

THE FOUR BASIC TYPES OF CHAIN LETTERS:

Chain Letter Type 1:


(scroll down)


Make a wish!!!


No, really, go on and make one!!!


Oh please, they'll never go out with you!!!


Wish something else!!!


Not that, you pervert!!


Is your finger getting tired yet?


STOP!!!!


Wasn't that fun? [img]smile.gif[/img]


Hope you made a great wish [img]smile.gif[/img]

Now, to make you feel guilty, here's what I'll do. First of all, if you
don't send this to 5096 people in the next 5 seconds, you will be raped by a
mad goat and thrown off a high building into a pile of manure. It's true!
Because, THIS letter isn't like all of those fake ones, THIS one is TRUE!!
Really!!! Here's how it goes:

*Send this to 1 person: One person will be pissed off at you for sending
them a stupid chain letter.

*Send this to 2-5 people: 2-5 people will be pissed off at you for sending
them a stupid chain letter.

*Send this to 5-10 people: 5-10 people will be pissed off at you for sending
them a stupid chain letter,and may form a plot on your life.

*Send this to 10-20 people: 10-20 people will be pissed off at you for
sending them a stupid chain letter and will napalm your house.

Thanks!!!! Good Luck!!!

Chain Letter Type 2:

Hello, and thank you for reading this letter. You see, there is a starving
little boy in Baklaliviatatlaglooshen who has no arms, no legs,no parents,
no willy, and no goats. This little boy's life could be saved, because for
every time you pass this on, a dollar will be donated to the Little Starving
Legless Armless Willyless Goatless Boy from Baklaliviatatlaglooshen Fund.
Oh, and remember, we have absolutley no way of counting the emails sent and
this is all a complete load of bullshit. So go on, reach out. Send this to
5 people in the next 47 seconds. Oh, and a reminder-if you accidentally
send this to 4 or 6 people, you will die instantly. Thanks again!!

Chain Letter Type 3:

Hi there!! This chain letter has been in existence since 1897. This is
absolutely incredible because there was no email then and probably not as
many sad pricks with nothing better to do. So this is how it works: Pass
this on to 15,067 people in the next 7 minutes or something horrible will
happen to you like:

*Bizarre Horror Story #1

Miranda Pinsley was walking home from school on Saturday. She had recently
received this letter and ignored it. She then tripped in a crack in the
sidewalk, fell into the sewer, was gushed down a drainpipe in a flood of
shit, and went flying out over a waterfall. Not only did she smell nasty,
she died. This Could Happen To You!!!

*Bizarre Horror Story #2

Dexter Bip, a 13 year old boy, got a chain letter in his mail and ignored
it. Later that day, he was hit by a car and so was his boyfriend (hey, some
people swing that way). They both died and went to hell and were cursed to
eat adorable puppies every day for eternity. This Could Happen To You
Too!!!

Remember, you could end up just like Pinsley and Bip. Just send this letter
to all of your loser friends, and everything will be okay.

Chain Letter Type 4:

As if you care, here is a poem that I wrote. Send it to every one of your
friends.

Friends

A friend is someone who is always at your side,
A friend is someone who likes you even though you stink of shit, and
your breath smells like you've been eating catfood,
A friend is someone who likes you even though you're as ugly as a hat
full of arseholes,
A friend is someone who cleans up for you after you've soiled yourself,
A friend is someone who stays with you all night while you cry about
your sad, sad life,
A friend is someone who pretends they like you when they really think you
should be raped by mad goats, then thrown to vicious dogs,
A friend is someone who scrubs your toilet, vacuums and then gets the
cheque and leaves and doesn't speak english... - no, sorry that's the
cleaning lady.
A friend is not someone who sends you chain letters because he wants his
wish of being rich to come true.

Now pass this on! If you don't, you'll never have sex ever again.


The point being? If you get some chain letter that's threatening to leave
you shagless or luckless for the rest of your life, delete it.
If it's funny, send it on. Don't piss people off by making them feel guilty
about a leper in Botswana with no teeth, who's been tied to a dead elephant
for 27 years, whose only saviour is the 5 cents per letter he'll receive if
you forward this mail, otherwise you'll end up like Miranda. Right?

Now forward this to everyone you know otherwise you'll find all your
knickers missing tomorrow morning.
--
Jim
~I started out with nothing and I still have most of it.~

[Cloudbringer]

Great list, LadyZ! I think I've seen just about all of them at one time or another! That Nigerian one, the cookie one and the 'work at home' one seem to be in my mail about once a month! [img]tongue.gif[/img]