MoneyGram Scam

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I am not sure if this is a new one, but I am sure it is some sort of scam.

Friday's mail included a handwritten envelope addressed to the owner of our company.
There was no return address and it was postmarked New York.
Inside the envelope were 2 International Money Grams for $925 USD each.
There was no letter or other explanation. Just a thin strip of paper with an email address at Live.com

Looks like a pretty good forgery.
I am curious what sort of follow up will come from the scammers.

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I'm missing something here... how would a scammer get anything out of that? :confused:
 
A few years back, there was a similar scam where you received an overseas order, usually for nearly $1000.00. You tell them that you need pre-payment by paypal, and will wait for the transfer to clear. What shows up is two transfers for that amount. When you contact them, they said that paypal must have messed up and accidentally sent two transfers, not one, and their account only shows one transfer. They then tell you to refund to their paypal account half the excess amount, and for you to keep the other half,..... since paypal is ripping everybody off anyway. If the recipient is greedy enough to fall for the scam, they find out that the even though the transfer initially clears, the bank account or card number used for the transfer shows up as being a fake after a few weeks , and the money is taken back out their account by paypal. Of course, the half they sent to the person overseas is long gone, and they are on the hook for the value of both transfers. If they sent the knife, that is gone,too.
 
3-4% per transaction and skim another 3% on the exchange rate. Fee for a service sure but damn that's tough to swallow every time.
 
Try to find a financial institution or software(website shopping cart service) that is cheaper, more convenient or safer for creditcard/interact transactions. Unless you do all your business by cash and money orders. Paypal is HUGE for a reason.... and it isn't because they rip people off.... nobody can match them... yet.

The US members can apply for a "business transaction fee" which takes only a flat rate of $0.50 per transaction(not sure of the exact amount). It should be coming to Canada soon. Not many people understand how Paypal works or what it actually provides for you.

The "Money Scam" through Paypal works because folks don't understand how to use Paypal correctly. You should never send funds back on an accidental double payment. The buyer should request Paypal to investigate and contact the seller. THEY are the middleman/service provider and responsible for any payment issues. Many see paypal as a bank account which is not the case. Do not keep a large balance in your account.... use it like a temporary drop box. AND READ THE USER AGREEMENT WITH REGARD TO SHIPPING CONFIRMATION METHOD.

Paypal is fantastic for a small web based business.

Rick
 
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True enough..I wasn't referring to the OP just my own frustration with a dollar at parity and still getting hosed as if the dollar were worth $.75 and living in a place where I can't even track down some 2500x sandpaper.
Banks aren't any better with exchange rates and I agree that Paypal is a real asset to small business.

Paypal for me is just one more charge in a world where upwards of 40-50% of income goes to taxes, bank fees etc. etc..

You're right but I'll still gripe. ha:p
 
Yes,I wasn't say the paypal is ripping people off, I was saying how the scammer presents the situation.

Nearly all scams ,from the Nigerian Widow scam to these check scams work off the greed factor of people who will do something dumb - or even somewhat illegal - if the situation meets three criteria;
1) They make some free money with little effort.
2) They feel they are "Getting Even" with some group (paypal, government, etc.) that is considered corrupt or evil.
3) No one will know about it.

To date, I don't know anyone who actually got their check for $2,000,000 from Nigeria/India/Old Russia/etc....but I do know of those who lost money or identity on these scams.

My favorite one is the lawyer from Pakistan/India, who is executor of the estate of a deceased former Brit/Scot, with a similar last name to me, who died with $5,178,321.79 in his name and no heirs. They can't find anyone to give the money to, and the government is going to take the estate as unclaimed. He will present me as the rightful heir and I will get the estate, less the lawyers portion of 20%...so I get about $4,000.000. All he needs is my family tree with names and info on all my relatives ( to prove the relationship), my DOB and birth place, SSN, and my bank account to wire the money to.
 
You're right Stacy.... I believe I took that statement out of context. You were implying that the scammer was "passing the scam" to Paypal by abusing the service. Am I on track now?
 
First, the scammer offers to buy a knife ( or something). The seller says he will take paypal, and will wait for the transfer to clear before sending the knife.
The scammer then makes two transfers by paypal - based on a stolen card number or a hacked bank account. This would go through and not show up for a while until the owner of that account spotted the charges/withdrawls.
Both transfers go into the sellers paypal account, and at that time, the money is real and there to transfer to his bank account if he wishes. He doesn't understand why he is double paid, though, so he contacts the buyer and tells him that he received twice as much money as the knife costs?
The scammer would then tell the recipient that the second amount did not come out of his account, and it was a mistake by paypal, and they should split it because paypal is ripping them off in fees all the time, so why not get some free money from them.
The recipient goes along if he is greedy, not realizing that this is all part of a theft, and when the theft is discovered the money will be taken back out of his paypal or bank account. He may also have to explain to the police why he took the portion of the money that he did not provide goods for.

Even if the seller is not greedy, and sends all the extra money back to the buyer, he will still be out the knife, and may a lot of problems.
 
At that point, the seller should tell the buyer to fix it on his end. The knife should have been sent with a signature request(per the Paypal user agreement). If the package is signed for, you are in the right according to Paypal's agreement and have a MUCH better case, if it comes to taking legal action.
 
Rick,
You are missing the point.
We all can see how this is a scam, and most would do as you have said..... if it was real.
But, there are people out there who are dumb enough to fall for the bait of free money.
 
I guess I am missing the point, Stacy.... I don't see where you are going with this.
 
I get it now, I think. Just take out the words "PayPal" and substitute "Money Order". The guy who sent the fake MO's will request or just hope the recipient will send the "extra" amount back, with some form of real payment, and will be stuck with worthless MO.

I saw in a movie where a fellow claimed to have made a bunch of cash buying ads in *ahem* "gentlemen's" magazines purporting to sell marital aids. When the money came in he pocketed it and replied with a refund check and letter saying "Terribly sorry, ran into a problem with our manufacturer, we can't send your item." Hoping of course, that the customers would be too embarrassed to cash a check from "BIG BAD DILDO COMPANY".
 
And since each check was only for $25, it wasn't really worth the embarrassment to try. They just took the loss and walked away. Didn't see the movie but read it in a book. Rick it took me a minute to figure out what Stacy was saying as well. I missed the part where the "buyer" says the extra money didn't come from his account and paypal must have screwed up. Yes, you would have a legal leg but how much would it cost to pursue the fight? Lets say it was a $500 knife, now you are out the money and the knife. If it wasn't sent to a PO box, you may be able to follow suit but how much will your lawyer cost? Is it Federal mail fraud? how will you get the police involved and will paypal do anything to help you?

By the way Mark, what happened with this?
 
It was either "Snatch" or "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels", I forget which. (Same writer/director, many of the same actors.) But it would have fit in fine with the antics in "Fight Club", which, like "Snatch", also featured Brad Pitt. Anyway, you get the idea.
 
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