We all hear a lot about identity theft and related fraud … but only when it happens to you does it perhaps really have an impact and make you sit up.
We have recently become aware of a scam e-mail that is doing the rounds which does make me feel a little uneasy … it looks like this:
From: Mr Garry Mumford FCCA, Director mrgarryinsight@hotmail.com
Reply-to: insightsassociates@w.cn
Date: Thu, Jun 17, 2010
Subject: Deceased client
From: Mr Garry Mumford FCCA, Director
Insight Associates ltd.
Insight House Riverside Common Rd
Stansted Mountfitchet Essex. UK.
I have been directed to contact you with regards to ongoing investigations involving a deceased client of Lloyd TSB Private Banking Ltd. The client, who shared the same last name with you, died intestate so it is standard and mandatory that a next of kin be sought who may inherit the estate. Kindly clarify the following:
– Are you aware of any relative of yours whose last known contact address was Brussels, Belgium, with investments of considerable value with Lloyd TSB Private Banking Ltd?
– If you answered yes to the above then can you establish beyond reasonable doubt your eligibility to assume status of next of kin to the deceased?
Understand that we are at this point constrained to share more details of this matter with you. We will need to hear from you urgently and hope you can assist us in bringing this inquiry to a conclusion. Please respond to my private email below as soon as possible to afford us the opportunity to close this investigation. Thank you for accommodating our inquiries.
Yours sincerely,
Garry Mumford FCCA, Director
Insight Associates Ltd.
Email: insightassociates@w.cn
We have received many phone calls and e-mails about this, including one from Lloyds themselves. Since the e-mails clearly did not originate from us there is not a great deal on the face of it that we can do. We have asked all those we have spoken to to report it themselves.
The e-mail when you look at it closely contains numerous errors in our details and in the English used. The e-mail address is nothing like ours so any responses get routed back to the perpetrator. There also appears to be a number of slight variations in the ones we have seen.
The information they have used is all freely available from our web site and numerous other places across the web.
It somehow makes you feel vulnerable and concerned a bit perhaps about reputational risk … but other than that you really cannot do much else other than to just get on with life. I just wish these people would find something better to do with their time!
