New email fraud scam

[french frank]

Just wondering how this was intended to work. I had an email from my neighbour who did shopping for me under lockdown. I saw her a day or two ago and asked if she could get me a couple of items which the Coop never stocked. The drill used to be that she would email on Thursday for a list and shop on Friday evening.

So, it being Thursday, I wasn't too surprised to get her email though I had a subliminal feeling of surprise about something that didn't ring any loud bells. Email just said she hoped I was well and could I confirm getting the email as she needed a favour. No prob. email received, all agog to hear how I could help. I didn't check the address it was going to, but if I had I'd have seen it going to her usual btinternet account.

Two replies came at once, the first to say she needed a birthday gift voucher for her niece today and her bank card wasn't charging on the online site. It would only be for £200 and she would email details of where to get it and send it if I could handle that. I did pause a little, but not out of suspicion.

The second email was from my neighbour to say her email account had been hacked and the email was not from her.

Obviously, since the address hadn't been spoofed but was genuine, my reply went to my neighbour. I can only think the fraudster hoped to get to the first message quickly and delete it from the server so that it wasn't picked up by the genuine owner, but luckily my neighbour did see it. I think I would probably have WhatsApped or phoned her before parting with any money. But is this how the fraud was supposed to succeed? Seems a bit amateurish.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I've had a few of these scams, basically asking for money, from time to time. Sometimes the sender will use an email address that looks genuine at first sight. One was allegedly from a friend whose surname was Evans, but this had been cleverly altered. sjevans@... became sjeuans@... Easily confused. (Just for the record, I've changed the initial letters to protect my friend's identity.)

[Petrushka]

I've weirdly had emails allegedly from myself asking me for money! My anti-everything protection picks up the rubbish and dumps it all in my junk folder whereupon it immediately faces deletion.

[french frank]

Sometimes the sender will use an email address that looks genuine at first sight.

What I didn't understand was that the hacked email address was genuine, so my reply went straight to my neighbour - as well as to the scammer - and alerted her. Where would the password have been found - on a hacked website? I do reuse passwords, but not for important ones like bank account or email addresses.

[Dave2002]

I've not quite figured this out. Did you use the Reply to opition to send your response, or did you type in the address? If the visible address was correct and you retyped it, then it would have gone to your neighbour - though not then to the scammer. If you used the Reply option, then it is indeed odd that the scammer also made sure that a copy went to your neighbour. I get scam emails sometimes - sometimes it's the "I must share this photo with you", or a "Do you recognise this person from school?" scam inviting you to click on a photo. Usually clicking on the apparent email address in the mail client shows a completely different email adress hidden beneath.

These are presumably attempts to infect one's machine with some virus or robot type software.

Delete immediately - don't even try to open them to check.

It is occasionally possible to be lured in - but hopefully not to the extent of actually either sending any money, doing any illegal act, or allowing a hacker to access one's machine - assuming one spots the scam and deletes the msg ASAP.

[oddoneout]

A couple of times I have had emails purporting to be from a family member or friend in difficulties and needing money.There was always a backstory that explained why I had to use a different email address to reply, even though the originating address was correct - because it was the result of hacking into that person's account. It can seem very plausible, but in my case there are very few who would make such an approach in the first place (no not because I'm Scrooge! it's just that I have a very small circle of family and close friends) and if they did it would be by phone in the first instance,not email. The first one I had I was able to dismiss immediately because it claimed stranding in some foreign country following theft at a time that person was unable to travel anywhere.

[french frank]

I've not quite figured this out. Did you use the Reply to opition to send your response, or did you type in the address? If the visible address was correct and you retyped it, then it would have gone to your neighbour
- though not then to the scammer.

No, this is why the attempt seemed ham-fisted. Half-expecting the email, I just clicked on the Reply button. The reply went to my neighbour but also to the scammer. This is why I think the scammer had added the correct account details into their computer so my reply went to both of them - alerting my neighbour. Checking the headers afterwards, there was nothing untoward that I could see.

In line with what odders said, after the details of the 'favour' had been sent I was expecting a follow-up email giving me links to where to send the gift voucher (for Google Play).

If you used the Reply option, then it is indeed odd that the scammer also made sure that a copy went to your neighbour.

Not so much 'made sure' as messed up. Like the bank robber that hands his details to the teller on an envelope! Even from a neighbour, I wouldn't click on a link in those circs. There was also a suggestion I could buy this £200 voucher from a supermarket - hopeless idea, um, "What's a Google Play voucher?"

These are presumably attempts to infect one's machine with some virus or robot type software.

Delete immediately - don't even try to open them to check.

There were no links! And all corrspondence ceased as they would also have intercepted the exchange between me and my neighbour. She seemed to think there was an Indian connection, so I'm going to look at the headers again to see if I can spot an odd IP address.

[Old Grumpy]

Google Play is where us mere Android users get our Apps from.

[french frank]

Google Play is where us mere Android users get our Apps from.

I sometimes use Apple Store but have never paid for any of their apps. I usually download apps from particular websites, like bus and train timetables. No good suggesting I go to the Coop and spend £200 on a gift voucher for anything. I didn't think my neighbour would spend £200 on a niece's birthday present either. My five nephews/nieces haven't had a rise in their £50 annual present for years. Plus the same for Christmas. Ruinous!

[Bryn]

Google Play is where us mere Android users get our Apps from.

As against them there Jobs worths, eh?

[Dave2002]

My five nephews/nieces haven't had a rise in their £50 annual present for years. Plus the same for Christmas. Ruinous!

Watch out - they'll be "on strike" looking for a cost of living/inflation/"crisis" rise!

[Old Grumpy]

As against them there Jobs worths, eh?

Oh, very good!

(Took me a while to get it!)

[Serial_Apologist]

Does anyone know anything about this email purporting to be coming from a "reputable" firm of lawyers, TMS Legal, who claim they can tell you if you're owed compensation for fees paid for holding specific bank accounts? I started filling their online form, received a positive indication I could be eligible, beginning to type in my name, and stopped before completing - how much information on me might they already be having, even before going to the Next page; and what might be required of me there?

[Petrushka]

Does anyone know anything about this email purporting to be coming from a "reputable" firm of lawyers, TMS Legal, who claim they can tell you if you're owed compensation for fees paid for holding specific bank accounts? I started filling their online form, received a positive indication I could be eligible, beginning to type in my name, and stopped before completing - how much information on me might they already be having, even before going to the Next page; and what might be required of me there?

TMS Legal operate out of Bournemouth and appear to be legitimate as far as I can tell from a Google search at Companies House. Even so, I personally wouldn't touch any of this sort of stuff with a disinfected bargepole. There are lots of scams out there on this topic.

[Cockney Sparrow]

You could always use that so well known search engine - " Who are.... bank fees compensation" and see what it says. You could check they were authorised by the Law Society. You could send them a data subject request to find out what they know about you........

I presume they are referring to the levy of fees/charges which tended to kick in when in overdraft, etc - are they now judged to have been unfair? If you didn't pay such fees, or not very much, then how can you be compensated for it?

In the great extended warranty misselling saga I received several emails telling me I could receive compensation. However, I had followed a rigorous policy of never taking one out. I think emails were sent on the basis they would yield a percentage of people who would respond, so effectively they were spam.