My business partner Kevin Lee wrote a provocative article illustrating how PPC Search is an intrinsically more effective marketing medium than PPC ads placed on social sites such as Facebook. It seems that despite social media marketing’s promise and the kind of mega-hype we’ve been enduring for the past few years, nothing beats Search right now and this situation is unlikely to change anytime soon.
Here’s a message that came into Kevin Lee’s inbox that hawks phony Masters Degree diplomas. It’s humorous because of the stilted language of the message, plus misspellings (“infarmation). Yikes.
—–Original Message—–
From: Petra Wilkins [mailto:matteo.archetti@accenture.com]
Sent: Monday, March 28, 2011 3:51 PM
To: Kevin Lee
Subject: Master degree
To begin studies for a master, formally a student must go through the same procedure for admission, as well as admission to college. But he must take the test, designed for entering the so-called graduate school. This general federal test, known as the GRE (Graduate Record Examinations), consists of three parts: a general test that checks the level of erudition and analytical skills, written assignments, exposing the skills of critical thinking and analytical writing, as well as special tests for eight different subjects.
Is it complicated?
Our goal is to support you in the process of career development. That’s why we offer 100% verified DIPLOMAS! Contact us and we will care about your choice Master, Bachelor or PhD Degrees.
****************************************
+ 1 – 646 – 537 – 1732
****************************************
We need your infarmation:
1) Your Name
2) Your Country
3) Telephone No. with a code of country if you are outside USA
Do Not Reply to this Email.
We do not reply to text inquiries, and our server will reject all response traffic.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
My business partner Kevin Lee forwarded this spam to me this morning. It was sent to him; about five seconds of due diligence on the part of the sender would have revealed that he and I are the principals of Didit.com, a search engine marketing firm. Why the heck would we want to outsource our SEO to IsYourSiteRanking.info?
—–Original Message—–
From: Vanessa Taylor [mailto:Vanessa@isyoursiteranking.info]
Sent: Monday, March 28, 2011 5:14 PM
To: Craig
Subject: Your Website
Your website looks great, but it’s missing out on a lot of internet traffic due to where you rank in the search engines. With some minor changes you can greatly improve your rankings in the primary search engines and earn more business. To have our technicians perform a free target market/website analysis for your business and explain what our company can do for you please request one at the website below using your unique access code.
www.IsYourSiteRanking.info <http://www.IsYourSiteRanking.info>
Business Access Code: STE2
Thank you,
Vanessa Taylor
Internet Marketing Specialist
Is Your Site Ranking
www.IsYourSiteRanking.info <http://www.IsYourSiteRanking.info>
29605 Solana Way
Temecula, CA 92591
*To be removed from further email correspondence from IsYourSiteRanking.info please unsubscribe at www.IsYourSiteRanking.info <http://www.IsYourSiteRanking.info>
Here’s an action-packed spam that reads like the script for an updated version of the classic Clint Eastwood movie, Kelly’s Heroes. It recounts the amazing exploits of one Major Kenneth Preston, a gung-ho Marine who on his travels through Hell and back for his nation, discovers some of Saddam’s ill-gotten cash buried in barrels of weapons and ammunition. The only problem this tough soldier has is how to get it out of the country. Fortunately, you, the e-mail recipient, can help in this dodgy matter. Of special interest in this message is the Major’s angry protest against the fact that “so many miscreants have taken possession of the Internet to facilitate their nefarious deeds.” One can only hope that the fearless Major will round these miscreants up and show them a thing or two about honor.
– ORIGINAL MESSAGE –
STRICTLY PERSONAL AND CONFIDENTIAL
Major Kenneth Preston
United States Marine Corps Special Operations Command (MARSOC,)
25th Marine Regiment, Al Anbar province, Iraq
STRICTLY PERSONAL AND CONFIDENTIAL
Hello,
This letter is personal, intimate and confidential. There will absolutely be great doubt and distrust in your mind regarding this mail to you, coupled with the fact that so many miscreants have taken possession of the Internet to facilitate their nefarious deeds, thereby making it extremely difficult for genuine purposes strive well.
I hope and pray that you understand my position absolutely, but I have to reach out to you hoping that there will be one that can be trusted in a blind proposal like this so to say.
I therefore implore you to take the time to go through this message diligently as your decision will go a long way to determine my future and continued existence.
I am capt Morris.Dickson, a United States Marine Corps Special Operations Command, 25th Marine Regiment that Patrols the Al Anbar province, Iraq. I am desperately in need of trust worthy Partner. I have to summon up courage to contact you. I am presently in Iraq.
I am seeking your assistance/partnership to secure the sum of US$15,500,000.00 (fifteen Million Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars) under your costudy until I complete my service here within the next 3 months.
SOURCE OF MONEY:
Some money in various currencies was discovered and concealed in barrels with piles of weapons and ammunition at a location near one of Saddam Hussein’s old Presidential Palaces during a rescue operation and it was agreed by all party present that the money be shared amongst us. Please click this link below as most the news has been carried out in the BBC and CNN several times.
Click this link http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2988455.stm
We decide to settle ourselve with part of the money because No compensation can make up for the risks we are taking with our lives in this hellhole. The above figure was given to me as my share and to conceal this kind of money became a problem for me, so with the help of a British contact working with the UN aid here (his office enjoys some immunity).I was able to get the package out to a safe location where the box was deposited in a Private self stourage vault waiting when I instruct the release of the box to any nominee. He does not know the real contents of the package as he believes they were personal effects belonging to an American who died in an air raid, who before giving up trusted belongings to me to hand over the package to his close relative. As We speak the box is in a private vault like I said but I will not reveal it until I am sure you are willing and ready to help and partner with me to achieve this result.
I have been lucky to survive two suicide bomb attacks by Pure Divine intervention. Only God can say if I will come back alive because I am not in any way better than those that has died here. In case I do not make it I will trust the entire money into your hands for Charity.
This and other reasons put into consideration have prompted me to reach out for help.
To indicate your interest and readiness to partner with me you will need to send the list bellow:
1. Your Full Names:
2. Your current telephone numbers Mobile and a land line if any plus your fax numbers
3. Your age:
4. Occupation:
5. Your Current address:
6. Marital status:
7. Nationality:
8. Country reside if other than your nationality:
The will enhance our effective communication hence forth.
God bless you.
Respectfully,
Major Kenneth Preston
United States Marine Corps. IRAQ
Here’s a spam that strains the limits of credulity to the breaking point. It purports to come directly from the office of Robert S. Meuller, the current head of the FBI, but almost immediately goes off the rails when it insists that the recipient contact Mr. Timothy Odogwu at a Chinese e-mail address to pick up an ATM card loaded with millions. Spams like these are demoralizing because I always imagine whoever puts these messages together has a decidedly low opinion of the IQs of most Americans and probably laughed hysterically while typing this one out. The fact that there are enough reality-challenged people in the U.S.A. to take the bait here is even more depressing. At least we know exactly how this scheme intends to make money: the recipient must send in $80 to get their card. If the guy behind this spam can get even ten or twelve marks on the hook, that’s a tidy sum that goes a long way in Nigeria.
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION FBI.WASHINGTON DC.
WASHINGTON D.C ROOM, 7367
J. EDGAR HOOVER FBI BUILDING
935 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE,
NW WASHINGTON, DC 20535,0001
Attention: Sir/Madam.
This is to Inform you that ATM Card Number: 5120 8156 1062 5647 worth $2.5million has been accredited to your favor,contact Mr. Timothy Odogwu, on (timothyodo1@w.cn) with the following information below.
1,Your full Name
2.Phone number
3.Delivery Address {Where you want the Card to be sent to}.
4, Age, Sex and Occupation.
Bear in mind that you will be responsible for the handling and shipping chargesof your Gold Smart card to your choice location which is $80. This is a mandatory fee that must be paid before the dispatch of your ATM card to your designated home address, once the fee is paid you will receive your ATM card within the next 2-3 working days.
Regards
Yours Faithfully,
ROBERT SWAN MUELLER III
Here’s a somewhat convoluted spam that offers the unwitting recipient a chance to mop up the money left up after the primary mythical funds transfer has already occurred. I suppose the idea here is to cause the recipient to suffer a momentary spasm of regret that he or she didn’t earlier elect to become part of the scheme. Saving the day, however, is the spammer, who, out of the goodness of his heart, offers the recipient a modest sum of $200,000 out of pure gratitude for the recipients earlier efforts. One really must admire Mr. James Longman; he is so earnest, so hard-working (although he’s out of the country building huts somewhere in China, he goes the extra mile to send this missive), and, so damned good-hearted.
– ORIGINAL MESSAGE –
| From: | James Longman (info@ingest.it)  |
| Sent: | Wed 3/16/11 1:17 AM |
Dear Friend,
I am using this opportunity to thank you for your great effort to our unfinished transfer of fund into your account due to financial advances. But I want to inform you that I have successfully transferred the money to someone else who was capable of assisting me in this great venture.
Due to the expenses, effort, time, sincerity, courage and trustworthiness you showed at the course of the transaction I choose to compensate you and show my gratitude to you with the sum of 200,000.00 UNITED STATES DOLLARS (TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND UNITED STATES DOLLARS).
I have authorized the finance house where I deposited my money to issue you a cashable certified bank draft as soon as you make contact. I do know you might be seeing the compensation as too small compared to the total sum been pursued for but you just have to bear with it for the German doctor(Mr Rudy Klienstein) whom also assisted in the fund transfer made a lot of expenses .
CONTACT MR TERRY FROST NOW WITH YOUR PRESENT INFORMATION IF DIFFERENT FROM THE OTHER SO HE CAN ATTEND TO YOU ASAP, BELOW ARE IS CONTACT INFO.
TELEPHONE NUMBER: 0092347043587041
EMAIL: terryfrost@secretarias.com
At the moment, I am very busy and out of the country on construction projects in a remote village in People Republic of China which myself and my new partner are having at hand. Please I will like you to accept this token with good faith as this is from the bottom of my heart.
Thanks and God bless you and your family.
Best Regards
Mr James Longman
One has to imagine what the desk of Mr. Mohammed George looks like. It is a marvelous ebony slab, sitting comfortably on deep burgundy carpet, festooned with family photos, a cigar cutter, and a brass ashtray? Or a battered steel contraption crammed into a corner of a rusty steel shanty? It is, of course, impossible to know any of this, but what stands out from this spam is its deliberately marching All-Caps tone, as if it were bashed out on a Telex machine. It virtually commands the recipient to take the bait, be highly suspicious of “imposters,” and otherwise toe the line in order to receive a groaning suitcase of cash. Let us salute the mysterious Mr. Mohammed George, a man who (despite severe grammatical errors) seems to know exactly what he wants in life and the means by which such can be gotten.
– ORIGINAL MESSAGE –
FROM THE DESK OF MR.MOHAMMED GEORGE.
DIRECTOR ATM CARD DEPARTMENT
ZENITH BANK PLC
FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF BENIN WEST AFRICA.
OUR REF:Z.B./MF/B01/Vol 01
EMAIL:(atmdepartmentoffice011@gmail.com)
ATTENTION : ATM MASTER CARD OWNER,
WE HERE BY NOTIFYING YOU THAT ZENITH BANK PLC HAVE BEEN MANDATED TO ISSUE OUT YOUR PAYMENT OF $4,500,000.00USD THROUGH ATM CARD . YOU HAVE TO STOP FURTHER COMMUNICATION WITH ANY OTHER PERSON(S) OR OFFICE(S) OR MINISTRY OF FINANCE AFRICA TO AVOID HITCHES IN RECEIVING YOUR ATM CARD PAYMENT.
ZENITH BANK MANAGER HAVE CONFIRMED AUTOMATION OF YOUR SWIFT PAYMENT THROUGH AN ELECTRONIC ATM CARD PAYMENT. THE BANK HAVE ARRANGED YOUR PAYMENT THROUGH SWIFT CARD PAYMENT CENTER ASIA PACIFIC THIS CARD CENTER WILL SEND YOU AN ATM CARD WHICH YOU WILL USE TO WITHDRAW YOUR MONEY IN ANY ATM MACHINE IN ANY PART OF THE WORLD . THE MAXIMUM DAILY WITHDRAWAL IS $5,000USD PER DAY. A TOTAL OF $5,000USD AT A TIME . NOW YOU ARE TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR FUND BY CONTACTING THE BANK TODAY. THIS IS A SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT IN COLLABORATION WITH MASTER CARD COMPANY USA.
KINDLY CONTACT THE BELOW PERSON WHO IS IN POSITION TO RELEASE YOUR ATM PAYMENT CARD TO YOU. YOU ARE REQUESTED TO FORWARD TO DR.MORRIS UBA:
FULL NAME:
HOME ADDRESS:
COUNTRY:
TELEPHONE NUMBER:
FOR IMMEDIATE MAILING OF THE ATM CARD TO YOUR ADDRESS.
CONTACT HON DR.MORRIS UBA WITH THIS INFORMATION:
HON DR.MORRIS UBA
FOREIGN PAYMENT DEPARTMENT
ZENITH BANK BENIN REPUBLIC
EMAIL:(atmdepartmentoffice011@gmail.com)
TELL: (+229-99608082)
NOTE THAT BECAUSE OF IMPOSTORS THE (ZENITH BANK) HEREBY ISSUED YOU OUR CODE OF CONDUCT WHICH IS ATM-0212 SO YOU HAVE TO INDICATE THIS CODE WHEN CONTACTING DR.MORRIS UBA ON THE CARD CENTER BY USING IT AS YOUR SUBJECT. KINDLY NOTIFY (ZENITH BANK) IMMEDIATELY TO CONFIRM THE RECEIPT OF THIS MASSAGE FROM THE ZENITH BANK PLC.
MR.MOHAMMED GEORGE
HEAD OF ATM DEPT
(ZENITH BANK) BENIN
This spam is interesting insofar as it includes some wonderful prose. The decedent ostensibly leaving a fortune that can be recovered by the recipient didn’t die, he “is no longer on earth.” Also interesting is the phrase, “to be quite honest with you…” It is likely that the writer learned The King’s English somewhere, and is now being gainfully employed churning out this offal.
(Original Message)
Hi,
I am Robert Hornsby, Head of internal Audit with Allied Irish Bank London,During my auditing i discovered that in April 2007, a client (foreigner) who was a consultant/Gold merchant in London, made some number time Fixed Deposit, valued at U$4,600,000.00 Four Million, Six hundred Thousand United States Dollars),for twelve (12) calendar months in my Bank.
Upon maturity, a routine notification was sent to his forwarding address by his account officer but got no reply. After a month, he sent a reminder and finally we discovered from his contract employers that he is no longer on earth. It is possible that we may be tempted to make fortune out of our customer’s situations when we cannot help it. The said fund is still in my Bank and the interest is being rolled over with the principal sum at the end of each year.
In accordance with the United Kingdom Federal Law, at the expiration of (4) four years, the money will be revert to the ownership of the British Government if none of his relative come for the claim. To be quite honest with you it is I and his account officer only knows about this fund and we have agreed to get the fund transfer out of this country for our own use.
Consequently, hence you are a foreigner I will like present you as the next of kin with my position in the bank to claim the said fund and the fund will be share in the ratio of 75/25. I assured you there is no risk involved as i will use my position to secure approvals and Guarantee the successful execution of this transaction within 7-working days.
If this proposal interests you, let me know and I will send to you the Detailed Information how this business will be successfully transacted.
Please include your private phone number for voice contact.
I look forward to your urgent reply.
Best Regards
Robert Hornsby
My business partner, Kevin Lee, received this spam yesterday. It’s a garden-variety financial gambit, but what’s intriguing is that the spamster deliberately uses a phonetic version of a trusted domain (fidelity.com) as his return e-mail address (fdilerty.com). One could almost say that this guy is deliberately targeting the dyslexic among us. Also unique is the desperate (“please, please, please”) tone of this message, which suggests that all is not right at the other end of the line, which is likely true.
—–Original Message—–
From: Mr.J.A.Boucher [mailto:jhboucher@fdelirty.com]
Sent: Sunday, March 06, 2011 12:54 AM
To: Kevin Lee
Subject: Compliment of the day to you
Good Day,
Compliment of the day to you. Please accept my apologies for breaking into your privacy. Brief introduction of me, my name is Mr. John A. Boucher; I reside in Arizona, USA. My purpose of contacting you is based on a financial assistant from you, in return of TEN percent profit back to you, after the successful retrieval of my invested funds, in Fidelity.
A brief explanation; Few years back I have my retirement funds invested in Fidelity on seven(7) years contract agreeable within the investors(Fidelity). Presently, I am going through a financial crisis;the banks are on my necks etc.
Be informed that a huge amount of funds is involved! Do not get discouraged, referring to the Ten Percent profit back; it’s a lot for compensation.
Please! Please! Please! Do not see this proposal as a JUNK message. I am a real person with all prove and Original paper works of my investment. Feel free to contact me for more details on this matter only if you are capable and willing to help me resolve and free me from my bondage.
If you are in the States, we can meet in person for a meeting. But if you are not in the United States, we have to reach to an agreement and have the funds transferred to your account for more assurance or have you come over to the States before the transfer will be affected. I can forward all my investment details to enable your verifications and clarifications.
Thanks,
Mr. J. A. Boucher
(johboucher@aol.com)
Con artists always play upon the incipient greed of the “mark” to hook them into the scheme, and this unworthy tradition is much in evidence in the following Spam message, which beseeches the recipient to interpose themselves in a way that skims a double-digit percentage from the supposed charity award. The recipient is sternly warned not to delay in replying to the message — a form of the classic salesman’s “hammer down” technique, otherwise the award might — horror of horrors — go to some local church or mosque.
—–Original Message—–
From: Barbara Arenas [mailto:susancole3@rediffmail.com]
Sent: Friday, March 04, 2011 5:18 PM
Subject: [ SPAM ] Re: Dear Beloved
Importance: Low
Dear friend,
I am Susan Cole,I was married to Engineer Roberts Cole an English man. My husband was into private practice all his life before his death. Our life together lasted for three decades without child.
My husband and I made a vow to uplift the down-trodden and the less-privileged individuals as he had passion for persons who can not help themselves due to physical disability or financial predicament.
When my husband was alive he deposited the sum of 6.5 Million (SIX MILLION AND FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND BRITISH POUNDS) with a Finacial Institute herein United Kingdom. my Doctor told me that I have limited time to live due to my stroke problems and high blood pressure which I am suffering from.
I have decided to donate this fund to you and want you to use 60% to fund the Charitable work.As soon as I receive your reply to assist me, I shall direct you to the Finacial House who will release the money to you to start the charitable work,
Please always be prayerful all through your life. Any delay in replying will give me room in sourcing for a mosque or church or Moslem or Christian individual for this same purpose. Please assure me that you will act accordingly as I stated herein. Hoping to hear from you as soon as possible.
Sincerely,
Mrs.Susan Cole.
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