Today I got an email
Normally I look closely at an email especially when someone is offering me work. You wouldn't think Photographers would be targets of scam artists but we are and I get emails, texts and calls occasionally trying to scam me. After getting details I am always able to spot them
But today I nearly fell for a scam I haven't actually seen before done like this
The end of the scam was something I have seen before. So I stopped backed up and started inspecting the email a little closer. The flattery and them using a Big Brand that I recognized got me being a little careless and I entertained a back and forth for a couple of emails.
After reading the email above
I thought maybe this is a scam it sounds too good so I decided to ask a clarification question because I was wondering if it was legit or not still at this point haven't double checked where the email was coming from, but sent an email back to feel out if this was a scam or not.
So I sent this email
Because I have had people pretend they want to book me for a wedding or event in the past, that they want me to pay the other vendors from the check they send me. No I know that scam. So when I saw the reply I was like maybe it isn't a scam
So I sent an email back I was interested and send me the details in form of the contract
But it was another email with terms in the email that isn't how B2B work is done. I do a lot of B2B work. When I saw this email I was like nope this has to be a scam. Here is the email you will see how blatantly the scammer tried to make it seem like they pay everyone but in the end it is another twist on the same old scam.
At this point I started looking closer at the email
Wait, most legitimate businesses don't use gmail. Cause they are protecting their brand. So they use like info.attheirbrandname and not a gmail for email. I am a small photography studio, the only employee is me, when I need a second or third shooter for events I hire photographer friends as independent contractors to help me and I edit them all so they are in my style and I don't use gmail for my business. But I know some businesses are not with the times, or they are struggling but as I said up there, I know this brand. So I decide to go to the actual brand website and fill out the contact me form and ask what their email extension was because I felt I was being targeted by a scammer.
Got conformation that it is a scam
By the brand and apparently they have had an issue with this scammer targeting photographers under their name. And they have been trying to get it stopped. But how do you stop scammers like this?
So I emailed them back
And told them I knew this job offer is a scam and I was not interested in having my business account over drawn by $10K. You would think it would be the end of it right? Nope you would be wrong. Because then Steven Williams emailed me. OMG talk about lazy. Does this email look familiar? Okay I haven't ran a witness in over a year technically but them targeting me again so freaking lazily too at that irked me. And thought I can't get a screen shot of it, the email is the same as the first scammer they didn't even bother to change up the email.
So my plan of action I shared this on my social media pages
So the scammer is trying again, and it was lazy. All they did was change the name on the top of the email to make it appear to come from Steven Williams this time instead of Myron Putman, but then just copy and pasted the previous email forgetting to change the name to Steven Williams to match the name they changed the title to appear to be from. And they sent it from the same email address as the other was sent from. So I am signing them up for all the email lists and newsletters I can find. So far I signed them up for 40 newsletters. I even put in for the occupation I was a con artist. LOL Because that is what they are. If anyone wants to help me spam out this email account I would love some help. They are not affiliated or connected to Batten Wear Fashions, they are aware of the scam going on in their name and are doing their best to stop and spread the word about the scam This is the email the scams are coming from [email protected] so please if you got some free time google sign up for newsletters, coupons, sign up for free stuff and put that email and one of those names in.
Since then I have signed them up for a bunch more spam
But so have a ton of my friends. One friend signed them up for over 100 hardcord porn sites, we have them signed up for digital coupons, giveaways, newsletters. I found a site somewhere in Africa that allowed me to sign them up for 50 newsletters about news on the continent. So my dear blockchain buddies. Want to help spam out a scammers account? If you do here is the Email Address again [email protected] and the names they are using is Myron Putman and Steven Williams. Would love to hear what type of things you have signed them up for in the comments below.
Till next time guys
And scammers beware, you want to try to scam me, I will hit back and inconvenience the crap out of you. I will spend 10 minutes daily signing them up for new things just to prove a point. And if I get my dear friends to help me all over the internet and block chain maybe just maybe the emails of photographers that might not recognize the scam will be saved from being scammed.
