Phishy message from Gaza Thread poster: Mónica Algazi
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Mónica Algazi 
Uruguay
Local time: 22:15
Member (2005)
English to Spanish
Has anyone received this message or a similar one from someone presumably based in Gaza? Wrong addressee, dreadful English. Looks phishy to me! : /
You have been sent a message via ProZ.com.
Author: Sarah Admas
[NOTE: The author is not a registered ProZ.com user or was not logged in when sending this message.]
Author's IP address: 176.67.104.223
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Dear Smartranslators
We are new translation company and we are searching f... See more Has anyone received this message or a similar one from someone presumably based in Gaza? Wrong addressee, dreadful English. Looks phishy to me! : /
You have been sent a message via ProZ.com.
Author: Sarah Admas
[NOTE: The author is not a registered ProZ.com user or was not logged in when sending this message.]
Author's IP address: 176.67.104.223
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Dear Smartranslators
We are new translation company and we are searching for translators because we will have many projects in future.
We find your profile is quite interesting to us , and we like to be one of our team if you accept our offer, please send your CV to me. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Looks like a mass mail | Nov 14, 2012 |
Looks like a mass mail, but not like a scam to me...
Low profile biz, just shopping around.
| | | | | | Tony M
France
Local time: 02:15
French to English
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SITE LOCALIZER | Have you been following the 'scams' forum? | Nov 14, 2012 |
Magdalena Balibrea Vich wrote:
Looks like a mass mail, but not like a scam to me...
I'm not so sure, Magdalena. Have you been following the scams forum lately? If so, you will note there ahve been many instances of people having their CVs etc. 'pirated' — and the source of a lot of these scams seems indeed to be located in the Middle East.
So it might be more dangerous than simply an incompetent company.
In any event, the best advice with this sort of thing is "bin it!", as Tomas says.
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Robert Forstag
United States
Local time: 20:15
Spanish to English
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| Fundamental advice | Nov 14, 2012 |
I received the same message.
The real giveaway here is that agency has not identified itself with a verifiable street address and website (which could then give you a basis to check the Blue Board and other directories for payment histories). I therefore generally agree with Tomas: forget the message and move on. This is what I did.
If you wanted to give the contacting party the benefit of the doubt, then you could ask for such information and see what you get. My gues... See more I received the same message.
The real giveaway here is that agency has not identified itself with a verifiable street address and website (which could then give you a basis to check the Blue Board and other directories for payment histories). I therefore generally agree with Tomas: forget the message and move on. This is what I did.
If you wanted to give the contacting party the benefit of the doubt, then you could ask for such information and see what you get. My guess is that they would then simply disappear.
Another tactic for determining fraud would be to submit a quote much higher than the market rate. If they then enthusiastically respond, then you can more than likely rest assured you are dealing with fraudsters (who, because they are fraudsters, and because they are in most instances not smart enough to even do a good job of pulling off a fraud, will most likely accept whatever rate you propose).
Yet another maneuver for determining fraud in cases where you want to give an initial benefit of the doubt would be to insist up front on immediate and verifiable payment (e.g., via MoneyGram or Western Union). If they ignore or disagree with your request, or if they initially agree and then tell you that "something has come up" and they need to pay you by check, then you are most likely dealing with a fraudster.
I think the most important advice to take to heart in such instances is to not do any work at all until upfront payment has been received. Do not even agree to do the work and get paid prior to delivery in instances where you have any reason to fundamentally distrust a customer (i.e., given that many fraudsters are happy to have you go ahead and do work they have no interest in as part of whatever scam they are working). ▲ Collapse
| | | | Samuel Murray
Netherlands
Local time: 02:15
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
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Mónica Algazi wrote:
Has anyone received this message or a similar one from someone presumably based in Gaza? Wrong addressee, dreadful English.
The last time I checked, English was not the official language of Palestine, so you can't expect flawless English. In fact, even from countries where English is the official language you still can't expect flawless English.
The wrong addressee could simply be the fault of a broken mail merge, or an error in their freelancer database records.
The IP address really is from Palestine, by the way.
If you have a policy not to send your CV or résumé to people you can't identify, simply ask the person to identify themselves more clearly (address, phone number, name of agency, etc).
| | | | Mónica Algazi
Uruguay
Local time: 22:15
Member (2005)
English to Spanish
TOPIC STARTER | Thanks to all | Nov 14, 2012 |
Thanks to all for your feedback and advice. I'll keep it in mind, Robert, Tony and Tomás!
Have a great day,
Mónica
| | | | Thayenga
Germany
Local time: 02:15
Member (2009)
English to German
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Aside from the missing proper identification of the sender/their company, mass mails, like Fwds, always receive the proper attention when landing in my mail box: a carefully placed cursor on the "delete" icon and then a hearty "click". All concerns about possible pishing attempts disappear in an instance.
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