ProZ.com Translation Forums

Interpreters beware!!! | UK "agency"

Orsolya Mance — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 22:57:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Orsolya Mance
Post title: UK "agency"

I received a phone call the other day from an agency who informed me that they are looking for interpreters and asked me if they could send me an application form. So far, so good - it arrived in the post the next day.

But when I read their "contract" I didn't know whether to laugh or cry - according to the terms payment is only after they get paid by their clients, £5 charge and a payment delay of 10 working days if I ring them up on the wrong day of the week/talk to the wrong department, warnings about not to discuss anything and not to give your and the best one of all: "For all work that you carry out as a freelancer or otherwise with clients introduced to you by XXXX at any time now and in the future, you will be personally liable for 20% of all your gross income without exception" - on another page they also add £1000 to this...

Of course they would like me to sign this agreement and send it back to their PO Box(!)address. Of course I won't do that. However, it left me completely baffled: what is the point in all of this? I checked, they are a registered company, but the whole contract is utter nonsense, full of grammar and spelling errors, so I am sure that even if anyone was naive enough to sign it, the "agency" would not be able to enforce it. It even occurred to me that it might be a joke when I read their warning to "make sure you read the contract"! Oh, and they also used picures on the documents, with the watermarks still on...

Has anyone encountered anything like this?

Regards,

Orsolya

Interpreters beware!!! | This one (see first post) likely is

Dirgis (X) — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 06:41:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Dirgis (X)
Post title: This one (see first post) likely is

Someone by the name of the signatory to the same email I received, graduated from the federal Government College in Warri, Nigeria in 1990, probably no coincidence.

[quote]Henry Hinds wrote:

It's just another variation of the old Nigerian scam, and they're not always from Nigeria. [/quote]

Interpreters beware!!! | Giving a scammer your account number? Not in America, you wouldn't. Much too risky.

Dirgis (X) — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 06:32:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Dirgis (X)
Post title: Giving a scammer your account number? Not in America, you wouldn't. Much too risky.

[quote]Albert Stufkens wrote:

What about inviting these scammers to transfer money into your account direct instead of handling checks? [/quote]

Interpreters beware!!! | Scamming involving checks

Albert Stufkens — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 22:41:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Albert Stufkens
Post title: Scamming involving checks

What about inviting these scammers to transfer money into your account direct instead of handling checks?

Interpreters beware!!! | For a good laugh..

Alp Berker — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 14:52:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Alp Berker
Post title: For a good laugh..

Check out some of the ways how this lady got the scammers.
[url removed]

Interpreters beware!!! | Right on

lingomania — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 09:04:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: lingomania
Post title: Right on

Thank you for the warning.

Interpreters beware!!! | The Scam

Henry Hinds — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 17:47:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Henry Hinds
Post title: The Scam

It's just another variation of the old Nigerian scam, and they're not always from Nigeria.

Interpreters beware!!! | an almost daily occurence

NancyLynn — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 17:39:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: NancyLynn
Post title: an almost daily occurence

There are many threads on the proz site discussing the various forms this scam can take.

I had a good laugh when I received a message, a couple of years back, from a gentleman whose wife and daughters needed an escort for two weeks while they shopped and toured my city - which is in fact a four-way stop featuring a convenience store and take-out counter - hm, two weeks of that for his family?? :lol: Sure, I could introduce his daughters to all the dairy cows mooing in our pastures, but there's not much in the way of shopping and sightseeing around here!

Haha, and now I'm the target of another scam: at least once a day I get an e-mail from some lottery corporation guaranteeing me obscene amounts of money in various currencies. So tell me, since these people often claim they found me to be a reliable, trustwrothy person thanks to the Internet ;-), tell me, why am I still slogging it out? :lol:

Too good to be true - now that's a reliable yardstick for measuring the depth of, well, you know what.

Nancy

Interpreters beware!!! | Certainly for victims

ozan karakış — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 17:03:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: ozan karakış
Post title: Certainly for victims

Few years ago in Brussels I was selling my living room furniture and a dumb send me an e-mail saying he was ready to pay me and trusting me that the furniture was in mint conditions and he would pay me right away and his amigos would pick them up later...

I invited him over to my house for a coffee...

Cheers

Ozan

Interpreters beware!!! | Oh yes!

Angie Garbarino — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 17:01:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Angie Garbarino
Post title: Oh yes!

I receive those messages periodically,

they have wives who needs shopping in Milano,
or daughters needing interpreter for tourims,
or they want to spend their homeymoon in Italy et. etc. and of course they ask for price stating that they pay in advance:(

I have never replied,
infact if it seems to good, it probably is not true, correct Heather

Interpreters beware!!! | What, not even a bishop or reverend?

sokolniki — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 16:54:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: sokolniki
Post title: What, not even a bishop or reverend?

I received at least three job offers of this kind in the last couple of years.

Also be advised that scammers like this also target private tutors of foreign languages. So in case you are registered at a foreign language teachers/tutors website like myself, beware - the scheme is the same.

However, an easy red flag: numerous spelling mistakes, confusion between small and capital letters, absence of space between the end of a sentence and beginning of a new one and yes, they mostly call themselves Bishop, Reverend, Retired Captain or just Mr. or Mrs.

Interpreters beware!!! | Thanks

Marsha Way — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 16:49:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Marsha Way
Post title: Thanks

Thanks for the "heads up".

Interpreters beware!!! | Got it!

Heather Chinchilla — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 16:47:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Heather Chinchilla
Post title: Got it!

Yeah, mine's coming to Ypsilanti, MI for conferences of the same duration and needs Spanish to English. :-)

This is similar to another scammer that approached me, and maaaany others, a few years back. He was coming to the U.S. with his daughters and needed an interpreter for sight seeing and shopping (or getting married and the wife needed an interpreter, etc.)

He wanted to send half the payment ahead of time. I believe that scam involved accidentally over-paying with fraudulent checks or money orders. I guess he wanted the interpreter to refund him the over-payment before noticing that the check or money order wasn't any good.

I've heard of other cases where the interpreter is lured to another country and kidnapped for randsom or killed.

The main thing to keep in mind is this: if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. I'm glad you didn't fall for it!

Interpreters beware!!! | Let me guess....

Trudy Peters — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 16:45:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Trudy Peters
Post title: Let me guess....

Let's say you tell him the cost will be $2500. He will then send you a check for $3000 and ask you to return the balance to him (or send it to someone else he has hired, etc.) You will have mailed your check to whomever before you realize that his check bonced...

Endless variations of this scam :-)

Interpreters beware!!!

Mary Stefan (X) — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 16:11:00 +0000

Forum: Interpreting
Topic: Interpreters beware!!!
Poster: Mary Stefan (X)

I thought it would be a good idea to share with you all the "fishy" e-mail I have received recently:

" Dear Mary Stefan ,
I will be needing an interpreter when i come over to New York City, NY for a board meeting with my bussiness partners.This will take a period of three weeks. And i will need translation from Romanian language into english language and will be meeting with them for 5hours everyday.Please will need to know the exact price and what it will
cost.I hope to hear from you soon.
Yours faithfully.
Leonald Cardo"

It’s pretty obvious that this is no “business language” so I looked it up on the net and I found this: [url removed] .

I’m wondering now: is this guy fishing for prices or for potential victims????

Am I the only Proz member who received this e-mail?

Regards,
Mary