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Having Your Mail Forwarded from Nigeria

Here's an interesting variant on the Nigerian email scam, one that resituates the context into a potential inheritance from a long-lost relative.

My name is Becky J. Harding, I am a senior partner in the firm of Midland Consulting Limited: Private Investigators and Security Consultants. We are conducting a standard process investigation on behalf of HSBC, the International Banking Conglomerate. [full text of the letter in the "continue reading" link below]

Like the Nigerian scam, it's very well crafted, rhetorically speaking: it plays on fantasies about suddent wealth and uses a textual and structural style consistent with the context. Where the Nigerian email used an odd--but ultimately believable--mixture of English-as-a-Second Language constructions mixed in with excessively formal terms, the HSBC scam letter follows business letter format and tone and asks only very innocuous questions. For example, the hook here is a very innocuous one: the writer doesn't actually ask for any sensitive info. They're merely trying to get the reader to start thinking of the possibility of a massive inheritance. Only at a later stage will the mark be asked to forward funds for securing this mythical inheritance. And after people have had that seed embedded in their minds (as with the Nigerian scam), the seed grows to the point that the promise of apparently very near rewards overshadows the security alarms that would normally be going off. Snopes (among other sites) has some useful analysis on this one. [click the "continue reading" link for the full text of the letter] Here's the full letter:

From: b_jharding@midlandconsulting.com Date: March 1, 2004 5:59:12 PM EST Subject: HSBC Private Banking: An Enquiry Reply-To: b_jharding@postmaster.co.uk My name is Becky J. Harding, I am a senior partner in the firm of Midland Consulting Limited: Private Investigators and Security Consultants. We are conducting a standard process investigation on behalf of HSBC, the International Banking Conglomerate. This investigation involves a client who shares the same surname with you and also the circumstances surrounding investments made by this client at HSBC Republic, the Private Banking arm of HSBC. The HSBC Private Banking client died in testate and nominated no successor in title over the investments made with the bank. The essence of this communication with you is to request you provide us information/comments on any or all of the four issues: 1-Are you aware of any relative/relation who shares your same name whose last known contact address was Brussels Belgium? 2-Are you aware of any investment of considerable value made by such a person at the Private Banking Division of HSBC Bank PLC? 3-Born on the 1st of october 1941 4-Can you establish beyond reasonable doubt your eligibility to assume status of successor in title to the deceased? It is pertinent that you inform us ASAP whether or not you are familiar with this personality that we may put an end to this communication with you and our inquiries surrounding this personality. You must appreciate that we are constrained from providing you with more detailed information at this point. Please respond to this mail as soon as possible to afford us the opportunity to close this investigation. Thank you for accommodating our enquiry. Becky J. Harding. For: Midland Consulting Limited. 01/03/2004

Posted by johndan at March 1, 2004 06:20 PM | TrackBack