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This is a new (for my family) scam attack that stinks "Nigerian" to high heaven:
My daughter is a struggling graphic design artist that tries to sell her artwork through all avenues, including online. As a result of her activities on Farcebook, she recently received an order for a small art piece from an entity in "Hawaii". They promised to send her a check in advance for a couple of hundred dollars, but today she received the following email:
Quote: Hello,
How are you doing ? Am very sorry for the late response .... My son fell down from the second floor of the building last night and he was rushed to the hospital and i was unable to issue out the check...So i have to instruct my debtor to issue and mail out the payment to you....I had just read from my Debtor,that there was a mistake,because he informed me that he sent out all the amount owing me instead of him to send you the amount for the Item am purchasing from you , I was so mad because i don't know if my money will be safe with you when you get it , I want him to send the remaining of the funds to my art work seller for the art works i needed, but there is nothing i can do....Am counting on your support ,Once you receive the payment you will have it deposited which is going to clear the following day you deposited it..Once that has been taking effect , then kindly deduct the cost of the items also $50 for your self for any inconveniences i might cost you toward the transaction and wire the left funds via Money Gram to my Art work dealer. I will provide you the info where to wire the left funds to once you might have received and confirm the payment.
- Can i trust and have confidence in you ?
- Can you wire the rest of the funds to my Art work dealer via Money Gram ?
Fortunately she had enough common sense to discuss it with me, before taking any action. I told her to ignore all communication with these crooks!
There should be a central authority, set up by an entity like the FBI or Interpol, where these miscreants can be reported!
modified 14-Apr-15 17:36pm.
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That's nothing new. Several years ago my wife listed something for sale on some site and immediately received a whole bunch of emails like that.
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I thought the NSA was the central authority that automatically captured and forwarded messages like these to the appropriate authorities?!
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Oh! Do be careful what you say about the NSA! They can get you IP address, you know! 
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not if you access the interwebs trough 7 proxies 
Life's like a nose, you've got to get out of it whats in it!
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Stefto wrote: not if you access the interwebs trough 7 proxies
Is that like being baptized 7 times in the Jordan river? (supposedly a cure for leprosy, II Kings chap. 4)
If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time - a tremendous whack.
--Winston Churchill
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it's a inside joke from back when Snowden (we were on the subject of NSA right?) was supposed to appear on a conference.
little something to back it up with
Life's like a nose, you've got to get out of it whats in it!
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He who laughs last didn't get the joke... 
Thanks for the explanation.
If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time - a tremendous whack.
--Winston Churchill
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Cornelius Henning wrote: They can get you IP address
Like this[^]? 
You have just been Sharapova'd.
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Cornelius Henning wrote: Do be careful what you say about the NSA!
That's OK; I use one-time computers for my communications
This computer will self-destruct in 30...29...
If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time - a tremendous whack.
--Winston Churchill
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Due to funding cuts from congress, they are the ones sending out these emails.
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Don't be daft!
We're talking about criminals! Criminals can be dangerous!
The NSA's Health & Safety policy states that they're not allowed to put themselves at risk by dealing with criminals or actual ter'r'rists!
It's much safer to bully innocent people, who won't shoot them in the face!
... Yet.
I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!
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You have to look for a particular pattern, in these things.
The scammers are obviously intelligent people, and they have developed a pattern that matches their intelligence:
Step 0: Bu11sh1t.
Step 1: Ask for money.
Any e-mail that follows that pattern is obviously from one of them.
... Or from me. How much have you got?
I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!
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Quote: How much have you got?
Oh I have tons of money. I can let you have around a quadrillion old Zimbabwean dollars! If you shop around, you may be able to buy one whole lollypop with that much! Where do I send it? Just give me your bank account details and sit back and wait for your fortune!
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Cornelius Henning wrote: There should be a central authority, set up by an entity like the FBI or Interpol, where these miscreants can be reported!
Fortunately, for you, there is.
Please send all banking details to NSS (Nigerian State Security), at BankFraud@NSS.ru, so we may safeguard your funds from this type of fraud.
Once you lose your pride the rest is easy.
In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you. – Buddha
Simply Elegant Designs JimmyRopes Designs
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After almost two weeks of digging through procmon logs and using dependency walker, I finally achieved victory this morning! The challenge was to get a deployable installation for existing clients (legacy) to upgrade crystal reports runtime from version 9.2 to 11.0...without using merge modules! It's been awhile since I flipped off and verbally assaulted the screen, especially when it finally submitted...'take that you #$@%'...'!!!
Unfortunately, there was a casualty...my last version of XP on metal. I had arrogantly assumed that my restore points were OK. After trying several rps, (all failed) I noticed that my number of available restore points kept decreasing.  So, now I can either live with a half-baked installation that can't be uninstalled, or rebuild it from scratch...I'm leaning towards the latter. I still use it for a few games and as a test rig...and also for retrieving/exporting our code signing cert, which is my next achievement of the day!
It was down to the wire getting a verification call through to our primary contact person since she has been out of the office and refuses to answer the cell if she doesn't recognize the area code!  Finally, it got done, and I won't have to worry about that again for another two years.
On the home front, I've had strangers in my house for 9 out the last 10 days! The missus decided that the master bath needed an overhaul...new shower/floor tile, new countertop and sinks. They should be finished today! The only downside is that they don't do plumbing, so I'll need to hook up the sinks and toilet...diy is fun right? 
"Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse
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Quote: So, now I can either live with a half-baked installation that can't be uninstalled, or rebuild it from scratch
Restore points cannot be relied upon 100% of the time. What works for me at ALL TIMES is taking an image of my systems drive every now and so often. Have you tried that?
modified 14-Apr-15 16:26pm.
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Good point, but a little late for that.  Vielleicht Das Nachster Zeit[^]
The truth is, I really don't mind rebuilding it. At least I'll get rid of that annoying 'end of life cycle' popup for awhile! 
"Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse
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Restoring an image takes approximately 15 minutes - versus hours for a rebuild?
But as you say: "Maybe next time!" By the way: Being on a fixed retirement income, I am reluctant to contribute to charities. So when the lady at the supermarket cash register asks me: "Do you wish to contribute to this or that charity, my standard response is: "Maybe next time." Perhaps I could permanently shut them up by saying it in German? 
modified 15-Apr-15 7:56am.
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Cornelius Henning wrote: Perhaps I could permanently shut them up by saying it in German?
"Es"?
Not sure how that would help.
Welcome to the fourth grade, by the way.
I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!
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Quote: Welcome to the fourth grade, by the way.
What are you talking about? I never got anywhere near the 4th grade in German! I learnt my German from Kennedy: What is that quote again? ... Oh yes:
"Es gibt ein Berliner!"
Did I get that right? 
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Cornelius Henning wrote: "Es gibt ein Berliner!"
Did I get that right?
"There's a doughnut*"?
Well, if a doughnut is really there, then it's fine.
* "Donut" in blasted-colonial-speak.
I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!
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Quote: blasted-colonial-speak
I am sure Kennedy was speaking "high German", not some "blasted colonial" dialect!
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*nostalgic sigh*
For breakfast in Germany, you get doughnuts (berliners) and paint-stripper coffee.
For breakfast in Italy, you get doughnuts (bomboloni) and paint-stripper coffee.
For breakfast in England, you get sausages, eggs, bacon, grilled tomatoes, black pudding, beans, fried bread, toast, and a cup of tea in a cracked cup.
WTF am I doing in the Netherlands, where the idea of a good meal is either a sandwich with one slice of cheese, or mashed potatoes with veg mashed into them (and not even fried)?
Something has gone very wrong with my life.
Plus side: My wife is Chinese, so she knows genuine Chinese food.
Minus side: My wife is an electrical engineer, so she knows bugger-all about cooking.
I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!
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Quote: Something has gone very wrong with my life
I don't want to be a wise guy, but things could be a lot worse: You could have been trapped in a third world toilet like Zimbabwe! Instead you have a very intelligent wife who is an electrical engineer and you live on the European continent in a civilized country. I would place your standard of living above the 95th percentile on a global scale! Yes, things could always be better for all of us, but reflect on what you have against all possible alternatives.
Also: How difficult will it be for you to move back to the UK?
modified 14-Apr-15 20:45pm.
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