I got an "IP call" on my phone which meant that I talked to an operator and the customer typed to the operator. It was really awkward. They didn't give me much info but just wanted a price list. I got their email address and gave general starting prices. I requested reception site and date along with general style and flavor info.

Here is the response:

Hello

thanks for the mail so i want you to know that the wedding is going to take place on first of October and i want you to know as well that i want the cake in any shape and i want you to write ....happy wedding... to it and i want the cake approximate 1500$ and i want it in 2 cakes and i will be giving you my card for the charges and i want you to know that you will be charges a total of 1500$ inside my card and you are going to send the remaining fund to my shipper so they can come and do the pick up for the cake so i want you to email me back now so i can forward my card info to you and you can run for the total amount of ..3000$,
so i will be looking forward to hear from you asap.

Thanks
Alicia Tina


I feel like this is some kind of credit card scam...
I won't be doing anything without a whole lot of information. WEIRD! Look out for the loonies you guys!

DEFINITELY FRAUD. Run away! fast!

THIS IS A SCAM!!!


DO NOT- under any circumstances - do ANYTHING!! Do not try and get any more information or send any money or anything. Just delete any further emails and do not accept any more phone calls.

Fraud!!!!

First red flag...the dollar sign on the other end. A lot of overseas frauds are doing this now. Run and never look back!

This fraud is all over Craigstlist. They want to send you a check or in this case a credit card. You take out what's owed to you, then forward the rest on to a "shipper". Total bull!

Please be aware. This fraud is going around in MANY forms.

sounds like one of those nigerian scams.

HA HA! It's kind of funny. Do people really fall for these things??

i saw on dr phil.....seemingly smart people lost thousands.

i got an email from someone wanting me to help them free up thier frozen funds.

yadda yadda yadda...

i mailed them back, and said no thanks, i didn't fall off the turnip truck last night.

It's sad...but I'm sure for every 100 ppl...like 1 or 2 fall for it. Makes me mad. Don't these ppl have a life. Can't they do something else besides scam people out of money. And usually it's people who have very little money that get hit the worst.

All I can hope is that Karma gets the scamming people.

This is a scam funded by our tax dollars. Here is an MSNBC article about it. The phone operators are almost always aware they are participating in a scam, but they are powerless to do anything about it.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/ID/4781806/

I'm interested to see how long they will keep this up. I asked them how they thought they were going to ship a wedding cake.

Response:
Hello

thanks for the mail so i want you to know that what i mean by to cake is the each one should be 750$ and i want 2,and i want this to serve like 800 people and the ceremony will be taking place in wiscosin and yes its october first 2007,so the ceremoney is going to start from 1;00 pm and we are using pink color and for the flavour i dont have any and i want you to pick the best flavour for me and yes i want you to wrire happy wedding is name is SCOTT,so i will be okay with that and here is the shpping agent that will come and pick the cake from your store here is his email address is... [email protected] and his name is .....donaven phillips ,...so i want you to email him and let him know every thing and when he will be coming to come for the pick uo and when you are going to send him the money for the pick up and the cake are going to be delivered in wiscosin,soi want you to email me back now so i can forward my credit card infomation t you and you can run the total charges of 3000$ and you can send the remaining fund to the shippier.

looking forward to hear from you asap

Thanks

Alicia Tina


My response:
You will need to send me a cashiers check for $1610. You will need to arrange shipping yourself as I do not ship cakes. I have never heard of a wedding on a Monday. Why are you not ordering your cake from someone nearby since you don't care what it looks like or tastes like?

Well put indydebi , my thoughts exactly scammers

Once upon a time I worked at a bank and we received "warning" letters from the FBI ALL OF THE TIME about these types of fraud rings. Like everyone already said......this is a scam!! In fact, you should document all of your correspondence (looks like you already have) and call either consumer protection or your local police department.

A co-worker's son, who lives in Florida, recently lost hundreds of dollars to a similar scam. He was listing some furniture on craigslist and was contacted and sent a check, which he cashed at his bank, then he sent the left over money to a shipper, then right after that his bank contacted him that the check was NSF, so he lost out quite a bit of money. Thankfully he had not already shipped the furniture too! FRAUD!

Lots of bakeries in Wisconsin (or "wiscosin" as Ms. Tina so writes or "wrires"). This is ridiculous. And who wants a $750 cake that says happy wedding Scott or two for that matter?

I am so sad to see some of the things that people will fall for. I guess I rely on my common sense to keep me out of these situations, but some people lack that little voice in their head that is setting off the sirens, etc. Any time they are asking you to send them money back, it is a scam. GUARANTEED! I feel terrible for anyone who has been taken advantage of in this manner. It's absolutely disgusting what people get away with.

Oh... by the way, you guys will never believe the email I got today!! The price of Gauzageria wants me to be his sole heir because he's dying and has no children!! So, you guys better be nice to me, because once I send him my bank info I will be rich, rich, rich, and you're all going to want to hang out with me!!! (Yes, I am kidding... but this is one of my favorite scams!! At least they could use the name of a REAL country!!!)

Agree with indydebi! I have a friend from South Africa and he said that the Nigerians are NOTORIOUS for this kind of scam.

BE CAREFUL!

Beth in KY

I can't remember the exact details, but I think this is happening in Sydney also with bigger ticket items - I think it was lounges or raw materials. However the business owner lost a large sum of money i seem to recall.

If someone can't correspond with you via telephone in the correct manner or sensibly via e-mail ( what happened to spell check) just forget about them.

The emails you rec'd are all over the place grammatically, don't entertain these people - just delete it. It is unfortunate that they will move on to the next person who may just fall for it.

Even when I get phone calls and the person on the other side doesn't say hello straight away - I hang up. These telemarketers have a delay and I don't even wait. I just hang up. They are so annoying....

Sometimes when my DD is in the mood she'll mess with their brains and she changes accents so many times - they don't even realise they are talking to a kid. We have a big chuckle. She even pretended to be the Mr. of the family trying to deepen her voice then mid sentence talked normally and said she was the Mrs.

Forward apologies if this behaviour offends anyone....

I don't even open any email that is not known or a return response from correspondence that we have had with businesses.

If you google alicia_tina you will see that she is quite "experienced"! Would contacting my local police really do any good? I don't see that they can do anything.

Wow, who would have thought they'd target a bakery for a scam!! I guess no one is safe, geez... It all makes me so mad, why don't they just go get jobs and work for a living like everyone else!!!!

I'm curious, have they replied to your last email yet?

Quote from REDPANDA : Oh, I know what it is...they only do that at weddings where there is only one person getting married, not two.

Well, have you heard the saying, my name is Scott - 'scott no friends.....

Nope...I'll keep you posted. I don't expect to hear back though. It is so stupid to order something like a wedding cake to be shipped so far and not care what it looks like. DUH! Go to your local bakery.

You'd think they'd teach them to use proper spelling, grammar and puncutation in scammers school!

I searched using the IP address from the email and Surprise...Nigeria! I learned something new though. I didn't know you could get the IP from email.

WOW!
I just had a look at alicia_tina - the whole document is amazing, there a LOT of scammers out there.

It's good if you have the energy to mess with their brains and toy with them.

Just a side note on these scams. Did you know that if you email them back with a remark that you are confirming to them that your email address is valid? They can then sell your "valid" email to even more spammers. As mad as these scam (spam) email make me, I delete them and do not respond. That goes for ones that say, click this link to get removed from our email list. If you haven't requested to be on their list you are just confirming your valid email address by clicking the link.

As for the original post on this thread. I would discontinue all correspondence with them and tell them you are sorry but cannot do their cake. It is obviously not a valid order. Any more correspondence may only encourage them to harass you further.

And EXCUUUUSE me Melvira, but I believe I am the sole heir of the prince of Gauzageria. He wrote me just last week about his millions that are just waiting for me. So step aside dear, I will be the rich, rich popular cake decorator around here!!

I"ve had a few oh those my funds aare frozen scams I document them and send them to the FbI and the postmaster. I got burned on a scam in Indiana where a guy knocks on dooe about 7:30 and says his car is broke down on freeway and wife does'nt get off till 11 blah and could I please help him he just lives across the streer blah blah blah. WEEEEEELLLL I did get took once not again. but you hate to shut down when some really good people need help. This cake thing is absolutely nuts. I think the Nigerians are getting dummer or more desparate!They play on peoples greed.

trust your gut 99% of the time its always right, a few years ago i got a letter it looked real i opened it and it said you have won a brand new big screen tv call for more info so i did. the woman on the other end said i just need your name, address, and social security number i was like i don't give that out over the phone, she said your missing out on millions, i said wait i'm calling about the tv she stayed quite, i said good bye. its sad but we live in a world where most poeple are just out for a quick buck